Daily Fantasy Basketball 2014: Best NBA FanDuel, DraftKings Lineup for Dec. 3
As it turns out, Wednesdays are good for more than just TV commercials about camels.
Usually the busiest day of the NBA week, Hump Day is perfect for daily fantasy basketball. That will hold true once again this week with 10 games on the slate, including several potential high-scoring battles.
It's always smart to make some adjustments based on late inactives—for example, using Cory Joseph and Kawhi Leonard when Gregg Popovich benches a quarter of his team 20 minutes before tip—but let's take an early look at some lineups for Wednesday.
DraftKings ($50,000 Budget)
| PG | Greivis Vasquez, TOR | at UTA | 4,300 |
| SG | Bradley Beal, WAS | vs. LAL | 5,700 |
| SF | K.J. McDaniels, PHI | at MIN | 5,600 |
| PF | Zach Randolph, MEM | at HOU | 7,900 |
| C | Andre Drummond, DET | at BOS | 8,000 |
| G | Mo Williams, MIN | vs PHI | 5,700 |
| F | Brandon Davies, PHI | at MIN | 3,000 |
| UTIL | Kobe Bryant, LAL | at WAS | 9,400 |
| Total | 49,600 |
This lineup features a blend of stars and sleepers, with three of eight players costing at least $7,900 and the rest falling under six grand. You can't afford to miss on your studs when you put together a lineup of that nature, and that makes Andre Drummond, Zach Randolph and Kobe Bryant especially important.
Randolph has been a double-double machine and should see very little resistance against a Houston Rockets frontcourt without Dwight Howard or Terrence Jones.
I originally had Pau Gasol, who is an absolute steal for $8,200 with the way he's been producing, but his 50 minutes during Tuesday's triple-OT thriller against the Mavericks were enough to scare me away.
Bryant hasn't been a model of efficiency, and the Wizards have played good defense this year, but you can't pass up his ridiculously high usage (highest in the league among qualified players) and ability to fill up the box score.
Drummond is the riskiest of the three—his slow start to the season and two-point, seven-rebound performance from Sunday are proof of that. But he's going to have his way against a weak Celtics frontcourt. Per NBA.com, Boston has allowed the fourth-most field goals inside five feet and the most from five to nine feet, the sweet spots for the athletic 7-footer.
As for the sleepers, it's best to find players with easy matchups. Four of the remaining five selections are up against the Los Angeles Lakers, Minnesota Timberwolves or Utah Jazz, the NBA's three worst teams in defensive efficiency.
Injuries that lead to higher usage are also a good way to find bargains.
Mo Williams and Greivis Vasquez have seen their usage skyrocket after injuries to Kevin Martin and DeMar DeRozan. Williams is averaging 16.0 points and 10.3 assists in his last four games, while Vasquez has averaged 15.5 points and 6.0 assists in his two starts without DeRozan.
The latter is a trend likely to continue, as NBA.com's Tas Melas noted:
To a lesser extent, K.J. McDaniels' role has increased due to the injury to Tony Wroten. The well-rounded athletic rookie has logged 30-plus minutes in three straight games, averaging 16.3 points, 9.3 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 1.7 blocks over that span.
FantasyInsiders.com's Dave Loughran put it rather simply:
Lastly, Bradley Beal is too tough to pass up against the Lakers' woeful defense, while Brandon Davies is contingent on Nerlens Noel's status. If Noel doesn't play (he's questionable), Davies will likely get another start, making him a steal at the minimum $3,000.
FanDuel ($60,000 Budget)
| PG | John Wall, WAS | vs. LAL | 9,000 |
| PG | Greivis Vasquez, TOR | at UTA | 3,900 |
| SG | James Harden, HOU | vs. MEM | 10,600 |
| SG | Kobe Bryant, LAL | at WAS | 9,200 |
| SF | Terrence Ross, TOR | at UTA | 4,800 |
| SF | K.J. McDaniels, PHI | at MIN | 4,700 |
| PF | Thaddeus Young, MIN | vs. PHI | 6,500 |
| PF | Nikola Mirotic, CHI | at CHA | 4,800 |
| C | Gorgui Dieng, MIN | at PHI | 6,400 |
| Total | 59,900 |
Much like the first lineup, this one features three stars. This trio has a bit more potential, however, replacing Randolph and Drummond with John Wall and James Harden.
As NBA's Twitter feed pointed out, Wall is filling up box scores unlike any other player in the league:
Against the Lakers, he'll be able to do whatever he wants.
Harden, on the other hand, struggled last time against the Memphis Grizzlies, but here's what he has done in the last six games without Howard, who is doubtful to play: 38.0 minutes, 18.0 shot attempts, 28.0 points, 5.8 rebounds, 6.5 assists, 2.3 steals and 1.3 blocks. You play him whenever you can afford it, and this is a night with a lot of value to be had elsewhere.
Howard, via The Associated Press, talked about Harden's ability to put the Rockets on his shoulders:
"He's doing a great job of getting everyone involved, finding people late in the shot clock, attacking the basket and making plays. (He's) been a little bit more scrappy. He's rebounding, He's doing everything.
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The Timberwolves, who have lots of shots to go around without Martin and are up against the winless 76ers, are a good team to stack Wednesday night. Thaddeus Young and Gorgui Dieng are particularly attractive for their price range.
Dieng played just 20 minutes during Monday's blowout loss against the Los Angeles Clippers, but he is averaging 7.9 points, 7.7 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 1.9 steals and 1.1 blocks with Nikola Pekovic sidelined.
In the Raptors' first two full games without DeRozan, Terrence Ross has scored 20 points in each contest. Remember, he poured in 51 when DeRozan left a game in the second quarter last year, and he and Vasquez should continue to absorb a lot of DeRozan's team-leading 16.2 field-goal attempts per game.
James Johnson is also a nice sleeper pick if you want to further go down the sans-DeRozan route. Banking on the starters is a bit more risk-aversive, though.
Finally, Nikola Mirotic is fantastic value ($4,800) as long as Taj Gibson remains sidelined. He has been playing extremely well lately, and the Charlotte Hornets are in the bottom 10 in both defensive rating and rebounding percentage.
