Denver Nuggets @ Golden State Warriors

The Denver Nuggets will look to rebound from a bad opening night loss to the Utah Jazz as they travel to Golden State to take on the defending champion Warriors. This NBA Showdown slate will be determined by what you decide to do with Nikola Jokic, fantasy basketball's most valuable player - but also the most expensive. With all of the firepower in this game, there are plenty of roster options to fill out for this one-game contest.

Here are the NBA DFS top plays we can invest in for our lineups on FanDuel and DraftKings!

 

Denver Nuggets injuries:

Nikola Jokic – Probable
Jamal Murray - Questionable

Golden State Warriors injuries:

Andre Iguodala – Out
Patrick Baldwin, Jr. - Out
 

MVP/CAPTAIN

Nikola Jokic (C)

Jokic started his defense of back-to-back MVPs with just 46 fantasy points on Wednesday night in a blowout loss to the Utah Jazz. Moving forward we can consider that the absolute floor for Jokic, which makes him the ideal candidate for the MVP slot tonight. Jokic shot poorly and only played 33 minutes in his first game, so an improvement tonight is very likely. For his career against Golden State, Jokic averages 17 points, 10 rebounds, six assists, and 49% shooting. He is likely back to his 60+ fantasy point games starting tonight.

Stephen Curry (PG)

There were no signs of a ring celebration letdown for Curry and the Warriors on Tuesday night. Curry led the team with 61 fantasy points in just 33 minutes, including six rebounds, seven assists, and four steals. For a massive discount off of Jokic in the MVP spot, Curry is clearly capable of putting up these ceiling games at any time and will come in massively less rostered in that spot. Last season the Nuggets allowed opponents to shoot 35% from three-pointers. 

Jordan Poole (PG/SG)

As expected, Poole was the first man off the bench for the Warriors and provided the key offense in the second unit. Even with a poor shooting night, he managed to haul in 28 fantasy points in 28 minutes thanks to seven assists and two steals. If the Warriors continue to manage Klay Thompson’s minutes in the early season, Poole will end up being the second-most valuable Golden State player in DFS. Tonight, he checks in at almost half the salary of Jokic. 

UTILITY 

Andrew Wiggins (SF)

Andrew Wiggins was one of the most valuable assets in the Playoffs during Golden State’s title run last year, and he kicked off 2022-2023 the same way he ended last season. He provided 39 fantasy points in just 29 minutes thanks to incredible shooting and contributions in rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks. Now, against Denver, his salary actually went down $200 on DraftKings, making him a great Showdown piece at a very reasonable mid-range salary

Michael Porter, Jr. (SF/PF)

After playing in only nine games in 2021-2022, I was very impressed with what I saw from Porter on Wednesday night. The 15 points and seven rebounds were great in a game where Denver underperformed, but it was the 35 minutes that really gets me encouraged. Porter’s per-36-minute stats in his last modestly healthy season were 21.9 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 1.3 assists per game. He has that kind of upside on this team if he can just stay on the floor. And Wednesday showed he will be out there if his health permits. 

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (SG)

If you had Caldwell-Pope leading the Nuggets in minutes played during their first game of the season, come up to the window and collect your massive winnings now. He couldn’t shoot to save his life, but four rebounds, six assists, a block, and two steals led to 21.5 fantasy points and almost 5x his salary. If Jamal Murray is at all limited in this one after coming in Questionable, KCP will play big minutes again and should be able to pay off his low salary with the across-the-board stat contributions. 

DART THROWS

Bones Hyland (PG/SG)

Jamal Murray enters this game with what I would call an extreme Questionable tag. In his first game back since the spring of 2021, Murray played just 25 minutes and looked very rusty, shooting 5-for-13 from the field. If Denver keeps limiting him or gradually getting him back into game shape, that is going to mean more minutes for players like KCP and Bones Hyland. In just 16 minutes on Wednesday, Hyland put up 10 points, three assists, and a block. Bump him up to 20 minutes tonight (or more if Murray is out) and you’re looking at an easy 7x of his $3,800 salary on DraftKings. 

JaMychal Green (PF/C)

Behind Jordan Poole, it wasn’t James Wiseman or Donte DiVencenzo, or Jonathan Kuminga who played the most minutes off the bench. It was forward JaMychal Green. In his 23 minutes, Green chipped in eight points and seven rebounds and played the backup role to both Draymond Green and Kevon Looney at times. After four straight seasons of minutes of 20 or below per game, the 23 he played were an encouraging sign. Was it because the Lakers got down by 15+ in the fourth? Perhaps, but it confirms that Green is one of the two most reliable players off the Golden State bench and worth the roster spot with his low salary. 

 

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