DraftKings, your paradise of DFS nirvana, has done it again with a new contest called NBA Starting 5. You select one point guard, one shooting guard, one small forward, one power forward, and one center. There is no salary cap. The only stipulation is that you must select players from at least two different teams.
For Friday’s Starting 5 slate, there are seven games.
CHI, GSW, SAC and SAS are playing the second leg of a back-to-back. BOS plays on Saturday.
As for injuries, LeBron James, Jayson Tatum, Kristaps Porzingis, Andre Drummond and Al Horford are questionable. Austin Reaves is out. The NBA.com injury site hasn’t been updated all day, so there are many teams and players that are unknown. Keep track of all the pertinent injury updates at DK Live.
On DraftKings Sportsbook, the biggest favorite is BOS -6.5 at home over MIL. The rest of the games are within three points. There are three games with a total of at least 230: LAL/ATL (233), MIL/BOS (230.5) and IND/CHI (245.5). There is one game with a total below 220: ORL/PHI (210.5). There are three home dogs: PHI, SAS and CHI. Log into DK Sportsbook for the updates.
Set your DraftKings fantasy basketball lineups here: NBA Starting 5 $10K Zone [$2K to 1st].
Point Guard
I’m expecting a bounceback game from the Lakers after getting destroyed by 29 and 41 points over the last two games. DK Sportsbook has Atlanta favored by only 2.5 points with the total at 233. Have you seen the Lakers defense? The Hawks are 19th in defensive efficiency, so there should be fantasy goodies. If the Hawks are pushed a bit, then Trae Young could have a ceiling game because he should get plenty of open looks and dish out a smorgasbord of dimes.
Shooting Guard
Derrick White isn’t sexy and he won’t be on many highlight reels, but all he does it produce fantasy goodies. He shoots treys (who doesn’t on Boston?), he grabs rebounds, dishes out dimes and racks up defensive stats. Over the last five games, he’s gone over 30 FPTS in each with three over 40 FPTS. He’s scored over 30 FPTS in the two prior meeting against Milwaukee.
Small Forward
Franz Wagner has simply been amazing over the last 19 games with Paolo Banchero injured. He’s scored over 30 points in seven of those contests and exceeded 40 FPTS in five. Three of those sub-40 FPTS games were the first three games without Banchero, as the team was still adjusting to life without its franchise player. Since then, he’s exceeded 50 FPTS six times with a high of 71 FPTS. The usage rate is over 30% and he just put up 47.25 FPTS against the 76ers on Wednesday.
Power Forward
Jalen Johnson has leveled up in his fourth season in the Association. He’s averaging 20.1 points, 9.9 rebounds, 5.5 assists, 1.4 steals, 1.1 blocks and 1.6 treys. He’s gone over 50 FPTS nine times this season and should feast on either a soon-to-be-40-year-old LeBron James or Rui Hachimura. This game has a healthy total of 233 and it should be an up-and-down affair.
Center
Domantas Sabonis has put up at least 40 FPTS in all but one game this season, with seven over 50 and three over 60. He is tied for the league lead in double-doubles and is third in triple-doubles. He faced the Spurs and Victor Wembanyama two games ago and put up 51.75 FPTS. There’s a chance Wembanyama is out, so he would definitely feast on Zach Collins.
Set your DraftKings fantasy basketball lineups here: NBA Starting 5 $10K Zone [$2K to 1st]
What is the DraftKings NBA Starting 5 Game Style?
- The Fantasy Sports NBA Starting 5 Game Style is a type of contest in which participants draft lineups by selecting one point guard, one shooting guard, one small forward, one power forward and one center. NBA Starting 5 is scored the same way as classic NBA DFS contests.
Important Information:
- Fantasy Sports NBA Starting 5 contests require no salary cap balancing.
- NBA Starting 5 contests span multiple games, and Fantasy Sports participants must select athletes from at least two different teams.
- Participants will see all five positions on the draft screen and must pick one athlete per position.
The Crown Is Yours: Sign up for DraftKings and experience the ultimate host for games and betting experiences!
All odds provided by DraftKings Sportsbook, lines and odds subject to change.
I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is sontzu) 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.
