NBA DFS Contrarian Picks: Keyonte George in a Great Matchup Against the Pistons (January 3)

We’re back with a 10-game NBA slate on Wednesday. Using Stokastic’s NBA DFS Boom/Bust tool, let’s dive into the player pool to discuss the best NBA DFS contrarian picks on DraftKings this evening, including Andre Drummond and Keyonte George.

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NBA DFS Contrarian Picks — Plays For Today

Contrarian Stud — Andre Drummond: Chicago Bulls-New York Knicks

Andre Drummond is the top contrarian stud on DraftKings at $8,400. Drummond has seen a revival since being inserted into the Bulls starting lineup for an injured Nikola Vucevic, and there’s still plenty of meat on the bone despite an increasing price tag on DraftKings. He is coming into tonight averaging 47.35 DraftKings points in the four games since Vucevic went down, making him one of the easiest plug-and-plays in fantasy basketball when he’s starting and/or projected for big minutes off the bench.

Despite Drummond’s stud-like production since Vucevic got hurt, the field is hesitant to spend $8,400, with only 1.70% of the field projected to roster him on DraftKings. But given his optimal percentage of 5.40%, Drummond stands out as an elite differentiator in tournaments. Although he’s not in a good spot against the slow-paced Knicks, Drummond is pretty much matchup-proof in his ability to clean the glass and protect the rim. He has massive upside if this game stays competitive, and it’s clearly worth getting over the field on him in both large- and small-field GPP’s.

Contrarian Mid-Tier — Keyonte George: Detroit Pistons-Utah Jazz

Keyonte George is DraftKings’ top contrarian mid-tier play at $5,700. George has been productive in his rookie season, averaging 11.1 points, 4.8 assists, 3.0 rebounds and 0.6 steals/blocks per game. His game was built for the NBA, and he should see more and more minutes as the season continues. For tonight, George grades out as Stokastic’s top leverage play on the entire slate.

George is projected to be optimal 17.00% of the time this slate plays out on DraftKings, yet he has a paltry 6.00% ownership projection. He has higher upside than normal in a matchup with the lowly Pistons. Detroit routinely gets cooked by opposing guards, and at a very fair $5,700 price point, George currently looks like one of the best tournament plays on the slate.

Contrarian Value — David Roddy: Toronto Raptors-Memphis Grizzlies

It’s always fun (not really) to roster Big Body David Roddy, and he’s the top contrarian value play on DraftKings at $3,600. As DraftKings continues to price up players across the board, it becomes harder and harder to find viable options under $4,000. While Roddy isn’t a sexy option, he has a chance to play decent minutes tonight with Vince Williams out, and Stokastic’s tools like him quite a bit at $3,600.

Despite projecting for only 15.27 DraftKings points, Roddy has an optimal percentage of 6.00%. With only 0.90% of the field expected to roster him, Roddy sits behind only George as the second-highest-graded leverage play on the entire slate. His minuscule price tag also opens up some roster flexibility.

Looking for more NBA DFS advice? You’ve come to the right place. Sign up for Stokastic’s NBA DFS Premium Package for access to player projections, ownership projections and Stokastic’s state-of-the-art NBA DFS simulation tools.

Matt Belman graduated from Tulane University with a degree in Consumer Behavior. He has been playing and analyzing DFS full time since 2018. He has qualified for the 2023 DraftKings NBA World Championship (5x), the 2023 DraftKings MLB World Championship (2x), the 2023 FanDuel MLB World Championship (2x) and the 2023 DraftKings NFL World Championship. You can find him on X at @fantasytipsmatt.

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