The Milwaukee Bucks are off to a 20-8 start on the season despite Jrue Holiday and Khris Middleton missing significant action and that’s because Giannis Antetokounmpo is once again looking like an NBA MVP contender. Antetokounmpo is averaging a career-best 30.6 points per game while also snatching 11.1 rebounds and dishing out 5.3 assists per contest. He’s been a regular in NBA DFS lineups for years already, but daily Fantasy basketball players might be even more inclined to lean on him given that he’s already produced 15 games with 30 points or more in 24 starts.
The Bucks will take on the Jazz on Saturday and Antetokounmpo is one of the most expensive players in the NBA DFS player pool at $12,300 on DraftKings and $11,600 on FanDuel. So should you be taking a big swing with the Greek Freak on Saturday? And, if so, what are some of the value options available to help you balance your NBA DFS rosters? Before making any NBA DFS picks on Saturday, be sure to check out the NBA DFS advice, player rankings, stacks and top daily Fantasy basketball picks from SportsLine’s Mike McClure.
McClure is a DFS professional with over $2 million in career winnings. He’s also a predictive data engineer at SportsLine who uses a powerful prediction model that simulates every minute of every game 10,000 times, taking factors like matchups, statistical trends and injuries into account.
This allows him to find the best NBA DFS values and create optimal lineups that he shares only over at SportsLine. They’re a must-see for any NBA DFS player.
On Friday, he highlighted Timberwolves center Naz Reid as one of his top NBA DFS picks for DraftKings and FanDuel. The result: Reid had 28 points, nine rebounds, three assists, three steals and a block to return 51.75 points on DraftKings and 52.3 points on FanDuel for an ROI of over 11x on both sites. Anybody that included him in their lineups was well on the way to a profitable day.
Now, McClure has turned his attention to NBA action on Saturday and locked in his top daily Fantasy basketball picks. You can only see them by heading to SportsLine.
Top NBA DFS picks for Saturday, December 17
For Saturday, one of McClure’s top NBA DFS picks is Mavericks center Christian Wood, who is listed at $6,300 on DraftKings and $6,500 on FanDuel. After taking on a primary scoring role with the Rockets the last couple of years, Wood joined the Mavericks this offseason and has been asked to come off the bench through the first 30 games. It appears to be a role that has suited him well, as he’s scoring more efficiently than ever before.
Wood is averaging 17.2 points over just 26.3 minutes per game and is shooting a career-best 55% from the floor and 40.2% from the 3-point line. He’s reached 20 points in three of his last four contests entering Saturday night and he’s coming off a 32-point, 12-rebound performance on Friday against the Trail Blazers. He’s also averaging 7.8 rebounds per game and you’ll want to ride the hot hand as the Mavericks take on the Cavaliers tonight.
Another part of McClure’s optimal NBA DFS strategy includes rostering Suns guard Devin Booker ($9,100 on DraftKings and $8,700 on FanDuel). It’s been a quiet couple of weeks for Booker, who has averaged just 15.3 points per game over his last five contests while also missing two games with a hamstring injury.
However, we’re not too far removed from a torrid stretch where he scored 136 points over 103 minutes during a three-game stretch against the Kings, Bulls and Rockets. That’s the kind of scoring that he’s capable of on a nightly basis and he’ll be eager to exact some measure of revenge on Saturday against the Pelicans, after suffering his injury against New Orleans on Dec. 9 and missing another game against the Pelicans just two nights later.
How to set your NBA DFS lineups for Saturday, December 17
McClure is also targeting a player who could go off for massive numbers on Saturday because of a dream matchup. This pick could be the difference between winning your tournaments and cash games or going home with nothing. You can only see who it is here.
Who is DFS pro Mike McClure putting in his optimal NBA DFS lineups for Saturday? Visit SportsLine now to see optimal NBA DFS picks, rankings, advice, and stacks, all from a professional DFS player who has over $2 million in career winnings, and find out.