I don’t know about you, but I’m pretty happy that DraftKings decided to not include the 11:00 p.m. ET contest between the Thunder and the Blazers on their featured slate this evening. I need my beauty sleep, man.
That leaves us with five games on the docket. Let’s break them down and find a few must-starts for your NBA DFS lineups.
Set your DraftKings NBA DFS lineups here: NBA $300K Fadeaway [$100K to 1st]
SF Franz Wagner, Orlando Magic at Sacramento Kings, $9,000
While Wagner’s one of the most expensive assets on this slate, he remains a few rungs below Giannis Antetokounmpo ($11,400) and Jayson Tatum ($10,100) when it comes to salary. As such, there’s still some value here. Not only has the former lottery pick registered over 50.0 FPTS in each of his last two starts, but Sean Sweeney has not been afraid to leave his top option out on the floor early in the season. In fact, over his last five contests, Wagner is fourth in the NBA in touches per game (90.2) and first in the league in minutes per game (38.9). All the volume is amazing in a vacuum, but Wagner’s allure on this slate is also about his matchup. The Kings rank 28th in defensive rating, surrendering over 120 points per 100 possessions. Woof.
PG/SG Darryn Peterson, Utah Jazz vs. Miami Heat, $6,800
Peterson’s exceeded 40.0 FPTS in each of his past two starts, including dropping a career-high 26 points in Sunday’s loss to the Timberwolves. Now, he’ll get the opportunity to square-off with an uptempo Heat squad, and he’ll do so without Keyonte George (ankle) playing alongside him. The guard has been ruled out on Tuesday, and so far this season, with George off the floor, Peterson’s seen his usage rate jump to 27.5% and he’s produced 29.2 points per 100 possessions. That added offensive responsibility is enough to make the former second-overall pick viable at his price below $7,000; however, a matchup with Miami only makes things more tantalizing. The Heat rank third in the NBA in pace (102.9) and 26th in defensive rating (116.8).
C Brook Lopez, LA Clippers at Phoenix Suns, $5,000
Lopez is almost 15 years removed from his lone All-Star appearance, but that doesn’t change the fact that the 38-year-old is playing like a guy who wants to be traded to a contender at some point this season. The veteran big has started the last three games for the Clippers, and in that span, he’s averaged 17.3 points, 7.0 rebounds and 1.0 blocks. It’s a stretch where he’s also exceeded 30.0 FPTS twice. Still, the real appeal for Lopez on this slate is his primo matchup against the Suns. Phoenix is incredibly undersized, and unsurprisingly, that’s translated into some real issues. Notably, the Suns enter play on Tuesday ranking dead-last in the NBA in rebounding rate (44.6%) and 29th in defensive rating (120.6). Look for Lopez to take advantage.
