After a relatively quiet Tuesday night in the Association, there are 11 games on the NBA slate for Wednesday, March 8. With a focus on DFS, let's take a closer look at what's on tap.
The highest projected total of the night is 224 points between the Boston Celtics and Golden State Warriors. When they met back in November, though, the final tally was just 192 points (104-88, Golden State), as Klay Thompson led the way with 28 points, while Isaiah Thomas struggled with 18 points on 4-of-12 shooting and four assists.
The most interesting matchup, at least in terms of contrast of style, has to be the up-tempo, ultra-efficient Rockets (fourth in the NBA in pace; second in offensive rating) taking on the slow-down, defensive-minded Jazz (29th in pace; third in defensive rating). Both teams have surpassed 100 points in each of the two matchups this season, so while Utah is usually a scary team in terms of DFS, there should still be plenty of scoring in this one.
Outside of Kyle Lowry and Kevin Durant, the biggest absences due to injury look to be Dwyane Wade (doubtful) and Ryan Anderson (doubtful), while the status of the Nikola's (Jokic and Vucevic, both questionable) will also prove crucial in lineup construction, so pay attention to those.
There is one team on a back-to-back: The Washington Wizards, who played in Phoenix on Tuesday and now travel to Denver to take on the Nuggets. In 11 back-to-back games this season, the Wiz have a 109.7 defensive rating, compared to 105.2 for the year. While the Nuggets' rotation can sometimes be difficult to sort out, especially when their best player is questionable, they look to be a compelling team to target on a busy night.
With all of that in mind, you can click through the gallery for my optimal DraftKings lineup, while you can head here for more NBA DFS strategy and picks. (Getty)
PG: Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors
Opponent: vs. Boston Celtics
Price: $10,100
In the four games since Kevin Durant's injury (counting the one in which he got injured after two minutes), Curry has a massive 33.0 usage percentage, up from 28.6 on the season. He's also averaging 22.8 field-goal attempts and 12.0 three-point attempts, up from 18.1 and 9.9, respectively, on the year.
Yet because he has shot an uncharacteristic 41.8 percent from the field and 31.3 percent from three-point range during that span, he has "only" averaged 47.81 DraftKings points. With such a big role, you can consider what he's been doing as his floor, while it only seems like a matter of time before he gets locked back in and goes for 60-plus DK points.
With Curry at home for the first time since Durant's injury, and with Isaiah Thomas' questionable defensive ability, I'm willing to bet he hits the latter in this one. (Getty)
SG: Jimmy Butler, Chicago Bulls
Opponent: at Orlando Magic
Price: $9,200
With Dwyane Wade out last game, Butler was the Bulls' clear go-to option, as he played 39 minutes, took 16 shots, got to the free-throw line 13 times and finished with a usage percentage of 32.2. That resulted in 46.3 DK points even though he didn't shoot the ball well and the Bulls as a whole didn't play well, so it's highly compelling to imagine what he could do against a Magic team in the bottom 10 in the NBA in defensive rating. (Getty)
SF: Khris Middleton, Milwaukee Bucks
Opponent: vs. New York Knicks
Price: $6,600
Apparently no longer hampered by his injury, Middleton has played 30-plus minutes in four consecutive games (including a back-to-back on Friday and Saturday), averaging 19.3 points, 1.8 threes, 4.3 rebounds, 5.5 assists, 1.8 steals and 36.13 DraftKings points during that stretch. Those numbers make him an excellent value play at $6,600 (5.47 DK points/$1,000; anything above 5.0 is elite), while a matchup against the lowly Knicks--who are 25th in the NBA in defensive rating--increases his ceiling. (Getty)
PF: Sam Dekker, Houston Rockets
Opponent: vs. Utah Jazz
Price: $3,500
During a four-game stretch in January when Ryan Anderson (doubtful) missed three games and played just nine minutes in the other, Dekker exploded to the tune of 28.2 minutes, 15.0 points, 2.0 threes, 6.0 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 0.5 steals per contest. This is certainly a tough matchup, but Dekker only needs to produce a fraction of those numbers to give you tremendous value at this price. (Getty)
C: DeAndre Jordan, Los Angeles Clippers
Opponent: at Minnesota Timberwolves
Price: $6,700
You could say Jordan enjoys playing the Timberwolves. In two games against Minnesota this year, the big man has averaged 23.5 points, 16.0 rebounds, 2.0 blocks, 1.0 steals and 52.8 DraftKings points. Those are slightly skewed by the fact that one of those games came with Chris Paul and Blake Griffin both sidelined, but in the other one when everyone was healthy, he still put up 18 points, 16 rebounds, two steals and two blocks.
Jordan's floor is a bit lower than many of the other centers priced around him, but I like him as a tournament play in this matchup. (Getty)
G: Dante Exum, Utah Jazz
Opponent: at Houston Rockets
Price: $3,300
This one is contingent on the status of both George Hill and Shelvin Mack, but if both sit out, Exum is a sneaky sleeper play.
With Hill and Mack sidelined Monday against the Pelicans, Exum started, played 25 minutes, took 11 shots and finished with a usage percentage of 26.4. He shot 3-of-11 from the field and ultimately tallied just 15.0 DraftKings points, but it's still rare to get someone in this price range with that kind of potential usage and role. In a more favorable matchup against the up-tempo Rockets, Exum should have no trouble hitting value giving you something like 17-20 DK points, which is golden at $3,300. (Getty)
F: Danilo Gallinari, Denver Nuggets
Opponent: vs. Washington Wizards
Price: $6,000
While Wilson Chandler will be a popular play after his monster game on Monday (for the record, I'm not completely fading Chandler, and I'll use plenty of him if Jokic is out again), Gallinari makes for an nice pivot play. He has put up between 28 and 35 DraftKings points in every game since the All-Star break, giving you a consistent to option to go with the upside of Curry, Butler, Middleton and Jordan. (Getty)
UTIL: Trevor Ariza, Houston Rockets
Opponent: vs. Utah Jazz
Price: $4,300
Slump or not, at some point a guy becomes just too cheap to pass up. That's Ariza at $4,300. While the veteran forward is shooting a putrid .333 percent since the All-Star break, he has still averaged 7.2 three-point attempts, 6.3 rebounds, 0.5 steals and 21.92 DraftKings points during that stretch.
Those numbers have to be considered his floor, and they still come out to a very valuable 5.10 DK points/$1,000 at his current price. Throw in the fact that he could see some extra shots and minutes sans Ryan Anderson, and there is a lot to like here, no matter how poorly he's shooting the ball. (Getty)
DraftKings NBA Lineup: Wednesday March 8 Optimal Picks