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 Thursday’s Starting 5 slate, there are five games.
No team is playing the second leg of a back-to-back.
As for injuries, Anthony Edwards, PJ Washington, Dwight Powell, Wendell Moore Jr., Cole Anthony and Trayce Jackson-Davis are questionable. Kelly Olynyk is out. Keep track of all the pertinent injury updates at DK Live.
On DraftKings Sportsbook, GSW is -5.5 over ORL on the road with the total at 210.5. DEN is -3 over MIL on the road with the total at 241.5. DAL is -10 over CHA at home with the total at 223.5. PHO is -7.5 over NOP at home with the total at 236. LAL is -4.5 over MIN at home with the total at 224.5.
Set your DraftKings fantasy basketball lineups here: NBA Starting 5 $10K Zone [$2K to 1st] (Early).
Point Guard
Luka Doncic has put up 68 and 69.75 FPTS in the last two games while playing 31 and 35 minutes. While the Timberwolves are a good defensive team and there could be an emotional letdown after Tuesday’s game against the Mavericks, Doncic is just too good and provides fantasy goodies in a variety of ways that’s tough to fade, especially in a format without a salary cap. The floor/ceiling combo is just too high.
Shooting Guard
Trey Murphy III has developed into one of the better players in the league. He has unlimited range but attacks closeouts with ferocity and unmatched athleticism. He is also multi-dimensional, grabbing rebounds, dishing out dimes and racking up defensive stats. Over the last 11 games, he’s put up at least 40 FPTS in nine of those contests with three over 50 FPTS. Now he faces a Phoenix team that is dead-last in defensive rating over the last 10 games.
Small Forward
Zion Williamson hasn’t played 30 minutes since way back in October. He’s also coming off a 29-FPTS game on Tuesday. Prior to that, though, he put up at 45.25, 44.75, and 58.75 FPTS. As mentioned above in the Murphy section, Phoenix is dead-last in defensive rating over the last 10 games, so Zion should feast.
Power Forward
Giannis Antetokounmpo played 24 and 19 minutes when he first returned from injury. He’s still on a minutes limit but has received 32 minutes in each of the last two games, putting up 53.5 and 58 FPTS. That should be the floor with upside if he starts getting back to his normal workload.
Center
Nikola Jokic is on the slate. Don’t be a hero. Don’t get cute. Jokic has the highest floor/ceiling combo on the slate. He’s failed to hit 50 FPTS only six times this season while going over 80 FPTS 11 times, with four of those over 90 FPTS.
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.
