RADIO
We've got a massive slate on Wednesday after a mini-slate on Tuesday that still had it's share of studs for such a small slate. That said, there's no LeBron, Anthony Davis, or Giannis tonight. Instead, James Harden is the lock in stud for tonight's slate, with Damian Lillard, and Myles Turner as my other major building blocks. With fewer players above the 10K price threshold, there are a lot of mid-priced options that will need to be navigated through on Wednesday's slate.
There are also some game stack options tonight, with the Suns-Clippers and Lakers-Rockets matchups at the top of the list but Pacers-Hawks and Bulls-Magic also on the radar. That means there's a lot to get to on the slate so without further ado...
In this article, I will be providing you with my daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for FanDuel on 12/20/17. The DFS lineup picks will range from some of the elite players to mid-priced options, and value plays on FanDuel.
FanDuel DFS Guards
Austin Rivers - PG, vs. PHO ($5,800)
Rivers’ price remains around $500 to $600 too cheap after a poor performance in his return from injury as he shot just 4-for-15 from the field. More importantly, he immediately returned to his normal minutes workload as he saw 32 minutes on the floor. On Wednesday, Rivers will have a chance to exploit the Suns in what should be a viable game stack matchup.
Damian Lillard - PG, vs. SA ($8,800)
The Spurs aren’t usually a matchup to target, but Lillard is priced down among inflated the inflated options of Chris Paul and Russell Westbrook. He is priced just ahead the likes of Kyrie Irving and Kris Dunn, the latter of which is especially intriguing on tonight’s slate, but their price also seems too high. That leaves Lillard as my favorite elite point guard on the slate. As alluded to, the Spurs are generally a tough matchup but they are actually vulnerable to opposing point guards. As a result, Lillard should be charged with keeping the Blazers in the game and is a nice option on Wednesday’s slate as a result.
James Harden - SG, @LAL ($11,100)
Harden is my free square for the night. His price is down $1,000 from a week ago thanks to several consecutive “down” performances, but only one of those games set up to really be a good spot for him a this price tag. That out of the way, tonight is quite the opposite as the Rockets’ implied team total is six points higher than their season average. This matchup should be in game stack consideration with Harden at the center of it.
Other DFS Guards to Consider: Jeff Teague -PG @DEN ($6,400), Kris Dunn- PG vs. ORL ($7,900), Kentavious Caldwell-Pope- SG, vs. HOU ($5,600)
FanDuel DFS Forwards
Jonathon Simmons - SF, @CHI ($6,600)
With the mass of injuries that has hit the Magic, Simmons has had a big bump in usage. Over his past five games his usage rate has been 26.52%, 33.52%, 27.54%, 23.41%, and 29.94% respectively. In those same five games, he has gone 5X once, 6X twice, and 7X once. Tonight, that usage should remain and Simmons will be in a smash spot against the Bulls.
Rudy Gay - SF, @POR ($5,600)
The Spurs will be shorthanded on Wednesday as Kawhi Leonard will be out once again. While Kyle Anderson is probable, he will almost certainly be on a minutes restriction after missing two weeks. That said, even if Gay isn’t starting, he should be in line for big minutes against a team that struggles to defend wings. He has seen a dip in usage lately, but with Tony Parker and Kawhi Leonard that should open up a bit for him on Wednesday.
Dragan Bender - PF @LAC ($3,500)
Bender is absolutely a punt play only in tournaments. However, he has seen between 28 and 30 minutes in each of his past three games, so he has seemingly carved out a role in the Suns rotation. This is the Suns we’re talking about, so nothing can be certain in that regard. Assuming he does get minutes, Bender is in for a positive matchup against the depleted Clippers which should allow him to produce. Though just one example, Mike Scott began his recent run of hot shooting against this team. Bender is far from a sure thing, but is a potential punt play worth highlighting on this slate.
Julius Randle - PF @HOU ($5,500)
Randle should be one of the biggest beneficiaries of the Brook Lopez injury, as he should finally see consistent minutes. That will make his 1.01 FD points/minute valuable, as if he simply kept that pace he would provide 5.5X value. However, he will also be in a high paced matchup that should see the Lakers put up points putting him firmly in play while his price remains deflated.
Note: Kyle Kuzma ($5,400) saw perhaps the biggest bump in minutes on Monday due to Lopez’s absence and is also in play.
Other DFS Forwards to Consider: John Collins -PF vs. IND ($5,700)
FanDuel DFS Centers
Myles Turner - C, @ATL ($7,600)
Turner is coming off the dud of all dud performances, as he took just three shots on Monday against the Celtics and didn’t hit any of them. While any performance that poor shouldn’t be expected from a talent of Turner’s level, the Celtics have been the toughest team to opposing center this season, allowing under 30 FD points per game on average. That said, Wednesday presents the ultimate get right spot for him as the Hawks consistently get torched by opposing centers. In fact, over their past ten games, opposing centers produce an average of 50.1 FD points.
Other DFS Centers to Consider: Nikola Vucevic - C @CHI ($10,000)
