NBA DFS Showdown Playbook December 13: Brooklyn Nets vs Phoenix Suns Top Picks
Happy hump day everyone, It's December 13th, and we have an intriguing matchup wrapping up tonight's 9-game NBA Slate. The Brooklyn Nets led by Mikal Bridges and Cameron Johnson are traveling out West to take on Devin Booker, Bradley Beal, Kevin Durant, and the Phoenix Suns. There are a lot of injury implications tonight with Kevin Durant listed as questionable. Make sure you are hanging out in the NBA Discord channel where we will keep you updated with active and inactive.
Finding some of the NBA DFS top picks could be easier if you look at Fantasy Alarm’s NBA DFS Projections, powered by FanJections. Let’s dive into the complete breakdown for tonight’s showdown slate.
Brooklyn Nets vs Phoenix Suns
Total: 227
Spread: Suns (-2)
Brooklyn Nets Injuries
- Dennis Smith Jr. - OUT
- Lonnie Walker - OUT
- Ben Simmons - OUT
Phoenix Suns Injuries
- Kevin Durant - Probable
- Grayson Allen - Doubtful
- Nassir Little - Questionable
- Josh Okogie - Doubtful
- Bradley Beal - Probable
NBA DFS Showdown CPT/MVP Top Plays
Devin Booker, Phoenix Suns
Devin Booker is the highest-priced player on this slate. If Kevin Durant is out, Booker is locked in for me. Booker's usage doesn't move much either way, but in the four games without Durant this season Booker's PPG goes from 26 to 32. Booker has gone for over 46 fantasy points in four straight games including a ceiling game of 61 fantasy points. Even if Durant is back, still feel comfortable with Booker tonight.
Mikal Bridges, Brooklyn Nets
Bridges is much cheaper than Devin Booker on this slate, and you can argue has the same ceiling making him the ultimate pay-down option. Bridges has scored over 34 fantasy points in five straight games including one game over 60 fantasy points. He has also scored over 20 game points in six straight games while getting up at least 17 shot attempts in four of six games. We love to see the aggression from Bridges, and who could continue that tonight with the Suns wings banged up.
Kevin Durant, Phoenix Suns
Durant has missed two straight games with an ankle injury but could be back tonight for the Suns. If he plays he is absolutely in play tonight at the captain spot. He just has an awesome floor when he plays scoring over 40 fantasy points in 18 out of 19 games. I do not think I need to dive into much more detail than that to convince you. He just does bring some risk if he aggravates the injury.
NBA DFS Showdown UTIL Top Plays
Jusuf Nurkic, Phoenix Suns
I like Nurkic tonight at his 8K price. He is coming off a game in which he finished with 17 points 13 rebounds and seven assists for 47 fantasy points. That was his second game in his last five going over 40 fantasy points. I like the matchup for Nurkic going up against Nic Claxton as well, just being a much wider body. I expect Nurkic to float around double-digit rebounds giving him a great floor tonight.
Cam Thomas, Brooklyn Nets
The field might be off of Cam Thomas tonight because of his recent struggles. Thomas has failed to score over 30 fantasy points in three straight games and one game where he finished with just 6.25 fantasy points. If that is the case he will be lower-owned he is locked in because Thomas has never seen a shot he doesn't like. He has taken at least 19 shots in four of his past five games. Take the risk and hope he hits his ceiling tonight.
Bradley Beal, Phoenix Suns
After missing a month of action Bradley Beal finally came back from his back injury. He played 27 minutes which was more than I anticipated and finished with 27.25 fantasy points. His price is just $7,400 on DraftKings, which is just so low for the player Bradley Beal is. The issue is his ceiling with him not scoring over 36 fantasy points in any game. With the Suns also on the second night of a back-to-back, it will be interesting to see if he suits up in this one.
Nic Claxton, Brooklyn Nets
Claxton has not played over 30 minutes in his last five games. However, that hasn't affected his rebounding numbers as he has grabbed double-digit rebounds in four of his past five games. He is also a great rim protector having five blocks in the past two games and nine blocks in the past five. Claxton is just so active on the court, giving him plenty of opportunity to score fantasy points.
Cameron Johnson, Brooklyn Nets
Cameron Johnso used to be, he would go as his offense would go. However, he has recently been doing other things on the court as well. He has grabbed at least five rebounds in six of his last 10 games, which we love to see. Johnson has also stayed aggressive on the offensive end as well getting up double-digit shot attempts in five of his last six games. We have seen Johnson get hot from long-range and have big fantasy point nights. With the Suns wing defenders banged up, that could free up Johnson tonight.
NBA DFS Showdown Value Plays
Dorian Finney-Smith, Brooklyn Nets
I honestly do not love the value on tonight's slate which is why I only have two guys under 5K that I really like. The first of whom is Dorian Finney-Smith. He has scored at least 20 fantasy points in seven of the last games he has played. That gives him a solid floor with or without him starting. Finney-Smith has just been so efficient from downtown this season shooting a career-high 46% on 122 attempts so it isn't a small sample size any longer.
Day'Ron Sharpe, Brooklyn Nets
The last guy here is the backup big-man in Brooklyn Dat'Ron Sharpe. Jusuf Nurkic is a tough guard for Nic Claxton tonight as I mentioned above. If Claxton ends up getting in foul trouble all of a sudden Sharpe is extremely valuable in this matchup. Even if that scenario doesn't play out he can still be fine.
Sharpe has scored over 17 fantasy points in five straight games including a 39 fantasy point night in just 20 minutes. He is just a fantasy points-per-minute monster averaging the 28th most in the NBA over his last five games. Sharpe will be in my lineup tonight.
If Kevin Durant Durant and Bradley Beal miss tonight that brings value for guys like Yuta Watanabe and Keita Bates-Diop on the perimeter.**
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Player News
Buddy Hield had 15 points (5-of-14 FGs), three rebounds, one assist, one steal and four three-pointers against the Timberwolves in Game 2 on Thursday.
Hield moved into the Warriors’ starting lineup in the first round and the team became somewhat reliant on his scoring. With Stephen Curry (hamstring) out in Game 2, Hield started and played 29 minutes. The 32-year-old shooting guard led the Warriors in field goal attempts, though no one in a Golden State uniform was able to reach 20 points. The Warriors weren’t able to overcome a double-digit first half deficit. Despite the four made three-pointers, they’re going to need more from Hield as the series shifts to Golden State, especially if Curry remains out.
Jimmy Butler had 17 points (6-of-13 FGs), seven rebounds, four assists, one steal and two three-pointers against the Timberwolves in Game 2 on Thursday.
Butler couldn’t get it done without Stephen Curry (hamstring) on the road in Game 2. The Warriors fell behind by double-digits early and never recovered. Butler had 17 points on 13 shots, which wasn’t far off from the 20 points he had in Game 1. Still, the Warriors have to regroup as they head home for Games 3 and 4 as they try to figure out a way to keep this series close until Curry can return to the court.
Nickeil Alexander-Walker had 20 points (7-of-13 FGs), two rebounds, three assists, one block and four three-pointers in Game 2 against the Warriors on Thursday.
Alexander-Walker was a key scorer off the bench in Game 2. He, Naz Reid and Donte DiVencenzo combined for 10 made three-pointers off the bench. In a game where the Warriors were desperate for scoring without Stephen Curry (hamstring), those bench points were too much to overcome as the Timberwolves won by 24 points.
Julius Randle had 24 points (10-of-17 FGs), seven rebounds, 11 assists and one three-pointer in Game 2 against the Warriors on Thursday.
Randle led the Timberwolves in scoring in the Game 2 victory. The 30-year-old power forward was just three rebounds away from a triple-double. He was a steadying presence in his 33 minutes as Anthony Edwards dealt with an ankle injury towards the end of the first half. Edwards recovered from his injury to play 34 minutes, but Randle is still the next most important player in this series for the Timberwolves.
Anthony Edwards had 20 points (6-of-13 FGs), nine rebounds, five assists, three steals, one block and two three-pointers in the Timberwolves’ 117-93 victory over the Warriors in Game 2 on Thursday.
Edwards appeared to suffer a sprained left ankle towards the end of the second quarter as the Warriors’ Trayce Jackson-Davis landed on his foot. Edwards turned the same ankle in the first round against the Lakers and appeared to re-aggravate the injury. The 23-year-old shooting guard would go on to start the second half and play a team-high 34 minutes in the Game 2 victory. Edwards will only have one full day off before the series resumes in Golden State for Game 3 on Saturday.
Warriors will start Brandin Podziemski, Buddy Hield, Jimmy Butler, Draymond Green and Quinten Post in Game 2 against the Timberwolves on Thursday.
No surprise here as Curry was always a long shot to make it back for Game 2 after leaving Game 1 with hamstring injury. While there has been a report that the 37-year-old point guard is expected to miss a week, there is no firm timetable for his return. The Warriors will go big with their starting lineup for Game 2 with center Quinten Post entering the lineup in Curry’s absence.