NBA Daily Fantasy Helper: Wednesday 12/9/15
If you've never played daily fantasy basketball before, it's time to start. Unlike traditional leagues, you're able to select the players you want on that specific day only, giving you a different squad to root for each and every NBA night.
Today's lineups can be found here. The information below is to help you understand why particular players are being picked, because we don't want you going into the night completely blind. We want to help you. Keep in mind, however, that things often change up until tip-off, so make sure you're refreshing the optimal lineups as close to the start of games as possible.
Let's get to it.
The Best of the Best
Derrick Favors - Favors has been scorching hot as of late. He's posted double-doubles in four consecutive games, averaging 21 points, 10.8 boards and 2.3 assists per game over that span. He's played at least 35 minutes in each of the last three games with Rudy Gobert sidelined, and should see another massive workload tonight, as Gobert is expected to miss his fourth consecutive game. Although he draws a less-than-ideal matchup against the slow-paced Knicks, look for Favors to post his fifth straight double-double as the go-to big man for the Jazz tonight.
John Wall - The Rockets have not been playing very well on the defensive end this season. They've given up the third most points per game in the league (107.4), rank 27th in Defensive Rating (108.5) and rank 27th in defensive efficiency according to our metrics. Both the Wizards and Rockets are among the fastest-paced teams in the league, and that pace should give Wall a boost tonight considering how he loves to get out and run in transition. Wall has been unstoppable as of late, averaging 28 points, 9.4 dimes and 4.4 boards in 38.6 minutes over his last five games. He has seen his Usage Rate jump up to 29.1% over that span, and should see a similar workload tonight against the ailing Rockets. With his price tag still at just $9,200 on FanDuel and $8,700 on DraftKings, Wall makes an elite play in all formats tonight.
Top Mid-Range Values
Bradley Beal - As I just mentioned, the Rockets are one of the worst defensive teams in the league. On top of that, their star shooting guard, James Harden, is widely considered a terrible defender and has amassed a terrible 108 Defensive Rating on the year. Much like his teammate, Wall, Beal has been on fire during the month of December, averaging 21 points, 5.4 rebounds and 4.8 assists in a whopping 39.6 minutes per game in the five Wizards' games since the calendar has flipped to the last month of the year. Both Wall and Beal are in play tonight in a game that Vegas expects to be the highest scoring game on tonight's slate by a wide margin.
Gordon Hayward - After a relatively slow start to the season, Hayward seems to have really found his groove as of late. Over his last six outings, the former Butler University standout is averaging 23 points to go along with 5.3 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 2.0 steals per game. He has played at least 36 minutes in each of those six games, and now ranks second on the team with a 24.4% Usage Rate. With Gobert out, Hayward should continue to see more work on the boards and a slightly increased Usage Rate on the offensive end. Do not hesitate to plug the Jazz star into your lineups on all platforms tonight.
Basement Ballers
Jon Leuer - With Tyson Chandler injured and Markieff Morris seemingly in Coach Jeff Hornacek's dog house, Leuer has seen a heavy workload each of the past four games. Over that span, Leuer has posted 13.8 points to go along with 6.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.3 steals and a block per game in 33.3 minutes per game. Meanwhile, over those same four games, Morris has scored just 10 points with 7 rebounds in 35 minutes total. Leuer should remain the Suns' starting power forward for the foreseeable future and should reach value easily tonight at just $4,800 on DraftKings and $4,400 on FanDuel.
O.J. Mayo - Jerryd Bayless and Greivis Vasquez are both expected to be out once again tonight, which means Mayo will draw another start at point guard for Milwaukee and should see another massive workload. In six games as a starter this season, the Bucks' veteran guard has averaged 11.3 points, 3.8 rebounds and 3.3 assists in 34.1 minutes a game. He gets a solid matchup against the banged-up Clippers who have given up the eight most fantasy points per game to opposing point guards over their last seven outings and should see more than enough action to reach value at just $4,600 on FanDuel and $5,200 on DraftKings. He makes a solid value play in all formats.
