Daily Fantasy NBA Basketball Picks for FanDuel, DraftKings and DraftPot - 12/31/15

Happy New Year's Rockin' Eve everyone! It's been a good 2015 from this side of the keyboard and we are looking forward to keeping the good times rolling into 2016. And before you head out to your party or wherever tonight, get some lineups in so you have something to check while getting black out.

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POINT GUARD

Russell Westbrook - FD 10700 DK 10600
Opponent - PHX FD Proj. Pts - 50.43 DK Proj. Pts - 52.34
It's becoming somewhat old hat at this point because I feel like I write up Westbrook every time he plays. But he's proven to be well worth it at these salaries and the cost is moving up only incrementally. Tonight it's a matchup against Phoenix who is playing at one of the fastest paces in the league while also maintaining one of the worst defensive efficiencies. They are a great opponent to target, but there is some blowout concern. The Thunder are opening at a huge 14.5 favorite and we could see a fourth quarter without the starters. Because there are other places to save across other positions, I'm willing to risk it in cash games.

Shaun Livingston - FD 3600 DK 3800
Opponent - HOU FD Proj. Pts - 17.88 DK Proj. Pts - 18.02
Well it appears Steph is a pretty important player for the Warriors huh? They looked borderline lost last night without him (borderline being real nice about it). Livingston got the start though didn't run a ton. It's tough to know exactly what's what going into this one. In many ways he's about as different a point guard from Steph as one can get. I'm not comparing anyone to Curry, but Livingston's game is slower, back down into post and kick some while Steph is the greatest. Livingston is so cheap and should draw the start against a Rockets' team that is slightly worse on defense than the Mavericks. It's worth rolling the dice if he can push into the high 20's in minutes.

Ty Lawson - FD 3800 DK 4000
Opponent - GSW FD Proj. Pts - 18.32 DK Proj. Pts - 19.25
If you believe the recent minutes are for real then there is actually a decent amount to like about Lawson right now. He could be coming back into favor with the coaching staff and he's outplayed Beverley over the last couple of games. Coming at punt prices right now and an interesting guy to take a flyer on.

SHOOTING GUARD

Klay Thompson - FD 7300 DK 7500
Opponent - HOU FD Proj. Pts - 34.13 DK Proj. Pts - 37.78
To reiterate the "Steph's important" piece, Klay really was given the business by Dallas last night. They hounded him on defense and he struggled to get any semblance of quality looks. Houston may employee a similar approach tonight. I doubt they stick Harden on Klay if they can hide him on someone like Livingston or Rush. This will be interesting. I'm very tempted to give it another try with Klay because the matchup is slightly better. But after watching them last night they appear just such a worse team without Curry.

J.J. Redick - FD 4600 DK 5200
Opponent - NOP FD Proj. Pts - 23.9 DK Proj. Pts - 27.2
I really thought with Blake exiting with an injury we'd see more of a shot distribution heading J.J.'s way and that happened last night. After looking rough in the first half he got hot in the third quarter yesterday which helped his overall line. Of course his production is almost entirely wrapped up in scoring and I'm only thinking of heading back this direction because the position does thin out quite a bit after Klay when it comes to safety. Not that Redick is tried and true, but he doesn't cost a ton and has a nice matchup against the Pelicans.

Devin Booker - FD 3600 DK 4000
Opponent - OKC FD Proj. Pts - 17.6 DK Proj. Pts - 20.24
In the Suns' first game after losing Bledsoe for the season they put Booker in the starting lineup and ran him for 29 minutes. He wasn't a big contributor, finishing with a 10/3/3 line which really bordered on value. There's a chance OKC crushes Phoenix though it's unclear how much that would effect Booker's minutes. I don't mind giving him another whirl though my expectations aren't through the roof.

Consider Monta Ellis

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SMALL FORWARD

Kevin Durant - FD 10100 DK 10100
Opponent - PHX FD Proj. Pts - 46.77 DK Proj. Pts - 49.77
The thinking here is basically the same as Westbrook. Because these two occupy so much of the Thunder offense, playing them together in a game where OKC projects to score a ton of points is totally fine. Their respective usage rates more than enough to pay off these salaries together. But of course, and I swear this is the last time I mention it, the blowout risk is very much in play. But if Phoenix can hang even a little bit then watch out.

Andre Iguodala - FD 4600 DK 5000
Opponent - HOU FD Proj. Pts - 22.74 DK Proj. Pts - 24.11
Trevor Ariza - FD 5300 DK 5500
Opponent - GSW FD Proj. Pts - 24.7 DK Proj. Pts - 27.7
It's very difficult to understand the Warriors right now. We only saw the one game without Steph and understanding how the Warriors will operate without him (or whether they will just get ritualistically blown out again) makes understanding and prognosticating minutes for this game quite the chore. But I think these guys are worth a look considering their lower prices and chances at playing quality minutes. Ariza could see some looks tonight as last night the Warriors struggled to rotate to open shooters. It will be interesting, but I see both of these guys as values.

POWER FORWARD

Anthony Davis - FD 10200 DK 10400
Opponent - LAC FD Proj. Pts - 50.15 DK Proj. Pts - 50.91
Last time out he took a shot to the groin and I thought it would join another in the long list of reasons Davis had to completely exit a game early and sink fantasy owners. He still lost minutes though and it illustrates one of the reasons he can be a risky cash game play. He does get hurt and miss time somewhat regularly (or at least it seems that way). But when he's out there he's one of the best and most nights I'm taking the risk at these prices. The Pelicans have a decent matchup with the Blake-less Clips and Davis will be in my lineups because there's so much saving elsewhere.

Clint Capela - FD 5200 DK 5600
Opponent - GSW FD Proj. Pts - 26.05 DK Proj. Pts - 26.51
As evidenced last night, when Steph is off the court the Warriors are a much, much different team. They were boxed in for much of the first half. Capela's in the starting lineup and should be able to put in some work tonight. He's coming at moderate prices all things considered and the last three games have seen him average an 8/7/3 with some blocks and steals thrown in there. Of course the best game was the most recent, but I think this ends up being a higher-scoring affair with Capela seeing full run.

Consider Serge Ibaka

CENTER

Andrew Bogut - FD 4300 DK 4400
Opponent - HOU FD Proj. Pts - 22.27 DK Proj. Pts - 22.66
With Ezeli and Curry out last night (more the former than the latter) you saw a few extra minutes for Bogut. I think that's the case again tonight as he'll be called to front with Dwight for much of this game. Minutes in the mid-to-upper twenties for Bogut puts him in possible double-double territory and that would be more than enough to make him a value play here. Check on how short-handed the Warriors are playing, but I think Bogut is a safer play even on the back-to-back.

Karl-Anthony Towns - FD 7600 DK 6800
Opponent - DET FD Proj. Pts - 37.87 DK Proj. Pts - 38.54
His production is all over the place thanks in some part to two recent games against a very strong, defensive Spurs' squad. Outside of those two games, his recent production has been awesome. He's getting consistent minutes because the Wolves can't afford to keep Gorgui Dieng's defense out there alone for long stretches. And Towns is finding his own shot down low. Detroit is good against opposing centers, but I think the price is too low here considering.

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