DFS Delivery: Wednesday September 2nd, 2020

By Santino Caccone (twitter: @SantinoCaccone)

We’re in Round 2 in the Eastern Conference as the Bucks find themselves in a similar place once again down 1-0. While we have our one remaining matchup in the first round with a Game 7 between the James Harden-led Rockets and Chris Paul-led Thunder. Let’s get into it!

Miami Heat vs Milwaukee Bucks

(Note: DraftKings pricing)

Jimmy Butler ($8,300) & Bam Adebayo ($7,900)  

When starting with the Heat the two guys we look at first are Adebayo and Butler. Both are in good spots, with Bam getting a rebound boost, while Butler has a big matchup advantage. In a superstar-free lineup, getting both is a great start as both should continue to bring back value in this series. But I lean towards Bam out of the two because of roster construction. While I think a few C’s have a solid base here, Bam is the only one with that blow up potential, compared to the guards/forwards where the alternatives are better. Bam only took 12 shots last game, but has been on a glass binge, and with Brook Lopez being allergic to rebounds, Bam can continue to crush the boards in this series.

Goran Dragic ($6,900)  

Dragic’s price continues to rise with each game, and he’s nearly at 7K now. While this may give pause to some, it doesn’t over here. He’s simply been fantastic all bubble and especially through these playoffs. His lowest scoring game of the bubble was the first game in which he scored 29 DK points, and since he’s never scored under 31 DK points. With Kendrick Nunn still no threat to his playing time or starting status, Dragic can continue to give us a minimum of 30+ points, and makes sense especially if you shy away from the two big guys.

Jae Crowder ($4,600)

The Heat are deep and loaded with quality options, but we lean towards Crowder among them. He played 35 minutes in that first one, and could once again see that run. With Bam Adebayo guarding Giannis Antetkounmpo, Crowder gets the tall statue that is Brook Lopez. Crowder grabbed 9 boards in the last game, and could again grab a solid number of rebounds as Lopez tends to not crash the boards. Add in a few threes from the streaky shooter, and he has a quality floor with room for more.

Khris Middleton ($8,100)

Giannis Antetokounmpo at $11,400 is obviously always in play as well, and coming off a disappointing loss should be in line for a bounceback (or you know, a better shooting near triple-double), but Middleton clocks in as a nice value here in a better matchup that doesn’t involve Bam Adebayo. He’s been playing well lately, and another 40+ point DK performance should be in store for him. If Eric Bledsoe sits again, we can expect Middleton to continue getting a usage bump and once again initiating more of the offense.

Brook Lopez ($5,500)

Lopez has been shooting great lately and he gets open looks in this offense. With the massive size advantage that he has in this matchup, there should be no excuse as to only getting one rebound. If he remembers that he’s seven feet and decides to grab a few extra boards he should continue hitting value at an affordable price.

George Hill ($4,300)

This play hinges on the availability of Eric Bledsoe, as if he plays, Hill would take a hit. If he sits this one out, Hill who saw a whipping 36 minutes in Game 1, becomes a high-owned value play. Anyone seeing that kind of run at this price on a slate with just two games, is certainly an option to be in lineups. The veteran Hill is no longer at his peak, but he still has big games in him, especially when he’s needed.

Oklahoma City Thunder vs Houston Rockets  

Chris Paul ($8,200)  

There are quite a few options right at this price range, and there are other nice options on this team to go with as fallbacks, but Paul is out for vengeance against the team made him the scapegoat the past two years, shipped him off to a rebuilding team that wound up not moving him. He took over the game in the fourth quarter of Game 6, and it is clear that it is personal for him. Even at his age, he is still a premiere baller and in a Game 7 under the above circumstances, he is definitely in play.

Dennis Schroder ($6,400)  

This is a great price tag for a guy that has been very aggressive and playing heavy minutes this series. He went 0-for-5 from distance in Game 6 and still put up 25+ DraftKings points. Schroeder makes for a great pivot if you want to go with the forwards in the first game with the money that Paul costs.

Steven Adams ($5,700)

The few extra days off looked to help Adams the past two games with the knee injury that he was dealing with. He’s moving better and even saw his minutes jump into the 30’s in Game 6. He’s grabbed double-digit boards in every game sans one in this series’ and has a solid floor because of such. He missed a few easy ones in Game 6, and if they fall in this one can be sitting on a nice return.

Darius Bazley ($3,900)

There are only a few guys 4K and under that have solid roles on this slate, and we covered them on the podcast. Bazley is one of them, and if I’m stuck in this range, I’d be looking his way. His role isn’t as safe as others, but he’s been playing well the past two games with a high rebounding rate while using his size advantage to get draw fouls down low. And if Adams were to get in foul trouble, his upside is greater than the other options. 

James Harden ($11,200)

Game 7, against his former teammate that he may or may not have asked to be traded away, with his quote on quote legacy on the line, with Luguentz Dort getting praised for the defensive job that he’s doing, all adds up to this; Harden is due for a blow up game. The way the fourth quarter went down in Game 6 where Harden not only went invisible over the last 5-7 minutes, but wasn’t even touching the ball on offense, was pitiful by this team. There is no way the best offensive player in the league should not have the ball in his hands with the game on the line. I can’t fathom that he or the team let that happen again. I’ll be buying many shares of The Beard.

Russell Westbrook ($8,900)

Westbrook played beyond poorly in the last game. Add in the fact that he’s still expected to be limited, and it’s extremely hard to find any positives here. Since he’s come back he has 24 points on 27 shots from the field and 1-of-4 from the free throw line. After saying all that, there’s a few things in his favor; he can’t possibly be worse in the next one, he’s under 9K, his ownership is going to be extremely low with the bad taste he’s left in owners mouths, and if this game is as close as the last one, I find it hard to believe that he’ll be on a strict minutes limit in a win-or-go-home game. If you’re playing multiple lineups, Westbrook should see some shares. He’s not trying to get beat by the team that traded him ahead of a supposed rebuild.

Robert Covington ($5,900)

Covington has been playing great lately, being more assertive and letting the shots fly from deep, while putting up the stocks that we’ve come to love from him. Covington is a streaky shooter and streaky player over all. But this is the Covington that we have been waiting for, and you want to attack him while he’s here. He’s one of the few guys that a bunch of stocks in a previous game isn’t an aberration we can necessarily chalk up as an aberration. 

PJ Tucker ($4,500)

I’ll throw this one in here for Mike, as he is higher on Tucker than I am. Tucker has been rebounding the ball well lately, and sees his fair share of open looks from deep each game. Although he doesn’t see much usage, he’s playing heavy minutes and if he can hit an extra three or so and continue to get some steals, a solid return is on the table.