NBA Starting 5 (GPP): Wednesday, October 18th
The Starting 5 Series will provide Grinders a quick look at the day’s top positional plays, as analyzed by one of our daily fantasy sports experts.
Wednesday, October 18th
What’s up everyone? Welcome back to another year of Wining247’s NBA Starting 5 GPP picks.
It was a long and successful offseason for me, but I could not be more excited to get back on the NBA grind. I am assuming everyone feels the same, so I will spare the long introduction. Let’s jump into this packed 11 game slate and see if we can find five great tournament plays. As usual, I will be using DraftKings pricing throughout the article.
Point Guard: Eric Bledsoe, Phoenix Suns – $7,600 on DraftKings
This season I will do my best not to pick Damian Lillard every week. This Wednesday I am going to go with Eric Bledsoe against the Portland Trail Blazers. He should get overlooked in this spot, but he is too cheap for his possible upside. Bledsoe did not have a solid preseason when it comes to shooting the ball, but he should have a solid NBA season now that he is healthy. I think most people are going to shy away from Bledsoe until he proves himself once again. He has that triple-double upside that we all love, and if his shot is falling he will be in for a big night.
The matchup against the Trail Blazers favors Bledsoe’s game very well. As of right now, this is the highest total on the board and it also has a very close spread. This game will be highly targeted, but I think most players are going to be targeting Lillard and Devin Booker over Eric Bledsoe. I have never been the best at predicting ownership though, so I am not certain on that. Either way, I like Bledsoe a lot here.
Shooting Guard: Victor Oladipo, Indiana Pacers – $6,800
There are a lot of things working in the favor of Victor Oladipo ahead of this NBA season. First, he played college basketball for the Indiana Hoosiers. Second, he is now the leader of this team and he is going to want to prove that right out of the gate. In an interview, he said “I am done being ‘Mr. Nice Guy.’” I am not sure what that means exactly, but I am assuming it is a good thing in terms of NBA DFS production. It will be interesting seeing Oladipo in the driver seat — he is now playing with a chip on his shoulder.
The Pacers will be hosting the Nets in their first game of the season. Brooklyn is not a very good defensive team, as we all know, and their new roster does not scare me either. The game has a surprisingly high total with a close spread, and Oladipo likes to get up and down the court. He only played three games in the preseason and shot over 40% from deep in those games. Hopefully he can carry that into the regular season.
Small Forward: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks – $10,300
I hate picking star players in these articles, but sometimes the situation is just too good to pass up. The Greek Freak is going to have a monster season, and small forward is a position that I like to pay up for in general. His salary is going to climb crazy high this season, but his price is just too low right now. Giannis only played two games in the preseason and dominated each one, in limited minutes.
The Bucks head to Boston to take on the Celtics this evening. Before we break that down, I just want to say best of luck to Gordon Hayward on his injury; that was horrible to see. This BOS/MIL game has a decent total with a spread that will most likely change throughout the day. Giannis is virtually matchup proof and is the number one play on the slate regardless of ownership. If you want to change things up, play him in at the point guard spot and differentiate your lineup that way.
Power Forward: Kelly Olynyk, Miami Heat – $4,800
Kelly Olynyk had a very solid preseason, as he was doing everything for Miami. He is a versatile player that can fill up the stat sheet in a variety of ways. James Johnson had a pretty poor preseason, so I am assuming that Olynyk will draw the start at power forward. Regardless of him starting or not starting, I love this spot for him. He will go under the radar and will be low owned, and who doesn’t love that crazy upside he has shown?
The Heat will travel to Orlando to take on the Magic here on Wednesday, and while this game will most likely be slower paced than the other games, it does still have a decent total. The spread is more important to me sometimes over the game total, and this game should stay close. The Magic will struggle to guard two seven-footers, especially Olynyk, who can stretch the defense. The new member of the Heat is one of my favorite tournament plays at the power forward position.
Center: Andre Drummond, Detroit Pistons – $7,600
Man do I love this price tag on Andre Drummond in this spot. I am not sure if he can keep this up, but he shot very well from the free throw line in the preseason. If he can knock down free throws, that is going to help him immensely. I cannot tell you how many times Stan Van Gundy pulled him late in games just because he could not make a free throw. He has a 20-20 upside any time he steps on the court, and he is going to play hard so he does not lose his spot to good ol’ Boban — that should obviously never happen, but who knows with Van Gundy?
Drummond likes to get up for matchups like this, especially against Dwight Howard. He has had some solid games versus Howard in the past, and with the low price tag, he should pay off no problem.