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The Portland Trail Blazers’ Cinderella Story is losing its writing staff at a rapid pace. It’s like me trying to write a screenplay about vampires robbing blood banks in the desert in a dystopian society. Anyway, the Blazers had the Lakers worrying until the second half of Game 3 came and L.A. pulled away. Portland is down 2-1 and it’s looking like the Lake Show will ultimately take command. Let’s look at some DraftKings Showdown picks for Game 4 at 9:00 p.m. ET on Monday night.
Set your DraftKings lineup here.
Captain’s Pick
Alex Caruso ($6,000)
You’re probably like “Here goes Zweiman again! ....” Wait a second though, look at the contest. Look at how most of the production is from the three All-Stars. If you want to fit all three into your lineup, you’ll need to get crafty. Normally I’d say screw it and go really cheap at Captain, but we can use Caruso and still have some upside at Captain. He played at least 27 minutes in two of three games — both of the close ones. If Game 4 is tight, Caruso could get up around 25-30 minutes.
Fade of the Game
Kyle Kuzma ($6,600)
Kyle Kuzma has been riding the pricing he got from a 30-point game from February when the Lakers were up like 30 points on the Kings or something. Kuzma hasn’t gotten playing time even in a blowout in this series. What makes you think things will change in the most important game yet? He played 30 minutes in Game 1 and the Lakers lost. I only see Kuzma’s minutes trending down and this price is too high.
Value Picks
Hassan Whiteside ($5,800) — Whiteside slid into the starting lineup in Game 3 and played 26 minutes, finishing with 8 points and 8 boards. He didn’t get into foul trouble and still wasn’t very good. There aren’t many cheap options in this contest, so maybe Whiteside picks it up on the glass in Game 4 and backs his way into a double-double.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope ($4,400) — Again, no value in this one unless playoff Rajon Rondo returns for Game 4 and gets 15-20 minutes. So KCP should continue to see playing time in the back court from his defense and Danny Green’s inability to make a shot. Caldwell-Pope wasn’t good in Game 3, but he also took 13 shots, so some volume is there.