The Cleveland Cavaliers will enter Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals dealing with even more uncertainty than they approached the opening game of the second round with thanks to Kyrie Irving potentially joining Kevin Love on the sidelines. Irving aggravated a knee injury he had been dealing with in the final game of the Cavaliers’ second round series against the Chicago Bulls and now his status heading in to the series is uncertain.
Finding the best possible lineup for Wednesday’s DraftKings NBA Daily Fantasy Leagues will depend on whether he plays or not but like the team we will take a cautious approach knowing that even if he does play he could aggravate the injury. Here is a look at the optimal lineup for Wednesday’s DraftKings NBA Daily Fantasy Leagues.
PG: Jeff Teague, Atlanta
Salary: $7,300
With the uncertainty surrounding Irving’s situation and who will fill out the available minutes, if he is out, it only makes sense to slot Teague in to the point guard spot understanding his potential for a monster performance. There is no other PG on the board that even comes close to matching Teague’s value if Irving is even slightly limited and considering he has averaged 15.3 points, 7.4 assists, 3.2 rebounds, 1.58 steals and 3.0 three-point shots per game in these playoffs, we love having him in this spot at under $8,000.
SG: J.R. Smith, Cleveland
Salary: $4,800
Even if Irving plays (as he probably will), we like to have Smith in this spot as an underrated player for Cleveland that has the potential for a big performance in Game 1. Smith has averaged 11.3 points, 3.6 rebounds, 1.0 assists and 1.38 steals per game in these playoffs. With the potential to exceed those stat lines with more responsibility if Irving is either limited or out, we love having him in this spot as a strong bargain value play.
SF: LeBron James, Cleveland
Salary: $11,400
LeBron has raised his level of play with every series and he has registered some monster performances in important games with the Cavaliers leaning heavily on him to this point. LeBron understands that he will have to carry this team if they are going to go all the way and even if Irving plays, he will need to produce a monster fantasy stat line for Cleveland to even have a chance to win this game. LeBron is the most expensive player on the board, so slot him in to this spot with the knowledge that he is the one player that every lineup should be built around for Wednesday night’s Daily Fantasy Leagues.
PF: Tristan Thompson, Cleveland
Salary: $5,800
Thompson has filled in admirably for the Cavaliers since taking over the starting center spot since Love was injured and he has raised his postseason averages to 8.5 points, 9.4 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game. Thompson will get plenty of opportunities to stuff his stat sheet at both ends of the floor in Game 1 and while there may be better options on the board in terms of pure production, he is a strong value play in this spot that leaves us enough money to fill out the other positions we need to complete.
C: Timofey Mozgov, Cleveland
Salary: $4,900
Mozgov isn’t Al Horford but with LeBron and Teague locked in, we want to make sure we go with the best value for the starting five positions in order to have enough money left over to spend elsewhere. Mozgov has averaged 8.5 points, 7.1 rebounds and 2.2 blocks per game in these playoffs and at under $5,000, he makes the most sense here.
G: Matthew Dellavedova, Cleveland
Salary: $3,700
The trend of saving for one more major impact player by filling in bargain plays continues with Dellavedova, who will have an even bigger impact if Irving doesn’t play or is limited in Game 1. Dellavedova scored 19 points with two rebounds, an assist and three three-point shots in 34 minutes with Irving out for a good chunk of Game 6 against Chicago. He could match those totals if given the opportunity again in Game 1 against the Hawks.
F: DeMarre Carroll, Atlanta
Salary: $6,900
The potential for Dellavedova to go off is alluring enough but when you also consider it leaves us with enough money left over to afford Carroll it becomes an absolute steal. Carroll has averaged a team-high 17.1 points per game for Atlanta in these playoffs along with 6.8 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.1 steals per game. He has the potential for another absolutely monster stat line in Game 1, so we will jump all over the chance to pair him with LeBron and Teague as our stars in Wednesday’s lineup.
FLEX: Iman Shumpert, Cleveland
Salary: $5,200
We even have enough money left over to buy Shumpert for our FLEX spot and that could be an absolute steal if Irving doesn’t play or is limited for Game 1. Shumpert has averaged 10.4 points, 4.9 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 1.2 steals per game so far this postseason and he has the potential to top those totals in Game 1.
