RADIO
The bubble giveth, the bubble taketh. While the Orlando bubble has given NBA fans a respite from the laborious nature of a summer of quarantine, it has also begun to provide consternation for DFS players who are hitting refresh on injury update feeds with increased frequency. With many of the top stars on the slate Monday having some kind of injury designation as of late Sunday night, seeing who’s definitively in and who’s out could be the true slate breaker.
While all five games Monday have considerable playoff implications, none jumps off the page as a shootout up to the standards of the bubble thus far. Owners looking to stack players might lend credence to Oklahoma City/Phoenix, but if the past few weeks have proven anything, it’s that you never know who might catch fire in Orlando.
In this article, I will be providing you with my daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for DraftKings on 8/10/20. You can also check out today's FanDuel lineup picks. Remember to monitor injury news as the slate can completely change before lineup lock.
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DraftKings DFS Guards
Goran Dragic - PG, MIA vs. IND ($4,900)
On track to return from a two-game absence due to an ankle ailment, Dragic appears destined to re-enter the starting five with Kendrick Nunn (personal reasons) unavailable. Before his absence, Dragic had dropped 25 and 20 points in his last two games, respectively, all while playing just 28 minutes. How adventurous head coach Erik Spoelstra gets with increasing Dragic’s minutes allotment remains to be seen, but he’ll likely be tasked with additional ball-handling duties, which could also aid him in the assist department. His price tag is at its lowest point since before the All-Star break, meaning that his exposure is likely to be considerable, but he remains one of the top cash plays on the board due to his path to playing time.
Delon Wright - PG/SG, DAL vs. UTA ($3,300)
With Luka Doncic (ankle) sitting out the first leg of a back-to-back, Wright is the likeliest candidate to step into the starting five, which gives him a terrific opportunity at exceeding his value. In two of the five games that Wright has started this season, he has seen at least 30 minutes on the floor, which jacks up his averages to 10.3 points, 7.3 rebounds and 3.8 assists; as Dallas deals with widespread ailments ahead of what amounts to a seeding game for playoff position, expect Wright to see all of the usage that he can handle in his time on the floor.
DraftKings DFS Forwards
Pascal Siakam - PF, TOR vs. MIL ($7,400)
Siakam’s price tag has finally dropped low enough for the bait to be dangled. After a rare clunker against Boston on Friday, Siakam roared back Sunday -- at least in the scoring column. His one rebound leads to some pause, and ultimately, to his lowest price tag since early in the 2019-20 season. The pace that the Bucks play at lends itself to the opposition getting up piles of shots -- 94 per game, a league-high, in fact -- which gives high-volume shot-takers like Siakam a leg up. While many of the top stars on the slate enter play with an injury designation of some kind, Siakam’s price feels just right as a compliment to the top plays, considering he was one himself before his recent rebounding malaise.
Victor Oladipo - SG/SF, IND vs. MIA ($5,800)
Owners will want to particularly stay abreast of Indiana’s injury report prior to tip-off, but so long as Olaidpo has clearance to play his usual minutes allotment, he is as safe of a cash play as there is at his price range. Having seen a season-high 35 minutes of action Saturday, Oladipo is producing plenty in his “capped” role during the remaining regular season games, delivering an average of 29.5 DK points in his four games inside the bubble. While teammate T.J. Warren has warranted much of the pomp due to his scoring proclivities, Oladipo is a multi-category contributor that can compile points in bunches.
Maximilian Kleber - PF/C, DAL vs. UTA ($4,200)
Having developed into a bench ace for Dallas, Kleber is likely to re-enter the starting rotation Monday with Kristaps Porzingis (knee) and Dorian Finney-Smith (hip) sidelined. Fortunately, the German big man has reeled off his two best offensive games in the bubble over his past pair of contests and should now see a significant bump in usage on both ends of the floor. Much in the same ilk that Wright’s performance will be based on how much time he sees, the same holds true for Kleber, who has played at least 30 minutes in 14 of 21 prior starts this year; when he hits that threshold, he is averaging 11.1 points and 7.0 rebounds. He should have a large amount of exposure in cash games, but he remains a high-ceiling play in GPP due to just how short-handed the Mavericks will be.
DraftKings DFS Centers
Deandre Ayton - PF/C, PHO vs. OKC ($8,000)
With centers Steven Adams and Nerlens Noel having sat out Sunday’s game, the Thunder suddenly look fraughtfully thin in the frontcourt. Mike Muscala saw 28 minutes as the starting five against Washington, but he was not presented with the challenge of defending a big man with the skill set of Ayton, who appears in line to feast Monday should Oklahoma City remain without Adams and Noel. Ayton has delivered double-doubles in each of his past two contests, and with Aron Baynes (knee) still unavailable, his upside remains high in a game that Phoenix will need to win to remain in the thick of the playoff chase.
Rudy Gobert - C, UTA vs. DAL ($7,600)
Gobert enters Monday on the heels of a season-high 16-shot performance Saturday, which resulted in his third consecutive double-double. Aside from having reeled off one of his best outings of the year, he will now get to match up against either the under-sized Kleber or the large, but not exactly mobile, Boban Marjanovic -- either way, it’s an astounding advantage for Gobert. His shot blocking ability has carried over to the bubble, having reeled off at least one block in each of his last 22 games, a streak that he looks to extend while having nearly unfettered access to as many rebounds as he can grab against the Mavericks.
