NBA Showdown plays for Celtics-Heat Game 4

Jamal Murray once again took center stage in the NBA playoffs Tuesday night as the Nuggets salvaged Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals and avoided a 3-0 deficit. With the Eastern Conference Finals also sitting at 2-1, the Celtics should come in extra aggressive Wednesday in hopes of evening the series, providing a ton of production for the single-game DFS slate.

Compared to Tuesday’s slate, the showdown slate Wednesday presents us with far more trustworthy fantasy contributors, which grants far more flexibility in roster construction (which is why you’ll see far more MVP and Pro options).

With the showdown format being vastly different between FanDuel and DraftKings, as you get the opportunity to roster three players that get a score-boost on FanDuel, while DraftKings only gives a boost to your MVP spot.

This article will be organized based on FanDuel’s formatting/multipliers, but I will also include my player rankings for DraftKings at the end of the article. I will include who I expect to be the top raw producers, as well as the top point-per-dollar options that make for good Captain plays given the 1.5x salary multiplier on DraftKings in that said captain spot.

MVP (viable Captains on DraftKings as well)

Jayson Tatum (FanDuel: $16,000, DraftKings: $10,600): Tatum has demonstrated the highest ceiling of any player in the series, topping 50 FanDuel points in two of the three games while topping 60 in Game 1. He leads the team with a 27.3% usage rate in the playoffs and given his insane floor/ceiling combination, it’s incredibly hard to fade him in cash, single, or three-entry contests.

Bam Adebayo ($15,500, $9,600): Adebayo has been one of the only players to rival Tatum’s range of outcomes this series as the Heat offense continues to flow through the big man. Much like Nikola Jokic, he’s a big man that does a bit of everything, posting a 20.6% usage rate, 35.6% rebounding rate and a 24.4% assist rate in the playoffs. He’s easy to fit alongside Tatum, especially on DraftKings.

Jaylen Brown ($13,000, $8,800): While his production can be a bit more erratic than the aforementioned duo, his upside is just about as high. He’s posted the second-highest usage rate on the Celtics so far in the playoffs (23.4%) and didn’t see his minutes suffer whatsoever with the return of Gordon Hayward, as he logged 42 in Game 3 en route to his second consecutive 20-point outing. He’s topped 40 FanDuel points in five of his last eight playoff games, giving up a ton of upside as a sneaky MVP option.

Star

Fitting two of the three above players in your lineups should be a priority, with one in the MVP and another in the Star spot.

Jimmy Butler ($14,000, $9,200): He remains a leader on the Heat team, but his DFS production has not lived up to his price on either site in this series. He provides a relatively safe floor (low- to mid-30s), but with the offense flowing through Adebayo, his ceiling has been capped a bit. He’s a fine MVP/Captain option if MMEing, but he’s best left for one of the ancillary spots on FanDuel.

Pro

Similar to the above note, all of the above players are viable in the Pro slot if you are not using them in the MVP or Star slot, given the fact that their upside is far higher than any other option on the slate.

Kemba Walker ($11,500, $8,600): Walker’s efficiency remains a huge issue and he’s not contributing much in peripheral categories, meaning he’s skating by almost solely on volume. Being the high-usage player that he is (23% in the playoffs), his upside is still respectable for his price, but until he comes around in other facets, he’s just not as strong of a play as the players above. If fading one of the MVP/Star/Pro players, Walker would be my first choice.

Goran Dragic ($10,500, $8,200): He had a down game in Game 3, but Dragic still leads the Heat in usage throughout the playoffs (26.3%) while also leading the team in assist rate (26.4%). He’s attempted at least 15 shots in all but one playoff game this season, making him one of the safest mid-tier plays on the slate with an immense amount of upside.

Tyler Herro ($10,000, $6,600): If I got the clearance from FTN to write an entire article solely on Tyler Herro, I would do it. The Milwaukee product has shown his fearlessness throughout the playoffs in a big way, leading to a playoff average of over 33 minutes per game. He’s posted at least 30 DraftKings points in four consecutive outings while topping 36 minutes in three of those four, while his price remains reasonable. There is obviously room to fail if he gets cold from the field, but he checks in as arguably the best dollar-for-dollar play on the entire slate, especially in the Captain spot on DraftKings.

UTIL

(In order of preference)

Marcus Smart ($10,000, $7,800): The return Gordon Hayward could continue to chip into his usage, but the minutes should be there nonetheless. He’s a better play on DraftKings given his tendency to let it fly from three, but he’s hard to justify in a vacuum versus someone like Herro at the same or a cheaper price (pending site).

Jae Crowder ($9,500, $6,000): He’s been Mr. Consistent throughout the playoffs and has been absolutely launching from three, attempting at least nine threes in each of his last seven games. If he goes 50% from three literally once, he’s going to post a ceiling game on DraftKings given the scoring bonus.

Gordon Hayward ($11,000, $7,200): His price on FanDuel is an easy fade outside of large-field tournaments, but he’s cheap enough on DraftKings to warrant consideration in three- or five-entry contests.

Duncan Robinson ($8,500, $4,600): Similar to Crowder and Herro, Robinson lives beyond the arc. He’s a strong value play on DraftKings given their scoring bonus on top of the fact that he’s seen 32 and 28 minutes over his last two games, respectively.

Enes Kanter ($6,000, $1,800): The minutes are beyond volatile, but he’s been the backup big that Brad Stevens has deployed the most this series. While he’s only played 17 total minutes over his last two games, he’s totaled 25 DraftKings points, making him more than worth his price at $1,800. For reference, P.J. Dozier was in a significant number of cashing lineups Tuesday night at the same price and didn’t see a minute of playing time. This is more about what the price opens up for the rest of your lineup than the play itself, Kanter just happens to come with some upside.

Daniel Theis ($8,000, $5,400)

Brad Wanamaker ($7,500, $3,600)

Kelly Olynyk ($6,500, $4,000)

DraftKings rankings

Overall rankings

Captain rankings (studs)

Captain rankings (value)

If interested in jamming in as many studs as possible, the best strategy would be to punt the captain spot. It carries more risk, but if you get a decent game out of them, you’ll be jumping the field.