On a fairly quiet NBA Tuesday, DraftKings is making noise with some terrific prizes. If you’ve already signed up, there’s a $400,000 contest that pays $50K for the highest score and a guaranteed $350K to almost 32,000 other winners. Entry fee is a mere three bucks per team, but if you’re new to DK and make a minimum $5 deposit, it’s free!
Mismatch of the night? Russell Westbrook $10500 and Kevin Durant $10000 are rested and at home against the Bucks, who are 3-14 on the road, just got thumped in Dallas and have a problem at PG. Michael Carter-Williams $6700 has cooled off (again) and Jerryd Bayless $4900 looked sharp in his return from an ankle injury that kept him out for 11 games. Khris Middleton $6100 is their most consistent player, with Greg Monroe $6600 a double-double candidate on his best nights. Watch for a confident Enes Kanter $4900 to exploit Milwaukee’s backup big men.
The five-game slate begins in Manhattan at 7:30 Eastern; in addition to the full card, DK offers Late contests at 8:00 that span the other four games — giving us another opportunity to profit.
Plays of the Day
The $400K Tipoff Special is only a $3 buy-in (FREE with your initial deposit) where the top 31,990 finishers (from up to 153,333 teams) win cash. First place is worth $50,000. Enter early before it fills; you can make lineup changes until each player’s game begins. to take advantage of breaking news.
The Knicks will be determined to snap a four-game losing streak in which they have not scored 100 points, especially because their next few are extremely tough matchups. However, it won’t be easy to contain Reggie Jackson $7300 and Andre Drummond $9400. Somebody else needs to get hot for New York to complement Carmelo Anthony $8300; maybe Lance Thomas $4100 off the bench. Brilliant rookie Kristaps Porzingis $7400 is fatigued by the NBA schedule and a sore finger isn’t helping his FG%, but he racks up boards and blocks while making 86% of his free throws.
It wasn’t the romp we expected, but the Cavaliers won in Phoenix last night. Kyrie Irving (rest) will not play this evening in Denver and it’s the fourth road game in five nights for his teammates. Matthew Dellavedova $4800 and J.R. Smith $4600 are likely to get extra touches and Kevin Love $7600 will need to be aggressive. PF-eligible Tristan Thompson $5000 managed only five points in 32 minutes as the starting center.
Although the Nuggets aren’t very good, they’re affordable. Jameer Nelson $5600 remains the starting PG until Emmanuel Mudiay (ankle) returns, and Gary Harris $4300 played well in back-to-back road losses to the Spurs and Thunder. Kenneth Faried $6100 woke up on Sunday (25 PTS, 11 REB) and starting C Joffrey Lauvergne $4400 outplayed backup Nikola Jokic $4700 for a change. Sixth man Will Barton $6900 is often their leading scorer.
Miami at Memphis looks like the lowest-scoring battle. The Heat were surprised at home by the Nets last night and Dwyane Wade $6800 (hip) is questionable after a hard fall late in the final quarter. Gerald Green $4500 will start if Wade can’t go. The Grizzlies had a much easier time on Sunday in beating the Lakers by 16, with no starter playing more than 25 minutes. Marc Gasol $7200 and Mike Conley $6400 are the safest plays, with Mario Chalmers $3900 and Zach Randolph $5900 developing some second-unit chemistry.
It’s a road back-to-back for the Hawks, whose six-game win streak was snapped by the Pacers. Paul Millsap $7700 and Al Horford $6300 are still worth considering against Clint Capela $5500 and Dwight Howard $6500. Presumably, Thabo Sefolosha $3800 will be focused on defending James Harden $10300, and Kent Bazemore $5300 might see a reduction in minutes. Jeff Teague $6300 will need to outplay Patrick Beverley $4600 for Atlanta to prevail.
If you decide to use both OKC superstars, there’s only enough cap room for one other midrange guy and you’ll need multiple bargains to outperform their salaries. My main concern is garbage time; the Bucks must keep it competitive for KD and Russ to be needed late. Choosing between them, or using neither, frees up salary to build a more balanced lineup.
| Pos | Premium | Midrange | Bargain |
| PG | Russell Westbrook $10500 | Reggie Jackson $7300 | Mario Chalmers $3900 |
| SG | James Harden $10300 | J.R. Smith $4600 | Gary Harris $4300 |
| SF | Kevin Durant $10000 | Carmelo Anthony $8300 | Lance Thomas $4100 |
| PF | Paul Millsap $7700 | Kristaps Porzingis $7400 | Tristan Thompson $5000 |
| C | Andre Drummond $9400 | Al Horford $6300 | Enes Kanter $4900 |
The Fantasy Spin features DFS advice every day of the NBA season. Follow Kent Williams @SheridanFantasy for updates.