What’s up everyone, Sriracha here with my first article for Karma and I couldn’t be happier. I’ve been at this for about 5 years now & it’s crazy to see how the industry and community has progressed over the years. I started over at Twitter @SrirachaDFS and now I’ve joined Karma Nation to help with my experience and knowledge. I’m going to be taking over the “Building Blocks” article for the weekends while Ben covers the weekdays. My hope is that I help you guys by giving the best advice possible to get you in the green. Now let’s dive into it!
The Core
Luka Doncic
Luka is a poised young man and has had an amazing start to the year, including an incredible triple double vs the Pelicans last time out. He does everything on the court, accumulating many peripheral stats. The chemistry between him and Kristaps Porzingis is really blooming, and I expect him to have another nice game vs Portland at home which is always a good boost as well. Shooting 58% from the field with a 29.8% usage rate, Luka will look to capitalize on that vs Lillard and the Blazers.
Kendrick Nunn
Kendrick Nunn has been a pleasant surprise for the Miami Heat in his role. The undrafted second year guard has shown his ability to shoot and do a little bit of everything on the floor, and taking advantage while Butler has been out due to personal reasons. Nunn shot the most shots on the team Saturday vs the Bucks, and will have plenty more opportunities vs the fast paced Wolves on Sunday. Though on a b2b, I expect Nunn to be worth his price due to his aggressiveness on the court along with the usage.
Justice Winslow
Winslow has shown that he’s elevated his game even in the first two games of the season. Winslow is essentially playing point forward for the Heat, dishing the ball and securing boards on offense as well as defense. He is an all around player that will give you a safe floor along with upside with his ability to accumulate defensive stats often. Last year, his role was completely different to the way he is handling the ball now. Against Minnesota, even on a back to back, Winslow comes in as a fantastic cash play with GPP upside
Jaren Jackson Jr.
JJJ has always had a really good feel for the game and has been one of my favorite players to watch when healthy and out of foul trouble. He gets a nice matchup vs BKN’s undersized 4s and when he gets run at the 5, he will see Deandre Jordan or Jarrett Allen who haven’t been solid defensively thus far. If Brandon Clarke is also ruled out, JJJ will have even more opportunities and minutes. He has taken 17 shots in his two games with and holds opportunities to obtain double doubles this entire season.
Value Plays
Jae Crowder
Jae has been starting, averaging 30 minutes the first two games, and has been shooting the rock a good bit. He is at a perfect mid-tier price for the amount of run he’s getting. If Clarke is ruled out as well, Crowder can even levy to be a core play, but that will have to come with the news. He looks pretty consistent to be solid for cash.
Jalen Brunson
Jalen has been thrown into the starting lineup and looked really good alongside Luka. He gives Luka a boost by playing hard on D while hustling and spotting up on O. If he starts, he’s definitely going to be good value for the run he will receive. He should see 25+ minutes once again and is cheap across the sites.
Joe Harris
Joe has been receiving a big bulk of minutes on Brooklyn, and is likely to maintain a consistent output that puts him at nice value per slate. Last year he averaged 13.7/3.8/2.4 in 30 minutes in the same role which puts him right around 20 FP
Tournament Plays
Tyler Herro
Not surprising that he’s listed here, because of his scoring ability giving him high upside. He has good b-ball IQ which is why he’s getting so many minutes as a rookie (with the exception of Jimmy being out). Though he is also on a b2b, I don’t think it would hurt him at all because he’s a young guy trying to prove he belongs in this league. We’ve seen what he can do with a hot hand.
Dillon Brooks
Dillon is at a very low price point with a high upside because of a Memphis team that doesn’t play the same slow pace as we used to know. I’m just waiting for his explosion, and hoping on a small slate like this, maybe he could be the difference maker. His first game was plagued with foul trouble but during his 2nd game, he had a consistent amount of run and played out his starting role. He hasn’t yet figured out his scoring opportunities, but he accumulates peripheral stats to keep him near value.
