With only four games on the schedule for Tuesday night in the NBA, there is a lot less room to create the perfect fantasy lineup for DraftKings daily fantasy leagues. From what we have seen from a couple of superstars so far in these playoffs, there are at least three picks that undoubtedly should be in every fantasy lineup for Tuesday night while the other positions are open for finding the remaining best possible fits. Here is a quick look at the optimal DraftKings NBA fantasy lineup for Tuesday night’s action.
PG: J.J. Barea, Dallas
Salary: $4,800
Rajon Rondo’s demise has opened the door for Barea as the starting point guard for the Mavericks and that makes him an excellent value play in daily starting lineups. Barea had 17 points, 13 assists, three rebounds and a steal in Dallas’ Game 4 win when we recommended him to you and we’re ready to do it again. Considering he is still available at under $5,000, he should be in most fantasy lineups.
SG: James Harden, Houston
Salary: $10,400
Harden’s monster performance in Game 3 – when he put up a playoff career-high 42 points – was enough to make sure he should be a lock in every game for the rest of this series at the very least. With such a small schedule, there is no doubt he deserves this spot as the highest priced player in any lineup. Harden scored 24 points with five assists, five rebounds and two assists in Game 4 and considering he was just 1-of-7 from beyond the arc, that stat line should be looked at as his absolute low potential for Game 5 considering he should be able to do a better job from three-point range.
SF: Kawhi Leonard, San Antonio
Salary: $7,600
Leonard posted another strong performance in Game 4 against the Los Angeles Clippers when he followed up a playoff career-high 32 points in Game 3 with 26 points, three three-point shots, seven rebounds, five assists and a block. With the series tied 2-2 and headed back to Los Angeles for Game 5, the Spurs will be banking heavily on another big game from Leonard as they look to retake the series lead.
PF: Dirk Nowitzki, Dallas
Salary: $6,400
Any chance Dallas has to win Game 5 will rely heavily on Nowitzki breaking through with the big performance everybody has been waiting for. While his best days are undoubtedly behind him at this point, he still has the potential to register a solid stat line. Nowitzki had 16 points, eight rebounds and four assists in Game 4, so look at that as a low point for what his numbers should look like in another must-win game on Tuesday.
C: Dwight Howard, Houston
Salary: $9,100
Howard struggled from the line in Houston’s Game 4 loss and while some will be hesitant to bank on him for Game 4, it’s important to look at his full body of work for the series when evaluating where he fits. Howard is one game removed from registering a playoff career-high 26 rebounds in Game 3 and he’s averaging 16.3 points and 2.8 blocks so far this postseason. Factor in that his salary slid a little based on his performance in Game 4 and suddenly Howard is an absolute must-start for Tuesday.
G: Patty Mills, San Antonio
Salary: $3,500
Mills has averaged 13 points over his last three games and while he may have been held to six points in Game 3, he bounced back nicely with 14 points, three rebounds and two assists off the bench in just 20 minutes in Game 4. The Spurs will need Mills at his best on the road for Game 5 and at a discount price, he is an excellent option here.
F: Al-Farouq Aminu, Dallas
Salary: $4,400
Aminu has filled in nicely in the Mavericks starting five and is another excellent value play here after logging 38 minutes in Game 4. Aminu scored 16 points with 12 rebounds and two assists in that Dallas win and if he can even match those numbers in Game 5, he will come through as an excellent value play in the extra forward spot.
FLEX: Josh Smith, Houston
Salary: $3,000
The fact that we have committed so much money elsewhere isn’t nearly as big of a problem with Smith available at such a low price and he is the perfect fit to fill out this lineup. Smith has come off the bench to average 16.8 points, 6.0 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.0 blocks for the Rockets in this series and considering his buying point, being able to plug him in the lineup here is an absolute steal.
