The Chicago Bulls and Houston Rockets will both be facing elimination when they take the floor against the Cleveland Cavaliers and Los Angeles Clippers respectively on Thursday night. LeBron James has been an absolute stud over the last two games but with Chicago the more desperate team at home, it might make sense to avoid spending so much money on LeBron in DraftKings in order to spread the available salary room more evenly across the board. On that note, here is a look at the optimal lineup for Thursday’s DraftKings NBA Daily Fantasy Leagues.
PG: Kyrie Irving, Cleveland
Salary: $7,800
Lost in LeBron’s dominant performance in Game 5 was a spectacular effort from Irving at nearly $4,000 less salary than James but we won’t overlook him when building our lineup for Thursday. Irving registered 25 points, five assists, two rebounds, two assists and three three-point shots for Cleveland in Game 5 and if he comes close to matching those numbers in Game 6, he will be an excellent value play at under $8,000.
SG: J.J. Redick, Los Angeles
Salary: $5,300
Speaking of value, as long as Redick is playing over 35 minutes per game for the Clippers as their starting guard and best perimeter shooter, we’ll definitely invest at just over $5,000. Redick was held to nine points in Los Angeles’ Game 5 loss but he has averaged 15.3 points, 1.8 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 2.5 three-point shots per game in these playoffs and the ability to lock him in at such a relatively low price makes him a player with very high upside in this spot.
SF: Trevor Ariza, Houston
Salary: $6,100
Some will argue that LeBron should be a lock in Daily Fantasy Leagues but considering his price tag and the fact that Cleveland has a 3-2 series lead, we feel more comfortable going with a productive small forward in a must-win situation at a much better price. Ariza is listed at more than $5,000 cheaper than LeBron, a number that becomes even more impressive when you consider he just went off for 22 points, eight rebounds, three assists, three steals and four three-point shots in Game 5. We won’t argue that Ariza is a better player than LeBron but with Houston facing elimination again and Ariza available at almost half of the price after an impressive Game 5 performance, we will take the latter here and use the money we save at the next position on our board.
PF: Blake Griffin, Los Angeles
Salary: $10,400
The money we save taking Ariza over LeBron as our SF makes the difference between taking Griffin and a player like Josh Smith, which in this situation we feel presents a much bigger disparity. Smith has averaged just 4.5 points per game in his last two while Griffin is coming off another monster performance in which he scored a game-high 30 points with 16 rebounds and two assists in Game 5. Griffin has the potential to put up an even better stat line in Game 6 at home so lock him in here.
C: Tristan Thompson, Cleveland
Salary: $5,400
Thompson has improved in every single one of his starts in place of the injured Kevin Love and while he is still far from an elite defensive force, he had two blocks in Game 5 along with 12 points and 10 rebounds. If Thompson can get another double-double while adding a couple of assists or steals then he will be a strong value play in this spot.
G: J.R. Smith, Cleveland
Salary: $5,000
Smith has been an underrated force for Cleveland off the bench in these playoffs and that was certainly the case again in Game 5 when he scored 12 points with three rebounds, an assist, a steal, a block and two three-point shots in 29 minutes off the bench. The potential is there for Smith to play even more minutes in Game 6 and if he can at least match his numbers from his last outing, it will make him worth filling the extra guard spot with.
F: Mike Dunleavy, Chicago
Salary: $4,800
The Bulls are in a must-win situation at home and while Jimmy Butler was their best player again in Game 5, it is Dunleavy who represents the best value on their roster heading in to Game 6. Dunleavy has averaged 11.3 points, 4.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 2.4 three-point shots per game so far in these playoffs. After scoring 19 in Game 5, the potential is there for another strong game on Thursday night.
FLEX: Corey Brewer, Houston
Salary: $3,700
Austin Rivers’ price tag has climbed a little too high for us to feel comfortable plugging him in here, so we will go with a player that put up a better stat line than he did in Game 5. Brewer had 15 points, two rebounds, an assist, a steal and a block in 24 minutes off the bench in Game 5 and after a strong rebound performance for the Rockets, there is no doubt Houston will rely on him again facing elimination in Game 6 on Thursday.
