Daily Fantasy Basketball is back, which means each day XN Sports will have a column detailing advised plays and lineups for the remainder of the NBA season. For those familiar with DraftKings, their daily fantasy basketball is formatted differently this season. There is no multi-position eligibility, which makes it a bit harder to set your lineup.
For those unfamiliar with DraftKings, you are given $50,000 in cap space to select a point guard, shooting guard, small forward, power forward, center, a guard, a forward, and a utility player. There are no points deducted for missed shots, which changes the strategy from other sites. To read the full scoring, click here. Keep in mind that a double-double awards a bonus, which can be the difference between cashing in and winning nothing.
Generally, the goal for value is at five times a player’s salary. That brings a lineup to 250 fantasy points, which will cash on most days.
Give DraftKings a shot, as there will be a few freeroll opportunities each night in Daily Fantasy Basketball. Click here to play.
Without further ado, the value plays and lineups for December 9th:
Value Plays
Guard
Jeremy Lamb vs. MIL ($3,800): Lamb has a very good price for a guy who has played 22 and 30 minutes over his last two games and has posted at least 23 fantasy points in four of his last five games. Lamb is taking on a Bucks defense giving up the 10th most fantasy points to opposing shooting guards in a game that Las Vegas has as one of the most high-scoring of the night.
More values: Ramon Sessions vs. LAL ($3,500), Gerald Green vs. MIA ($4,700)
Forward
Jason Thompson vs. LAL ($4,300): Thompson has gotten a huge bump with DeMarcus Cousins out of the lineup and the good times should continue against the woeful Lakers. Thompson has now played at least 32 minutes and posted at least 23 fantasy points in each of his last three games. This is likely the last day before his value jumps so be sure to take advantage of the low, low price and the great, great matchup.
Ed Davis vs. SAC ($4,100), Jabari Parker vs. OKC ($5,000)
Center
Zaza Pachulia vs. OKC ($4,000): I’d normally lean on higher-end centers but Pachulia is a solid play at his price that gives you a lot of flexibility to spend elsewhere in your lineup. Pachulia has now played 20+ minutes in five straight and has posted at least 20.5 fantasy points in three straight. He’d need 20 FPS to reach value tonight, which shouldn’t be too hard since he’s averaging 23 fantasy points per game over the last three and faces an OKC team giving up the ninth-most fantasy points to opposing centers.
Lineup
PG – Darren Collison vs. LAL ($6,900)
SG – Eric Bledsoe vs. MIA ($8,200)
SF – Rudy Gay vs. LAL ($7,900)
PF – Jason Thompson vs. LAL ($4,300)
C – Zaza Pachulia vs. OKC ($4,000)
G – Ramon Sessions vs. LAL ($3,500)
F – Ed Davis vs. SAC ($4,100)
UTIL – Kyle Lowry vs. CLE ($10,200)
