NBA

3 NBA DraftKings Studs to Target on 1/11/19

Ian Goldsmith Jan 11th, 2019
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C.J. McCollum, PG/SG Portland Trail Blazers

DraftKings Price: $6,300

I live in Portland. When you live in an NBA city, you hear a lot of water cooler talk about your local team that doesn't make a lot of sense. One such discussion I've heard repeatedly is how C.J. McCollum has taken a major step back this year. Has he though?

The former Lehigh standout's three-point percentage has certainly dipped, but his overall shooting is the second-best mark of his career, his per-36 scoring average is up from last year, and he has a turnover percentage of just 7.5%, the lowest (best) mark of his career. He's averaging a plus/minus of 3.3 per game. His previous career best was 2.0, and it was just 1.5 last year.

McCollum has a chance to shine tonight because Damian Lillard is questionable with a shoulder injury. If Lillard is out, then CJ becomes an almost must play. In 362 career games with Dame, CJ is averaging 27.4 DraftKings points. In 20 games without Dame, CJ is averaging a whopping 43.3 DraftKings points. Yes, 15.9 more DraftKings points per game when Dame misses time.

Want to look at just the past three seasons? Fine. The numbers are still dramatically different at 33.9 and 42.5 DraftKings points, respectively. The past two seasons? 33.1 and 40.3. Any way you look at it, CJ becomes a much more dominant player when Dame is off the court.

He's topped 30.0 DratKings points in each of his past five meetings against the Charlotte Hornets, tonight's opponent. So, even if Dame plays, CJ is a solid bet to provide a solid floor for your lineup. We project him for 32.1 DraftKings points tonight, a number that is sure to rise if #0 is out.


Ian Goldsmith is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Ian Goldsmith also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username zoidbergs_revenge. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his/her personal views, he/she may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his/her personal account. The views expressed in his/her articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.

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