Still not playing daily fantasy at DraftKings? Tonight’s the night to give it a try. Somebody will win $100,000 and there are more than 40,000 other cash prizes in a massive contest that is free to enter with your first deposit.
In addition, DK will be hosting the $4,000,000 Fantasy Basketball World Championship in San Diego on March 18, with a million bucks to the winner. You can qualify for three of the 100 spots in the Final tonight. A $1000 buy-in against just 58 teams and a $300 entry fee vs. 196 teams are a bit beyond my budget, but for a mere $3 ante, the top score among 19,600 entries will win a VIP package worth $46,500 and a shot at becoming a millionaire.
A nine-game slate is topped by a showdown between the Spurs and Warriors. Not only is it one of the season’s most anticipated clashes, the nightcap will decide the DFS payouts.
Free $500,000 Contest For New Users
The $500K Super Sharpshooter is only a $3 buy-in (FREE with your initial deposit at DK) where the top 40,870 finishers (from up to 191,666 teams) win cash. First place gets $100,000. Deadline is 7:00 EST; enter before it fills. You can make lineup changes until each player’s game begins.
Resting at home since an easy win on Friday, Stephen Curry $10600, Draymond Green $9100 and Klay Thompson $7200 should all be at their best. Kawhi Leonard $8000 and company have also enjoyed two days off since easy back-to-back wins over the Suns and Lakers. LaMarcus Aldridge $7200 (back) sat out the second game and Tim Duncan (knee) will not play. That means any or all of David West $4000, Boris Diaw $3800 and Boban Marjanovic $3500 will get extra run. Manu Ginobili $4700 often rises to these occasions and Andre Igoudala $4600 is the key reserve for Golden State.
All DeMarcus Cousins $11000 did on Saturday was score a career-high 48, with 13 rebounds. That’s a dozen great games in a row, and the Kings have won five straight to climb into the playoff picture. Even if Rudy Gay $6800 (heel) misses another game, Boogie and Rajon Rondo $8500 should handle Kemba Walker $8600, Jeremy Lin $5400 and the wounded Hornets. Willie Cauley-Stein $4500 loses value if Gay returns, but otherwise is in tremendous form.
The Rockets took care of business at home yesterday with Trevor Ariza $5200 scoring 29 and a triple-double from James Harden $10100 — 23 points, 10 assists, 15 rebounds and a couple of blocks. Josh Smith $4000 added 16 off the bench as Terrence Jones $5200 vanished. Dwight Howard (ankle) is doubtful, so Clint Capela $6000 will start again. The Hornets are at home, have had a day off and Anthony Davis $10000 has been getting some help lately. Ryan Anderson $5800, Jrue Holiday $6400 and Norris Cole $4900 are all worth considering.
New Cleveland coach Tyronn Lue has already knocked his team’s conditioning and vowed to play faster. LeBron James $9900 wasn’t the problem in Saturday’s loss; Kevin Love $7200 and Kyrie Irving $6600 were disappointments and the bench was awful. Perhaps they will take out some frustrations on Minnesota tonight. It’s worth noting that Andrew Wiggins $6700 dropped 35 on the team that drafted him #1 overall, while Karl-Anthony Towns $6900 and Shabazz Muhammad $4500 each added 22 in that January 8 meeting.
Something is not quite right with the Hawks, who have dropped two low-scoring road games in a row. With Jeff Teague $5400 slumping, Dennis Schroder $5200 is coming on, but Emmanuel Mudiay $5800 might outplay them both. Al Horford $6900 had a big game on Saturday when Paul Millsap $8300 (personal) sat out; with Kenneth Faried $5800 (doubtful) and a three-man revolving door at center, both Atlanta big men could thrive.
Goran Dragic (calf) is out, Hassan Whiteside $7500 (oblique) and Luol Deng $4800 (eye) sound doubtful, while Dwyane Wade $6500 and other Heat guards are questionable and far from 100% if they play. Pau Gasol $8500 could have another huge night and Jimmy Butler $8400 will be hard to stop.
My sample lineup is built around Cousins, Kawhi and Wiggins, then fills with the best five I can afford. There are thousands of other ways to create a competitive 8-man roster, and $100K awaits whoever does it best.
| Pos | Premium | Midrange | Bargain |
| PG | Stephen Curry $10600 | Emmanuel Mudiay $5800 | Jeremy Lin $5400 |
| SG | James Harden $10100 | Andrew Wiggins $6700 | Manu Ginobili $4700 |
| SF | LeBron James $9900 | Kawhi Leonard $8000 | S. Muhammad $4500 |
| PF | DeMarcus Cousins $11000 | Draymond Green $9100 | Josh Smith $4000 |
| C | Pau Gasol $8500 | Al Horford $6900 | Willie Cauley-Stein $4500 |
The Fantasy Spin features DFS advice every day of the NBA season. Follow Kent Williams @SheridanFantasy for updates.