The NBA All-Star Game heads to Atlanta, where we will see Team LeBron and Team Durant go head-to-head. DraftKings is offering up some huge showdown GPPs and below I give you some of my favorite options to attack for the format.
Set your DraftKings fantasy basketball lineups here: NBA $500K All-Star Showdown [$100K to 1st] (ASG)
EDITOR’S NOTE: 76ers C Joel Embiid and PG/SF Ben Simmons (health protocols) have been ruled out for tonight’s All-Star Game.
Showdown Strategy
Captain’s Picks
James Harden ($14,100 CP)
Despite leading the East in All-Star votes and drafting his own team for the game, Kevin Durant (hamstring) will not be suiting up for his 11th All-Star game. This leaves Harden as the unanimous top option for Team Durant. With his teammate watching from the sidelines, Harden should lead the way and put on a show Sunday night, as both a scorer and distributor. The former Rocket currently leads the NBA with 11.1 assists per game and Harden could easily rack up 20 dimes in this game considering the elite talent around him and lack of defense that will be played in this spectacle.
He produced a ridiculous 1.8 DKFP per minute in his final two starts before the All-Star break and as one of the most durable players in the NBA, Harden should be one of, if not the leader in playing time on Sunday night. The superstar has been proving his haters wrong on a nightly basis this season and I think we see Harden contend for his first NBA All-Star MVP award.
LeBron James ($13,800 CP)
Even at an older age, James is more than capable of posting a huge stat line and powering his team to a win on Sunday. The future Hall-of-Famer posted 23 points, six assists and five rebounds in a two-point victory over Team Giannis in Chicago last year and should be well-rested after sitting out his first game of the season on Wednesday night. The 36-year-old owns three NBA All-Star MVP awards and ranks third in all-time All-Star scoring among NBA players who have played in at least three All-Star games.
Coming at a discounted price compared to both Harden and Giannis Antetokounmpo ($14,700 CP), James stands out as the best captain value on the board.
UTIL Plays
Bradley Beal ($7,200)
Beal is having an unbelievable season and will be starting in the All-Star game for the first time in his career. He was one of the notable snubs from last year’s All-Star selections and the 27-year-old should be highly motivated to prove that his starting selection was well deserved. Prior to the All-Star break, Beal scored over 50 DKFP in six of his final 10 starts and was shooting the ball at a 56% clip during this stretch.
Beal is the second-cheapest starter available tonight and his instant offense should translate to him finishing as one of the best values in this All-Star tilt.
Zion Williamson ($4,600)
Williamson missed Thursday’s matchup vs. the Heat with a toe injury, but the 20-year-old is expected to be available to play in his first All-Star game. Hopefully, the “Q” tag next to his name on DraftKings will make some shy away from Williamson in this pickup game setting that is perfect for his skill set. With minimal defense on display at every All-Star Game, these stars want to make high-flying dunks and alley-oops and we should see a bunch of signature throwdowns from Williamson.
Before sitting out Thursday night, the Pelicans’ star forward was playing his best basketball of the season, amassing 49.9 DKFP per game in his previous six starts before the break. NBA players always want to produce big numbers in their All-Star debut and Williamson shouldn’t disappoint.
Chris Paul ($3,800)
Paul being the third-cheapest option in the player pool is absurd to me. For the second year in a row, James purposely drafted Paul, who is one of his best friends in the league, and regardless that he isn’t the coach, James will make sure that the point guard gets significant minutes, possibly in the closing unit. At the 2020 All-Star Game, Paul was Team LeBron’s leading scorer off the bench with 23 points, while also chipping in six assists and two rebounds across 25.3 minutes.
The 35-year-old is going to receive a much larger opportunity than his salary would suggest and I believe Paul is a primary value for this showdown slate.
Fades
Ben Simmons ($6,000)
Given the Sixers’ success this season and his pivotal contributions on both ends of the floor, Simmons deserved to be an All-Star, but his game simply isn’t built for this setting. The defensive-minded playmaker is only averaging 35.5 DKFP per game over his past five and we all know Simmons won’t be involved in any of the deep shooting that will take place on Sunday night. A total of 44% of the shots at the 2020 All-Star Game came from beyond the arc and Simmons has only made two 3-pointers in 31 games this season.
The 24-year-old is way overpriced at $6,000 and is my least favorite option in DraftKings’ All-Star player pool.
The Outcome
While Team LeBron looks to be the far superior team on paper, Team Durant is still stacked from top to bottom, even with their namesake inactive. As noted above, I expect Harden to ball out and the combination of him and current NBA MVP favorite Joel Embiid (+200 on DraftKings Sportsbook) should be magical.
Kyrie Irving, the 2014 All-Star MVP, also always takes this contest seriously and I am sure he would love to take down his ex-teammate King James. Predicting this volatile game can be tough, but I think we see Team Durant pull off the upset and attacking their favorable odds (+145 ML on DraftKings Sportsbook) feels like the best move from a betting perspective.
Final Score: Team Durant 160, Team LeBron 155
Set your DraftKings fantasy basketball lineups here: NBA $500K All-Star Showdown [$100K to 1st] (ASG)
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