FanDuel NBA Daily Picks: Fantasy Basketball Lineup For January 2
The exceptional passing of Nikola Jokic has made him an ideal option at the power forward position for any FanDuel NBA roster.
Not many 6-foot-10 players are capable of facilitating an offense like Denver’s Nikola Jokic.
In his second season, Jokic has emerged as one of the most skilled frontcourt passers, dishing out 3.6 assists a game, with a career-high 11 coming Wednesday night during a victory over the Timberwolves.
The 21-year-old out of Serbia is one of just seven players 6-foot-10 or taller averaging more than 3.0 assists per game.
Jokic employs a multitude of ways to create easy looks for teammates, with his exceptional lob passes, ability to generate transition points with his long passes off rebounds, exceptional bounce passes and no-look dishes becoming routine for the Nuggets.
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From anywhere on the court, Jokic is a viable playmaker, as he is adept at passing from the post as he is from the elbows, enabling him to manipulate the defense however he pleases.
Over the past six games, Jokic is averaging 5.8 assists to go along with 18.2 points on 66.7 percent shooting from the field and 8.8 rebounds per game.
The totals resulted in 37.9 FanDuel NBA tournament points a game, 10 more than his average for the year, largely behind his increased production in passing. Jokic is generating 8.5 points per game off his passing, just 0.1 behind starting point guard Emmanuel Mudiay.
Jokic is able to setup a variety of teammates consistently, as five different players are responsible for 0.4 assists per game from the power forward.
Jamal Murray, Gary Harris and Wilson Chandler are all shooting 50 percent or better from 3-point range off passes from Jokic.
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The month of December was the best of Jokic’s NBA career, as he averaged 17 points, 8.8 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game during the 12 game stretch.
By adding a reliable number of assists to his season averages, Jokic has increased his value in FanDuel NBA leagues by $2,900 in a span of 44 days.
In his latest outing, Jokic scored 14 points in the first quarter, part of a 25-point, seven-rebound, four-assist effort against Philadelphia.
With Denver exploring additional ways to allow Jokic to control its offense, his potential to produce in fantasy basketball is enormous.
Jokic’s stock has nearly doubled for FanDuel NBA rosters in the past 20 games and his ability to create open looks for teammates is rarely seen in a player at his size.