A ton of great PG’s with great matchups today, but my favorite is probably John Wall ($9,200). I think he’ll be under-owned and Wall has had a great start to the season, scoring 53.75 and 40.75 DraftKings points out of the gate. I was impressed by Wall last night against Milwaukee has he started very slow and “only” had 15 DraftKings points at the half. He finished strong with 10-1-4-2-1 in the second half to post a fine day in a tough matchup. Wall and Wizards head home for the first time this season and get a tasty matchup with the New York Knicks. The Knicks have been shredded by the likes of Michael Carter-Wiliams, Greivis Vasquez and Jeff Teague this season. John Wall is going to be their toughest matchup yet.
He will be a popular pick but Ish Smith ($4,500) is finally listed as a member of the Pelicans on DraftKings and he’s much too cheap. Smith only needs 27 DK points to hit 6x value, which he has done in both game this season. You don’t have to look back too far to see the success Smith had against the Warriors just a few days ago. Smith scored 17 points while distributing 9 assists in route to 38.5 DraftKings points in the season opener. Smith is coming off the bench for the Pelicans, but with Jrue Holiday on a minutes limit, he should see 25+ minutes every single night and more if he’s effective.
Jerian Grant ($3,600) should be on your radar. The rookie has played 24 and 29 minutes in the two games this season and can fill up the stat sheet in a bunch of different ways. His 5-7-7 line from Thursday night is one indication of that skill-set. He’s scored 6x value in both games this season and his price hasn’t budged as he heads into a great matchup against Washington which should prove to be a fast paced, high scoring game. You should probably keep an eye on Aaron Afflalo’s status as well. His presence in the lineup isn’t directly tied to Grant’s minutes, but I’d prefer to roster Grant if Afflalo was out again.
The Shooting Guard position is complete garbage today. I suspect a ton of owners will go cheap at the position or chase points rostering Bradley Beal ($6.200). I am really tempted to pay up for Eric Bledsoe ($7.300). I imagine his ownership will be dismal and even though he is a volatile player, he has shown ridiculous upside at times. He scored 40+ DraftKings points on 28 separate occasions last season and one of his highest scoring games of the season (61 points) was against Portland. This game has a healthy O/U and Bledsoe leads the Suns in scoring. He’s a very intriguing GPP play.
I don’t love targeting players from a game with an O/U set at only 191, but Alec Burks ($4,800) is an exception today. An outstanding start for the youngster who has played 26 and 27 minutes, scoring 18 and 15 points and racking up 27 and 26.25 DraftKings points for his owners. Burks is actually benefitted from NOT starting since the entire offense runs through him on the second unit. If he were to start he might slip to the 3rd or 4th scoring option. Burks only needs 24 DraftKings points to hit 5x value and he’s certainly a threat to hit 6x.
I am paying up for one (or both) of Carmelo Anthony ($8,700) and Paul George ($8,100). They both get it done in different ways, but they both get it done. Carmelo’s value is more closely tied to his real point scoring, but this is a guy who knows the entire offense runs through him and he’s not afraid to jack the ball every time it touches his hands. A massive 27 FGAs on Thursday night shows how much upside Anthony has. Paul George on the other hand, is a more balanced threat who can tack on the secondary statistics and flirt with the double-double and triple-double bonuses. An impressive 38.5 DraftKings points against a tough MEM team in his last start. Utah is still a tough matchup, but George should see plenty of success tonight.
I really like Al-Farouq Aminu ($4,600) tonight as a value option at the position. He’s played 31 and 32 minutes in the first two games so the opportunity is there. An impressive 24 and 32 DraftKings points including a double-double against PHO last night. Guess who he gets tonight…that’s right, Phoenix!
I love the two short charts above. It’s a fairly simple equation. The Suns provide little resistance to scoring in the paint and that is where Aminu has made his living. Fire him up.
While Anthony Davis ($10,400) has turned in some decent stat lines this season, he has left a lot of “meat on the bone” when it comes to fantasy outputs. The Warriors did an excellent job defending Davis in the opener, but this is a league of adjustments. Expect the Pelicans to deploy some new ways to get Davis the ball down on the block instead of out on the perimeter. This game has a massive total with NO only listed as a five point dog. Davis is going to have to be the entire offense in this game and I am expecting a big day.
Speaking of guys who aren’t afraid to shoot the ball, enter Markieff Morris ($6,200). Morris got back on track last night with 31 DraftKings points while heaving 17 shots and hauling in 8 rebounds. He was a matchup nightmare for POR who, of course, he faces again today. His front-court mate Tyson Chandler offers very little offensive prowess, so expect Morris to shoulder the load when they are out there together. Morris is a high risk play as he’s capable of pulling the stunt he did on opening night, gathering five fouls in just 11 minutes and spending the majority of the game on the bench.
The center position is fairly straight-forward. It’s Demarcus Cousins ($10,000) and Festus Ezeli ($3,100) as the two best plays. Cousins is simply an animal who has dominated out of the gates. He’s shredded both LA teams and now gets to face the Clippers again tonight who he dropped 32-13 on just a few nights ago. If you can afford him, Boogie has the upside to be the highest scoring player on the slate today. On the other hand, Ezeli makes for an excellent value play, as he is slated to start again today for Andrew Bogut (concussion). Ezeli has returned his owners plenty of value in the first two games with 23 and 22.25 DraftKings points. With a price tag this low, he’s going to be hard to stay away from.
That’s all folks! A six game slate kicking off at 7pm EST with some great options out there. Lots of teams already facing each other for a second time. Commentary based on DraftKings strategy and scoring.