Best lineup strategy for Thunder vs. Nuggets NBA Showdown

The Oklahoma City Thunder opened their account at DisneyWorld with a 110-94 win over the Utah Jazz on Saturday behind an 18-7-7 from Chris Paul. And the Nuggets dropped a 125-105 matchup with the Miami Heat that same day, with Nikola Jokic the bright spot with a 19-7-7.

So what can we learn from just one game at Wide World of Sports? Hopefully enough to help your DFS showdown roster for today’s matchup at 4 p.m. Enter your lineup here.

Who should you play in the Captain’s slot?

Nikola Jokic ($16,500)

Got off to a bit of a slow start in the opener, but OKC is the 25th-best team defending opposing centers based on DFS points in the NBA. The Joker was 7-16 from the field in the opener, but his new slimmed-down physique should give him a chance to play more minutes and score more points via the matchup in this one. With apologies to Steven Adams, that’s not enough to stop him.

Who else needs to play?

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander ($7,400)

He went 19-2-6 in the opener, but DFS owners might stay away because of the Nuggets defending opposing backcourts pretty well. But that’s less of an issue with Jamal Murray sidelined (though to be fair, he’s not exactly a stopper), and with most of the Nuggets defensive effort focused on Chris Paul, he should have another opportunity to rack up some numbers.

Where can I find value in the contest?

Monte Morris ($6,000)

Strictly a pricing play, as Jamal Murray seems unlikely to start yet again with a hamstring injury. If you can get 30+ minutes out of Morris at even average numbers, that’s a win considering his salary. He had 13 points (3-7 FG, 0-2 3Pt, 7-8 FT), five assists and three rebounds in 28 minutes in the return against the Heat.

Who should I fade?

Dennis Schroder ($8,200)

With SGA getting the start at the 2, and CP3 at the 1, there’s only substitute minutes available for the German. And $8,200 is too much salary for a player that only got 21.3 minutes in the opener with 18 DFS points.