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The week kicks off with another simulated basketball Showdown contest on DraftKings. This round about is the New York Knicks hosting the Brooklyn Nets at virtual Madison Square Garden. Here’s a link to the contest and be sure to check out the rules before locking in your lineup. Let’s get into some picks to help you craft said lineup.
Captain’s Picks
I like this contest because it’s two less-than-stellar teams, so we can easily pick out a captain. Kyrie Irving ($15,900) is the no-brainer. His price is pretty low and the injuries he’s endured this season give him less variance in this format. The chances of rolling a solid box score are higher with Irving since he’s only played in 20 games this season. I would probably start most lineups with Irving and work my way out.
Other viable options include Spencer Dinwiddie ($15,000), Julius Randle ($14,400) and Caris LeVert ($11,100). I like LeVert mostly because of what he was doing in the later half of the season before the break. LeVert was on an absolute tear carrying the Nets with Irving sidelined. That job was normally bestowed upon Dinwiddie but he took a back seat to LeVert, who is much cheaper in the Captain than your other options. Randle is an OK play, but really only to give us some leverage off of the Nets guys.
FLEX Options
Let’s start out with some value, shall we? Reggie Bullock ($1,600) is stupid cheap and was playing a decent amount of minutes before the League went on break. He’s started 19 of 29 games he’s appeared in this season, which is obviously a pretty decent ratio. Elfrid Payton at $5K is a bit more expensive, but we don’t really need to pay up for multiple studs in this contest, we have only one. Payton has a nice floor given his ability to rip down rebounds and rack up assists. Because of that, he’s a decent value option.