Tag Archives: Michael Carter-Williams

Kyle Korver and 5 Daily Fantasy Basketball Sleepers For Thursday, 10/27

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Thursday night offers up a fun four-game slate in daily fantasy basketball, which is an interesting change of pace after a truly explosive (and loaded) 10-game slate on Wednesday night. A lot of tonight’s NBA DFS lineups will be fairly similar given the small slate, which naturally will mean you’re going to want to dig a little deeper in big GPP tourneys and try to uncover value no one else is using.

Differentiating your daily fantasy basketball lineups could be key, so let’s take a look at five appealing NBA DFS sleepers for tonight that can be had for $4k or cheaper at DraftKings:

Note: We’ll hit up each position, giving us five individual NBA DFS sleepers to consider for each spot ahead of Thursday’s slate.

Michael Carter-Williams, PG, Chicago Bulls ($3.6k)

Do we actually trust a scoring point guard who can’t shoot? No, and we even trust him less when he’s coming off the bench for a new team. That being said, there are two things we do like about MCW tonight: he’s cheap and he has a versatile skill-set.

Chicago traded for this guy and they have to know they don’t have much of a bench, so he’ll probably get some run behind Rajon Rondo and Dwyane Wade. His length makes him interesting, as he trips into rebounds, steals and assists. The guy has a knack for scoring, too, provided he doesn’t fall in love with a broken jumper from outside.

He’s not safe at all, but on a four-game slate, you’ll want to take a chance or three in some GPPs. Due to a versatile skill-set, he could rack up a bunch of meaningless stats in this one and for such a low price, wouldn’t take much to end up paying off.

Kyle Korver, SG, Atlanta Hawks ($3.3k)

Korver is insanely cheap for a guy who can get red hot from outside. I wouldn’t be interested in him at all if he were his usual price ($4k or more) but he still has a solid role with the Hawks and shooting guard isn’t that appealing at DK tonight.

Even if you do use Dwyane Wade, C.J. McCollum or Bradley Beal tonight, Korver could fit in nicely as an insanely cheap G or Util play on DraftKings. He does not do a whole lot other than score, but the hope here would be he catches fire at home in what should be a pretty fast-paced tilt with the Wizards. If Korver can put up 15+ actual points, he might be able to get enough rebounds, steals or assists to actually be a killer value play tonight. It all comes down to how hot he can get tonight, though.

Kyle Anderson, SF, San Antonio Spurs ($3.7k)

Due to recency bias, Kyle Anderson could be a fantastic GPP value play at DK tonight. Jonathan Simmons benefited the most from the absence of Danny Green in their season opener and given how balanded and deep the Spurs are, it wouldn’t be shocking to see that go back in Anderson’s favor. Both guys are strong value picks, but Anderson has a more versatile skill-set and should get about the same run.

Omri Casspi, PF, Sacramento Kings ($3.5k)

I’m not sure how much I trust Casspi, but here’s two things I’m pretty confident in: the Kings are going to run a decent amount of small ball this year and tonight they’re probably getting housed by the Spurs. San Antonio just wrecked the Warriors in Golden State, so do the math there.

Casspi is certainly not the most reliable DFS performer, but he can stroke the deep ball and can be fairly active on the boards. If he gets enough minutes tonight (and if they get trounced, he will), he should also tack on a few dimes and steals. The value is there to help you stack a sweet GPP team tonight and Casspi is a big reason why.

Ed Davis, C, Portland Trail Blazers ($3.8k)

Last, but not least, Ed Davis is another guy to consider due to recency bias, as well as matchup. He actually got good run in Portland’s season opener and just didn’t perform as well as he’s capable of. He could be needed even more than usual tonight, too, since the Blazers host a dominant frontcourt in Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan.

Davis is always a double-double threat due to his high energy, and if he gets added run he could be one of the top value plays on the night in daily fantasy basketball. He also represents a fun pivot play at center or power forward, as most people will feel more comfortable with Taj Gibson or Mason Plumlee, both of which are only slightly more expensive. I like them just fine, but Davis could match their production and also saves you salary cap space.

That does it for our look at cheap daily fantasy basketball sleepers for Thursday night. Remember, we’re not necessarily saying you should use all of these guys together or that they’re all locks. They’re GPP sleepers that have some logic behind them that could make them sneaky, profitable plays. It’s up to you when/where to use them. Regardless what you decide, we wish you luck in your daily fantasy basketball contests tonight!

NBA Finals Odds: Are Bulls Title Contender After Trading For Michael Carter-Williams?

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The Chicago Bulls and Milwaukee Bucks agreed to terms on a trade containing Michael Carter-Williams and Tony Snell on Monday. The two Eastern Conference rivals had been discussing the player swap over the weekend and finalized the trade early on Monday, with Michael Carter-Williams heading to Chicago and Tony Snell landing in Milwaukee.

Bucks Seek Offense

It was a crucial move (albeit an underwhelming one) for the Bucks, who lost a ton of offensive and outside shooting with a severe hamstring injury to starting shooting guard, Khris Middleton. With Middleton on the shelf for months (and possibly the entire season), Milwaukee badly needed some help on the wing. It’s certainly debatable if Snell provides that, as he was an inefficient performer during his time in Chicago.

Snell was never able to overtake a big role with the Bulls, where he averaged just over five points per game during the 2015-16 season, a year in which he shot just 37% from the field. While recent efficiency isn’t coming into Milwaukee with the Snell trade, the Bucks to land a versatile player who does have the ability to hit the outside shot. Even better, Snell can defend at a high level and brings length and versatility to a Bucks team that already has both in spades.

The idea for Milwaukee will be for Snell to take over a sizable role until Middleton can return. Once back, Middleton would star again at the two spot and Snell would slide back into a more ideal bench role.

Chicago Loses Shooting

As for Chicago, this is an odd trade. They give up a versatile wing player who can provide bench scoring and is a very useful defender, and in return get an arguable bust who has always been miscast as a star poing guard and really is more of a weak small forward who has a broken jumper.

MCW definitely has potential still and the Bulls are right to label him a versatile talent, but he adds zero shooting to a team already starving for it. Jimmy Butler remains the only starter in Chicago that can consistently hit jumpers, while Dwyane Wade is a distant second. Snell wasn’t being counted on for a major role, but he’s one less shooter the Bulls can use off the bench.

Instead they’ll turn to Michael Carter-Williams, who offers nothing from long range and has never been an efficient offensive player. He isn’t even a plus defender, as he’s merely gotten by for stretches due to his size, length and athleticism. MCW does provide the Bulls with a backup point guard upgrade over Jerian Grant and Spencer Dinwiddie, but it could be a rough transition from starting unit to the main bench when both of their top point guards struggle to hit wide open jump shots.

NBA Title Odds Don’t Change

Overall, this trade does very little for either team. Losing Snell doesn’t cripple the Bulls, and gaining Michael Carter-Williams doesn’t make them any better on paper. Milwaukee seems to have given away a former tantalizing prospect for almost nothing, too, while Snell offers the mildest of potential in a spot they need a ton of help in.

Bovada is giving the Bulls respectable +4000 odds to chase a title this year, and that has everything to do with big names like Rajon Rondo, Dwyane Wade and Jimmy Butler.

They’re a hallow team with big names and no shooting, however. It will be an accomplishment for them to simply make the playoffs and compete once in.

Milwaukee losing Middleton is massive for a team that already struggled to put the ball in the hole. Snell doesn’t fix that, nor does he help their weak +10000 NBA Finals odds. Milwaukee certainly has talent and could be a fun team to watch, but they’re not going to be a playoff contender unless/until Middleton gets back in the starting lineup.