After Wednesday's 11-game slate really kicked off the NBA DFS season, we find ourselves with a GPP-only three game slate on Thursday, October 19. Two of these three contests are very likely going to be blowouts, with both the Thunder and Raptors double-digit favorites over their opponents. Fortunately for our picks we have solid game totals, with Bulls-Raptors featuring a slate-low 208.5 game total and the Lakers-Clippers clocking in with a slate-high 217.5 total.
Please be mindful that on DraftKings pretty much all of these players have multi-position eligibility so while they may appear as one thing in the Playbook, their positions may vary based off of the site you are playing on. Please note that below is a FREE preview of our premium Playbook, featuring full analysis which is usually only available to Fantasy Alarm subscribers.
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NBA DFS Picks: DraftKings, FanDuel advice for Thursday, October 18
| Pos | Player | Matchup | FD | *Own % | DK | Analysis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PG | Russell Westbrook | NYK@OKC | $11800 | -- | $11000 | No surprise here as Westbrook is the top priced player on the slate and rightfully so. The Thunder are HUGE favorites in this game, giving 12.5 points to the Knicks so there’s a high potential for a blowout here but the game total is pretty high at 215 so hopefully Westbrook gets his before taking a seat on the bench. I am very interested to see how Westbrook plays with Paul George and Carmelo Anthony this season but I still figure he fills out the stat sheet and hits his fantasy value for DFS owners. |
| PG | Kyle Lowry | CHI@TOR | $8600 | -- | $7900 | On most nights I love to roster Lowry as he fills out the stat sheet and is often priced a few thousand cheaper while offering similar upside to the top tiered guards. Unfortunately, the Raptors find themselves as the biggest favorite on the board, giving 13 points to the Bulls with the lowest game total of the slate at 208.5. It is hard not to think this contest turns into what we saw last night between the Trail Blazers and Suns which means Lowry could be on the bench come the 4th quarter. Still on such a short slate I think you have to play him, especially on DK where he is $700 cheaper than he is on FD. |
| PG | Lonzo Ball | LAC@LAL | $6800 | -- | $6800 | Ball might be the highest owned player of the slate given how hyped up his debut has been since the day he was drafted. We saw during the Summer League that ball can fill up the stat sheet and that was again on display in the two preseason games we saw him in. In seasonal leagues he is a big detriment to your percentage stats but in DFS we do not care much about that. Turnovers will likely be a problem and he will be guarded by Patrick Beverly who is one of the better defenders in the league but I still think we see Ball flirt with a triple-double in this contest. |
| PG | Jerian Grant | CHI@TOR | $6600 | -- | $5300 | Grant gets the start at point guard for the Bulls with Kris Dunn out with an injury. The Bulls lack depth at the position and though they just claimed Kay Felder off of waivers I expect Grant to see all the minutes he can handle. I also figure Grant along with the rest of the Bulls are blowout proof meaning that despite the fact that the Bulls are 13point underdogs in this contest Grant should still see 30+ minutes. During the preseason Grant averaged grant averaged 7.6 points, 5.0 rebounds and 5.4 assists over 24 minutes. His ability to fill the stat sheet along with the expectation he should see 30+ minuets I think Grant could flirt with a triple-double. |
| SG | DeMar DeRozan | CHI@TOR | $8800 | -- | $8300 | DeRozan is coming off a season which saw him average 26.3 points, 5.1 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.1 steals per game. He averaged over 40 FP per game last season and finds himself in a prime matchup against the Bulls. The blowout potential here does have me worried as come the 4th quarter we may find him on the bench but I think if the game gets out of hand it is because DeRozan has already gotten his |
| SG | Justin Holiday | CHI@TOR | $6500 | -- | $5900 | If the preseason is any indication it looks as though Holiday is going to be the Bulls go to scoring option as he averaged 17.2 points, 5.4 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.6 steals and 3.4 three-pointers over five games. In the final preseason game against the Raptors Holiday scored 17 points on 6-of-12 shooting over 28 minutes. This game figures to be a blowout, like the preseason game which ended with Toronto winning 125-104, but Holiday should still see 30 or so minutes on the floor given the Bulls rotational depth. |
| SG | Tim Hardaway Jr. | NYK@OKC | $5500 | -- | $5800 | The Knicks signed Hardaway to a big contract this off-season after he had a strong second half for the Hawks. Hardaway figures to be the Knicks go to wing scorer and during the preseason he averaged 18 points a game over 27.4 minutes. Seeing as Hardaway figures to see 30+ minutes a game it’s easy to think he should approach 20 points per game as well. I am a big fan of Hardaway this season and while this could be a tough match-up as he is slated to start at small forward which means he will have Paul George on his defensively I still think he is worth the price tag on a short slate. |
| SG | Lou Williams | LAC@LAL | $4700 | -- | $5000 | The former Sixth Man of the Year will look to retake that title this season as he figures to be the first man off the bench for the Clippers this season. Williams is going to play behind Austin Rivers at shooting guard to begin the season but I could see Williams ultimately playing more minutes as he a better player than Rivers and that is just a fact. On FanDuel I think he is a must play if you want to fit a few of the higher priced players given his sub-5k price tag. |
| SG | Jordan Clarkson | LAC@LAL | $4700 | -- | $4300 | Clarkson could draw the start at shooting guard to open the night given the suspension to Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. During the preseason Clarkson averaged 11.4 points, 2.2 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.0 steals over 18.4 minutes a game. Seeing as he is going to be playing more minutes on Thursday night I find it reasonable that he could reach his 2016 numbers where he averaged 14.7 points, 3.0 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.4 three-pointers over 29 minutes. He has a very favorable price tag on DraftKings at just 4,300 and given the high game total and Clarkson’s offensive ability I think there is really nice value here. |
| SF | Paul George | NYK@OKC | $8600 | -- | $8100 | George will be making his eagerly awaited regular season debut for the Thunder on Thursday against the Knicks. The Thunders are huge favorites in this contest and every DFS player is wondering just how much of a hit George will take now that he is playing with both Russell Westbrook and Carmelo Anthony who have been usage rate monsters during their careers. I think it’s reasonable to assume George will not average the 23.7-points per game that he did for the Pacers but somewhere closer to 20-points per game should be in reach in the preseason was any sort of indication. |
| SF | Danilo Gallinari | LAC@LAL | $6800 | -- | $6200 | The often-injured Gallinari missed the final three games of the preseason with a sprained foot but he is cleared to play in Thursday’s season opener. Gallinari figures to be the Clippers second scoring option behind Blake Griffin but he has shown during his career that he does not need to take many shots to be a productive scorer given his three-point shooting ability. Last season with the Nuggets Gallinari averaged 18.2 points while shooting 38.9-percent from three-point range. The 6-foot-10 small forward will also be a size mismatch for most wing players who try and defend him and in this match-up against the Lakers I do not see Luol Deng or Brandon Ingram posing much of a problem. |
| SF | CJ Miles | CHI@TOR | $4000 | -- | $3700 | There is still no official word as to whether or not Miles will be in the starting lineup or come off the bench as the Raptors sixth man but either way his ability to score in bunches makes him an attractive GPP play. This game could also end up being a blowout in which Miles may get extra run as the Raptors sit the likes of DeRozan and Lowry. |
| PF | Blake Griffin | LAC@LAL | $9500 | -- | $9600 | Griffin might be my favorite play of the entire slate I do not see a single player on the Lakers roster that is going to stop him. Brook Lopez, despite his 7-foot frame despises the defensive end of the floor and Julius Randle is not athletic enough in my opinion to handle Griffin down low. |
| PF | Kristaps Porzingis | NYK@OKC | $8200 | -- | $7700 | Porzingis has dealt with a hip injury for most of the preseason but he has been cleared to play in Thursday's season opener. Porzingis figures to be the lead scoring option for the Knicks this season and on opening night he will be "guarded" by none other than Carmelo Anthony. I put guarded in quotations because Anthony hasn't played defense maybe ever. As long as Porzingis does not have a setback he should be lineup up for a solid opening night. |
| PF | Carmelo Anthony | NYK@OKC | $8000 | -- | $7200 | Anthony gets to start off his 2017 season by facing off against his former team in the NY Knicks. He will draw the tough assignment of playing up against Kristaps Porzingis who has both the size and athleticism on Melo at this point in his career. Melo is also likely the third scoring option in OKC behind Westbrook and George so this is not an ideal scenario for him but on a three game slate he is worth a look in GPP contest given his likely low ownership. |
| PF | Lauri Markkanen | CHI@TOR | $6500 | -- | $5600 | The Bulls used the 7th overall pick in the draft on the 7-footer from Arizona but he was not expected to take on such a big role this early. However with Nikola Mirotic sidelined after getting into a physical altercation with Bobby Portis who is now suspended Markkanen will enter the starting lineup. Given the lack of depth at the power forward position with both Portis and Mirotic unavailable I think the youngster will be in for all the minutes he can handle on opening night. Over the final two preseason games in which Markkanen saw extended minutes he averaged 15.5 points, six rebounds and 3.5 three-pointers over 29.5 minuets. |
| C | DeAndre Jordan | LAC@LAL | $8200 | -- | $7500 | In two games against the Nets last season Jordan averaged 18 rebounds a game. That is important because the Nets center last season was Brook Lopez who I think is afraid of grabbing a rebound. Lopez is now the Lakers center and he still doesn't seem interested in crashing the glass so I expected Jordan to grab ALL THE REBOUNDS in this contest. If Jordan finished this game with 15 points 20 boards and a few blocks I would not be shocked whatsoever. |
| C | Brook Lopez | LAC@LAL | $7400 | -- | $6500 | Lopez is not going to go anywhere near the paint in this contest as he just is not able to bang with DeAndre Jordan or Blake Griffin for that matter but he has developed a solid jump shot and that includes from three-point range where he averaged 1.8 three-pointers on 5.2 attempts last season. He shot 34.6-percent from beyond the arc and he figures to spread the floor on the offensive end for the Lakers this season as well. |
| C | Robin Lopez | CHI@TOR | $5600 | -- | $5200 | The Bulls are lacking front court depth with the injury to Mirotic and suspension to Bobby Portis so Robin Lopez could see a bit more minutes than intended in this contest. Unlike his twin brother Brook, Robin is not a great offensive player but he does provide decent production on the glass and by blocking shots. If you want to spend down at center this is probably your best choice on such a small slate. |