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The top daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for DraftKings on May 24, 2021. Mike Marteny provides NBA DFS analysis and sleeper picks for building optimal DFS rosters.
It's only prime time NBA action today with just two games. We have the Heat down 1-0 to the Bucks in Milwaukee for the early game. The nightcap is Portland up 1-0 in Denver. The Heat took the Bucks to overtime in Game 1. Denver looked overmatched against Portland. Will those trends hold again?
Denver is still without Jamal Murray, PJ Dozier, and Will Barton. That was a serious problem in Game 1. Will they be able to overcome it this time? Miami is still without Victor Oladipo and will be until at least November. The rest of the rotations are intact. That would lead us to lean towards the Bucks-Heat for most of our fantasy production.
This article will supply you with my daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for the DraftKings on 5/24/21. You can also check out today’s FanDuel lineup picks. It’s also important to monitor injury news as a result of COVID-19 as the slate can completely change before line-up lock. Without further ado, let’s dive into the picks!
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Damian Lillard - PG, at Denver ($9,500)
Defense is where the Nuggets miss Jamal Murray the most. They had no answer for Dame in Game 1 as he put up 59 DraftKings points in 40 minutes. That was despite shooting a subpar 10-25 from the floor. If Lillard gets that shooting percent up around 50 like it has been, he could break the slate. Portland is going to run through Lillard until someone stops him. That may not happen until next round.
Jrue Holiday - PG/SG, vs. Miami ($7,700)
That's three straight games over 42 DraftKings points for Holiday. It seems like the strong end to the regular season is carrying over to the playoffs. If you remember last year, the Heat took out the Bucks in five games in the bubble last year. Holiday is that one major upgrade for the Bucks, and he was a huge problem in Game 1. He was for the Heat in all four games this year, averaging 42.7 DraftKings points per game. He is underpriced right now. Take advantage while you can.
Goran Dragic - PG, at Milwaukee ($5,000)
While we're on the subject of last year's playoffs, Dragic was the guy that really turned it on for the Heat in the postseason after being a bench guy in the regular season. It appears that may be the case once again. Miami was fully healthy in the backcourt and Dragic led the guards with 35 minutes. DraftKings hasn't priced him like a starter again yet, so he's a lock for 6x value at this price. That's a nice building block for our lineups.
Austin Rivers - PG/SG, vs. Portland ($3,800)
Rivers has been playing more minutes that Facundo Campazzo and Monte Morris lately and is the cheapest of the three. His 20 DraftKings points in 33 minutes are nothing to write home about, but that is still 6x value at his price range. Morris probably has the highest ceiling, but Rivers seems to be the best value right now. Don't expect a big game out of any of them against Portland though. They'll be solid values, but they won't break slates.
Bonus Guards: Khris Middleton ($8,200), Facundo Campazzo ($5,700), Donte DiVincenzo ($4,900), Duncan Robinson ($4,700)
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DraftKings DFS Forwards
Giannis Antetokounmpo - PF/C, vs. Miami ($10,800)
Giannis had a strong 61 DraftKings points in Game 1, but don't count on him playing 45 minutes again. The fact is that Miami is a good defensive team and everyone in this game had their stats inflated by overtime. Giannis put up good numbers against the Heat this year, but he also barely hit 5x value. I don't think you can fade Giannis in cash games, but in GPP formats, there is some upside to a Giannis fade.
Jimmy Butler - SF, at Milwaukee ($8,500)
Butler is one of the few guys from this game that I could see topping his Game 1 production. Why? Butler was a horrendous 4-22 from the floor in the first game and still put up 47 DraftKings points, coming up two assists shy of a triple-double. The fact that he is $2,300 less than Giannis is going to have me flocking to Butler in GPP's. That opens up so much more in lineups and Butler's ceiling is not that far removed from that of Giannis.
Aaron Gordon - SF/PF, vs. Portland ($5,200)
Gordon played 28 minutes in Game 1, which is about as good as we could have hoped for. The 30 DraftKings points was good enough for 6x value, so I'm going back to that well again. The place to go after Portland is at forward and Gordon appears to have the most consistent minutes at the position with the possible exception of Porter. I like the $1,800 savings. Gordon has a chance to be to Denver what he was to Orlando before the trade with Murray sidelined. Let's see if he tries to take on that role.
Bonus Forwards: Michael Porter Jr. ($7,000), Trevor Ariza ($4,800), Carmelo Anthony ($4,300)
DraftKings DFS Centers
Nikola Jokic - C, vs. Portland ($10,700)
Denver still lost, but Jokic put up 58 DraftKings points even in the 14-point loss. He has the highest floor of anyone on the slate and the ceiling isn't too shabby either. He is the focal point of everything going on on the floor with Murray out, especially with Porter disappearing for stretches in Game 1. Ride the experience of Jokic. He'll score well for us whether the Nuggets win or not.
Jusuf Nurkic - C, at Denver ($6,700)
Nurkic put up another strong game in Game 1, but the big takeaway in this one for me was the 33 minutes. The 6.5x value will fit in any of my lineups, but that kind of minutes load means that his ceiling is even higher than we thought. There are a few prices on DraftKings that seem a little out of whack today. Nurkic is definitely one of those. His floor isn't as solid as the more expensive options, but the ceiling is great for this price range.
Bonus Centers: Bam Adebayo ($8,000), Brook Lopez ($4,600), Andre Drummond ($6,100)
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