NBA DFS Picks: Building Blocks for Sunday, May 30th | Kawhi Leonard

Sunday, May 30th brings a four-game main slate with each of the series sitting at 2-1. Let’s look at the four-game main slate and discuss the top NBA DFS picks for DraftKings, FanDuel and Yahoo lineups. Don’t forget to head over to the Awesemo NBA DFS home page for more great written daily fantasy basketball content, including the FREE NBA Deep Dive — the most in-depth article in the industry.

NBA DFS Picks: Building Blocks, Sunday, May 30th

Yahoo Play of the Day — Kawhi Leonard: Los Angeles Clippers at Dallas Mavericks

  • Awesemo’s Preliminary Point Projections: Yahoo and FanDuel: 48.84 | DraftKings: 50.32
  • Awesemo’s Preliminary Rostered Projections: Yahoo 30% | FanDuel 19.8% | DraftKings 24.2%
  • DFS Salary: Yahoo $42 | FanDuel $10,300 | DraftKings $9,200

The analysis on this one is pretty simple and can be summarized as: Kawhi Leonard and Paul George are at wildly favorable salaries. Aside from a lopsided blowout, they will play 39 to 42 minutes since the Clippers need the series equalizer. Los Angeles is favored by a bucket as visitors, which indicates that, while Luka Doncic is a game-time decision, he is likely to play. Effectiveness will be a whole different story. Leonard and George should be in all rosters today.

Jayson Tatum: Boston Celtics vs. Brooklyn Nets

  • Awesemo’s Preliminary Point Projections: Yahoo and FanDuel: 51.15 | DraftKings: 53.73
  • Awesemo’s Preliminary Rostered Projections: Yahoo 33.4% | FanDuel 30.0% | DraftKings 27.0%
  • DFS Salary: Yahoo $45 | FanDuel $10,500 | DraftKings $9,800

In a heroic effort where he scored 50 points, including a sterling 13 of 15 from the line, Jayson Tatum ensured the Celtics would not suffer a first-round sweep. Brooklyn lost the lead for good midway through the third quarter when Boston put together a 21-4 run, after which the game was never in jeopardy. Tatum should approach 40 minutes, though there is no guarantee of repeatable success. Kevin Durant has done an admirable job of making life difficult for Tatum, who is without running mate Jaylen Brown. While Durant is far from a lockdown defender, he is very good at using his height, arm length and veteran savvy to hound Tatum. If no other Celtics are able to step up, Brooklyn will be able to focus all of their attention on Tatum. Tatum failed to top 37 fantasy points in the first two games of the series, so there is a lot of downside here. Keep tabs on his popularity to see if the game log watchers are going to be jumping on the bandwagon in droves tonight.

Good Value

Phoenix Suns at Los Angeles Lakers

This is a subjective section, as the Suns are playing a tough Lakers defense. Chris Paul is dealing with a right shoulder injury that is clearly limiting him from behind the arc and driving to his right, and he was even making cross-body passes in the last game. He is a gamer and will be out on the court, though the rest of Phoenix is going to have to step up. Cameron Payne has seen is salary increase to an appropriately level for a key reserve. However, it is not out of the realm of possibility that he will get more minutes than Paul today, particularly if the game is out of reach.

Deandre Ayton has been phenomenal, and he has topped 41 minutes in each of the last two games. The DFS salary algorithms have not caught up to this nearly 30% increase in his playing time as compared to the stretch run of the regular season. That gives him some attainable upside from a point-per-dollar perspective. Devin Booker has played 40 minutes in every first-round game and while he should have more than 14 to 16 field goal attempts, he has been getting to the line just over nine times per game.

Cameron Johnson, Mikal Bridges and Jae Crowder are in the mix, but do not use more than one per lineup, as they can cut into each other’s upside potential. The other reserves are all at risk of not seeing the court, so tread lightly.

Risky Value

Maximilian Kleber: Dallas Mavericks vs. Los Angeles Clippers 

  • Awesemo’s Preliminary Point Projections: Yahoo and FanDuel: 20.44 | DraftKings: 20.4
  • Awesemo’s Preliminary Rostered Projections: Yahoo 28% | FanDuel 16.8% | DraftKings 17.8%
  • DFS Salary: Yahoo $10 | FanDuel $4500 | DraftKings $4100

For the third game in a row, Maxi Kleber started and played at least 34 minutes despite carrying the questionable tag. While he definitely is dealing with a sore Achilles and is at risk of not playing, this just serves to keep the masses looking elsewhere for value plays. Kleber’s salary remains at the minimum of $10 on Yahoo, and it has decreased from $4,800 to $4,500 on FanDuel. DraftKings gave it a boost from the delicious $3,700 to $4,100, which is well above the Game 2 $3,400 cap hit. There is risk here, but there are not many amazing discount dandies, so that keeps Kleber squarely in the value conversation on Sunday.

Yahoo Daily Fantasy Basketball Discount Dandies

  1. Maxi Kleber: DAL vs. LAC – $10
  2. Taj Gibson: NYK at ATL – $10
  3. Reggie Bullock: NYK at ATL – $11

Final Thoughts on the Sunday, May 30th NBA DFS Slate

Luka Doncic is lining up to be a game-time decision with his strained neck, which will keep things in flux until his status is announced. Keep in mind that salaries and scoring formats differ across the various fantasy sites, and a slam-dunk play on Yahoo may be a below-average NBA DFS pick on DraftKings or FanDuel.

Eric "EMac" MacPherson won the 2007 Fantasy Baseball grand prize (trip for two to the MLB All-Star game) in the Roto format on ESPN. He won again in 2008, this time in the H2H format. As one of the early adopters of daily fantasy sports, EMac has been providing content for baseball and basketball as well as both professional and college football since 2012 for a variety of websites including DraftKings Playbook, FanVice, RotoWorld, Daily Fantasy Bootcamp, and RotoGrinders. He is well into his third decade of fantasy sports and has a wealth of knowledge and experience. Follow him on Twitter @EMacDFS or contact EMac by emailing [email protected].

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