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FanDuel NBA Picks and DraftKings NBA Picks - Saturday, 5/1/21
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Point Guard
Stephen Curry FD - $9700 DK - $10600
Opponent - HOU
Proj Pts FD - 55.41 DK - 58.77
The Warriors need to be in must-win territory basically for the rest of the season to try and maintain at least for the play-in game or even climb up to the 8th seed. That should leave a lot of minutes for Curry down the stretch He’s coming off a 37-point game against the Timberwolves in which he chucked up 27 shots and made six threes. Over the month of April, the dude has shot 47% from three on almost 14 attempts per game which is just stupid. He’s expensive, but in such a great matchup against the Rockets who completely give it up on defense.
Luka Doncic FD - $10800 DK - $10900
Opponent - WAS
Proj Pts FD - 56.03 DK - 59.04
We might go double-expensive at the point guard position on Saturday with Luka coming back after missing Thursday’s game. He should be good to go in this one and the Mavericks could be without Kristaps Porzingis who left last game with knee soreness. Washington runs the fastest pace in the league this season and they are also working with a bottom-third defense. That leaves them one of the best matchups you can get in in fantasy and Luka has as high a floor as anyone on this slate. He hasn’t shot it all that well from three over the last month at only 33% but he’s still averaging 28 points, eight assists, and 7.5 rebounds in that stretch. He’s going to be a tough fade on this slate.
Shooting Guard
Caris Levert FD - $8100 DK - $8300
Opponent - OKC
Proj Pts FD - 44.13 DK - 44.4
The Pacers could be without a lot of bodies on Saturday when they play the Thunder and Caris has been a guy they’ve leaned on for scoring of late. He took 24 shots against the Nets, putting up 36 points and five assists in the loss. If Indiana is without Malcolm Brogdon in this game then Caris is a near lock in cash games even in this $8K range. He’d handle a lot of the PG duties and the usage rate would put the shot attempts in the 20s once again.
After LeVert, shooting guard is a little dicey without more injury news. Tim Hardaway Jr. (FD $4900 DK $4900) would be in play if he gets the start again and Kristaps is out.
I’d like Dillon Brooks (FD $5200 DK $5900) for a lot of minutes again if Grayson Allen sits on Saturday. The former played 34 on Friday and took the most shots (18) on the team for Memphis.
Josh Jackson (FD $5400 DK $6000) has upside if he gets the run with a lot of the other starters out. But man is it ever hard to trust Detroit.
Small Forward
Kevin Porter Jr. FD - $6100 DK - $7400
Opponent - GS
Proj Pts FD - 33.91 DK - 36.06
It’s silly that Kevin Porter Jr. is listed as a small forward on these sites because he’s just the Rockets’ point guard right now. And man is he ever embracing the role. He’s coming off one of the best fantasy games of the season last time out against the Bucks of all teams when he dropped 50 points and 11 assists on them. He went 16-26 from the field and 9-15 from three. He’s not likely to repeat these numbers, but the usage rate should maintain at a high-level playing without John Wall.
Rui Hachimura FD - $4000 DK - $5000
Opponent - DAL
Proj Pts FD - 24.2 DK - 24.51
Rui was set to have his minutes increase on Friday but then the Wizards came in on the right side of the blowout against the Cavs and the dude only played 23 minutes. But I do think it sets up nicely for him to run a lot against the Mavericks on Saturday for the back-to-back. Hachimura is always going to be way behind Westbrook and Beal when it comes to getting the ball on offense, but he’s just coming way too cheap on FanDuel right now if the run is going to tick up.
Power Forward
Isaiah Stewart FD - $5900 DK - $6500
Opponent - CHA
Proj Pts FD - 31.85 DK - 30.64
He’s going to draw the start again for Mason Plumlee on Saturday with the Pistons resting a lot of their regular starters. In the last three games he started, Stewart is averaging 28 minutes with 14 points and 12 rebounds. He’s also been good for three blocks a game in that stretch as well. The price has climbed some, but not enough. And there’s a good chance he’s facing an undersized starting frontcourt for the Hornets if they play PJ Washington at the five to start.
Oshae Brissett FD - $7000 DK - $5900
Opponent - OKC
Proj Pts FD - 36.39 DK - 35.45
Brissett is a small forward on FanDuel but he’s a PF/C on DraftKings where the price is way too low. The Pacers are still without Myles Turner and Domantas Sabonis is working his way back. They also lost Jakarr Sampson to the concussion protocol and Goga Bitadze is questionable. The Pacers frontcourt is in shambles right now and it’s left a lot of minutes for Brissett if he can stay out of foul trouble. If he’s starting, the DraftKings price is one of the better values on the slate.
Center
Willy Hernangomez FD - $4700 DK - $4800
Opponent - MIN
Proj Pts FD - 31.42 DK - 32.82
This one is easy. Steven Adams has already been ruled out for the game paving the way for Hernangomez to draw the start once again. Last game he played 29 minutes and put up 13 points and 10 rebounds on a near-minimum salary. The price has jumped a bit in the interim, but not enough for what he provides on a fantasy level. He’s still too cheap on both sites with the only concern being if Karl-Anthony Towns gets him in foul trouble early.
Nikola Vucevic FD - $9000 DK - $10100
Opponent - ATL
Proj Pts FD - 50.24 DK - 52.9
If you are looking to spend up some, this is one way to go. Vucevic is coming on the back-to-back after the loss to the Bucks on Friday, but he should be good to go in this game with the Bulls desperately trying to catch the Wizards for the 10th spot and the play-in game. Vuce took a crazy 27 shots against the Bucks but really struggled, hitting only seven of them. That being said, if this is the usage he has the potential for then the price is a bit too low on FanDuel.
