The season is still young so there are things that will eventually change. But for right now, it is a completely legitimate question on whether or not you should draft LeBron James or DeMar DeRozan. Despite DeRozan’s blistering start to the season, he’s still not putting up King James numbers, but the difference is Nate Robinson small. If these two aren’t your favorites to build around, Damian Lillard and Karl Anthony-Towns will gladly take their places.
In this article, I will be providing you with my daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for DraftKings on 11/15/16. The DFS lineup picks will range from some of the elite players to mid-priced options and value plays on DraftKings. If you have any questions or comments, feel free to reach out to me on Twitter @vladewet.
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DraftKings DFS Guards
Ricky Rubio – PG, CHA ($5,700)
In Rubio’s two games back from injury he has total of 10 rebounds, 16 assists, and four steals. People still seem concerned about the fact that Rubio has trouble hitting the backboard with his shot, but he is one of the best guards in the league at rebounding, getting steals, and dishing the ball. The Kris Dunn experiment has to be scaled back so he can catch up with the speed of the game. In the interim Rubio should get his usual minutes and should put up his usually reliable production. Before he goes on an assists streak and gets priced in a different category it would be worth getting on the Rubio train as he showcases his skills to eventually become trade bait for Minnesota.
Lou Williams – SG, BKN ($5,600)
Right now Lou Williams is having the best year of his 12-year career, but he’s still consistently being priced less than or as much as his two backcourt mates, D’Angelo Russell and Jordan Clarkson. All three guards have created a decent rotation of big time shots and timely drives to the basket. But as of now, Williams is the one with the most value because he consistently gives the greatest return on investment.
Kent Bazemore – SG/SF, @MIA ($5,000)
In order, Bazemore’s last five scoring totals are 0, 20, 25, 3, and 17. He has epitomized inconsistency to start the season. But when you couple his total average of 11 points per game with three rebounds, three assists, and two steals per game it begins to become clear why he’s priced where he is. Paying 5k for a player that scores no points is the nightmare of all daily fantasy players. The risk is always there with Bazemore but he’s poised to have the best season of his career. If you can be the one to guess which nights he puts up his big numbers than you deserve every cent of your winnings.
DraftKings DFS Forwards
Justise Winslow – SF, ATL ($5,500)
Supposedly Winslow has been playing hurt this entire season. Despite that he’s still averaging 12 points, five rebounds, four assists, 1.6 steals, and half a block a game. The guy plays a lot of minutes and is expected to do a little bit of everything. He’s basically been able to live up to his daily fantasy cost every night except for one. If this how Winslow plays when he’s injured maybe he should think of bruising his wrist a little more so his shooting can rebound from the cellar. Unless the second year player truly just can’t shoot, his scoring total should only go up, because his 33% shooting from the field has to go up.
Julius Randle – PF, BKN ($6,600)
Randle had eight assists, two steals, and two blocks in his last game. He only managed eight points, but the overall production level has been excellent for the third-year forward. Los Angeles doesn’t have much skilled size so Randle is expected to do a lot of the dirty work, and he does just that. He has only had one night where he’s gone below 22 fantasy points scored despite the fact his scoring fluctuates all over the place. The Nets will be coming off a back-to-back on a West coast road trip so any and all Lakers have the potential to have a big night.
Marvin Williams – PF, @MIN ($5,100)
Williams has had his three most productive nights of the season in his last three games. Despite the fact that Charlotte’s frontcourt has become healthy after missing a few guys, Willliams’ production and minutes have remained about the same. This is encouraging because if he can continue to get the opportunities he should be able to improve on his 40% shooting from the field and be slightly more productive.
DraftKings DFS Centers
Dwight Howard – C, @MIA ($7,200)
Dwight Howard is having a bounce back season so far after some less than stellar play in Houston and Los Angeles over the last few years. He has a double-double in every game he’s played over 20 minutes. In the one game he didn’t play 20 minutes it was a blowout against the Sixers, and the one game he didn’t have a double-double he still had 17 rebounds and three blocks. While there will inevitably be a few nights where his aging body won’t be able to keep up the pace, he has shown that his back and other issues haven’t followed him to Atlanta. There are only a few points difference between Dwight Howard’s fantasy production and other centers like Hassan Whiteside and Karl Anthony-Towns. He is significantly cheaper than those two and should do just as well.
Brook Lopez – C, @LAL ($6,100)
Brook sat out Monday night against the Clippers so that he can be rested to play the Lakers. The Nets are not using the big man in back-to-backs so he can actually play a whole season for once. Lopez is averaging 22 points over his last five games. While his rebounding numbers are down he makes up for it with 1.6 blocks per game and he can all of a sudden shoot threes pretty consistently. Brook Lopez isn’t the cheapest option out there but in three of his last four contests he’s gotten over 35 fantasy points making him worth the cost.
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