The Houston Rockets easily beat the Washington Wizards at the Toyota Center in January and will get a chance to go 2-0 against them at Capital One Arena on Monday at 7:00 p.m. ET. John Wall will play in D.C. for the first time since he was traded, so there could be a lot of drama in this game. We’ve broken down how you can approach playing Showdown contests on DraftKings for Wall’s reunion with his old team.
Update: Westbrook is expected to have his minutes monitored vs. the Rockets. Mathews will start.
Captain’s Picks
Russell Westbrook ($16,200) is the most expensive player available for some reason, but Bradley Beal ($15,300) is clearly the better option in my mind. While Westbrook is always a triple-double threat, I’d be wary of playing him in the second game of a back-to-back. He played 29 minutes on Sunday and could see his workload dialed back in this matchup. The Rockets are missing a key defensive contributor in Victor Oladipo (foot), so the league’s leading scorer can take advantage of a major mismatch.
John Wall ($12,900) tallied 35 DKFP in 24 minutes the last time he played against Washington but shouldn't be on a minutes restriction this time around. He’ll be basked to do more than usual with his backcourt partner out and has scored more than 36 DKFP in four straight games. It’ll be hard to pass on the revenge-game narrative given how Wall played against his old team last month.
FLEX Plays
Christian Wood ($9,400) is recovering from yet another ankle sprain and his absence will give DeMarcus Cousins ($7,200) a big boost. Boogie tallied a double-double with 19 points and 11 boards the last time he faced the Wizards, who have gotten limited frontcourt production from Robin Lopez and Alex Len. Cousins could be Houston’s second-best scoring option if Eric Gordon ($7,600) can’t get going.
Rui Hachimura ($6,800) fell short of 30 minutes for the first time in three games on Sunday when the Wizards blew out the Celtics. His playing time should tick back upward in this matchup, and he’ll have the green light against PJ Tucker on offense. He’s taken 11 or more shots in six of his last 10 games.
Fades
Jerome Robinson ($4,000) appears to have fallen out of the rotation and has played less than three minutes in each of his last two outings. Washington prefers to use Garrison Mathews ($3,800) on the wing, but he’s questionable to play. Robinson could be a major leverage play, but rostering him for this price will come with plenty of risks.
The Outcome
Washington is coming off a big win while Houston has lost five games in a row. The Rockets are at a disadvantage without their best player on the road, so I think the Wizards will cover the spread as 1.5-point underdogs and get the win.
Final score: Wizards win 120-117