The ninth-seeded Raptors host the 10th-seeded Bulls in Toronto tonight (7:00 p.m. ET, ESPN), with both hoping to advance to the final game of the NBA's Eastern Conference Play-In Tournament. If the team that wins this evening goes on to beat the Heat on Friday night, they will assume the eighth seed and play the top-seeded Bucks in an opening-round best-of-seven. We've covered the best bets and under-the-radar props for this pivotal Eastern Conference clash, but today we will be providing our optimal Raptors-Bulls SuperDraft lineup to help you make some mid-week DFS cash.
SuperDraft offers salary cap DFS contests, but the majority of its tournaments feature no restrictions like caps or tiers. The strategy involves points multipliers — the higher a player's average fantasy score, the lower their multiplier. The lower their average fantasy output, the higher their multiplier. A winning lineup will feature a good mix of stud fantasy contributors with 1x-1.5x boosts, as well as matchup-based sleepers with larger multipliers.
The "Champion" spot — much like the "Captain" or "MVP" spot in DraftKings or FanDuel — yields an additional 50-percent multiplier of the champ's fantasy score (on top of their listed multiplier). Since we're taking the Raptors to win this game at home, we picked two Toronto players at the top of our lineup, one of which seemed like a no-brainer value at 2.65x multiplier plus a 50-percent boost as our "Champion." The remaining three roster additions are Bulls, as we do expect a good game, and we like the value of the multipliers we're getting with the Chicago players.
MORE RAPTORS-BULLS: Odds, prediction, best bets | Best props
Before we break down all of our picks, here are the most notable scoring rules for SuperDraft contests: Made three-point shot (+0.5 points), rebound (+1.25 points), assists (+1.5 points), steals and blocks (+3 points), double-double (+1.5 points — max one per player) and triple-double (+1.5 points — max one player). Additionally, your Champion player gets his point total increased by an additional 50 percent.
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SuperDraft NBA DFS Picks: Raptors vs. Bulls
Lineup consists of a Champion player scoring an additional 50% of its multiplier and four FLEX players. Lineup must include players from at least two different teams. Draft all of your favorite players based on their multiplier value with no restrictions.
Champion (50% more points): C Jakob Poeltl, Raptors (Multiplier: 2.65x)
Poeltl has been a huge difference-maker for Toronto since coming back to the Raptors in a deadline deal with the Spurs. Nick Nurse's squad has gone five games above .500 with Poeltl in the starting lineup, and the Raps are an incredible 11-1 at home with him as starting center. He's a force on the glass and a highly efficient scorer around the rim. He's a good candidate to tally some "stocks," which yield a SuperDraft-high three points each, and he's a good passer for a big man, too. He also seems like a lock to record a double-double considering he averaged 14.1 points and 9.9 rebounds per game in March. Nurse always rides his starters for longer minutes in the postseason, so with Poeltl's multiplier, we feel we can't go wrong. Nikola Vucevic doesn't want this Poeltl smoke!
UTIL: PF Pascal Siakam, Raptors (Multiplier: 1x)
We simply cannot create a lineup that doesn't include Siakam, the highest fantasy scorer in this game. Sure, the multiplier is as low as you're going to get on SuperDraft, but that's the risk that comes with high-reward players like Spicy P. He can do it all, and he will be a load for DeMar DeRozan, Zach LaVine, and Patrick Williams to handle defensively. We think Siakam will be the high scorer tonight and also a good candidate to throw in six-to-eight assists and grab a bunch of rebounds while Poeltl and Big Vooch box each other out in the trenches.
UTIL: SG/SF DeMar DeRozan, Bulls (Multiplier: 1.3x)
Just like Siakam serves as a player we love featuring in Raptors lineups, DeRozan is a guy we love to include in all Bulls-related DFS contests. A bonus is that Toronto is his former squad, and Scotiabank Arena is a place in which he feels very comfortable playing. The Bulls are very top-heavy offensively, so our goal is to basically devour as much of the counting stats as we can by monopolizing their core in our lineup.
UTIL: SG/SF Zach LaVine, Bulls (Multiplier: 1.4x)
LaVine can get scorching hot at all three scoring levels, but it's his three-point shooting that really attracts us to him as a SuperDraft asset. The Raptors allow opponents to shoot a collective 37.4 percent from beyond the arc, the third-highest three-point percentage allowed in the NBA. The Zach attack will be on this evening, and it will take place in three-point land.
UTIL: C Nikola Vucevic, Bulls (Multiplier: 1.35x)
Now we have both dynamic centers and three of the top four scorers in the contest. Sorry, Fred VanVleet, but you're the odd man out because you've been so dang inconsistent this season. Plus, Alex Caruso, Patrick Beverley, Ayo Dosunmo, and Coby White don't make for fun offensive nights for opposing point guards. Big Vooch seems much safer. He's usually good for double-digit points and 8-10 rebounds, with some peripheral stats sprinkled in.
