The NBA season officially kicks off tomorrow and we couldn’t be more excited. We’re rolling over the Five Lists of Five into the NBA landscape to provide your weekly dose of fantasy tips.
I know the season doesn’t start until tomorrow, but here are some stashes we can already start considering.
Stash ’em
Shaedon Sharpe, SG, Portland Trailblazers
Sharpe is a third-year pro who was supposed to play for Kentucky but didn’t. Despite not playing, he still went number seven in the draft and posted a decent rookie campaign. Injuries to the Blazers towards the end of Sharpe’s rookie season resulted in an uptick in playing time for Sharpe, who took full advantage of the opportunity and ended the season on a high note. Sharpe was disappointing in the following season as he battled injuries, but he’s a reasonable stash right now. He’s young, has upside, and the Blazers are interested to see what they have in him.
Mitchell Robinson, C, New York Knicks
Mitchell Robinson still has not fully recovered from his ankle/foot injury during the Knicks’ series against the 76ers in the first round of the playoffs last season. His return timetable comes with a January estimate. If you can afford it, I’d highly recommend stashing Robinson there until he returns. He no longer has the starting center job, but backing up Karl-Anthony Towns should still leave Robinson in rosterable territory. Towns has historically struggled with racking up unnecessary fouls, and who better to take advantage of the opportunity than this talented shot-swatter?
Noah Clowney, PF, Brooklyn Nets
Look away, Nets fans. Let’s face the ugly, honest truth. The Nets made the same mistake they did a decade ago with the Garnett/Pierce trade and the James Harden/Kevin Durant/Kyrie Irving experiment, mortgaging their future for hopes of immediate title contention. Neither of these moves worked out, and now Brooklyn is stuck in no man’s land with Cam Thomas leading the charge. Nic Claxton is the player who gets all the attention here in Brooklyn’s frontcourt, but what about Clowney? He’s only 19, and while he didn’t post particularly eye-popping numbers during his 23 games played last season, you have to wonder how much playing time he’ll get this season. Clowney’s a long shot, but stash away for a couple of days. Just see what happens. I’m intrigued.
Dalton Knecht, SG, Los Angeles Lakers
Bronny James has been getting the bulk of social media attention this Summer, but Dalton Knecht has been impressive this preseason. Knecht has spun the block around a few schools during his collegiate career but has found a home in LA with the 17th pick. His ability to space the floor is valuable for the Lakers, who have struggled with fielding competent floor-stretchers these past few seasons. Knecht is, on paper, a nice fit with LeBron James as a perimeter threat and tertiary (or quarternary) scorer for the Lakers. If he plays well into the regular season, JJ Redick could favor slotting him into a favorable role, both for the Lakers as well as your fantasy squad.
Donovan Clingan, C, Portland Trailblazers
Clingan impressed during UConn’s March Madness run and was selected seventh overall by the Portland Trail Blazers. He impressed during preseason and is worth a flier on the last spot of your bench, boasting potential big numbers in rebounds, blocks, and FG%. It’s always nice to stash these rookies if you can; they’re unproven, yes, but they come with such steep discounts that it’s typically worth the risk if trades get made. Just look at Walker Kessler’s first season in Utah.
Set your DraftKings fantasy basketball lineups here: NBA $750K Opening Tip Off [$200K to 1st].
All odds provided by DraftKings Sportsbook and all odds subject to change.
I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and do not constitute a representation that any particular strategy will guarantee success. All customers should use their own skill and judgment in building lineups. I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.
