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The NBA season continues on Monday with an interesting five-game slate. DraftKings continues to offer huge tournaments for DFS players and below are some of my favorites at each position.
Set your DraftKings fantasy basketball lineups here: NBA $700K Monday Shootaround [$150K to 1st]
Point Guard
Stud
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, OKC vs. UTA, $8,000
Gilgeous-Alexander kicked his season off with 46.25 DKFP against the Hornets on Saturday, but for some reason his salary has dropped $300 since. As expected, the 22-year-old led this new look Thunder team in usage rate (35.8%) and assist percentage (37.5%).
He will be facing the Jazz on Monday who are a middle of the pack defense, ranking 15th in efficiency last season and 13th this year after their first two games. Regardless of the matchup, Gilgeous-Alexander is vastly underpriced and is a great option for both cash-games and GPPs.
Other Options: Kyrie Irving ($9,000, especially if Kevin Durant sits), Ja Morant ($8,300)
Value
Delon Wright, DET at ATL, $4,600
Saturday night, Wright was outstanding, scoring 35.0 DKFP in 42 minutes in the OT loss against the Cavs. Now, Derrick Rose, who has played a large role as the Pistons’ 6th man this season (30 minutes per game and team-high 27.9% usage rate), will be rested for Monday’s tilt vs. the Hawks.
This should keep Wright in an elevated role of around 30-35 minutes in this strong matchup with the Hawks, who ranked 27th in defensive efficiency and fourth in pace a year ago. The combo guard is averaging 0.8 DKFP per minute thus far in Detroit and he should have no issues returning 5x value tonight.
Other Options: Jamal Murray ($7,100), George Hill ($4,500)
Shooting Guard
Stud
James Harden, HOU at DEN, $11,200
With all of John Wall, Eric Gordon, Ben McLemore, Mason Jones, DeMarcus Cousins and KJ Martin Jr. out for the Rockets due to the NBA’s COVID-19 policies, Harden erupted for 79.0 DKFP across 43.2 minutes against the Blazers on Saturday. None of those inactive players will return Monday against the Nuggets and the Rockets will continue to only have nine healthy players available.
Harden should once again play above 40 minutes and post a massive usage rate. If we include his showing from Saturday night, the 31-year-old is scoring 68.9 DKFP per game in his last five with 40-plus minutes. The Nuggets rank as the third-worst defense in the league after their first two contests and Harden should be priced over $12K in this current situation.
Other Options: CJ McCollum ($8,100), Donovan Mitchell ($7,600)
Value
Dillon Brooks, MEM at BKN, $5,500
Brooks has been heavily involved to start the 2020-21 season, posting a 26.7% usage rate for Memphis — only trailing Ja Morant on the team. Furthermore, he has logged over 30 minutes in each of the first two games of the season, helping him to 31.3 DKFP per game.
Brooks is now contributing 29.5 DKFP per game across his last ten and this matchup vs. the Nets should be extremely fast paced, with both clubs ranking inside the top 10 in pace last season. Brooks should be very active in this potential shootout and is simply too cheap for how he has been playing.
Other Options: Bogdan Bogdanovic ($4,700), Grayson Allen ($3,800)
Small Forward
Stud
Caris LeVert, BRK vs. MEM, $6,600
Nothing is official as of Sunday night, but there is a chance Kevin Durant is rested Monday with it being Brooklyn’s second game in two nights. If this does come to fruition, LeVert will need to be in your lineups.
The 26-year-old is scoring a very effective 1.4 DKFP per minute this season and we saw his large ceiling in the season opener vs. the Celtics, when LeVert recorded 45.25 DKFP in only 25 minutes of work. As one of the best scorers in basketball, Durant sees a large usage rate every game and if he was inactive, LeVert would naturally step up as the Nets’ second-best offensive threat. Lastly, he and the Nets are hosting the Grizzlies who were the seventh-quickest unit in the league last year. Even if Durant is active, LeVert warrants GPP consideration in this juicy spot, but if the superstar does indeed rest, he will need to be one of your core plays for this slate.
Other Options: LeBron James ($10,000)
Value
Luguentz Dort, OKC vs. UTA, $4,300
Dort was very successful as the Thunder’s starting small forward Saturday, playing 35 minutes and tallying 28.75 DKFP in the win over the Hornets. With Chris Paul, Dennis Schroder, Steven Adams and Danilo Gallinari all departing this offseason, Dort has a cemented role in this Thunder rotation.
30-35 minutes should be the standard this season for the 21-year-old and he has supplied 24.4 DKFP per game in all the contests he has cracked 30 minutes since the NBA restart this past August.
Other Options: Danuel House ($4,800), David Nwaba ($3,700)
Power Forward
Stud
Michael Porter Jr., DEN vs. HOU, $6,500
Porter Jr. may be coming off the bench right now, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t bring excellent upside every time he hits the hardwood. His 21.75 DKFP performance on Christmas vs. the Clippers was lackluster, but in the season opener against the Kings, the 22-year-old went off for 43.75 DKFP.
He had six outings of 40.0 DKFP or greater inside the NBA bubble and Porter Jr. scored 31.25 DKFP in his last meeting with the Rockets. While I wouldn’t trust him cash-games, Porter Jr. is a contrarian way to attack the Nuggets against the depleted Rockets.
Other Options: Kyle Kuzma ($6,100, if Anthony Davis is out), Al Horford ($6,000)
Value
Jae’Sean Tate, HOU @ DEN, $4,100
With the Rockets shorthanded, Tate logged 37 minutes and chipped in with 23.0 DKFP in his NBA debut Saturday. He did come off the bench, but Tate ranked fourth on the team in minutes logged and was on the floor with the closing lineup for Houston, playing all five minutes of the overtime period.
It remains to be seen if Tate has already earned himself a spot in the starting five, but nonetheless, the rookie should receive at least 30 minutes vs. the Nuggets. Including the preseason, Tate generates 0.77 DKFP per minute and he should top 20.0 DKFP on Monday.
Other Options: Jerami Grant ($5,900), Darius Bazley ($5,700), Royce O’Neale ($4,000)
Center
Stud
Nikola Jokic, DEN vs. HOU, $9,800
Jokic has been a stud to start the season, averaging 63.3 DKFP per game, and I highly doubt we see him under $10K for his next start. The Rockets surrendered the most rebounds per game last season and they should be very vulnerable in the paint Monday, considering they only have only nine healthy players to deploy.
This contest carries a game total of 225 points on the DraftKings’ Sportsbook and the Nuggets will be on their home floor. In the three home games last season that Denver competed in with a game total of 225 points or more, Jokic was tremendous, scoring 56.6 DKFP per game.
Other Options: Christian Wood ($7,200), Jusuf Nurkic ($6,800)
Value
Mason Plumlee, DET @ ATL, $5,700
Plumlee has fit in nicely with the Pistons, providing 31.0 DKFP per game as their new starting center. He has surpassed the 30-minute mark in both of his first games of the season and will almost certainly again on Monday, with Blake Griffin (rest) out for the Pistons and to match up with Hawks center Clint Capela.
This Eastern Conference tilt sports a healthy 225-point game total on DraftKings Sportsbook and Plumlee has a decent chance of notching a double-double against a Hawks defense that gave up the second-most rebounds per game in 2019-20. His price has quickly adjusted after costing $3.7K in the season opener, but Plumlee is still rating as a strong value and, if anything, the new elevated salary could just depress his ownership in GPPs.
Other Options: Clint Capela ($5,900), P.J. Tucker ($4,800)
Set your DraftKings fantasy basketball lineups here: NBA $700K Monday Shootaround [$150K to 1st]
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I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is Hunta512) 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 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.