It’s all about the planning. For as much as we may think we know heading into a slate there are equal parts that are simply unknown.
With just a six-game slate on Wednesday our options are a little more compressed than last night. To make matters worse we need to monitor the injury statuses of Lebron James ($9,800 DK, $10,500 FD), Kawhi Leonard ($9,300 DK, $9,900 FD), and Jimmy Butler ($7,500 DK, $8,000 FD). James is once again questionable with an ankle injury. I feel like a broken record with him so far this season but you can never be so careful with the status of any pieces of your lineup, let alone a star. James is coming off his best game of the young season on Tuesday with 29 points, nine rebounds, and six assists while playing 36 minutes. Both Leonard (recovering from eight stitches due to a mouth laceration) and Butler (sprained ankle) didn’t play on Tuesday so I would proceed with caution even if they are in the lineup.
For those who have yet to subscribe, what are you waiting for? Until then you will get one free pick to whet your appetite. I don’t like to talk about injuries in term of opportunity, but it is something that can’t be ignored. With Ja Morant sidelined for the next month someone has to step up for the Grizzlies. On Monday that was Dillon Brooks ($6,200 DK, $6,700 FD) and while his job doesn’t change (he was already in the starting lineup) his role increases. Brooks had his best game of the season with 24 points, seven rebounds, and four assists against the Nets on Monday and he should continue to be the go-to scoring option for Memphis. This is especially amplified with Jaren Jackson also sidelined.
Subscribers can now expect us to continue digging into today’s slate. Where will we find tonight’s bargains below $6,000? So, keep on going and take a look at what we have to offer. This is just the beginning though. For a one-time fee of $99 per year we have all sports covered here including NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB, PGA, NASCAR, and League of Legends. We know how profitable these picks can be so you can even try it out for one month for free.
Whenever we see his name on a slate we have to discuss Giannis Antetokounmpo ($10,800 DK, $11,000 FD) but the star is not performing at the level we had become accustomed to. Milwaukee did limit Antetkounmpo to just 24 minutes in a blowout victory against Miami who they face again tonight but the forward only scored nine points although he did add six rebounds and six assists. I wouldn’t let it scare me away too much but there are other directions I feel more comfortable going in.
One of those directions includes the other truly obvious superstar of the night in Luka Doncic($10,700 DK, $11,400 FD) who fared quite well in Dallas’ blowout victory on Sunday over the Clippers. That led to Doncic playing just 26 minutes but the dynamic guard still came close to a triple-double with 24 points, nine rebounds, and eight assists. He has gotten off to a strong start this season despite struggling from behind the three-point line as one of the most dynamic players there is.
You could argue that there is another superstar who receives the same level of attention, and two years ago that would have been the case. When he is on the court I’m not sure we can continue to ding Kevin Durant ($8,400 DK, $9,500 FD) for missing all of that time as he is averaging 26.7 points per game along with four rebounds and 3.3 assists as a main part of Brooklyn’s offense. But there are two factors that push me in Durant’s direction even more tonight. At 123 it appears the Nets have the highest implied point total of the night and we have also seen Durant’s price on Draft Kings decrease by $1,000 since his last game against the Hornets when all he did was score 29 points in 36 minutes prior to resting on Monday in the second half of a back-to-back. For what it’s worth, Kyrie Irving ($8,900 DK, $9,400 FD) only saw a $200 drop and he has been equally as effective to start the season.
We need to keep an eye on the starting lineup but it appears Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot ($4,000 DK, $4,200 FD) will remain in the starting lineup following the season ending injury to Spencer Dinwiddie. The swingman played 40 minutes on Monday and he didn’t disappoint scoring 21 points while adding six rebounds.
To start I would prefer to see Tyus Jones ($5,200 DK, $5,800 FD) priced a little cheaper as he replaces Morant in the starting lineup but he is still a good bet to generate a positive return on investment. Jones was already playing about 15 minutes a game and Monday was the first game where he saw his workload doubled and then some to 35 minutes. The point guard responded with a well-rounded line of nine points, five rebounds, and four assists which is a solid production floor.
There is no question as to who is in control of the Boston offense and Jayson Tatum ($8,600 DK, $9,200 FD) continues to take on a bigger role. He has yet to score less than 20 points or record less than seven rebounds so far this season and he is averaging a robust 25.5 points and 9.3 rebounds per game and we will likely see Tatum’s price continue to climb. Between him and Durant it is possible to build a strong lineup without going over $8,600 for a player on Draft Kings.
That leads me to the center position where it really comes down to Jonas Valanciunas ($7,700 DK, $7,500 FD) or Jusuf Nurkic ($6,700 DK, $6,700 FD). Valanciunas is averaging and recording a double-double in each game to begin the season with 14 points and 13 rebounds per game while also benefitting from the absence of Jackson. Nurkic is slightly less prolific averaging 11.7 points and 8.7 rebounds per game and in his last game he scored 10 points along with 12 rebounds in 26 minutes of play.
One of my favorite targets so far this season has been Dejounte Murray ($6,100 DK, $7,300 FD) and while he struggles shooting from the field, Murray is still highly involved in San Antonio’s offense as their point guard averaging 15 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 7.3 assists per game.
Granted Butler was sidelined for Miami yesterday and his status for today is unclear but I have no qualms about going back to the well with Tyler Herro ($5,400 DK, $4,500 FD). After starting the season off slowly Herro came alive on Tuesday as he led Miami in scoring with 23 points along with seven assists. Your eyes from yesterday didn’t deceive you as Herro is now $300 cheaper on Draft Kings.
It has been a slow start to the season for Lou Williams ($5,200 DK, $4,600 FD) but we know that he is a steady contributor and the first option off the Clippers bench. Williams is coming off his best game of the season on Tuesday that saw him score 20 points in 20 minutes off the bench while also adding three rebounds and five assists.
One rookie to watch has been Payton Pritchard ($3,400 DK, $3,500 FD) who played a career high 27 minutes in Boston’s last game. With Jeff Teague struggling the rookie has taken advantage of his opportunity and he is coming off a 10 point, five rebound, and five assist performance last night.
