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Justin's DraftKings DFS lineup picks for the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series North Carolina Education Lottery 200 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Read his 2025 daily fantasy NASCAR advice and Truck sleepers.
The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series is at Charlotte Motor Speedway this weekend as part of a big Memorial Day weekend tripleheader for NASCAR's top three series. With F1 in Monaco and IndyCar at Indianapolis, this is one of the best racing weekends of the year.
Last week, the Truck Series was at North Wilkesboro, where Chandler Smith won, finishing just ahead of his Front Row Motorsports teammate Layne Riggs. Corey Heim dominated, but was spun on the final lap, finishing 17th despite leading 162 of the 255 laps.
Let's look at some NASCAR Truck Series DFS lineup picks for the NASCAR Truck Series North Carolina Education Lottery 200 on DraftKings. Be sure also to check out our NASCAR Premium Tools for Truck Series, including our DFS Lineup Optimizer and powerful Research Station. This slate locks on 5/23/2025 at 8:50 p.m. EDT.
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Truck Series DFS Preview - DraftKings
Be sure also to check out all of our other weekly NASCAR DFS articles to help you set your optimal DFS lineups on DraftKings and FanDuel.
Post-Qualifying Updates
Check back later for updates.
Top Drivers
Obviously, Corey Heim starting third puts him in a great spot to win this thing, and Kyle Busch starting just outside the top 10 gives him the place differential upside needed to be the top scoring driver in this field.
I wouldn't count out Ross Chastain, who starts fourth.
Place Differential Plays
In order of DFS pricing, here are some of the strong place differential targets:
- Grant Enfinger ($8.8K, 18th)
- Tyler Ankrum ($8.5K, 23rd) — one of my most rostered drivers tonight
- Parker Kligerman ($7.7K, 24th)
- Ben Rhodes ($7.5K, 21st)
- B.J. McLeod ($7.4K, 19th) — I outlined by concerns below, but I think this starting spot offers decent upside
- Stewart Friesen ($6.9K, 32nd) — favorite play among drivers under $7K
- Luke Fenhaus ($6.1K, 33rd)
Drivers To Fade
These drivers start too high in the field, so I'm mostly out on them:
- Kaden Honeycutt (Fifth)
- Giovanni Ruggiero (First)
- Tanner Gray (Second)
Top Drivers
Corey Heim - $12.0K
If the playoffs didn't exist, Corey Heim would already essentially have the title wrapped up. He's ahead of Chandler Smith by 47 points already, and if it weren't for a last-lap spin at North Wilkesboro, the gap would be far wider.
By finishing 13th, Corey Heim has already beat Riley Herbst’s best finish of the season (14th at Texas) in his first Cup start of the year. pic.twitter.com/d2zgL09Ar2
— No Context NASCAR (@NoContextNyoom) May 11, 2025
Heim almost won here last year, leading 72 laps and finishing second before he was later disqualified for loose lug nuts. It would have been his second runner-up finish in two Truck Series starts.
Kyle Busch - $11.5K
Last week, Kyle Busch never felt like a threat at North Wilkesboro. He started second, but didn't lead any laps and finished ninth.
However, he's still Kyle Busch. He's won 67 times in the Truck Series despite running seven or fewer races every season since 2015. His average finish in 177 races is 6.5. Finally, he's not exorbitantly expensive.
Chandler Smith - $9.8K
Teammate Layne Riggs is priced above Smith, but I'm fading Riggs this week because he just seems a tad too high, considering his inconsistency.
Smith, meanwhile, has two wins already, including last week at North Wilkesboro. He's been a bit hit-or-miss at intermediates, as two of his three non-top-10 runs have come on them, but Smith's showing good speed overall.
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Mid-Tier NASCAR Trucks DFS Lineup Options
Ross Chastain - $9.5K
It's always fun when Ross Chastain drops down to the Truck Series. At Homestead, he led 33 laps before finishing sixth, and last year he had a win and three top fives in five starts.
He doesn't have quite the upside that Kyle Busch has, but he still has a high ceiling, though Busch has a much higher floor, as Chastain has had some races where his speed just wasn't there, like his 15th-place run last season at North Wilkesboro.
Daniel Hemric - $9.0K
With his fourth-place finish at North Wilkeboro last week, Daniel Hemric has four consecutive top 10s, including a second-place finish at Texas.
He isn't a huge threat to win — even in his lone win of the year, Hemric led just four laps. He hasn't led more than eight in any race this year. Still, he's logging strong laps in the top 10 and finishing there, which is mostly good enough to have him high on the DFS radar.
Tyler Ankrum - $8.5K
Tyler Ankrum's third-place finish at North Wilkesboro last week gave him seven top-5s already on the year, setting a new career-high mark for the driver racing full-time in the Truck Series since 2019.
Man does that 🟠🔵 @LIUNA Chevrolet look good up front!😮💨 pic.twitter.com/r0NVpJfFs7
— Tyler Ankrum (@TylerAnkrum) May 17, 2025
I get that he's not an exciting driver, but his average finish this year is 8.1, and he sits fourth in points, so this price point feels like a slight value.
Kaden Honeycutt - $8.3K
I wish Kaden Honeycutt's price would drop just a bit, but he has four top 10s in the last five races, including an eighth-place run at Kansas. He's finished within one spot of where he started in three of the previous four races, so a strong qualifying run shouldn't scare you off.
Brandon Jones - $8.0K
Brandon Jones hasn't been quite as good as you might have expected he'd be in these Truck Series starts in 2025, recording just one top 10 in five starts. However, that top 10 came at Kansas, his most recent start. Take his two crashes out, and he's finished 12th and sixth at intermediates.
NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Value Picks
Note: Some of these won't necessarily be values after qualifying. Check back then for updates, which will be at the top of the article.
B.J. McLeod - $7.4K
S0, this is potentially extremely risky, but it could also pay off big. Before we know the answer, we'll probably need to see if B.J. McLeod has speed in practice and qualifying.
Getting his reps in for the Racing Coaster.@bjmcleod78 will pilot our No. 07 @pfracingcoaster Chevrolet Silverado in next weekend's @NASCAR_Trucks race in Charlotte!
📰: https://t.co/9bASL5qgih pic.twitter.com/RZ0JPeFiJs
— Spire Motorsports (@SpireMotorsport) May 16, 2025
McLeod is driving a Spire truck this weekend. Usually, we see him driving his own underfunded equipment, so it's a mystery how he'll do in a good vehicle.
Looking through his career history, the last "good" car he was in was...one Truck Series start in 2010 for Germain Racing? We're in uncharted territory here, and honestly, I have no clue what to expect, but I think I'll want a little exposure, just in case.
Giovanni Ruggiero - $7.2K
Gio Ruggiero has been really impressive in this No. 17 truck, posting top 10s in half the races so far as a rookie. That includes four top 10s in the last five races, including a fourth-place finish at Kansas.
Rajah Caruth - $7.1K
It's been a boom-or-bust year for Rajah Caruth. He's finished in the top 10 in half the races, but sits just 13th in points with a 14.8 average finish.
Vegas and Texas were both places where he finished in the top 10, though, with Caruth coming home third in the Lone Star State. Intermediates are his biggest strength.
Stewart Friesen - $6.9K
This could be the best value on the board. Stewart Friesen already has four top 10s this season, putting him on pace to surpass his 2023 and 2024 numbers. Vegas and Kansas were the sites of two of those top 10s, plus Friesen was the runner-up in this race last year.
Jake Garcia - $6.8K
Jake Garcia has been fast at intermediate tracks, qualifying on the pole at Kansas and third at Texas and Vegas. The issue is that only one of those three races resulted in a top-10.
There's definitely a risk here that Garcia will qualify too well again and lose place differential points, but don't ignore the upside. He was sixth here last year despite struggling all season to find speed. He could run much better now that this No. 13 truck is fast.
Connor Mosack - $6.5K
It's been a disappointing year for Connor Mosack in this No. 81 truck, but he's shown decent speed over the last month and he finished eighth in this race last year. There's potentially some sleeper appeal.
Matt Mills - $6.4K
Matt Mills has just been a solid mid-pack driver this year. He has no top 10s, but his average finish of 19.4 is solidly better than 2024, when it was 23.2. Last year, Mills was fourth in this race, his best finish ever in the Truck Series. Can magic strike twice?
Stefan Parsons - $6.0K
Stefan Parsons makes his third start of the year for this Randy Young-owned team. He has positive place differential in the first two, going from 22nd to 18th at Homestead and then 32nd to 12th at Texas. I love the value here.
Dawson Sutton - $5.8K
We've run three races at this kind of 1.5-mile trioval track, and Dawson Sutton has finished in the top 20 each time, including a top 10 at Texas. He's a cheap driver who should finish around 17th, but could do better if the right pieces fall into place. At $5.8K, that makes him worth playing.
