The following picks come from Awesemo.com’s Director of Content, Josh Engleman. Josh posts his projections daily for subscribers and is the co-host of the NBA Strategy show Monday through Friday morning.
Damian Lillard
I was surprised to see Lillard’s projected ownership this morning on our first draft. I see Dame as the top point guard option on both sites. It’s even cleaner on FanDuel, where he’s $800 cheaper than John Wall and just $300 more expensive than Ben Simmons. It’s not just price, though. This match-up is tasty. Jeff Teague is no threat defensively. Derrick Rose isn’t either. The Timberwolves defense has been below average this season, and I find it hard to believe it’s going to rise after getting rid of Jimmy Butler AND adding Dario Saric. Lillard is a spot where I’ll be close to 3X the field. I’d want him in every format.
Darren Collison
I currently have Darren Collison projected for 30 minutes tonight, which would put him at an average projection of 27 fantasy points based on his per minute rates. For his price, that’s fantastic value on both sites, and we haven’t even talked about what happens when he plays well. Collison might be my favorite low priced value option on the slate, but it doesn’t appear the public feels the same. That makes me like it even more. There’s little risk in Collison at this price. Plus, I need all of the value I can find with how much I like AD and Giannis.
Wendell Carter
The Bulls have recently worked Robin Lopez back into the rotation, which has slightly hampered Carter’s minutes. Luckily, his price has tumbled to $6600 on FanDuel (and remained nice and low on DraftKings). Let’s assume for a second that Carter plays 25 minutes tonight. Carter has been a 1.22 FPPM guy this season, which puts him at 30.5 fantasy points. Those numbers make him a perfectly reasonable value play. I think there’s a good bit of upside, though. The Bucks give up a ton of shots in the mid-range, which is the main place Carter operates. He’s also been an above-average rebounder this year, which is appealing against a team rebounding at below average rates on both ends of the court. This is a tough spot for the Bulls as a whole, but it feels like a sneaky spot for Carter.
These “slam dunks” should be listed as players to avoid. I honestly think a chimp could make better picks on a nightly basis.
Oh come on! A dolphin, maybe.
If I’m being honest, it’s tough for me to pick 3 guys each night without repeating myself. Would you prefer a different format? I’m more of an MME guy, so I’m rarely focusing on 3 specific guys.