FanDuel NBA Picks and DraftKings NBA Picks - Friday, 8/21/20

With the playoffs starting to get a bit repetetive with how plays break down, we are going to start going game-by-game with values and considerations. We have more a positional breakdown from Wednesday's picks which will closely mirror these. Let's take a look at each game.

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Raptors (-10.5) vs. Nets (+10.5)

The Nets hung tough with the Raptors in game two, but ultimately Toronto pulled out the game to go up 2-0 in the series. The big news for the Nets here is that Joe Harris left the bubble for personal reasons and the team is left even thinner. Garrett Temple (FD $4900 DK $5100) is likely up for another set of huge minutes coming off a strong 21 points, three assists and three rebounds. He makes for a good value.

Timothe Luwawu (FD $5100 DK $4600) joined the starting lineup in place of Radians Kurucs on Wednesday. He cooled off from three, going only 3-10 but this guy has been a flamethrower in the bubble, shooting 45% from beyond the arc on seven attempts per game. He still makes for a very good DraftKings play.

And finally, for the Nets they’ve shown they can’t live with Jarrett Allen (FD $7400 DK $7100) off the court. He played more than 40 minutes in game two and is averaging 15 points and 13 rebounds through the first two games.

Even though Nets played hard in game two, I’m very concerned with a potential blowout here. Brooklyn is just so thin no without Harris and already got beaten down in game one. Kyle Lowry (FD $8200 DK $7800) and Fred Vanvleet (FD $7900 DK $7600) have played a ton of minutes each in the first two games, but there could be a foot-off-the-gas situation happening here with Toronto with this series likely all but over.

If looking for a cheaper play to round out lineups, OG Anunoby (FD $4800 DK $4600) is playing a lot still.

Nuggets (-2) vs. Jazz (+2)

After an overtime game in the first one, the Jazz won game two in fairly decisive fashion to bring the series even. After going absolutely bonkers in the first game, Donovan Mitchell was merely awesome in game two with 30 points and eight assists. That kind of high usage isn’t likely to keep up with Mike Conley (FD $5800 DK $5900) returning from paternity leave and now cleared for game three. I do think the latter is something of a value on this slate with point guard being something of a mess on FanDuel. But the rest of the Jazz are probably priced out of things with the return of Conley. The minutes, usage and on-ball time is reduced for everyone and the prices only went up.

From the Nuggets, I’m still willing to believe in their fantasy upside here in close games. Nikola Jokic (FD $9400 DK $9300) has all the upside of Embiid on this slate and the price savings on both sites makes him an intriguing pivot. Jokic has averaged 29 points, 11 rebounds, and 4.5 assists per game through the first two. Sure, one included the overtime game, but the second he was burned off minutes in the blowout.

Michael Porter Jr. (FD $6800 DK $6700) is still bombing away and was second only to Jokic in shot attempts in game two. There’s a world where he hits value on these prices still if the three ball is falling and he can get on the boards. But after those two, I’m not finding a ton of value here.

Celtics (-5) vs. 76ers (+5)

After losing Gordon Hayward for at least a couple of weeks, the Celtics didn’t look they missed a beat in game two against the Sixers. They blew out Philly 128-100 and the starters all lost minutes with the game getting out of hand. Things continue to look grim for Philly who have very few answers at this point without Ben Simmons and are struggling to score in general after Joel Embiid.

Like I said in Wednesday’s picks, the Celtics make for a clear team to stack in cash. Jayson Tatum (FD $9000 DK $9200) is a tough fade considering how much usage he’s getting. He’s taken 20+ shots in each of the first two games, dropping 32 and 33 points respectively.

Marcus Smart (FD $5500 DK $5400) represents a mid-tier play that is almost as cheap as you can get safely on these playoff slates. He joined the starting lineup for Hayward and even got up 11 shots in 30 minutes. He’s a cash play again for sure.

And rounding out the stack Kemba Walker (FD $7200 DK $6600) and Jaylen Brown (FD $7000 DK $7200). The price is up on both so it might not be as clear cut anymore. From a cash perspective, I like Brown better but Walker could be locked in at a very weak point guard position on FanDuel.

The Sixers on the other hand, are a total mess. Even with 34 points and 10 rebounds from Joel Embiid (FD $10100 DK $9800), they still lost by 27. Embiid still provides such a mismatch against these undersized Celtics that I’ll go back to him in cash, especially on DraftKings. He’s dominating his minutes on the court against Theis, Kanter and company.

The rest of the team is a mystery. Al Horford moved out of the starting lineup, Alec Burks had his minutes cut in the blowout, and Matisse Thybulle started but can just give you cardio and some defense. For his prices, Josh Richardson (FD $5000 DK $4800) is probably still a play because of the minutes, but the scoring really comes and goes.

Clippers (-4.5) vs. Mavericks (+4.5)

The Clippers got Luka Doncic (FD $10500 DK $10800) into foul trouble on Wednesday and it kind of didn’t matter at all. The Mavericks were still able to win easily 127-114 even with their superstar getting limited minutes. Doncic still finished with 28 points, eight rebounds and seven assists in just 28 minutes. In a close game, without foul trouble, the Mavs will be fine running him close to 40 minutes and even at these crazy prices he’s still a cash game play. The issue is if you can get enough savings elsewhere.

Maximilian Kleber (FD $4000 DK $3900) can have lower fantasy output even with outsized minutes, but he’s still very much a consideration at these prices on both sites. He did run 33 minutes on Wednesday and grabbed 10 rebounds with three assists. He’s not going to ever get any usage, but the minutes are real.

On the Clippers’ side, the news we are waiting on here is the status of Patrick Beverley. He is questionable for Friday after not playing on Wednesday. Beverley sitting would mean another value spot for Reggie Jackson (FD $3500 DK $3500) who played 26 minutes last game in the start. He’d be as close to a punt as we’d hope to get on this slate.

There are other small forward values on this slate which makes Kawhi Leonard (FD $9700 DK $9600) somewhat marginalized, but he’s still got as much upside as anyone not names Luka on Friday.

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