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 four games.
WAS is playing the second leg of a back-to-back.
As for injuries, Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, Caris LeVert and Jarred Vanderbilt are probable. LeBron James, Tyrese Haliburton, Rui Hachimura, Ziaire Williams, Gary Payton II, Miles McBride, Tre Jones and Gabe Vincent are questionable. Stephen Curry and D’Angelo Russell are out.
On DraftKings Sportsbook, GSW is -1.5 over ATL on the road with the total at 229.5. NYK is -14.5 over WAS at home with the total at 221.5. MIL is -2 over SAC on the road with the total at 229.5. LAL is -10.5 over CHI at home with the total at 231.5.
Set your DraftKings fantasy basketball lineups here: NBA Starting 5 $6K Zone [$2K to 1st].
Point Guard
With Domantas Sabonis out with injury, Malik Monk has seen an uptick in usage rate of around 1%. On Thursday, Monk garnered a 30% usage rate and finished with 44.25 FPTS. In the two prior games, he put up 48 and 50.75 FPTS. Sabonis is out again, so Monk will continue to carry a lot of the offensive load. Once known purely as a scorer, Monk has become a better playmaker, dishing out a plateful of dimes. That increases the fantasy floor.
Shooting Guard
This position is gross, but I think that allows for a good differentiation spot. It’s risky, but Brandin Podziemski could match or exceed the FPTS production of everyone else at the position. With Stephen Curry unlikely to play, Podziemski should play a ton of minutes and have plenty of opportunities to rack up fantasy goodies. Atlanta plays fast and eschews defense, so the environment should be a friendly one.
Small Forward
Small forward is also gross. While DeMar DeRozan will likely garner the highest usage rate, I’m going to side with Josh Hart here because of his ability to stuff the stat sheet, in what should be a fantasy-friendly environment. Washington is sixth in pace and 19th in defensive rating over the last 10 games.
Power Forward
Now, usually I’d say don’t get cute, just click on Giannis Antetokoumpo. Jimmy Butler makes for a very interesting pivot, though. Antetokoumpo has the higher ceiling if everything breaks right, but it’s also well within the range of outcomes that he finishes in the 50-FPTS range. I could see Butler matching that, especially with Stephen Curry unlikely to play, and the Hawks play fast while not being great at defense.
Center
I do like Nikola Vucevic, but with no salary concerns, I have to side with Karl-Anthony Towns. Without Jalen Brunson, Towns garners a usage rate close to 30%. We know Thibs is going to play him a ton of minutes and the matchup is a good one, as Washington is sixth in pace and 19th in defensive rating over the last 10 games.
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.
