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The top daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for DraftKings on October 20, 2018. Jake Finnen's NBA DFS analysis and sleepers for building optimal DFS rosters.
Feels good being back in the swing of things doesn't it? With the first weekend of basketball right ahead of us, Friday night was the perfect start. Multiple teams are going to be playing on the second night of a back-to-back, including both the Pacers/Nets and Knicks/Celtics games. I wouldn't avoid these games, but there are only a few match ups throughout that are worth noting, but we'll get to those later. Saturday is going to be all about guard value and stacking high-quality bigs. It will be mostly a high-risk, high-reward philosophy going into most of these picks, but this early in the season you need to nail those sleeper picks if you want to cash out.
In this article, I will be providing you with my daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for DraftKings on 10/20/18. These DFS lineup picks can vary from higher-priced players and elite options to lower-priced players and value picks on DraftKings.
You can also check out today's FanDuel lineup picks and our Premium DFS Cheat Sheet. And don't forget to check out our brand new NBA DFS Matchup Ratings tool with daily player projections. Good luck.
DraftKings DFS Guards
T.J. McConnell - PG, vs. ORL ($3,400)
Two things can happen in this game. Either the Magic continue down the path they are on, with minimal defense and subpar shooting. Or, they will win their first game because the 76ers couldn't score to save the Liberty Bell. My guess is that Philadelphia comes out swinging hard, puts this game away by the second half, allowing T.J. McConnell to walk away exceeding his projected and contributing across the board. Although Markelle Fultz is back.....he's not REALLY back. McConnell can't help but produce and Saturday he should have the door opened for him by the starters....and Orlando's lack of defense.
J.J. Reddick is another quality play even alongside McConnell but I don't feel like writing that much about the 76ers.
Josh Hart - SG, vs HOU ($4,900)
Josh Hart was one of the top, non-statistically impressive players last season and you could tell then it was only a matter of time before he made a name for himself. It seems that LeBron James emergence in Lakers culture has already made an impact on Hart, and the spacing he wasn't getting last year is clearly benefitting the excess of spacing he is getting now. He was second in scoring last game and his energy off the bench is too valuable to overlook against a team like Houston. Although the Rockets have been incredibly disappointing early this season, they will not bend the knee simply because James is playing his first game in Los Angeles. Expect a crap shoot and Hart to be shooting a lot of that crap.
I also have Gary Harris down as a more expensive SG with plenty of upside.
DraftKings DFS Forwards
Domantas Sabonis - PF, vs BKN ($6,100)
Even though both teams are on their second night of a back-to-back, Domantas Sabonis is already on his early season domination streak. Instead of waiting for him to backtrack, it's better you just capitalize because he is going to keep contributing. He is getting the minutes, the start and to his spots on the floor... and that is all you can really ask of a player when it comes to DFS. Yes, there is an added chance of risk because he could be tired, but not many players secure 15 rebounds one game, 13 the next, then all of a sudden fall off his team's radar. Sabonis is good for a nightly double-double but any price increase might require more extra contributions to make him worth it.
Blake Griffin - PF/C, @ CHI ($8,600)
These next two picks go hand in hand but only because of their price. A lineup with both Blake Griffin and Karl-Anthony Towns is already promising, especially when both are available for under $9K each. The Chicago Bulls frontcourt isn't really into this whole defense thing so expect both Griffin and Andre Drummond to find success in just about every way possible. The Bulls do have Robin Lopez to impact shots, but he won't be a force on the rebounds and the rest of Chicago's young roster will not be able to handle the power that Detroit's frontcourt enforces on a nightly basis. This will be a battle of strength and the Pistons should be able to rely on Griffin for production all night.
DraftKings DFS Centers
Karl-Anthony Towns - C, @ DAL ($8,700)
Despite everything that surrounds Minnesota, Karl-Anthony Towns hasn't shown any signs of regression and the Mavericks frontcourt is just as static as ever. Adding DeAndre Jordan helps the Dallas offense, but he won't be able to follow Towns out to the perimeter and it should allow for Towns to put together a well-rounded game. He may not be filling every statistical category, but he will score and he will rebound so expect him to take on a more aggressive scoring role Saturday night.
