This article is part of our DraftKings NBA series.
DraftKings will again offer a single-game Showdown slate, this time for Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals. Before diving into tonight's action, I recommend skimming through my article explaining some basic strategies for Showdown tournaments. Click here to read.
SLATE OVERVIEW
MIA vs. BOS (-3.5) O/U: 214
Down 3-2, I expect the Celtics to come into this potential elimination game with the same strategy that kept them alive in Game 5. By neutralizing the Heat's backcourt and protecting the perimeter, the Celtics forced the Heat to beat them in the interior. Limiting Goran Dragic, Tyler Herro and Duncan Robinson seemed to do the trick. Despite a contest I think could easily go Boston's way, it's still the Heat that will dominate our value selections. Boston runs with a much tighter rotation, and the value opportunities there are high in variance. I expect Miami to fill the bottom of the ticket, with elite Boston talent up top. I will also list some sample builds at the end of the article. These samples are meant to be used as sources for ideas and aren't endorsed as sure winners.
FINDING THE VALUE
Daniel Theis, BOS (CPTN $8,400, UTIL $5,600)
Because targets like Duncan Robinson and Andre Iguodala aren't as desirable, I can envision a scenario where I put Thies up as CPTN at just below the median cost. DraftKings won't allow you to do a one-team build, but using Theis at CPTN could be used for either a Boston-dominant or Miami-dominant build due to his low cost and potential for production.
Jae Crowder, MIA (CPTN $9,300, UTIL $6,200
Crowder will be a mainstay at the UTIL spot in a good percentage of my builds. He's produced a couple of dreadful shooting nights in this series, including a terrible 1-for-9 night in Game 4. Still, Crowder sits at a salary point that's kind of caught between the elite baseline and the better budget picks. You suffer significantly if you keep moving down, and you have to keep the cost of at least two UTIL guys at a reasonable level as you reach for elites. For that reason, Crowder is a logical choice.
ELITE PICKS
Again, your build all depends on which way you think this game will go. Assuming we go for Theis as our CPTN, your options are pretty open. On the Boston end, you can put Jayson Tatum ($10,600), Jaylen Brown ($8,600), Marcus Smart ($7,600) and Kemba Walker ($8,200) in the UTIL spots alongside Crowder. If you favor Miami, Jimmy Butler ($9,000), Bam Adebayo ($9,400), Tyler Herro ($7,200) and Goran Dragic ($7,800) can fit without much problem. For cash contests like head-to-heads and double-ups, you're going to want to find a healthy mixture of both teams, leaving lopsided constructs for the GPP contests.
These builds are not meant to be cut-and-paste options, but more as a blueprint of different directions you can go. As you construct your lineups, you will be able to find players you favor at similar price points.
Sample Build (favor Boston): Theis (CPTN), Tatum, Brown, Smart, Walker, Crowder
Sample Build (favor Miami): Herro or Theis (CPTN), Adebayo, Butler, Dragic, Herro/Theis
The more I look at a balanced build, the more I like it. By taking Adebayo and Butler with Theis as our CPTN, we can add some Boston elites. I also favor keeping Tatum in the fold, so I have him as an alternate in the second build.
Balanced build 1: Theis (CPTN), Adebayo, Butler, Crowder, Smart, Brown
Balanced build 2: Theis (CPTN), Tatum, Walker, Crowder, Smart, Brown
As you can see, I've really hammered the idea of Theis in the CPTN spot. There are other guys like Herro and Crowder that could fit the bill, but I think it's necessary that the 1.5 salary goes to a value guy over elite guys like Tatum or Butler. The extra 50 percent you would get for an elite doesn't match the sacrifices you'll make by going prohibitively low.
