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The top DraftKings daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for 12/28/17 by Tom Bellucco. Expert NBA DFS advice, sleepers & player recommendations for DraftKings.
Welcome back, folks! I hope everyone had a great holiday break, and I wish the best for you all as you ring in the new year. We have some great slates coming up as we close out 2017, and this one is no exception. Thursday brings us five games, and while we're missing a couple of lines as of late Wednesday night, the totals look promising overall.
In this article, I will be providing you with my daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for DraftKings on 12/28/17. I will highlight players who seem to provide value at the guard, forward, and center positions based on their asking prices. I'll also point out a few GPP possibilities for each position too.
If you have any questions or comments, hit me up on Twitter @BellRoto. You can also read more DFS advice and lineup picks for sites like FanDuel, and other sports too. Let's do this.
DraftKings DFS Guards
Elfrid Payton - PG, ORL vs DET (DK - $6,800)
Elfrid Payton was one of my favorite guards to roster last season, as he seemed to provide endless upside every night. However, he has been oddly quiet so far this year. Recently he's begun to turn things around, as his usage has spiked to nearly 30% in each of the last three contests. The results were 31, 61, and 39 DK points. With Nikola Vucevic out and two other key Magic players questionable, Payton is at the top of my list in a great matchup against a player to be named next. It's usually tough to roster Elf in cash games, but I'm even willing to do that Thursday night, especially if Aaron Gordon and/or Evan Fournier are out.
Ish Smith - PG, DET @ ORL (DK - $4,900)
When I got a Twitter alert about Reggie Jackson missing multiple games, I was overcome with excitement thinking about playing Ish Smith at the next possible opportunity. Smith will almost certainly get the start at point guard and play at least 30 minutes in Jackson's absence, and we know he's not afraid to shoot the rock. Do I wish the price tag was about one thousand dollars less, especially for cash games? Sure. However, the fact that the Magic are the worst team in the NBA against point guards and provide a nice pace-up spot makes up for the seemingly high price. I'm more than fine with Smith in cash games and tournaments.
Other Guards to Consider: Kyrie Irving, Eric Bledsoe, Malcolm Brogdon, Reggie Bullock
DraftKings DFS Forwards
Khris Middleton - SG/SF, MIL vs. MIN (DK - $7,500)
Khris Middleton has been a steady contributor in a a lot of categories since returning from injury this season. Normally, I avoid wings against the Timberwolves, as Jimmy Butler defense is enough to make me nervous about opposing players. However, I think in this scenario that we see Butler guard The Greek Freak, and that might leave a few extra shots for Middleton. What makes me like Middleton so much is his minutes floor of nearly 40 each game as well as his shot attempts, which seem to be around 20 or more every time out. This is a skilled player offensively, and he'll contribute peripheral stats as well. In this matchup with a relatively high total and tight spread, I like Middleton for his safety and some upside.
Bismack Biyombo - PF/C, ORL vs. DET (DK - $4,600)
Bismack Biyombo should probably go in the "Centers" section, but I have someone else I want to talk about there, so he's being bumped up here. Besides, this is my chance to tell you that you can play a bunch of centers on DraftKings with this multi-position eligibility. Anyways, you probably know all of the reasons why I like Biyombo already. He's obvsiouly starting for Vucevic and will get 30 minutes barring foul trouble. I know the five blocks won't be there every game, but he won't go 1-for-7 every game either. The 12 rebounds are very sustainable and might actually increase since Andre Drummond doesn't have much of a jumper to pull the big man away from the rim on defense. This price hike was not enough, and I think Biyombo is viable in all formats.
Other Forwards to Consider: Al Horford, Kawhi Leonard, Ryan Anderson
DraftKings DFS Centers
Karl-Anthony Towns - C, MIN @ MIL (DK - $8,900)
Much like Payton, Karl-Anthony Towns has revived his season after a really rough start. He's certainly plateaued of late however, failing to hit 50 DK points in each of the last four despite doing it five times in a row prior to that stretch. Even still, I think this is a great get-right, go-bonkers spot for KAT. Giannis Antetokounmpo will almost certainly be covering Jimmy Butler, and the Bucks have been vulnerable down low this year. Let's be honest, how is John Henson going to slow down his much, much larger counterpart? Between the extra offensive responsibilities and awesome rebound funnel spot, I will be all over Towns on Thursday.
Other Centers to Consider: Joel Embiid, Andre Drummond
