Welcome to Brian’s CBB Slate Breakdown. In this article I will break down a few of my top plays on the slate, and will discuss who you should target in cash and gpp contests. If you would like to gain access to our CBB core plays, final thoughts and premium discord CLICK HERE!
Guards
Collin Gillespie (Villanova) vs. Boston College
Gillespie comes into this season with high expectations coming off of a season where he averaged 15 ppg and 4.5 apg. He is the unquestioned leader of this Villanova squad. Villanova is known to have one of the most efficient offenses in the country year in and year out. A big reason why is because of their guard play. Gillespie is just one of a long list of accomplished guards to lead this efficient offensive attack at NOVA. Gillespie is a favorite for Big East player of the year honors, and could possibly find himself in the conversation for All-American honors come the end of the season. He is a very decisive point guard with tremendous vision. He is capable of knocking down an open jumper with ease and is also a very adequate shooter from beyond the arc. Villanova should be able to handle a weak Boston College squad. I love Gillespie on opening night, and project a big time stat line.
BJ Boston (Kentucky) vs. Morehead State
This kid is unbelievable. Boston comes into Kentucky with expectations that he will leave after one year, and become one of the next great one and done Kentucky stars. He was widely regarded as one of the most elite wings entering college this year. He will be playing alongside the #2 wing recruit in the country in Terrence Clarke. Boston and Clarke are expected to be big time contributors for this Kentucky squad. Boston is capable of putting the ball through the hoop from anywhere on the court. When comparing the two Boston is considered a pure scorer, while Clarke has the all around game on both ends of the court. I love both freshman in this matchup, I expect Boston to break out in a big way in his season opener and show the country that he is the Alpha he has been labeled.
Isaiah Thompson (Purdue) vs. Liberty
Eric Hunter is out indefinitely to start this season. With the absence of Hunter we should see Thompson receive more opportunities to run the point. Thompson is a very good shooter as is Stefanovic who should also see increase in usage with Hunter out. Thompson only averaged 5.6 ppg last year, but in limited fashion. With Thompson’s increase in usage he makes for a very strong play at only $5,400 on DK. Stefanovic is also in consideration in Hunter’s absence, but will cost you a little more, he is priced at 7k. J. Ivey is viable as well at only 4.8k.
Kane Williams (GA State) vs. Georgia Tech
Williams was rock solid last year earning him 2nd team All-Sun Belt honors. He led the team in scoring and assist, while ranking 2nd in rebounds. Williams is a very efficient scorer and his usage should continue to rise this year. He has two very talented teammates in the backcourt with him. Justin Roberts and Corey Allen are both very talented players and the three of them form one of the best backcourts in the Sun Belt. I prefer to play Williams due to his overall scoring ability, but all three are viable plays tomorrow, especially at their price points.
Others to consider: Caleb Love (UNC); RJ Davis (UNC); Courtney Ramey (Texas); Michael Devoe (GT); Bevin Galloway (CofC); Rocket Watts (Mich St); Chris Smith (UCLA); Javon Levi (TRGV); M. Ashton-Langford (BC); D. Lowder (EMU); D. Mintz(Kent)
Forwards
UNC Frontcourt: Garrison Brooks & Armando Bacot vs. College of Charleston
UNC is coming off of a very disappointing 2019 campaign where they really struggled to find their identity all year. However, they come into this season with some pretty big expectations. They have added two extremely talented players in their backcourt in Caleb Love and RJ Davis, both of whom should start or see substantial playing time. The main keys to a successful season is the continued development of Bacot and continued high level play of Garrison Brooks. Brooks earned pre-season ACC POY awards, and is highly considered one of the best big men in college basketball. Brooks stepped up in a huge way last year leading this Tarheel team in points and rebounds, averaging nearly a double/double. UNC loves to run their offense through their frontcourt, and they have two very capable bigs to run their offense through this year. UNC also loves to push the pace, and get out in transition. Bigs at UNC must be able to run the court extremely well, and both Bacot and Brooks do very well at running the court. CofC is undersized, and will have trouble slowing these two down. I expect UNC to come out playing with a bit of an edge after last seasons struggles. Both guys make for really good plays tomorrow, Bacot comes nearly 3k cheaper than Brooks, so I may look to save the salary. Brooks is, however, one of the best spend ups on the slate imo.
Olivier Sarr (Kentucky) vs. Morehead State
Sarr will be suiting up for the Kentucky Wildcats for the first time in his career tomorrow night. He transferred in from Wake Forest where he had very productive seasons in one of the toughest basketball conferences in the country. Sarr will step in and fill a big void left by Nic Richards. He will hope to affect the game on the defensive side in the same ways that Richards did. Sarr ranked 2nd in the ACC in defensive rebound %, while ranking 10th in offensive rebound %. Every year at WF Sarr’s offensive game continued to improve and in his last year at WF he showed a tremendous amount of touch around the basket and even showed he can play physical, allowing him to get to the line. Sarr will have an opportunity to start his Kentucky career with a bang tomorrow night vs. Morehead State, I would not be surprised if he walks away tomorrow night with his first double/double as as Wildcat and adds in 5+ blocks. One of my favorite bigs to target tomorrow night.
Isaiah Jackson (Kentucky) vs. Morehead State
Jackson is expected to draw the start at the 4 tomorrow night alongside big man Olivier Sarr. Jackson will be filling in for injured forward Keion Brooks Jr. He is a true freshman, and like Boston and Clarke, is expected to be nothing short of fantastic. He also comes into college with elite shot blocking and rebounding ability. Jackson comes in at an incredible price of only $5,200, which is fantastic value. He should see a good amount of run in this contest, and against an inferior opponent, should be able to crash the boards and rack up plenty of rebounds and blocked shots. If you do not plan to run Sarr I would highly suggest getting a few shares of Jackson.
Trevion Williams (Purdue) vs. Liberty
Williams finally will get the run he deserves. Last year Williams was platooned with Haarms, despite being 10x the player Haarms was. The offense was much more efficient with Williams on the court, and he made an impact on both ends of the floor. The one aspect of Williams game he will have to improve upon is fouling. Last year Williams would find him self in early foul trouble, limiting his time on the court. There is no denying that if he is able to stay out of foul trouble this year, he could push for All-Big 10 honors. In Purdue’s first matchup, Williams will find himself in many favorable spots, as Liberty just does not have the guys to matchup with Williams. Williams is very pricey, but I believe with his ceiling makes for a very strong play in tournaments. Williams ranks just slightly below Garrison Brooks for me.
Abdul Ado (Mississippi State) vs. Clemson
Ado may be one of the most intriguing guys in the SEC this year. He is a shot blocking machine, ranking in the top five of the SEC in blocked shots per game last season. Not only does he block shots, but he also has an uncanny ability to rack up offensive rebounds, giving his team more offensive possessions. Ado is expected to have his role grow this season, and with more of a defined role, and his overall skill set, he should be able to have some big time games this year. He will be facing Clemson tomorrow and with that will be tasked with trying to keep up with their talented big man Aamir Simms. I believe that Ado has the athletic ability to hang with Simms, but Simms does pull bigs away from the basket at times, which can cause opposing bigs to get into foul trouble. I believe that the upside is worth the risk in this case, and for only $6,100 Ado makes for a very strong tournament play on opening night.
Others to consider: J. Robinson-Earl(Villanova); J. Hauser(Mich St.); S. Mitchell (BC); J. Johnson(MSU); Aamir Simms (CLEM); O. Tshiebwe(WVU); N. Mensah (SDSU); T. Groce(EMU); J. Hill (UCLA)
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