Daily Fantasy NBA Basketball Picks for FanDuel and DraftKings - 12/23/16

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Point Guard

Russell Westbrook FD - $12800 DK - $12700
Opponent - BOS
Proj Pts FD - 59.88 DK - 63.75
On a slate where OKC plays it's familiar territory for me to tell you that Westbrook projects as our top scoring option of the night. He's definitely a viable option to anchor your cash line-ups but the upward trending price has to make you wonder if that is truly the optimal way to go. I'm not saying it is or it isn't, depending on if enough value opens up; all I'm saying is that you might be able to squeak out a few more points salary-wise by putting in two mid-tier options. Well, enough with that. Russell needs no introduction even my mom is aware that he is having an unprecedented and groundbreaking year. He's scored 67, 73 and 81 points in his last 3 match-ups and it's highly probable he reaches those thresholds once again. The match-up is fairly neutral as Boston ranks 15th against point guards. Just be aware that on a 14 game slate nobody is definitively a must play and even though Westy is going to  put up some digits, be cognizant of the other available options.

Goran Dragic FD - $7500 DK - $7400
Opponent - NO
Proj Pts FD - 38.09 DK - 40.63
The man with the magic, Goran Dragic! Playing nowadays with a chip on his shoulder it seems. I'm pretty sure I just saw him try to trip someone in a game the other day. Well let's get down to brass tacks. Dragic is squaring up with Jrue Holiday and the Pels who just got ran through by Westbrook and company and rank 18th against the PG position. In a match-up I consider respectively neutral expect Dragic to stay the course and keep putting up the stat-lines needed for the Heat to be competitive. The last 5 games he's returned value on his salary 5.7x averaging 41 fantasy points a game. In a competitive game environment we should certainly see the man Goran hanging around that 40 fp marker.

Isaiah Thomas FD - $8200 DK - $7900
Opponent - OKC
Proj Pts FD - 40.82 DK - 43.4
Thomas vs. Westy showdown! This should be a good one as Isaiah is not one to back down from a fight. Just ask Gorgui Dieng when Isaiah tried to step to him! If you read my post the other day and or follow the league action at all you would know that Westbrook exerts most of his energy on offense and conserves it a bit on defense, or seemingly so. OKC is ranked 23rd against point guards and I like Thomas tomorrow to step up big in a competitive game.

Shelvin Mack FD - $4000 DK - $4700
Opponent - TOR
Proj Pts FD - 23.22 DK - 25.67
Here we present you with a decent value option. Proceed with caution here and only deploy if Exum and Hood remain out. As of right now he presents as a high point per dollar option that should see plenty of run if the aforementioned players don't suit up. Last time out he played 34 minutes and scored 20 fantasy points. And this is a pretty decent match-up for Mack getting a Raptors squad that ranks 20th against the point guard position. Look for him to reach around 24-25 fantasy points if the game scripts play out correctly.

Shooting Guard

Josh Richardson FD - $4200 DK - $4800
Opponent - NO
Proj Pts FD - 23.36 DK - 24.96
Doug warned me the SG position was thin and pretty ugly. I wasn't aware it was as bad as Iman Shumpert's pony tail. Josh Richardson is bound to have a breakout game, could it be tomorrow? I'm not saying it is but you never know. All he needs is his shot to start dropping! And with the injuries the Heat have sustained, Richardson has been forced into logging heavy minutes. He's played 109 minutes in the last 3 games. And even though these minutes have yet to correlate to decent fantasy production, I presume when all things are considered that they will. And I won't forget to mention that Richardson gets a juicy matchup with the Pelicans who are awful defending the perimeter and rank 25th against shooting guards. This is definitely a guy to consider as a decent value play who offers upside if his shot is dropping. I'm just trying to convey opportunity cost at a thin position.

Gary Harris FD - $4700 DK - $4900
Opponent - ATL
Proj Pts FD - 27.31 DK - 29.06
As I'll touch on with Jokic later on in the article, Denver got whooped pretty bad against the Clippers last game and these 2 burned a lot of fantasy owners. Recency bias is a real thing in dfs and if you're looking for a guy people probably won't be on that has nice upside, Harris is your dude. If anything going by the numbers, the implied total is 221 and the matchup is against the WORST team in the league against opposing shooting guards. Add to this the fact that Harris will more than likely see over 30 minutes, you have got a decent value play on your hands.

Small Forward

Brandon Ingram FD - $3800 DK - $4100
Opponent - ORL
Proj Pts FD - 23.52 DK - 25.56
Luol Deng FD - $4600 DK - $4900
Opponent - ORL
Proj Pts FD - 27.51 DK - 29.08
I'm lumping these two together as they kind of fall into a similar category. Cheap cap exploitation plays that will see a ton of minutes if Randle, Black and Nance remain out. However, Deng remains the better play of the two, he can actually score. Ingram has got the chance to play plenty of minutes in games of late and most of his points are peripherally contributed. Over the last 5 games Deng has returned value over 6x and is still too cheap for the contributions he has been giving to the Lakers in the starting unit.

Kawhi Leonard FD - $8000 DK - $7800
Opponent - POR
Proj Pts FD - 43.46 DK - 45.7
If you're looking for a slightly discounted player in a positive matchup then Kawhi is your guy. Kawhi is a little cheap around the industry for a player with 50 point upside any given night. And he gets to jump off against an all around woeful Trailblazer defense that unsurprisingly gave up 20 plus fantasy points to the likes of a player like Dwight Powell. Anyways throughout the season Kawhi has produced fantasy points at a 1.2 per minute clip and returned value 5x his salary on average. Even though he's had a rather lackluster 2nd half of the season so far, don't count this guy out to posterize Aminu or even Plumlee tomorrow. At Kawhi's current price point he is a viable option to be deployed in any format.

Robert Covington FD - $5300 DK - $5700
Opponent - PHO
Proj Pts FD - 27.94 DK - 30.85
Here's a guy I call "RoCo" a dude you just love to hate. Covington has 40 point upside and can contribute to the stat line with blocks,steals,assists and rebounds. He also can lay the occasional BIG dud, but such is the game in DFS. However he has been rather consistent over his last 5 games, averaging 33 minutes and 31 fantasy points while returning value a whopping 6x! I think tomorrow is a game we can tap into some of that upside playing a Phoenix squad that plays up in pace and rank 22nd against SF's. I think Covington is best suited for your tournament lines however as he is priced a little on the high side.

Kent Bazemore FD - $4500 DK - $5400
Opponent - DEN
Proj Pts FD - 29.22 DK - 31.24
Another value option to be considered if Dwight Howard were to remain sidelined. Baze has seen 30 plus minutes 3 games in a row and returned over 6x value in 2 of those. This is not a guy with high upside but should be considered tomorrow if Howard remains out.

Power Forward

Jabari Parker FD - $6800 DK - $6800
Opponent - WAS
Proj Pts FD - 35.66 DK - 37.35
What can I say other than I love watching Parker play and that he is really coming into his own as of late. Really emerging into a superior talent that can just put it on the deck and take you to the hole at whim. He's the total package right now and he and Giannis are the heart of this Bucks squad. In the last 5 games Parker is shooting 60% from downtown and getting all the run he can handle. He's returning value and isn't scoring dependent either. He's going to throw down with the wonderful Wizards tomorrow who come in 18th against the PF position. I'm certainly expecting his hot streak to continue and he is definitely viable in all formats.

Nikola Jokic FD - $6700 DK - $6200
Opponent - ATL
Proj Pts FD - 35.62 DK - 37.49
You probably got burned by Jokic last time out and are wondering how he can go from almost having a triple double to not even breaking the cusp of 20 fantasy points. His whole team basically got murdered, nobody produced and on top of that he was limited due to foul trouble. But because of the aggressive nature of Jokic's play, you'll have that from time to time. Aside from that as we look to tomorrow, expect Jokic to be a tremendously popular play if Howard is out. This game features an implied total of 221 points which means there is plenty of fantasy goodness to go around. And really, no matter who starts at the 5 for Atlanta, Jokic should return positive value as long as he stays out of foul trouble. You've got to love those Bigs that can shoot!! Jokic is cash viable if Howard is out, if he's in deploy in tournament format.

Marvin Williams FD - $4300 DK - $4700
Opponent - CHI
Proj Pts FD - 24.11 DK - 25.72
After 12 years in the league Marvin has been relegated to a value play. Williams, now fully acclimated back into the starting line-up after injury is seeing steady minutes just above the 30 mark. He's a guy that can get you rebounds, blocks and drain the deep ball as well. He has a steady floor of around 18-20 but has 30 point upside. Look to this guy to for some positive gains against a Bulls frontcourt ranking 23rd in the league in a game that is set to be pretty competitive.

Center

Hassan Whiteside FD - $9600 DK - $8900
Opponent - NO
Proj Pts FD - 47.64 DK - 49.6
Here is another guy frequently targeted as a top play, as well he should be. We've noted and touched on how there is a good side and a bad side to Whiteside. There seems to not be a whole lot of middle ground, he either goes in and does great or just flops. In the last 5 games we're seeing a steady return of the good Whiteside. He is producing 1.4 fantasy points a minute and returning value 6.1x. He is still a tad underpriced for this matchup that is just ever so conducive to fantasy production tomorrow. The Pelicans are almost dead last in the league when it concerns opposing 5's and you seriously think Ajinca or Asik are going to be able to mitigate the fantasy damage that's coming. I say to you, No way sir! It's definitely a big slate with a ton of options but Whiteside is on my short list of elite plays for cash and tournaments. Roster with confidence tomorrow.

Joel Embiid FD - $7200 DK - $7300
Opponent - PHO
Proj Pts FD - 38.27 DK - 40.35
Man, I totally can't wait for this guy to be off a minutes restriction. And even though the match-up against Phoenix isn't the best, I'm not at all worried. The uptick in Pace of the game should increase Embiid's floor quite a bit to justify the price tag. However, because of the volatility he has shown I'd be super hesitant to deploy him in cash games. If you've watched him play or even read about him, the tournament appeal is real. And I'm just gonna say that I'm going to trust the process and have some exposure to this beast.

Jahlil Okafor FD - $5200 DK - $5300
Opponent - PHO
Proj Pts FD - 27.81 DK - 29.14
The complementary big man to Embiid in the Sixers frontcourt. Although they both start together at the 4 and the 5 they end up playing staggered minutes apart from each other throughout the rest of the duration of the game. Okafor is the cheaper of the two but far more consistent. He has returned value to the tune of 5x his last 5 games versus Embiid's 3.8. Embiid is more expensive with far greater upside and the converse is true about Okafor. Pick your poison. It's a 14 game slate and although there are no concrete locks, all the aforementioned plays should be considered. "The system likes them and the system has been crushing it." -Doug

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