DraftKings contributor Nick Friar and Rotowire’s Nick Whalen join The Sweat to give their favorite DraftKings value plays for tonight’s NBA slate.
Watch today’s entire episode of The Sweat below!
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Video Transcript
Emerson Lotzia:
We had Mavs guard Jalen Brunson as the highest scoring player on Monday’s slate, he dropped 41 points, eight rebounds, five assists—I believe he was the first player in franchise history to score that many points without committing a turnover in a playoff game. That is ridiculously impressive. So that was good for nearly 66 DK fantasy points, Friar—cost only $7200 in salary. So where can we find that kind of value tonight?
Nick Friar:
If you’re looking in that $7K range, I would say Deandre Ayton would be my guy to go with. I know D’Lo, there’s a little bit of upside there after a slow first game, but Ayton would be the guy I want to go with.
But if we’re talking strictly value plays in that lower range, obviously, it’s a little tougher to get those guys at that lower price. I know Boogie Cousins provided a little bit of value last night, but I’m not able to find that guy in that $3K range that I really, really love tonight. I think Danilo Gallinari and Malik Beasley are two guys in that higher $4K range that will be good options.
With Gallinari, he saw less minutes in the first game, but he saw the higher end of his shooting in terms of shots that he’s had over the last few weeks or so heading into the postseason—I know he averaged like 9 field goal attempts per game this season, he was at 12 last game. So that’s what he’s coming in to do, he’s coming in to score, and for the Heat, as much as he’s probably part of their equation for them to stop, he’s not their top priority.
And then Malik Beasley, I like him too. I know he got more minutes last game, shot a little bit more than Gallinari and shot better—that $200 difference, I could go either way on one of them being my favorite.
If you need a super-saver—again, tough to get into that $3K range—but Jaden McDaniels at $4K, got a lot of minutes in that first game relative to a role player. I think if you’re getting that from a guy that cheap right now in the postseason, that makes him a good option to bolster the bottom of your roster.
Nick Whalen:
I have a few value plays I can throw out there. I like the Ayton call—not a true value, of course, but I think we’re going to see a renewed emphasis on the glass for the Phoenix Suns, because the Pelicans shot under 40% in that Game 1, but they were still in it. It was down to six or seven points in the fourth quarter, mostly because they were crashing the glass. Valanciunas had 25 rebounds in that game and had 13 offensive boards. So I think we see an emphasis on Deandre Ayton getting a body, making sure that they’re preventing Valanciunas from having another game like that.
I think a lot of people are going to gravitate to Desmond Bane, he’s at $6400, a pretty good price relative to the upside that he’s shown throughout the regular season.
I always like Onyeka Okongwu at $5,000—maybe not the highest ceiling, you’re not going to get 66 DK fantasy points out of him, but he should play a larger role without Clint Capela.
And then Brandon Clarke. I’m not convinced he plays as many minutes as he did in Game 1, but he had 36 DraftKings points in 27 minutes, he’s priced at just $4400 tonight.
Nick Friar’s Picks: Deandre Ayton ($7,200), Danilo Gallinari ($4,900), Malik Beasley ($4,700), Jaden McDaniels ($4,000)
Nick Whalen’s Picks: Deandre Ayton ($7,200), Desmond Bane ($6,400), Onyeka Okongwu ($5,000), Brandon Clarke ($4,400)
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