RADIO
The third Friday of the NBA season is now upon us. Half of the league's teams are in action tonight with eight games on the docket. Perhaps the most intriguing game of the night is Minnesota at Golden State. Both teams are ranked in the top-eight of the league in scoring and three-point shooting. The Warriors are No. 1 in both categories while the Timberwolves are eighth in scoring and tied for seventh in three-point percentage. So, with the over/under at 239.5 points fantasy owners can expect a lot of points in the game. NBA leading scorer Stephen Curry along with Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson -- all three producing over 19 points a game -- lead the way for the Dubs. Curry, who is averaging 33.0 points a game, has topped the 30-point mark in six of nine games.
In the meantime, Derrick Rose is coming off a career-high 50 points for the Timberwolves on Wednesday night. Jimmy Butler, who is expected to play after sitting out the team's last game, leads four Wolves who are scoring at least 15 points a contest at 22.5. Karl-Anthony Towns, Rose and Andrew Wiggins are the other players topping the 15-point mark on the season. Injuries, as usual, will affect fantasy owners decisions. Donovan Mitchell has already been ruled out for tonight's action. James Harden, Devin Booker along with Jeff Teague are among several other players with injury designations.
In this article, I will be providing you with my daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for DraftKings on 11/2/18. 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 read today's FanDuel lineup picks and our Premium DFS Cheat Sheet, as well as, check out the NBA DFS Matchup Ratings tool for daily player projections. Oh, and be sure to check for injury updates prior to the opening tip - I will not be held liable for your negligence in that regard.
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DraftKings DFS Guards
Jeff Teague - PG@GSW ($5,200) or Derrick Rose - PG/SG@GSW ($5,400)
Both players could end up being value plays, although I prefer Teague (knee) if he is able to go. The reason being Teague will likely start the game at point guard and is a tad cheaper than Rose.
Teague, who is officially listed as questionable for the game, sat out the Wolves exciting victory over the Jazz after bumping knees with LeBron James on Monday. While the 30-year-old has struggled with his shot this season -- especially over the last four games -- he is still a better scorer and distributor than Rose. Plus, Teague can score on all three levels and he has done an excellent job at protecting the ball.
Rose is playing his best basketball in several seasons. He is coming off the highest scoring game of his career as he made 19 of 31 shots from the field. He has now reached double figures in seven straight games despite shooting over 40 percent from the field in just four of those contests. Rose is seeing about 30 minutes of playing time on the year, but that includes the 41 minutes of action on Wednesday.
Rose is currently producing six more fantasy points a game than Teague per DraftKings scoring, thanks in large part to the 69 points he recorded the last time out. However, Teague has a higher floor due to his ability to put up an occasional double-double as well as filling the stat sheet more often than Rose.
Golden State's backcourt is around the league average in allowing production from opposing team's guards. Therefore, it is not a great matchup for either one of the point guards, but it is manageable. In the Warriors last game versus the Pelicans, Jrue Holiday and E'Twuan Moore combined for 49 points, nine assists and seven rebounds.
Kyle Lowry - PG@PHO ($8,400)
Lowry is playing phenomenal basketball and he has an outstanding matchup against the Suns. While Lowry is not scoring any more than he has over the last four seasons and his rebounding numbers are down per 40 minutes, he is distributing and shooting the ball better than ever. The 32-year-old point guard has made at least 50% of his shots from the field in five of his eight games and he has doled out double-digit assists in each of his last six games. His true shooting percentage of 65.0% shooting efficiency of 62.4 percent, 11.1 assists a game, 3.87 assist-to-turnover ratio and 43.7% assist percentage are career highs.
Lowry has four games of 20 or more points and produced five double-doubles this season, including three 20-point, 10-rebound performances.
Phoenix has permitted at least 117 points in each of its last six games and the Suns are allowing the seventh most points a game overall at 118.1. The Suns are also giving up the 10th most points to their opponent's backcourt, although their opponent's shooting percentage (48.9 percent) is the second worst in the league.
Dennis Schroder -PG/SG @WAS ($5,300)
Schroder has been filling up the stat sheet since Russell Westbrook returned to lineup five games ago. Schroder, who has come off the bench the last five games, matched his season high with 21 points on 7-for-15 shooting against the Hornets on Thursday night. The 25-year-old point guard also dished out five assists and grabbed three rebounds last night, marking the sixth time in eight games that he has recorded at least five assists. He has scored in double figures in each of his five games that he has come off the bench, averaging 14.4 points and 5.8 dimes in 27 minutes during this span.
Washington's defense is a huge reason that the Wizards are just 1-6 on the campaign. The Wiz are giving up the most points in the league overall (122.4), however, this will be their first home game since the opening week of the season and Dwight Howard is expected to make his season debut. Still, the Wizards are allowing the seventh most points and assists to opposing backcourts.
Damyean Dotson - SG@DAL ($4,400)
Dotson is a value play here. He is averaging 25.6 fantasy points a game on Draft Kings and the 24-year-old has tallied at least 20 fantasy points in all but one of his six appearances.
The second-year shooting guard has been a pleasant surprise in the early going, producing 13.2 points along with 5.8 rebounds and 1.2 steals a game while shooting 45.6 percent from the field and 37,8% from beyond the arc for a tidy true shooting percentage of 56.6 percent. He has scored in double figures and knocked down at least one trey in each of his six games this season. Dotson posted a double-double against the Heat on Oct. 24.
DraftKings DFS Forwards
Jabari Parker - SF/PF vsIND ($5,800)
Parker appears to be on the verge of returning to his 2016-17 form, prior to his second major knee injury. The 23-year-old power forward, who is coming off his worst shooting and scoring performance of the early going against the Nuggets, is averaging 14.3 points along with 6.4 caroms while shooting 44.8 percent from the floor and 33.3 percent from beyond the arc.
While Parker only had six points on 3-for-10 shooting versus Denver, the fifth-year vet did grab nine boards -- marking the fourth time in his last five outings that he has grabbed at least eight caroms. The game against the Nuggets was the first time this season that he has failed to reach double figures in scoring.
Besides his improvement in rebounding, the most encouraging stats that he will get back to his previous level is his usage and three-point shooting.
P.J. Tucker - SF/PF @BKN ($4,500)
Tucker is another value play. Tucker has started every game and he has been on the floor at least 34 minutes in each of his first six games this year. While he is coming off an overall average performance on Wednesday -- eight points, eight rebounds, two steals and a blocked shot -- he is capable of more. The biggest issue for the versatile 33-year-old has been the number of shots that he gets in a game. Tucker has two games of double-digit shot attempts, reaching double figures both times.
Kevin Durant - SF/PF vs Min ($9,900)
If the Warriors and Timberwolves are going to combine for 230 points, someone has to score. While Curry is probably the more logical choice, Durant has the better matchup against either Wiggins or Taj Gibson and god forbid if Towns has to try to man up on him.
DraftKings DFS Center
Domantas Sabonis - PF/C @CHI ($6,300)
Sabonis has been tremendous off the bench for the Pacers. The biggest question is whether the 6-foot-11 big man can stay on the floor?
Sabonis, who is producing the second most fantasy points as a reserve, has three double-doubles. He nearly missed another double-double versus the Knicks on Wednesday, posting 30 points on 12 of 12 shooting along with nine rebounds in 22 minutes. The 6-foot-11 big man is averaging 14.4 points, 9.6 caroms and 2.1 assists. His only weaknesses are three-point shooting and blocking shots -- both of which he has the ability to contribute, just not consistent in those areas -- as well staying out of foul trouble.
