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The top daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for DraftKings and FanDuel on December 22 2021. Mike Marteny provides NBA DFS analysis and sleeper picks for building optimal DFS rosters.
We have a smaller Wednesday slate with six games, and with COVID running rampant in the Association, there are better players out than actually on the court. This is where tournaments get really, really interesting.
Lock is a bit later than normal at 7:30 Eastern tonight when Boston hosts Cleveland and a beleaguered Hawks team hosts an equally exasperated Magic team. Toronto is in Chicago, the Bucks host Houston, and Denver heads to OKC at the 8:00 hour. We finish up out west with the Kings hosting the Clippers.
This article will provide you with my daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for DraftKings and FanDuel on 12/22/21. Remember to monitor injury news as the slate can completely change before lineups lock.
DraftKings and FanDuel Guards - NBA DFS Lineup Picks
Jrue Holiday - PG, MIL vs. HOU ($9,500 DK, $9,600 FD)
I'm a little less gung-ho about Jrue with Khris Middleton no longer on the injury report. Holiday put up back-to-back games over 50 fantasy points with both Giannis and Middleton out. It is worth noting that Middleton was out with a knee injury, so he may not hit the ground running. This is a great matchup against a depleted Houston team, but the impeding blowout lowers Holiday's ceiling.
Tyrese Haliburton - PG/SG, SAC vs. LAC ($8,200 DK, $8,100 FD)
Forget the matchup. Haliburton has been cooking with gas with De'Aaron Fox out of the lineup. He has 196.5 fantasy points over the last four games alone! His price has been slow to adjust since he was lower-priced when the hot streak began. Haliburton is cheap enough to take the risk, even agianst the Clippers. He should still be good for a 40-spot.
Hassani Gravett - PG/SG , ORL at ATL ($3,200 DK; $3,900 FD)
This is a worse matchup than if Trae Young were in, but beggars can't be choosers. There's a slight chance that Cole Anthony could return for the Magic, but Gravett should still see plenty of court time with Gary Harris and B.J. Johnson as his only competition behind Anthony. Gravett isn't much of a scorer, but he's stuffing the stat sheet, which makes him particularly valuable on FanDuel. He's still around 6-7x value on DraftKings too, which is the sweet spot.
FANDUEL ONLY PICK:
Jaylen Brown - SG/SF, BOS vs. CLE ($7,500)
Brown is a staggering $2,400 cheaper on FanDuel tonight, which is a little bit insane. Brown has 151.4 FanDuel points in four games since his return. That's a great return for the price. His 45 against Philly on Monday suggest that Brown is trending upward right now. The Cavs are a solid team, but the defense takes a hit with Isaac Okoro and Evan Mobley out with COVID.
Others to consider: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander ($9,500 DK, $8,700 FD), Lonzo Ball ($8,800 DK, $8,000 FD), Ricky Rubio ($6,200 DK, $6,800 FD), Delon Wright ($4,600 DK, $4,700 FD)
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DraftKings and FanDuel Forwards - NBA DFS Lineup Picks
Josh Giddey - SG/SF, OKC vs. DEN ($7,800 DK/ $7,000 FD)
That's three straight games over 40 fantasy points for Giddey now. One of those was against the Clippers, so he's not just taking it to inferior competition. He has established himself as a triple-double threat due to his above-average passing and rebounding skills. When he adds consistent scoring, look out! For now, he still a good upside play thanks to big peripheral numbers.
John Collins - PF/C, ATL vs. ORL ($7,300 DK, $7,400 FD)
Clint Capela is out wtih COVID, so that should mean huge production for John Collins. Add in the fact that Trae Young is in the virus protocols as well and you have a whole lot of production up for grabs against an inferior opponent. Collins' ceiling is higher than normal, but all sorts of guards can come up big for the Hawks too. Just make sure to check the lineups. Collins is my first Hawk in any lineup though.
Jordan Nwora - SF, MIL vs. HOU ($4,500 DK, $6,200 FD)
Nwora wont play 42 minutes again with Middleton back, but he's still a great bargain for a guy that is still going to play around 30 minutes. I doubt the Bucks push Middleton much in his return from a knee injury. The Bucks still have to put five players on the court even if they are up by 20 or 30, so Nwora will still see meaningful court time for at least one more game. His ceiling just isn't as high as it has been.
Others to consider: DeMar DeRozan ($10,200 DK, $8,900 FD), Jae'Sean Tate ($6,600 DK, $6,100 FD), Chuma Okeke ($5,200 DK, $5,500 FD), Cam Reddish ($3,700 DK, $4,500 FD)
DraftKings and FanDuel Centers - NBA DFS Lineup Picks
Nikola Jokic - C, DEN at OKC ($12,600 DK, $11,400 FD)
Yeah, this game might be a blowout, but Jokic will be a big reason why. He still put up 49.5 DraftKings points in just 26 minutes of a blowout win over the Hawks. If this game manages to stay close, Jokic could break the slate. If not, he's still good for a 50-spot.
Richaun Holmes - PF/C, SAC vs. LAC ($6,400 DK; $6,600 FD)
Holmes was presumably close to playing on Monday, so hopefully he'll be in tonight. The Kings desperately need him and this is a decent matchup. It's an easy enough pivot to Chimezie Metu if Holmes sits though. However, we definitely prefer the massive upside of Holmes.
Robin Lopez - C, ORL at ATL ($4,600 DK; $5,000 FD)
RoLo has been playing huge minutes with Wendell Carter Jr. sidelined. WCJ is questionable, so if he plays, move off of RoLo. If he's out, Lopez is the only true center that the Magic have and he has racked up a cool 71.75 fantasy points in two games with Carter out.
Others to consider: Nikola Vucevic ($10,100 DK, $8,800 FD), Alperen Sengun ($5,800 DK, $5,600 FD), Chris Boucher ($5,100 DK/FD)
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