Building the perfect lineup for Wednesday’s NBA daily fantasy leagues action gets a little easier or a little more difficult depending on whom you ask since there is just two games scheduled for the night.
The Portland Trail Blazers will try to stave off elimination for the second game in a row after avoiding a sweep at the hands of the Memphis Grizzlies while suddenly the Atlanta Hawks appear to be in trouble with their series against the Brooklyn Nets tied 2-2. Here is a look at the optimal lineup for Wednesday’s NBA DraftKings Daily Fantasy Leagues.
PG: Damian Lillard, Portland
Salary: $8,800
There should be a couple of locks for nearly every lineup on Wednesday night and one of them is Lillard, who put on an absolute show with Portland facing elimination in Game 4 when he scored a game-high 32 points, seven assists, two rebounds, a steal and a three-point shot. Lillard really turned it up when his team needed it and with Mike Conley out for the Grizzlies, his job is a little easier as the Trail Blazers look to stave off elimination at least one more time.
SG: C.J. McCollum, Portland
Salary: $3,000
Considering the numbers he put up in Portland’s last two games, there is no better value in this spot than McCollum at $3,000. With the Trail Blazers looking desperate for scoring, they turned to the second-year guard and he hasn’t disappointed averaging 22.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 2.0 three-point shots over the last two games. McCollum has proven he can handle the increased responsibility off the bench and he is too much of a bargain to pass on in this spot.
SF: Nicolas Batum, Portland
Salary: $6,500
It might seem a little strange to have four out of five players of a starting lineup built completely on one team but considering the value, it’s hard not to plug Batum in here. Batum recorded 12 points, 13 rebounds, four assists, two three-point shots and a steal in Game 4 and it wouldn’t be a stretch to think he will post a similar stat line in Game 5.
PF: LaMarcus Aldridge, Portland
Salary: $9,700
Nobody is going to complain about having too many Trail Blazers players when it comes to Aldridge, who finished Game 4 with 18 points, 12 rebounds and an assists despite a horrible 6-of-22 shooting performance from the field. If Aldridge had hit even half of his missed shots, he would have finished with 36 points. With Portland facing elimination, you can expect him to step up with a much better shooting performance in Game 5.
C: Brook Lopez, Brooklyn
Salary: $6,900
It’s about time that we took a break from loading up on Trail Blazers players. Lopez provides the opportunity here after standing tall and helping the Nets even their best-of-seven series with Atlanta at 2-2 on Monday. Lopez finished with 26 points, 10 rebounds, four blocks, three assists and two steals and considering the way he dominated the Hawks in the paint in spurts at the offensive end, we trust him a lot more than alternatives for Brooklyn like Deron Williams, Joe Johnson and Bojan Bogdanovic – despite strong performances from all three in Game 4.
G: Nick Calathes, Memphis
Salary: $2,600
The Grizzlies could be without Mike Conley for the rest of the series and while Beno Udrih played well despite dealing with an ankle injury in Game 4, it was Calathes that got the start and registered the better fantasy stat line. Calathes finished with 12 points, four three-point shots, three assists, three rebounds and three steals while splitting playing time equally with Udrih at 24 minutes each. Calathes is the only point guard on the roster that is fully healthy and after proving himself in Game 4 he should get another start.
F: Paul Millsap, Atlanta
Salary: $8,800
After registering a handful of quality bargain plays, we have plenty of money left over to invest in the best option still on the board here and in this case it’s Millsap. The veteran big man has averaged 17.0 points and 14.5 rebounds over Atlanta’s last two games but the best part about having him in the lineup is his ability to plug so many other stat categories as he has also averaged 4.5 steals, 3.5 assists, 2.0 blocks and 1.5 three-point shots over the last two games. Aldridge is the best forward on the board for Wednesday night and we feel very good about locking in Millsap here as the second-best option.
FLEX: Meyers Leonard, Portland
Salary: $3,000
Just in case we weren’t banking heavily enough on Portland putting up a strong performance in an elimination game, we go back to the Trail Blazers for another bargain value play in Leonard. Robin Lopez was so ineffective that Leonard wound up logging 35 minutes for Portland in Game 5 and he rewarded their faith in him with a monster performance. He went off for 13 points, 13 rebounds, three three-point shots, two assists and a steal. Leonard should get another chance to play extended minutes in Game 5, so it makes sense to plug him in here at $3,000.
