Daily Fantasy Basketball 2015: DraftKings Breakout DFS Rookies and Sleepers
We're almost a quarter of the way through the season, and some of the top rookies have made serious impacts.
We all know about Kristaps Porzingis and Karl-Anthony Towns, but others like Utah's Raul Neto, Denver's Nikola Jokic and Philadelphia's T.J. McConnell have made positive impressions for their respective teams.
But rookies are volatile. Their minutes fluctuate, they get into foul trouble and their confidence gets rattled (unless they're Mario Hezonja).
So the question is: Who will have a good game tonight?
Stanley Johnson ($4,200) vs. Bucks
Johnson is a long, athletic swingman who was born in 1996. He can't quite shoot at the NBA level, but his game should improve rapidly. For now, he has to rely on his size and quickness to score points, but he should develop a league-average jump-shot soon enough.
Johnson disappointed his fantasy owners in an overtime game against Phoenix on Wednesday, posting just 11 fantasy points in 21 minutes off the bench. It was the Marcus Morris show. The former Sun went for 52 fantasy points against his twin brother Markieff and former team.
That should throw people off the scent with Stanley Johnson, who had 42 fantasy points the game before against Houston.
As a nice kicker, the Bucks allow the most fantasy points in the league to opposing small forwards, according to DraftKings.
Little Potential in the Battle for New York
There are three notable rookies in tonight's Knicks-Nets game.
Kristaps Porzingis is on fire. He's recorded double-doubles in four of his last six games. He is a rare player who gets blocks and three-point bonuses. But he's really overpriced. He's $500 more expensive than Nets center Brook Lopez, who outscores him by nearly six fantasy points per game.
Jerian Grant, the other Knicks first-round draft-pick, is extremely inexpensive at $3,100. Unfortunately, starter Jose Calderon has played the vast majority of the minutes and the Knicks have too many good frontcourt options to consider running out a two point-guard lineup. Grant is a fine punt play in a Guaranteed Prize Pool, but he's not a safe bet to hit 15 fantasy points.
Rondae Hollis-Jefferson had a solid run of three games last week in which he didn't score fewer than 30 fantasy points, but his production dipped again this week, as his minutes dropped back to between 20 and 25. I'd like him if it were an uptempo matchup, but the Knicks' triangle offense tends to bog down both sides.
Tons of Value in the Nation's Capital
According to J. Michael of CSNMidAtlantic.com, Marcin Gortat is out. Nene Hilario is also questionable with a tweaked calf and Drew Gooden is likely out with a calf injury.
Look for the Wizards to go extremely small and run with the Suns. I love Otto Porter, Kris Humphries and Jared Dudley to play a full helping of minutes at power forward and center.
The Suns backcourt just gave up 34 points and 16 assists to Reggie Jackson. At $8,300 and coming off two monster outings, John Wall is severely underpriced. Brad Beal should hit value as well.
On the Suns side, Markieff Morris is questionable with a left knee bruise. If he doesn't play, I love them to go small and give T.J. Warren most of Morris' minutes. Warren can flat-out score. He's averaging 19.6 points per 36 minutes this season, according to Basketball-Reference.com.
The Suns backcourt won't disappoint in a favorable matchup. The Wizards are one of the worst defensive teams in the league this year and both teams play fast, according to Basketball-Reference.
Other Sleepers
Wes Matthews ($4,600) vs. Rockets, Tyreke Evans ($6,800) @ Cavaliers, Michael Carter-Williams ($5,100) @ Pistons, Ty Lawson ($3,900) @ Mavericks, Norris Cole ($3,200) @ Cavaliers, Robin Lopez ($4,000) vs. Nets
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