NBA DFS Boom/Bust High-Upside Picks: Giannis Now Slate's Top Stud

Thursday features a small four-game slate with limited pay-up options. However, the pieces to pay up for look incredible, so it will be important to find some value throughout the day. Make sure to follow Stokastic’s starting lineups page to see who is in and out of the lineup tonight as more value may populate throughout the day. This article features two boom candidates and one bust/fade option, driven by Stokastic’s NBA DFS Boom/Bust Tool. Let’s look at some of the best NBA DFS picks for the slate.

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Boom/Bust NBA DFS Picks & Projections Today

NBA DFS Boom: Giannis Antetokounmpo: $12,200 DraftKings/$12,000 FanDuel

31.0% DraftKings Boom/25.6% FanDuel Boom

Being the highest-priced player on both sites, it should be no surprise that Giannis Antetokounmpo has the highest fantasy score by over 10 points in Stokastic’s projections. However, Giannis also has by far the highest boom percentage on both sites, making him a major priority on this small slate. Jrue Holiday is out for the second straight game due to an illness, but that didn’t slow Giannis and the Bucks down last game, as they beat the Warriors by double digits behind Antetokounmpo’s 30-point, 12-rebound performance. The Bucks are rolling with him as one of the league’s best players.

Giannis is averaging a career-high 31.1 points per game this season while shooting over 52% for the seventh straight year. The Grizzlies present a difficult matchup, as they are allowing the eighth-fewest points in the paint behind Steven Adams and Jaren Jackson Jr. They also lead the league in rebounding percentage. Even in a tough matchup, Giannis has by far the highest ceiling on this small four-game slate. He is the most popular player on FanDuel in Stokastic’s last ownership run and ranks just outside the top five on DraftKings. Simply put, pay up for Antetokounmpo on this small slate.

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~~NBA DFS Boom: Paul George: $9,200 DraftKings/$9,000 FanDuel~~

~~25.7% DraftKings Boom/20.1% FanDuel Boom~~

Paying up for Giannis is a relatively easy decision, but so is getting exposure to Paul George. Pairing Giannis and George takes up a ton of salary but is the best construction on this four-game slate. He is coming off of just his fourth triple-double in his career last night where he finished with 17 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists. He only shot 4 of 13 from the field in the Clippers’ low-scoring victory over the Timberwolves 99-88. Playing on a back-to-back, the status of Kawhi Leonard is very much up in the air. Leonard being presumed out has led to George having second-highest boom percentage on FanDuel and third highest on DraftKings. Leonard has missed both back-to-backs that he could have played this season.

If Leonard sits, with Normal Powell already out and Ivica Zubac likely out after leaving last game with a knee injury, George may threaten for another triple-double tonight. Make sure to monitor Stokastic’s starting lineups page to see if Leonard is unable to play, as that would be a huge boost to George. In 13 games without Leonard this season, George is averaging 5.8 more points and 5.1% more usage per game. Even if Leonard plays, this is still a spot worth exposure, as the Suns defense ranks outside the top 10 in defensive rating and Phoenix has a 4-9 record on the road.

Edit: George has been ruled out

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NBA DFS Bust: Jimmy Butler: $8,700 DraftKings/$9,200 FanDuel

54.0% DraftKings Bust/72.2% FanDuel Bust

The Miami Heat situation is a bit of a mess, with so many big-name players questionable to play. However, Bam Adebayo and Jimmy Butler both have staggeringly high bust percentages on this slate. If paying up for Antetokounmpo and George, the room to fit either player looks very slim. Adebayo and Butler both may sit, which would make Tyler Herro one of the best plays on the slate. The fade above them all is Butler, who missed last game due to injury management. With Butler expected back, this salary is way too high for a player who has scored under 40 DraftKings points in four of his last six games.

This matchup against the Rockets is pretty favorable, as they rank 26th in defensive rating this season. However, they are coming off of back-to-back victories against the Bucks and Suns and are once again home underdogs. Despite his high salary, Butler ranks outside the top five on both sites in fantasy score in Stokastic’s projections and is one of the worst values on the slate. Even in Stokastic’s NBA DFS Rankings, Butler and Chris Paul are the only two players who have a B grade and a D value on both sites. Butler may not even play, but if he does, take the fade approach unless Adebayo and Kyle Lowry are out. There are a lot of moving parts on this Heat team tonight, so pay attention to the news.

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