Three weeks of playing in daily leagues has taught me one thing — it’s definitely not as easy as it looks.
I’ve tried various sizes of leagues: 3-player, 5-player, right up to large tournaments. A $10 shot in the dark each Friday in the $5,000 qualifying tournament for the $150,000 DFBBC Final eats up ten percent of the budget; I tend to play in $1 and $2 contests with a few forays into the $5 level.
When LeBron James plays, I’ve used him at the maximum price of $9,900, and tried to beat him, frequently guessing wrong. Other tendencies in this “slump” have been to use a player one day before he breaks out.
The watchword in Week 4, with a fresh $100 budget, is diversity. Instead of entering the same lineup in a variety of leagues, I’ll mix up my rosters, entering multiple teams in the tournaments where that strategy is allowed.
In a previous life, I was a horseplayer. The largest pools for bettors at the track are spread across multiple races; a Pick Six often pays in six figures. You try to “key” on one or two horses and use as many options as you can afford in the other races.
The equivalent in a daily hoops contest is to decide on the five or six players you like best that night, then use various combinations in the other spots. If those key players don’t perform, you weren’t going to win anyway, but if they do, you increase your chances of finishing first and could also win multiple prizes. I’ll let you know how it works.
| FanDuel 15 | Nov. 19 |
| Stars | Over $7,000 |
| Blake Griffin | $8,500 |
| Tim Duncan | $8,500 |
| Al Jefferson | $8,500 |
| James Harden | $8,200 |
| Marc Gasol | $7,400 |
| Scrubs | Under $5,000 |
| Stephen Jackson | $4,500 |
| Kyle Korver | $4,800 |
| Tony Allen | $4,600 |
| Lance Stephenson | $3,500 |
| Marcus Morris | $4,000 |
| Starters | $5,000 to $7,000 |
| Mike Conley | $6,400 |
| O.J. Mayo | $6,900 |
| Jeff Teague | $5,900 |
| Danny Green | $5,100 |
| Jordan Crawford | $5,900 |
There are seven games on the NBA calendar tonight, but most of the expensive superstars played yesterday, so the top salary is just $8,500 and there are multiple good choices in every price range.
Here’s my tentative ‘best’ lineup. You can make unlimited changes until 7:00 EST.
PG Darren Collison GS@DAL $6,100
PG Jeff Teague ORL@ATL $5,900
SG James Harden HOU@UTA $8,200
SG Stephen Jackson LAC@SAS $4,500
SF Rudy Gay DEN@MEM $7,400
SF Danny Green LAC@SSA $5,100
PF Josh Smith ORL@ATL $8,300
PF Zach Randolph DEN@MEM $7,000
C Marc Gasol DEN@MEM $7,400
Obviously, I like the Grizzlies to beat the Nuggets and will consider Mike Conley ($6,600) in a PG switch if I downgrade from Smith at PF. The prices are great on Jackson and Green, as the computer hasn’t adjusted yet to Kawhi Leonard’s injury. Manu Ginobili ($5,400) is also at strong option at SG. Teague is a hunch; the Magic lost in Toronto yesterday and Jameer Nelson isn’t 100% healthy.
Today’s Fantasy Spin looks at all eight NBA games in more detail and reviews what happened last night.