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A great day of sports begins on the hardwood Sunday when the Clippers face-off with the scorching hot Sacramento Kings. Fresh off its third win of the year over the mighty Nuggets, Sacramento will look to keep its roll going on the second night of a back-to-back against the class of the NBA, the Los Angeles Clippers. With a total of 228.5 set at the DraftKings Sportsbook and some injuries and tired legs, this should prove to be a fun and challenging showdown to attack with plenty of value on both sides of the ball. Let’s get into how to construct your Showdown lineups for Sunday afternoon.
Set your DraftKings fantasy basketball lineups here: NBA Showdown $30K Pull-Up Jumper [$10K to 1st] (SAC vs LAC)
Captain
Kawhi Leonard ($15,300 CP)
Paul George will miss this game with a toe injury, so if you’re looking to spend some money at captain you’ll want to go all the way up to Leonard. Kawhi is seeing a usage rate north of 33% without PG on the floor this year — an increase of 3 percentage points — and a boost of 3.8 DKFP on average. As LA’s undisputed go-to guy in this game, facing the worst defense in the league, I like him to go off.
Tyrese Haliburton ($10,500 CP)
Of all the starters in this game for the Clippers, no one will carry in a worse Defensive Rating than Reggie Jackson; L.A. is allowing around 112 points per possession with him on the floor this season. This means the best matchup for the Kings falls to Haliburton, who can hardly be called a value FLEX option at $7,000 but is very much in play as a contrarian captain. He should be able to push for 40-50 DKFP and allow you to fit Kawhi and some of the higher-priced options from Sacramento.
Fades
Harrison Barnes ($7,400)
Speaking of defense, Barnes will have the hardest matchup of anyone in this game, facing the imposing defense of Kawhi Leonard. Because of Kawhi’s prowess on that end, the Clippers have allowed the fifth-fewest DKFP to opposing small forwards, and just 2.2 threes per game. That’s particularly concerning for Barnes, who has been largely dependent on his hot shooting lately with 17 3-pointers in his past five games. He should come crashing back to Earth here.
Value FLEX Options
Reggie Jackson ($5,000)
Jackson, who will replace an injured Patrick Beverley once again on Sunday, has fallen off considerably over the past two games, but now at $5K, it’s hard to argue with the value we’re getting here. Though he’s coming off two rough outings, he simply hasn’t shot the basketball. You never have to ask Jackson twice to shoot, and he should be back to his chucking ways here against a really poor defense.
Hassan Whiteside ($4,600)
This is more speculative than anything, but Whiteside’s proven this season that he can perform at an insanely efficient pace — case and point his 35.75 DKFP outing last game against Denver in just 18 minutes. He’s beginning to work himself into a steady spot in the Kings’ rotation behind Richaun Holmes, and on the second unit, he gets to face Ivica Zubac, who rates as one of L.A.’s worst defenders.
Cory Joseph ($3,200)
Considering all the mileage on the legs of point guards De’Aaron Fox and Tyrese Haliburton, Joseph should see a step up from his normal complement of 20 or so minutes, and it’s hard to argue with someone facing the defense of either Reggie Jackson or Lou Williams. Joseph has proven to be a meaningful contributor in the past, going over 26 DKFP five games ago when afforded 24 minutes, and I think it’s fair to expect the same if he sees the floor long enough.
The Outcome
The Kings are one of the hottest teams in the NBA, but after beating some shorthanded teams (including Denver) and some weaker offenses, I think Sacramento’s defense comes crashing back to Earth here and its fatigue really shows. The Clippers, meanwhile, have managed to deal with plenty of injuries in their starting lineup and remain strong. This should be a resounding victory.
Final Score: Clippers 124, Kings 107
Set your DraftKings fantasy basketball lineups here: NBA Showdown $30K Pull-Up Jumper [$10K to 1st] (SAC vs LAC)
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I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is jetsfan196) and I may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.