FanDuel NBA: Best Picks And Lineup For Dec. 28
Read on for the top four picks at each position and a sample lineup for Monday’s FanDuel NBA games. But first, here’s an in-depth look at tonight’s building blocks:
Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors ($10,900) vs. Sacramento Kings: Curry soldiered on in the Finals rematch against the Cleveland Cavaliers despite a mid-game respite due to his lingering calf injury. Fortunately, the Dubs haven’t been in action since their marquee game on Christmas and the Chef is expected to play tonight.
The Warriors’ well-timed schedule break could be bad news for the visiting Kings, who are in the bottom third overall on FanDuel NBA versus opposing point guards. That said, Curry didn’t produce a vintage performance in either of the two previous matches with Sacramento this season, and he is averaging just 21.5 PPG while shooting 31.3 percent from behind the arc collectively.
Despite a couple of disappointing outings, since the Kings have been generous enough to other point guards to rank them among the league’s worst, it seems like it’s just a matter of time before Curry gets his against them as well. As a result, he should be safe to deploy against a Sacramento team that will be traveling for the latter game of a back-to-back series, so in all likelihood the third meeting will be the charm for the reigning MVP in a game that has an aggressively high opening total of 223.
Anthony Davis, New Orleans Pelicans ($10,400) vs. Orlando Magic: The Magic’s defensive prowess has probably exceeded most pundits’ expectations, as they are currently seventh in the league in points allowed overall (98.9 PPG). Their stinginess was on display in the earlier meeting this season, as they held the Pelicans to just 94 points on 35.6 percent shooting from the field.
But that game took place in October, when New Orleans was lacking starter Tyreke Evans. Since the resurgent Pelicans have won three of their past four games, one could argue that the veteran guard’s presence has forced opposing teams to think twice about solely devoting their attention to stopping Davis.
Orlando is a solid defensive team in general, but containing opposing power forwards has been a relative weakness, as they’re just outside the bottom third in that regard overall. Although they have scrapped the small-ball look in which Tobias Harris was the stretch-4, Channing Frye hasn’t really provided an upgrade since they both share a defensive rating of 103 to date.
As with Curry, the recent precedent makes rostering Davis seem counterintuitive; however with the complete picture in mind the Brow seems more likely to return value in the rematch, especially considering his recent hot streak of 42 fantasy points or better in four straight games.
LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers ($10,000) vs. Phoenix Suns: I cautioned against deploying James’ Cavs against the Portland Trail Blazers on Saturday, but I don’t think anyone could have foreseen them getting drilled by a Trail Blazers team that was lacking their best player (Damian Lillard). Indeed, Cleveland didn’t seem to have anything left in the tank after a grinding loss to the defending champs.
Redemption could be right around the corner though, as tonight they face a Phoenix Suns team that was just upset by the lowly Philadelphia Sixers on Saturday in front of their home fans. To add injury to insult, Eric Bledsoe played just eight minutes before exiting with a knee issue (MRI results forthcoming), and their backcourt rotation doesn’t have much to offer beyond Bledsoe and Brandon Knight.
While it’s still debatable as to whether Phoenix is now the new Philadelphia, the team is certainly Sixer-esque in their generosity to opposing small forwards, as the Sixers and Suns are fourth and sixth worst (respectively) overall against the position on FanDuel NBA. With the Cavs in full regrouping mode, look for James to return back to 40-plus fantasy point form as the team should be intent upon rebounding from an embarrassing defeat.
Next: Top Four Point Guards