Yahoo NBA Expert Picks: Saturday, December 23rd

Saturday, December 23rd

Tonight, we have a twelve game slate to choose from with fifteen teams (Bucks, Hornets, Magic, Wizards, Nets, Mavs, Hawks, Clippers, Pelicans, Heat, Thunder, Nuggets, Warriors, Blazers, Lakers) on the second half of a back-to-back, so make sure to keep an eye on injury reports, as things might get crazy. Let’s have a look at some of my favorite plays for the slate.

Point Guard

PG: Tyler Johnson, Miami Heat, $16
With Goran Dragic on the shelf for the last three games, Tyler Johnson has stepped into a big starting role for the Heat, averaging 38.4 minutes, a 19.4% usage rate, and over 32 fantasy points per game over the last three. You can sign me up for Tyjo again tonight, as his price is just way too cheap. The Heat are in a nice pace-up spot, at home, in a game with a decent 209.5-point total. The Pelicans are also a nice matchup, as squaring off with Rondo is always a good thing and New Orleans ranks 18th in DVP vs. the point guard position and they rank just about last in threes allowed to the point guard position. They also rank below average in every scoring category except blocks allowed to opposing point guards. Johnson makes for a pretty easy play tonight, especially if Dion Waiters is out, as he’s currently questionable. I also love Shabazz Napier for $10 without Dame against the Lakers tonight and my favorite lineup construction has both he and Johnson in.

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About the Author

kirkdiese
Chris Kirkwood (kirkdiese)

Chris Kirkwood (aka kirkdiese) graduated from UMass Amherst with a degree in Economics. He’s been steadily climbing the DFS rankings since 2014, and in 2015, decided to pursue it full time. A 2016 FanDuel WFBC finalist and 2019 DraftKings FBWC runner-up ($350,000 prize), Chris is consistently one of the top-ranked Grinders in the industry. He considers NBA, MLB, and MMA his best DFS sports and makes a habit of watching every NBA game with his dog Phil (named after Phil Ivey). Follow Chris on Twitter – @Kirkdiese