Brooklyn Nets guard Kyrie Irving reacts from the bench during the first half of an exhibition NBA basketball game against the Sesi/Franca Basketball Club, Friday, Oct. 4, 2019, in New York. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)
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Opponent - MIL
Proj Pts FD - 57.12 DK - 58.23
With Harden out today, it's going to be a race to try and fit Kyrie and Durant together. Chances are good you won't be able to play both, though, so some tough decisions will have to be made. Both were similar in terms of their fantasy points per dollar on these prices, and while Kyrie has a tougher match-up than KD, he also played more minutes. My guess is that Kyrie is slightly more important given that he'll assume most of Harden's ball-handling duties, and given the cheaper price point I'd like to have him out there.
Opponent - BKN
Proj Pts FD - 41.81 DK - 42.17
Most point guards are flat-out unplayable today, so if we don't get a chance to play Mike James (more on him in a minute), we might be "stuck" playing Jrue. I actually like Jrue at this price point, and going up against Kyrie is a terrific match-up, but if we spent $18k on point guards we live ourselves very little for the other positions, which makes things very tough on a two game playoff slate where most players are efficiently priced.
A fundamental question for today's slate is what will happen with James Harden's minutes. Brown started the second half for the Nets, but it was Mike James who played 31 minutes total. If James gets the start, he's a terrific DFS play. I could also see playing Brown if he gets the start, though it would be a little closer.
Opponent - DEN
Proj Pts FD - 47.51 DK - 49.7
Opponent - PHO
Proj Pts FD - 23.72 DK - 24.41
Normally I wouldn't lump these guys together, but there are essentially no other options at the position today. Neither Brooklyn nor Milwaukee will field a starter that qualifies at shooting guard on FanDuel, and if Bruce Brown does get the start he's not exactly cheap at $5.9k. Yep, we might just have to grina nd bear it here.
Opponent - BKN
Proj Pts FD - 41.68 DK - 43.43
Middleton was just terrible in game one, shooting 6-23 from the field and 0-5 from three. And he still managed 32.6 FanDuel points. I'd say that's the floor for him at this point, and on paper this should be a fantastic match-up for him. I'm certainly ready to give him another chance against arguably the weakest defensive team left in the playoffs.
Opponent - MIL
Proj Pts FD - 26.1 DK - 27.74
We have a lot of options at small forward today, but I liked what I saw from Harris in game 1. First of all, the price is right, and allows you get at least one superstar at another position. His opportunity is baked in with the Bucks selling out to stop Durant and Irving, and he shot an easy 7-11 from the field in game one. I suspect Mike James' minutes are at risk, and that Nash and the Nets would prefer some of his looks were in Harris' hands as well. I like the floor you get for the price here.
Play KD if you can, but you might not be able to.
Opponent - MIL
Proj Pts FD - 28.81 DK - 29.9
Starting my DFS lineups with Blake Griffin like it's 2015. Blake was outstanding in game one, posting an unfathomable 18/14 line with serviceable defense against Giannis. He was involved in nearly every hustle play, grinding like an undrafted rookie playing for a contract. And he's cheap! This is just a clear cut play, and Griffin could be 100% owned here.
Opponent - DEN
Proj Pts FD - 29.32 DK - 30.2
Opponent - PHO
Proj Pts FD - 30.75 DK - 31.18
This decision is really close from where I sit. Both Crowder and Gordon were great in a few games of their opening series, and terrible in others. Both Crowder and Gordon can pop off on the scoreboard or the boards, and both can disappear for long stretches while their teams lean into their primary scoring options. With a gun to my head I'm going to take Crowder (just because he's cheaper), but would be happy with either in my cash game lineups.
Opponent - DEN
Proj Pts FD - 36.26 DK - 37.37
Lopez is too expensive for what he brings to the table, and Jokic is too expensive to fit into the lineup alongside the other plays you really want out there. Ayton was very bad from a DFS perspective in the last two games of the Laker series, but there's a chance he has an easier go of it here against a less defensively inclined Denver front line. They'll also need him a heck of a lot more to defend Jokic, and we could see high 30s minutes of action here.
I don't think we can afford Jokic, but he's obviously a great play if you can, and he'll present a totally unique set of challenges for Ayton all day.
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