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It’s the first day of the NBA playoffs, and we’re kicking things off with a huge series showdown for a highly-anticipated meeting between the Brooklyn Nets and Boston Celtics. There are umpteen big names in this matchup, meaning you can get a great price on plenty of familiar names.
Without further ado, let’s get into how to construct your Showdown lineups ahead of Saturday evening’s Game 1.
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EDITOR’S NOTE: Celtics PG Kemba Walker (knee) and C Robert Williams (ankle) have been ruled out Sunday vs. the Nets.
Captain
Jayson Tatum ($16,500 CP)
It’s hard to find more guaranteed usage than with Tatum, who has the benefit of playing on a team that doesn’t have two other future Hall-of-Fame players who will need the ball. He’s had a usage rating of at least 37.8% the last three times he’s taken the floor and took 32 shots en route to a 50-point performance against the Wizards in the play-in tournament. There should be little in the way of him repeating that performance given the Nets’ struggles on defense, making him a fantastic play.
Kevin Durant ($15,900 CP)
It’s hard not to go with the best player on the floor at the third-highest salary. That’s what we have here in Durant, who is a stone-cold killer come playoff time. He’s single-handedly powered teams to titles before (as good as Stephen Curry is, the Warriors don’t beat LeBron without KD), and he could do the same here. It’s a similar situation to Golden State, too, where other superstars ceded the ball to KD to carry them in the scoring department. I think Harden and Irving will showcase their playmaking abilities here to get Durant shots, and they won’t see as much usage as they did at times during the regular season.
Set your DraftKings fantasy basketball lineups here: NBA Showdown $20K Pull Up Jumper [$5K to 1st] (BOS vs BKN)
Fades
Payton Pritchard ($4,200)
I am a proud Payton Pritchard Top Shot bag-holder and have always believed this kid was destined to have a great NBA career. With that said, I can’t recommend playing him here. He saw just five minutes against Washington, which is probably a preview of what’s to come here against Brooklyn. With the Celtics likely playing from behind in all of these games, he shouldn’t even be afforded much garbage time run. It’s a lot of money to pay for a guy who we’re not even sure will play more than seven minutes per game
Value FLEX Options
Evan Fournier ($7,000)
Here’s the thing: No one is going to be rostering Evan Fournier, so this is a fantastic shot to take in GPPs. Boston acquired the guard for a reason, and that was with the postseason in mind — the Celtics needed a veteran scorer they could count on. While Fournier hasn’t exactly delivered great play for the Celtics, the one thing you can’t deny is that he’s played a boatload of minutes, and they’re going to be running him out there even more now without Jaylen Brown. Coming off a 36-minute showing against Washington, I think this is a great lottery ticket to buy given the upside he possesses against a bad defense. This matchup could really wake him up.
Tristan Thompson ($5,800)
I’m sorry to recommend three Celtics in this article, but unfortunately, I think that’s where the value lies. We know the Big Three for Brooklyn will play the majority of minutes, and while you will want to try and fit them into your lineups, it’s really murky after that with this team.
Thompson is a proven winner in the playoffs and should see around 30 minutes per game in this series given his playing time all year long and in the play-in game. That should be music to your ears given the Nets ranked 14th in rebounding rate after the All-Star break. Thompson should eat on the glass and therefore provide a pretty high floor game to game.
The Outcome
I do think this Celtics team can use its defense and physicality to take one (maybe two!) of the first three games in this series, but the Nets have too much talent on the offensive end for the Celtics to hang much longer. Once Brooklyn figures Boston out, it will be curtains for Brad Stevens’ side, and it won’t win a game from that point forward.
Prediction: Nets win the series, 4-2
Set your DraftKings fantasy basketball lineups here: NBA Showdown $20K Pull Up Jumper [$5K to 1st] (BOS vs BKN)
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I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is jetsfan196) and I 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.