NBA daily fantasy: February 24 picks
Wednesday’s 10-game slate features plenty of star power, with four players priced north of $10,000, and seven more checking in between $9,000 and $9,900. You can certainly build a winning lineup that doesn’t include any of those 11 players, and you can’t really wedge in any more than two of them while still having a competitive roster. In many cases, you may want to pick the one you think has the highest ceilings, all things considered, and fill in around him with mid- and bottom-tier players. That is exactly what we have done here.
All prices are courtesy of FanDuel and based on a $60,000 budget.
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PG: Derrick Rose ($7,200) vs. WAS:There always seems to be a caveat anytime Rose strings together a few good performances, but anyone who has watched him recently has seen a player more closely resembling pre-injury Rose than what we have seen in a long time. In Chicago’s three games since All-Star Weekend, Rose has averaged 26 points, 4.7 assists, 5.7 rebounds and 37.5 fantasy points, all while attacking the rim the way he did when he was becoming a star in the league. With Jimmy Butler out, he has had to shoulder the scoring load, and he has done so capably.
SG: Klay Thompson ($7,200) @ MIA: You can say what you want about Miami’s defense, but Golden State doesn’t really care about the team on the other side of the floor. They’re the ultimate matchup-proof team, perhaps in all of professional sports. You seemingly have to get some investment in this team every time it takes the floor, because it’s a safe bet that someone is going to score 30 points. We’ll go with Thompson on Wednesday, betting that he can reach at least 24 points scored for the eighth time in his last 11 games.
SF: LeBron James ($9,900) vs. CHA:We hate to lean on anecdotal evidence and gut feelings here, but how frequently has James had two bad games consecutively in his career? More often than not, he follows an uncharacteristically sloppy performance with a characteristically great one, and he’s coming off one of his worst shooting nights of the season. James also had six turnovers in Cleveland’s loss to Detroit on Monday. The Hornets should be more than a willing foil for James.
PF: Myles Turner ($5,700) vs. NY: Turner remains one of the biggest bargains in daily fantasy basketball, costing his owners less than $6,000 despite consistent production. Over his last 10 games he has two triple doubles, three games with at least 30 fantasy points, and just three with fewer than 27. He has turned into the sort of player who always delivers the production threshold necessary at his price tag, but also has the ceiling to deliver significant surplus value.
C: Andre Drummond ($8,600) vs. PHI:Given all the big names at the center position in action Wednesday, this is a spot where you’ll have to win to be in the money in daily fantasy formats. Drummond should be among the winners. He’s working on a string of 11 straight double-doubles, averaging 16.9 points, 14.7 rebounds and 1.9 blocks during the streak. Philadelphia, meanwhile, has surrendered the most fantasy points per game to centers this season. In two games against the Sixers this year, Drummond has put up 21.5 points, 17 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per contest.
