Los Angeles Lakers @ Denver Nuggets
Spread: LAL -3
O/U: 217
Injuries
LAL
LeBron James - PROB
Anthony Davis - QUEST
Alex Caruso - PROB
Kostas Antetokounmpo - OUT
DEN
Jamal Murray - QUEST
Will Barton - OUT
Gary Harris - OUT
PJ Dozier - OUT
Greg Whittington - OUT
Defense vs. Position (DvP)
LAL - 8th vs. PG / 5th vs. SF / 3rd vs. PF / 8th vs. C
DEN - 4th vs. PG / 25th vs. SG / 27th vs. SF / 4th vs. PF / 3rd vs. C
MVP/CPT
It’s hard to avoid Jokic at the captain spot today considering his constant dominance in all facets of the game. Jokic has put up 57+ DKP in 6-of-10 games and has flashed near 90 point upside as well. He loves playing in Denver -- where this game is being played -- as he’s averaging 62.6 DKP/game.
Even with Anthony Davis back in the Lakers lineup, James put up 53.3 DKP and almost finished with a triple-double. In his one meeting against Denver this year James notched a triple-double, notching 61 DKP. LBJ has topped 50 FP in 4-of-5 and 7-of-10 overall. He’s a nice MVP option if you’d rather him than Jokic, who struggled against the Lakers in their first meeting.
Davis returned to the Lakers lineup after a couple of missed games and looked sharp, scoring 35 actual points on 16-of-27 shooting. He fell just one rebound shy of a double-double and we know he has that in his arsenal as he’s averaging 8.6 RPG, which is even on the low side for him. Davis has elite block and steal upside as he’s had at least one of each in four straight and 8-of-10 games overall.
Mid-Tier
Even with Anthony Davis back in the lineup, Kuzma played 32 minutes and looked damn good during his time on the floor notching 20 points and 10 rebounds, en route to 40 DKP. The Lakers elected to go with a bigger lineup for most of this game as Dennis Schroder played just 22 minutes and if Kuzma can continue his torrid play, he will continue getting big run. He’s a GPP darling that could pay off at low ownership.
Michael Porter Jr.
Denver is really banged up on the wing right now as Will Barton , Gary Harris and PJ Dozier have all been ruled out for Sunday’s contest. Porter Jr. has been starting anyways, but his role should expand even more and could potentially see upwards of 35 minutes. He’s a FP/min guy who just needs the run to prove it. He has 40 FP upside in the bag despite a tough match-up against the Lakers.
It’s very hard to ignore what Millsap has been doing lately, so we won’t and we’ll get our exposure here against LAL. The minutes have been the key as he’s played 27 or more in three straight and would’ve been 30+ all three if not for a blowout win against CLE. Millsap 27+ FP in three straight and 23+ FP in five straight, giving us the consistency we’ve wanted for some time now.
Value Tier
It’s already well documented that Gary Harris , PJ Dozier and Will Barton are all out, so why not give Hampton a look here? He’s entered Denver’s rotation recently, playing 17+ minutes in four straight games. Twice over that span he’s put up 24 DKP, which at his price, wins us a showdown slate. Hampton was Denver’s first-round pick this year and is extremely talented and had a year overseas playing professional basketball, instead of playing in college.
Playing someone like Caruso or Hampton gives you the luxury of spending up on two of the top dogs on today’s slate and honestly, Caruso has been pretty good when healthy. He’s consistently playing 18+ minutes and has played 25+ twice over his last four games. In 3-of-4 games he’s put up 16 DKP which isn’t a lot, but he’s 2.8K and that’s almost 6K value at his price. Worth a look, although I prefer Hampton if spending down.