This is the first of two days packed with college basketball before a break for Christmas. The early slate has some interesting games. There is more star power at night, but still some interesting mid-majors that could hold the key to unlocking the slate. We start off earlier in Louisville with Kentucky in town because this rivalry just needs more time, right?
The regular start time takes St. Joseph's down to Charleston to take on College of Charleston. Wichita State heads up to Kansas City to take on K-State. Georgia Tech takes on UMass in Honolulu. Stanford tips with San Diego State in San Diego. Kent heads to Eugene to take on the Ducks. We have Boise State in Pullman to take on the Cougars. We end this out in Hawaii with Portland getting a little trip to paradise before the holidays in the Diamond Head Classic.
In this article, I will be providing you with my daily fantasy college basketball lineup picks for DraftKings on 12/21/23, starting at 6 PM Eastern. I’ll provide multiple player suggestions at guard and forward, aiming to highlight one option at the high, middle, and lower end of the salary scale. Good luck, RotoBallers.
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DraftKings CBB DFS Guards
Reed Sheppard, Kentucky ($7,700)
Sheppard has shuttled between the bench and the starting lineup, but the freshman has produced no matter how the Cats use him. Sheppard is a terror on defense and does everything well on the court. We have seen him come close to 50 DraftKings points a couple of times this year, even topping it once. Sheppard is a little too volatile for cash games, but he has the upside we covet in GPP formats.
Noel Coleman, Hawaii ($6,900)
Coleman leads Hawaii with 16.9 points per game in the early going and he contributes enough in other categories to give him a solid floor. Northern Arizona is the only team that has held him under 25 DraftKings points since the opening blowout win over Hawaii-Hilo. Coleman's consistency makes him a nice target in this range. If you want a better ceiling, Georgia Tech's Miles Kelly is around the same price but lacks the consistent floor.
Jackson Shelstad, Oregon ($6,000)
Shelstad is still getting plenty of playing time with Jesse Zarzuela out, and with the news that Zarzuela had ankle surgery that will likely end his season, the freshman is locked into a big role. Shelstad has only gotten better in his six games. He was one of the few bright spots in Oregon's loss to Syracuse in Sioux Falls. Expect Shelstad to have a big game against Kent tonight.
Kymany Houinsou, Washington State ($4,600)
Houinsou has infiltrated the starting lineup for the Cougars over the last three games and racked up 20 points, 10 boards, 12 assists, four steals, and four blocks in 87 minutes. That's some really good production, even if it is against lesser competition. Houinsou should continue to be a solid contributor for the Cougars. He won't win a slate for us, but he's not going to lose one either.
Also consider: Colby Rogers, Wichita State ($8,000); Cam Carter, Kansas State ($7,400); Myles Rice, Washington State ($7,200); Chibuzo Agbo, Boise State ($6,700); Vukasin Masic, Portland ($6,200); Xzayvier Brown, St. Joseph's ($5,700); Andrej Stojakovic, Stanford ($5,500); Giovanni Santiago, Kent State ($4,500)
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DraftKings CBB DFS Forwards
Arthur Kaluma, Kansas State ($7,900)
The Wildcats were a disaster as a whole against Nebraska last weekend, so I won't put too much into the low stat lines from that game. Kaluma was cruising before that poor day against Nebraska. The Wildcats should get back on track against Wichita State here. The Shockers have some size up front, but Kaluma's inside-out game is going to pose a problem.
Baye Ndongo, Georgia Tech ($7,500)
Ndongo is another talented freshman on this slate. He has had his ups and downs this year, but I put more stock into the stats he has piled up in close games as opposed to his disappearing act in 18 minutes against Alabama A&M. Ndongo had a monster double-double against Penn State with 12 points and 19 rebounds. The ceiling on Ndongo might be the highest on the slate...just don't look down.
Tyson Degenhart, Boise State ($6,900)
Degenhart has only been under 25 DraftKings points twice all season. Once against a tough Virginia Commonwealth team. The other time was in 23 foul-plagued minutes against Clemson. Both of those games were a month ago. Degenhart has been at or over 30 DraftKings points in each of the last five games. He has scored at least 15 points in all of those games and flirted with a double-double a couple of times. He feels underpriced, even on a slate where the pricing is very close among most players.
Will McNair Jr., Kansas State ($5,300)
McNair didn't make a single shot against Nebraska and he still put up 18.5 DraftKings points. McNair is a great rim protector and solid rebounder. If he scores his normal 7-8 points per game, McNair should get us around 25 DraftKings points. I'll take that for the price. That said, the size of Wichita State up front might cut into his rebounds and blocks a bit.
Also consider: Jaedon LeDee, San Diego State ($9,500); Kenny Pohto, Wichita State ($7,300); Kwame Evans Jr., Oregon ($7,000); Chris Payton Jr., Kent State ($6,500); Quincy Ballard, Wichita State ($5,900); Rueben Chinyelu, Washington State ($5,500); Mahamadou Diawara, Oregon ($5,100)