Later today, the NBA presents Draftkings basketball fans with a regular season matchup featuring the Denver Nuggets and the Phoenix Suns. Let’s take a look at this game from a DFS perspective.
Before we dive into the Denver Nuggets vs. Phoenix Suns game let’s review the rules for the Draftkings single game showdown contest.
Draftkings Single Game Showdown Contest Rules
You have $50,000 to utilize on five players from either team. However, one of those players will be designated as your team captain. The captain accumulates 1.5 times the standard fantasy points. Additionally, the captain is 1.5 times the standard cost of the flex position.
The remaining four players in your lineup will receive the standard fantasy points. Having stated that, it is highly important for you to identify the correct player for your captain position if you hope to win a large field DFS GPP (guaranteed prize pool) showdown contest.
If you have additional questions regarding the rules for the single game showdown contest, I recommend that you check out the Draftkings website for more details.
*I recommend that all readers review the starting lineups for both teams prior to setting your DFS lineup for this one game slate.
Here are my Draftkings picks for tonight’s Phoenix Suns vs. Denver Nuggets matchup.
Draftkings NBA Showdown Picks
Captain-Nikola Jokic, Center, Denver Nuggets $12,800
Denver center Nikola Jokic has certainly established himself as one of the best players in the National Basketball Association today. With that said, how has the veteran center played from a statistical perspective this season? Let’s examine Jokic’s relevant player data from the 2024 NBA regular season to answer that question.
In the 56 games that Nikola Jokic has played for the Denver Nuggets this season, Jokic is averaging 28.8 points, 12.8 rebounds, 10.4 assists, 1.8 steals and 0.6 blocks a game.
Looking closer at the data just presented, in the 56 games that center Nikola Jokic has played for the Denver Nuggets in the 2024 NBA regular season, Jokic has compiled a 57.6% field goal percentage, a 43.9% three-point percentage and an 81.9% free throw percentage.
These two teams met earlier this season. Who prevailed? How did Nikola Jokic perform in the game? In the Denver Nuggets 122-110 win over the Phoenix Suns last month, Denver center Nikola Jokic compiled a whopping 26 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists.
It is noteworthy that the Denver Nuggets have officially listed Nikola Jokic as questionable for this evening’s game. Keep that in mind as you construct your lineups for this one game DFS slate.
In my view, Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic is the player most likely to accumulate the highest number of DraftKings points in this evening’s NBA regular season game. For that specific reason, I am rolling with Nikola Jokic as the captain for this single game DraftKings NBA Showdown contest slate.
Flex Plays
Kevin Durant, Forward, Phoenix Suns $9,800
Talented forward Kevin Durant has emerged as the pivotal leader that the Phoenix Suns have needed to win games this season. To evaluate his performance from a statistical standpoint, let’s examine Durant’s game data from the 2024 NBA regular season.
In the 49 games that Kevin Durant has played for the Phoenix Suns in the 2024 NBA regular season, Durant has averaged an impressive 26.9 points, 6.1 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.3 blocks and 0.8 steals a game.
Examining the data just presented more closely, in the 49 games that Kevin Durant has played for the Phoenix Suns this season, Durant has averaged 45.2 Draftkings points a game.
Additional flex plays I like to play well in this evening’s NBA game (Draftkings price noted): Jamal Murray, Point Guard (Denver Nuggets) $8,600: Bradley Beal, Guard (Phoenix Suns) $7,600.