Main Slate Breakdown for NBA DFS 12/7:
Dec 4, 2023; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Indiana Pacers forward Aaron Nesmith (23) celebrates a made basket with guard Tyrese Haliburton (0) in the second half against the Boston Celtics at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports
Welcome to another year of the DFS Army NBA Full Court Press! Members had a ton of success using the Full Court Press along with various articles and tools that DFS Army provides last season, so we are glad to be back with another year of the all-inclusive article. You have to start your research somewhere, and oftentimes going game by game and breaking down every matchup and its key players is the first step in our process. My name is Mike aka @MadnessDFS on Twitter (X), make sure to give me a follow as I’ll occasionally make updates to the advice in the article. But, you’ll mostly find me in our VIP coaching forums where I provide detailed lineup maneuvers and answer all lineup questions. With that said, let’s get it started!
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Indiana Pacers @ Milwaukee Bucks
Vegas Total: 254.5
Vegas Spread: Mil -4.5
We’ll kick this slate off with the game with the much higher total, this game has a total 24.5 points more than the late game featuring the Pelicans and Lakers, so I would imagine we look to get a lot of exposure to this one. Starting with the Pacers, Tyrese Haliburton has kept it rolling as of late with at least 65 DraftKings points in three of his last five games and had a nice game against this Bucks team earlier in the season where he dropped 56.5 DraftKings points. The Bucks are giving up big games against opposing guards this season, so he’s going to look great in yet another fast-paced game. Myles Turner has been much more consistent as of late and had a nice game in this matchup earlier this season. It’s not the best matchup against a big Bucks frontcourt, but he does match up well against a stretch big like Brook Lopez on the other end of this one. Buddy Hield has been volatile as of late, but mostly due to the inconsistency of his minutes. That said, on a short slate, he’s going to look like a solid option with multi-position eligibility. Bruce Brown has been the more consistent option and is another guy with multi-position eligibility with PG/SF positioning and yet another guy who had a big game against the Bucks earlier this season. I don’t like the price tag on Obi Toppin, but it’s probably accurate. The minutes have been more consistent as of late and is a fine secondary option. I think Bennedict Mathurin could be the X-factor on this slate and could force his way into a game where you have to have him. He was awesome in this game earlier this season but he did that in 36 minutes while he hasn’t seen more than 30 minutes in four straight games. That said, if he comes out shooting well, he could force his way into more minutes. Andrew Nembhard went back to the bench and played just five minutes with Haliburton back last time out, we can jump right off that train again here. Lastly, Aaron Nesmith continues to see good minutes and makes sense on a short slate in a fast-paced game. From the Bucks, Giannis Antetokounmpo had a huge game in this matchup earlier in this season and is going to look like a top raw option on this slate. He has at least 61 DraftKings points in five straight games and should be able to do whatever he wants against a team that isn’t playing any sort of defense. Damian Lillard has been playing massive minutes and has been much more consistent as of late, he didn’t play in this matchup earlier this season which you could attribute the big game for Giannis to, but I think that’s just Giannis being Giannis. Brook Lopez bounced back nicely against the Knicks last time out and is a solid option in all formats again here. He has huge stock upside and can always get hot from three. Khris Middleton is playing around 25 minutes but could push for 30 minutes if the game is right. His price came down and has been productive even in limited minutes, I have no issue going right back to him in this one. Malik Beasley has been incredible as of late and is getting plenty of open looks from three-point range. He’s another guy who is playing massive minutes for the Bucks, he has at least 28 DraftKings points in four of his last five games and has double-digit three-point attempts in three of those five games. Bobby Portis is a volatile producer off of the bench but is generally a good per-minute guy when he’s out there. MarJon Beauchamp was a guy I got to a bunch last time out simply due to his positional eligibility and what his price tag let us get to in the rest of our roster construction and he was fine, which is really all we needed.
5-star play: Tyrese Haliburton, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Damian Lillard
4-star play: Myles Turner, Buddy Hield, Bruce Brown, Bennedict Mathurin, Brook Lopez, Khris Middleton, Malik Beasley
Deeper Value: TJ McConnell, Isaiah Jackson, MarJon Beauchamp
GPP Sleeper: Obi Toppin, Isaiah Jackson, Aaron Nesmith, Bobby Portis, MarJon Beuchamp
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New Orleans Pelicans @ Los Angeles Lakers
Vegas Total: 230.0
Vegas Spread: Lal -2.0
Starting with the Pelicans, it’s hard to feel good about rostering Zion Williamson right now with how he’s been producing and he’s not exactly playing huge minutes. Some of that is due to games being out of hand but I do wonder if there are some conditioning issues as well. All that said, we know the ceiling is there, it’s a tough matchup, but he’ll make sense as a GPP option at the very least. Brandon Ingram, on the other hand, is playing huge minutes and is coming off of a 50-burger last time out. He gets a revenge game against his old squad in this one and is someone I like going right back to in this one. CJ McCollum hasn’t had any sort of minutes limit since returning from injury and is going to look like a solid option as well. The Lakers have struggled against opposing guards at points this season. They’ll need the size of Jonas Valanciunas to battle with Anthony Davis down low which should secure his minutes if he can stay out of foul trouble. We know he has a massive ceiling considering his price tag as well. Herbert Jones continues to look great, he has at least 31 DraftKings points in three straight games and is another guy who is playing massive minutes due to how great he is on the defensive end. Trey Murphy got up to 30 minutes last time out and is a top mid-range option on this slate, he’s not going to be shy about shooting the three-ball. From the Lakers, Anthony Davis has been great over his last few games and has at least 57 DraftKings points in three of his last four games. LeBron James comes into this one as questionable (drink), but I’ll operate under the assumption that he plays until he doesn’t. He had a massive game last time out and feels like he might just give it his all to see if he can get the NBA’s first in-season title. D’Angelo Russell struggled last time out in just 24 minutes, he’s shown more consistency as of late but may be falling back into some volatility. Austin Reaves has 30.5 DraftKings points in back-to-back games and is going to look solid again in this one, although I wish he was seeing a few more minutes. Guys like Cam Reddish and Taurean Prince should see solid minutes, they’re not the best per-minute guys but they’ll see the court. Jarred Vanderbilt is right in that MarJon Beauchamp category where he’s dirt cheap with multi-position eligibility and could help jam some of the stars into our lineups. He played 15 minutes last time out and would expect they try and get him similar run in this one.
5-star play: Brandon Ingram, Anthony Davis, LeBron James
4-star play: Zion Williamson, CJ McCollum, Herbert Jones, Trey Murphy, Jonas Valanciunas, D’Angelo Russell, Austin Reaves
Deeper Value: Jarred Vanderbilt
GPP Sleeper: Cam Reddish, Taurean Prince, Jarred Vanderbilt, Rui Hachimura
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