RADIO
Another big night in the NBA and there will be plenty of superstars to choose from. With 10 games on the slate, Nikola Jokic and LeBron James and at the top of my list for must-plays. The Nuggets are on the second night of a back-to-back, so while some of the Nuggets may experience some fatigue, expect them to find some energy with either Trey Lyles or Juancho Hernangomez tonight. Since Paul Millsap will miss an extended period of time, both will find massive roles in the offense. Both players offer perimeter scoring and need to lock in on defense. You can and should play both to free up space and I would not shy away from stacking this game. Jokic might see less minutes if the Nuggets demolish them quickly, but regardless, Hernangomez and Lyles are due for huge nights.
If you wanted to stack any other games, look for the Clippers and Heat to find themselves in a close game, while the Timberwolves and Trail Blazers game needs to be monitored strictly from the pace and amount of points that will be scored. Damian Lillard, Bam Adebayo, Patrick Beverly, Karl-Anthony Towns and Robert Covington all need to be considered if not rostered tonight, assuming you fade Jokic and James.
In this article, I will be providing you with my daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for DraftKings on 12/8/18. 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. As always, don't set your lineups to early and check player statuses before the opening tip.
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DraftKings DFS Guards
Monte Morris - PG, at ATL ($3,600)
This is a fairly easy decision if you have been keeping up with Monte Morris and the Denver Nuggets rotations. Not to same overly lame but Morris has been an absolute delight to DFS players. He is always fairly cheap, gets enough minutes to justify rostering him every night, and he has the skill-set to score and earn more minutes with efficient shooting. Last night, Morris played 24 minutes against the Hornets and posted a fairly modest stat-line. This is what should be expected from him as a reserve, but until Gary Harris returns he will always have that extra upside. Torrey Craig got the start last night, but Morris is still the more consistent option and have way more upside due to his scoring ability.
Alec Burks - SG/SF, vs WAS ($3,900)
The Cavaliers just traded away George Hill which doesn't open up an immediete door for Alec Burks or anything, but it does solidify his role as the top shooter. Burks' playmaking ability gives him upside against any team and the only thing really holding him back is whether he can actually hit or not. The team doesn't really have the talent pool to be picky with who will be producing each night so expect Burks, Collin Sexton and Tristan Thompson to do most of the heavy-lifting on offense. He will be lining up against Bradley Beal, Otto Porter, and Kelly Oubre so expect him to get to the rim.
DraftKings DFS Forwards
Thaddeus Young - SG/SF, vs. SAC ($4,600)
This is a very bold pick and it's not all that much of a salary relief option, so I don't blame you for fading Young per usual. But, I will say that since the Kings have been keeping games competitive, I don't see them rebounding the ball well enough to keep someone like Young from producing. As veteran defender that knows his role, he will sacrifice some shots for the sake of his teammates. This isn't bad but it can hurt his upside in general. I needed to mention that for when Young has zero shot attempts tonight, but grabs 10 boards and creates a few assists. The Kings are still one of the younger teams and struggle to guard experienced bigs that know how to rebound and create second chances.
Ed Davis - PF/C, at NYK ($3,300)
Outside of Mitchell Robinson and Noah Vonleh, the Knicks have no one else to grab rebounds. Ed Davis has dominated the league's best rebounders for years and although he lacks upside in other categories, when he get offensive rebounds, he makes the most of them. You could also play Noah Vonleh here as well, but seeing how there will more than enough rebounds to go around, look for Ed Davis to see extra minutes against the Knicks and exceed his basement level value.
DraftKings DFS Center
Thomas Bryant - PF/C, at CLE ($3,700)
So despite me ripping apart the Wizards frontcourt defense every chance I get, they did mask some of the problems by adding a rebounder in Thomas Bryant. Bryant has minimal range on offense but his athleticism is incredibly underrated. He still needs to work on the little things that will make his game more complete, but he does everything that you need from him for DFS standards. He will rebound and will score around the rim and it's not like Washington can afford to just let him sit on the bench. He went off against the Hawks and will face a tougher challenge in Tristan Thompson, but I don't think Thompson will be enough to keep Bryant from surpassing his projected.
