Daily Fantasy Basketball 2015: DraftKings Optimum Lineup Picks for March 18
Common sense would dictate more games help the daily fantasy grind. Creating a DraftKings lineup with 11 NBA clashes on the table proves otherwise.
More choices often leads to tougher decisions, and an overabundance of options causes mistakes. It's a lot easier to miss a trend or injury with more players and squads to research. There's also added opportunities for wild outcomes to ravage potential winnings.
Yet some intriguing matchups are worth the hassle, so let's dive into Wednesday's best plays.
Point Guard
| Chris Paul | @ SAC | $9,700 | Reggie Jackson | @ PHI | $6,400 | |
| Stephen Curry | vs. ATL | $9,400 | Elfrid Payton | @ DAL | $6,200 | |
| Kyle Lowry | @ TOR | $7,400 | Zach LaVine* | @ TOR | $4,000 |
* if Ricky Rubio is out
Fresh off Monday's triple-double against the Indiana Pacers, Kyle Lowry has exceeded 50 DraftKings points in three of the Toronto Raptors' previous four slates. Spending the latter portion of February marred in a slump, some off time replenished him to full form this month.
| 6 | 38.5 | 20.0 | 3.7 | 5.7 | 6.5 | 2.6 | 43.6 |
Those numbers are a far cry from telling the Toronto Sun's Ryan Wolstat, "I'm trash." Speaking of trash, Lowry faces the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The Philadelphia 76ers gift-wrap opponents the most turnovers, assists and rebounds per game. While Reggie Jackson has proved erratic as the Detroit Pistons' floor general, the fearless shooter can also drop 40-50 DraftKings points on any given night, as evidenced by Tuesday night's 59-point outburst.
He'd make an even better play if Greg Monroe doesn't suit up again, but don't let the power forward's expected return deter you from trying a high-upside play in a golden matchup.
Shooting Guard
| Victor Oladipo | @ DAL | $7,700 | Avery Bradley | @ OKC | $5,800 | |
| DeMar DeRozan | vs. MIN | $7,000 | Kentavious Caldwell-Pope | @ PHI | $3,800 | |
| J.J. Redick | @ SAC | $6,500 | Iman Shumpert | vs. BKN | $3,500 | |
| Justin Holiday | vs. ATL | $3,200 |
Staying in Toronto's backcourt, DeMar DeRozan has also snapped out of his funk. The shooting guard is amending a dreadful February with sensational March production.
| 8 | 37.6 | 24.6 | 46.2 | 4.6 | 4.0 | 37.3 |
He'll also enjoy a better matchup than Lowry, as Minnesota ranks last in DraftKings points allowed to shooting guards. There should be plenty of scoring to distribute between Toronto's two guards against the Timberwolves' bottom-rated defense.
Getting a steady uptick in minutes, Iman Shumpert has corralled 20.2 DraftKings points per game through the past 10 days. The Brooklyn Nets relinquish 8.1 steals a night, giving the pick-pocketer a solid chance to hit value at a modest $3,500.
Justin Holiday, however, makes a better low-cost play. According to the Bay Arena News Group's Diamond Leung, Klay Thompson will miss Wednesday and more due to an ankle injury:
The San Francisco Chronicle's Rusty Simmons reported Steve Kerr's early inclination to insert Holiday into Thompson's starting spot:
When Kerr rested Thompson and his other starters against the Denver Nuggets last week, Holiday scored 23 points in 36 minutes. He then amassed 13 points in mop-up duty versus the New York Knicks, totalling eight three-pointers in both bouts.
Small Forward
| Kawhi Leonard | @ MIL | $8,600 | Andre Iguodala | vs. ATL | $4,100 | |
| Rudy Gay* | vs. LAC | $7,300 | Omri Casspi | vs. LAC | $3,800 | |
| Nicolas Batum | @ MIA | $6,900 |
For a daring gamer, particularly a tournament participant, Rudy Gay could pay massive dividends if he suits up. His situation must be monitored, as the Sacramento Kings star is questionable with a knee injury that cost him two games already, per CowbellKingdom.com's James Ham:
Should he receive the green light, Gay gets a Los Angeles Clippers squad ranked No. 29 in DraftKings points yielded to small forwards. He has rattled off monster numbers in George Karl's offense, registering 24.8 points per game in March.
If he's inactive, Omri Casspri should start after submitting 16 points and five rebounds on Monday.
Andre Iguodala could also scoop up some minutes in Thompson's absence. Why not target cheap assets on a team ranked first in pace and second in offensive rating?
Power Forward
| Paul Millsap | @ GS | $7,800 | Brandon Bass | @ OKC | $5,500 | |
| Nerlens Noel | vs. DET | $7,400 | Amir Johnson | vs. MIN | $4,000 | |
| Draymond Green | vs. ATL | $7,200 | Marreese Speights | vs. ATL | $3,000 |
Time for another installment of "Which big man faces the Detroit Pistons?" Although listed at power forward, Nerlens Noel lines up at center for Philadelphia, and the Pistons are a fantasy factory for the 5 spot.
Not regarded for his scoring, Nerlens Noel has mounted 51 points on 38 shot attempts over the last three games, a promising sign for someone who typically needs to fill the stat sheet without the ball. If Philadelphia plays to Detroit's weakness, the rookie should stay hot.
When the Atlanta Hawks last played the Warriors, they reigned supreme in a 124-116 thriller. Paul Millsap contributed 21 points, but Draymond Green retaliated with 20 rebounds. Atlanta's power forward represents a steady play while Golden State's muscle wields major upside.
According to NBAwowy.com, Green's usage rate jumps from 15.9 to 21.0 percent with Thompson off the court. Usually content to handle the dirty work in the background, he'll now rise to the surface on the scoring front.
Center
| Nikola Vucevic | @ DAL | $8,300 | Gorgui Dieng | @ TOR | $5,900 | |
| Andre Drummond | @ PHI | $7,500 | Steven Adams | vs. BOS | $4,000 | |
| Enes Kanter | vs. BOS | $6,600 | Mason Plumlee | @ CLE | $3,200 |
After a concussion slashed his price by $500, a returning Andre Drummond is a strong play against Philadelphia.
Only his Pistons have triggered more DraftKings points for opposing centers than the 76ers, who are tied with the Dallas Mavericks for the most rebounds relinquished (46.1) overall. Before getting hurt on Saturday, Drummond averaged 44.8 DraftKings points through the last six tilts.
He showed no signs of rust on Tuesday night, announcing his return with 16 points, 16 boards and five blocks against the Memphis Grizzlies. Roll with him again before the price normalizes.
In five games back from a hand injury, Steven Adams is averaging 8.0 points, 7.8 boards, 1.8 blocks and 23.3 DraftKings points per contest. A sidelined Serge Ibaka will result in regular minutes from the seven-footer, and the Celtics allow the sixth-most rebounds and blocks as of Tuesday night.
At $4,000, Adams is a stealth double-double candidate in a high-scoring affair.
Over those same five games, Enes Kanter has tallied 19.8 points, 12.6 boards and 39.4 DraftKings points per game. NBA.com/Stats monitors the young center's vast improvement since moving from the Utah Jazz to Oklahoma City:
Both Thunder big men are top choices for Wednesday night.
Advanced stats courtesy of NBA.com unless otherwise noted.
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