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 Saturday’s Starting 5 slate, there are six games.
BOS is playing the second leg of a back-to-back. CHA, CLE, DEN, MEM, MIA, NOP, PHO and WAS play on Sunday as well.
As for injuries, Jalen Brunson, Jamal Murray, Jakob Poeltl, Davion Mitchell, Kelly Olynyk, Ausar Thompson, Marcus Smart, Ryan Dunn, Cameron Payne and Pelle Larsson are questionable. Jaden Hardy is doubtful. Malcolm Brogdon is out. Keep track of all the pertinent injury updates at DK Live.
On DraftKings Sportsbook, there are two double-digit favorites: DEN -12.5 over WAS on the road and NYK -11 over DET at home. There are no games within 3 points. There are two games with a total of at least 230: DEN/WAS (232.5) and DAL/TOR (236). There is one game below 220: PHO/MIA (219). The MEM/BOS game is currently off the board. There Log into DK Sportsbook for the updates.
Set your DraftKings fantasy basketball lineups here: NBA Starting 5 $8K Zone [$2K to 1st].
Point Guard
Luka Doncic averages a robust 1.61 FPTS per minute. He’s a threat to triple-double on any given night and make everyone sing, HalleLuka! On Wednesday, I had concerns that he wouldn’t play a full complement of minutes due to blowout. Dallas won by 36 points and Doncic only played 32 minutes. He still put up 58.5 FPTS. In the prior two meetings, he played 40 and 36 minutes, finishing with over 70 FPTS in each contest. Toronto isn’t great, so blowout risk is high again, but if it can make the game competitive, then a ceiling game is within the range of outcomes, and only Nikola Jokic can match the ceiling of Doncic.
Shooting Guard
There aren’t many at the position that can put up 50+ FPTS, so Devin Booker it is. He’s accomplished the feat five times this season, with two of those over 60 FPTS. With no Kevin Durant, Booker assumes more offensive responsibility. The usage rate bump is only 1.89% without Durant off the court, but that number is still over 30%.
Small Forward
I think Josh Hart can match or even exceed the production of Jaylen Brown. While Brown garners a higher usage rate and will likely score more points, Hart contributes in every statistical category and triple-doubled two games ago. He has back-to-back games with over 10 rebounds and has scored double-digits in every game this season. In addition, Tom Thibodeau plays his guys a ton of minutes, so he could play close to 40 minutes as long as the game is competitive.
Power Forward
Jayson Tatum is the alpha for the Boston Celtics. He’s scored at least 40 FPTS in all but two games this season and gone over 60 FPTS six times. Jalen Williams is the only one who could match the ceiling, but the probabilities are low that he does it.
Center
Nikola Jokic. Don’t get cute. He has the highest floor/ceiling on the slate. He has failed to hit at least 50 FPTS only once this season, while going over 70 eight times, with three of those over 80 and a high of 92 FPTS.
Set your DraftKings fantasy basketball lineups here: NBA Starting 5 $8K 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.
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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.
