10 games make up Wednesday night's NBA action. All 10 are intriguing for daily fantasy basketball, and setting winning DFS lineups on DraftKings. The Utah Jazz will try and slow down Mr. Triple-Double while James Harden and DeMarcus Cousins are set to clash.
In this article, I will be providing you with my daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for DraftKings on 12/14/16. The DFS lineup picks will range from some of the elite players to mid-priced options and value plays on DraftKings.
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DraftKings DFS Guards
Kyle Lowry - PG, @ PHI ($8,200)
The last time Kyle Lowry faced the Philadelphia 76ers he dropped 24 points, eight assists, and four rebounds. Despite their record, the Sixers have not been terrible this season and have enough young talent to keep games interesting.
Lowry brings a lot of versatility to daily fantasy, and is still not crazy expensive. The talented point guard has nailed at least four from behind the arc and has posted seven or more assists in eight of his last 10 games. As stated above, Philly has not been an easy out, but have still allowed 105.2 points per contest.
Marcus Smart - SG/SF, @ SA ($5,800)
As long as Isaiah Thomas continues to miss action, Marcus Smart is certainly not a dumb play for daily fantasy (see what I did there?). Smart will not blow you away with his performances, but is a more than capable consistent double-digit scorer, and is a generous stat spreader as well. He has played 36 minutes in each of his last two starts at point guard, and will continue to see a boost in court time with Thomas sidelined.
Smart also heads into a surprisingly favorable matchup against a San Antonio Spurs squad that have allowed the second most fantasy points to shooting guards.
Eric Gordon - SG, vs SAC ($5,600)
I'm in the sudden mood to type out all of Eric Gordon's daily fantasy scores over his last 10 contests. 27.5, 25.75, 25.75, 37.0, 30.25, 30.0, 34.25, 29.0, 42.75, 21.5. There's a reason why I did that. If you haven't figured it out yet, take another couple of seconds and reread the 10 scores above. Now that we've done that, I want to say that I wouldn't even complain about the scores in the 20's because of where Gordon's price is listed. He's been consistent. That's all I care about.
The Houston Rockets/Sacramento Kings game is one I'm most interested about on Wednesday night, as it should likely be the highest scoring game, consisting of two teams who try to beat you with offense, and not defense.
DraftKings DFS Forwards
Wayne Ellington - SF, vs IND ($4,500)
With injuries to Dion Waiters, Josh Richardson, Justise Winslow, and Luke Babbitt (I'm a fan of the lists today), Ellington makes for a solid play in what should be a competitive matchup against the Indiana Pacers. During the absence of the aforementioned names, Ellington's minutes have remained steadily in the high 20's and low 30's, and has been a consistent double-digit scorer. Ellington also spreads stats, and has had a tendency to shoot a ton of three's out of the small forward position. He's a solid start until some of Miami's injured players return to the court.
Trevor Booker - PF, vs LAL ($5,900)
When Trevor Booker gets his minutes, he makes each and every one of them count. In every game that he has seen the floor for over 30 minutes, in a span of his last 10 games, Booker has posted a double-double (five while playing over 30 minutes, six total over that span).
Booker is still way too inexpensive for what he's capable, and heads into a mouthwatering matchup against a Los Angeles Lakers ball club that has relinquished the third most fantasy points to power forwards this season. Despite their hot start, the Lakers have become a vulnerable team on the defensive side of the ball, and allow 111.1 points per game (fourth most in the league). The Brooklyn Nets allow the most.
Marreese Speights - PF/C, @ ORL (3,800)
Marreese Speights is certainly a risky start for DraftKings, but has proved that he doesn't need a lot of minutes to post helpful numbers for daily fantasy. In two recent contests, Speights put up 40.5 points in 25 minutes and 26.25 points in only 16 minutes. I wouldn't count that happening on a consistent basis, especially considering he is playing behind both Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan. But he's a very affordable punt with some decent upside.
DraftKings DFS Centers
DeMarcus Cousins - C/PF, @ HOU ($11,600)
Now it's time to spend some big bucks. The last time Cousins faced off against the Houston Rockets he dropped 32 points, nine rebounds, five blocks, and an nailed an insane five of nine attempts from downtown. In that game, Cousins fell into some early foul trouble and played only 30 minutes, so it's scary, and exciting, to wonder how much more damage he could have done. As long as he limits the fouls, Cousins is worth every dollar of his bloated price tag. I recommend stacking heavily for this game.
Rudy Gobert - C, vs OKC ($7,100)
Rudy Gobert has been on an absolute role in the absence of Derrick Favors and Gordon Hayward. Now that Hayward has returned, Gobert may lose some looks and fantasy point opportunities, but that doesn't mean we need to fade him. Gobert has posted a double-double (eight in his last 10) and 40-plus fantasy points in four straight games.
The Utah Jazz have been the best defensive team in the league all season, but it will be interesting to see if they are capable of containing Russell Westbrook. I'm not sure anyone is. Whether they do or don't, this game will be filled with plenty of generous stat lines for daily fantasy.
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