Sean Barnard makes his DraftKings Pick6 selections for the 11-game NBA slate on November 13.
Following the opening night of the NBA Cup, the regular NBA schedule returns with an 11-game slate under normal circumstances and court colors.
The Cleveland Cavaliers will be looking to build off their 12-0 start and remain undefeated against the Philadelphia 76ers. Joel Embiid made his debut last night, but the Sixers will now be without him and Paul George on the second night of a back-to-back. The Boston Celtics will look to bounce back against the Brooklyn Nets after a shocking upset against the Atlanta Hawks. The Portland Trail Blazers and Minnesota Timberwolves will be facing off for the second consecutive night, with the stakes slightly different as this is a traditional regular season game.
This number of games provides many options for what to watch and even more options for how to get involved in the action. One of the more unique features on DraftKings this year is Pick6 Fantasy Basketball!
The feature is simple: pick whether a player will record more or less of a set statistic. Here are my six favorite Pick6 plays for Wednesday night’s action.
The Indiana Pacers are off to a 5-5 start to the season and have an emerging star to take note of. Bennedict Mathurin has stepped into the starting lineup and grown into a foundational piece of this Pacers team. Overall this season, he is averaging 19.4 points, 6.1 rebounds and 1.9 assists. He is also shooting 55.3 percent from the field and 50 percent from beyond the three-point arc.
Mathurin spent the first five games as a bench player where he was limited to 25.8 minutes per game. In his five games as a starter, his minutes grew to 35.1 per game and now averaged averaged 23.0 points, 7.6 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game in that stretch. The Arizona product dropped 38 points the last time he was on the court and has recorded more than 18.5 points in five of the last six games.
The Pacers are set to square off with the Magic for the third time already this season. Mathurin was limited to just 13:42 minutes of action in the first game and was held below his scoring total. He then dropped 20 points when they played last week and Mathurin has only built off his scoring output from here. Expect him to continue to be in attack mode and make the most of his additional opportunities. Count on the thrid-year guard to record more than 18.5 points for the sixth time in seven games and the second time against the Magic this season.
The Cleveland Cavaliers will be looking to remain undefeated and have a great chance to do so against the Philadelphia 76ers. With Joel Embiid and Paul George ruled out on the second night of a back-to-back, Cleveland should have no problem getting the job done.
When thinking about why, look directly at the rebounding totals. While the Cavaliers have not stood out in this category yet as a team, the Sixers are dead last in the league in rebounding thus far. Even with Joel Embiid back on the floor last night they were out rebounded 47-40 by the New York Knicks. Andre Drummond has been unable to dominate the boards in the way he was expected.
Look for Evan Mobley to play a key role in establishing himself as a rebounder. So far this season he’s averaging 8.8 rebounds per game but has tallied 27 rebounds across the past two games. Andre Drummond will likely match up with Jarrett Allen presenting Mobley with a favorable matchup on the boards. Expect the fourth-year big man to have an active effort rebounding and record more than 10.5 rebounds for the third consecutive game.
The Houston Rockets are set to face off with the Los Angeles Clippers who have reinvented themselves as a defensive-minded team. The Clippers are holding opponents to the fifth-fewest points per game. They have several impressive perimeter defenders that will each rotate onto Jalen Green throughout this matchup.
Green is averaging 20.7 points per game this season and has been held to fewer than 22.5 points in seven of the 11 games. There are a lot of mouths to feed in the Rockets offense and Green has not shot the ball well to start the year. He is connecting on just 39.1 percent of his shots from the field this season, which marks a career-low.
Expect Green to struggle with the length and defensive ability of Derrick Jones Jr., Kris Dunn and Terance Mann as Los Angeles throws plenty of different looks his way. Green is an impressive talent but has yet to put all the pieces together this season. The 22.5 point total is a bit too high based on how he’s performing this year. Expect the former No. 2 pick to record less than 22.5 points tonight.
The Oklahoma City Thunder remain without Chet Holmgren which has changed the construction of their team notably. Holmgren averaged 16.4 points, 8.7 rebounds and 2.0 assists before suffering a fractured hip. The team is already without Isaiah Hartenstein and Jaylin Williams due to injury, so this has led the Thunder to play small ball.
As is typically the case for a superstar, most of this expected production has fallen on the plate of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. The MVP candidate is averaging 27.8 points, 6.5 assists and 5.5 rebounds per game this season. He is coming off a career-high 45-point performance last game and has tallied more than 42.5 points, assists and rebounds four times this season.
Expect Gilgeous-Alexander’s rebounding numbers to grow without Holmgren and for him to continue his usual scoring output. The Thunder are set to face off with the Pelicans who are also severely injured. New Orleans will be without four of their top six players and Gilgeous-Alexander will be the clear-cut best player on the floor. Expect him to shine in his statistical output and for Gilgeous-Alexander to record more than 42.5 points, assists and rebounds for the second straight game.
The Phoenix Suns also crack the list of teams battling injuries. Kevin Durant suffered a calf strain after leading the team to an impressive start to the season. The Suns are 9-2 but will need to make up for the 27.6 points and 17.9 shots that Durant has been responsible for per game.
Look directly toward Devin Booker to step up who has plenty of scoring chops himself. He is averaging 23.8 points per game on 17.8 shot attempts per game. That said, he averaged at least 26.8 points per game in each of the past three seasons. He has attempted at least 20 shots in the first two games without Durant and is coming off a 31-point outing in the most recent contest. He also has scored more than 28.5 points in two games when sharing the floor with Durant this season.
The Suns are set to face off with the Sacramento Kings, who rank 19th in opponent points per game. Booker is more than comfortable stepping into the spotlight and will do so in this game. Expect him to get plenty of opportunities on offense and for Booker to be ready to let it fly. Count on him to tally more than 28.5 points in tonight’s matchup and for the star to carry the majority of the offensive load.
Panic is beginning to set in for the Milwaukee Bucks. They are off to just a 3-8 start to the season and have struggled to get consistent production from just about everyone outside of Giannis Antetokounmpo. Brook Lopez lands firmly on this list and is showing his age early on in this season.
The 36-year-old is averaging 9.4 points — the lowest of his career — and 4.8 rebounds per game. While Lopez is still launching his usual 5.2 three-point attempts per game, he has connected at just a 26.3 percent rate on the season. The former All-Star has recorded less than 1.5 three-point makes in six of the 11 games thus far.
The Milwaukee Bucks are set to face off with the Detroit Pistons who possess a youthful roster that could give Lopez and the Bucks trouble. They have a great deal of athleticism and are comfortable switching across the defensive end. Don’t be surprised if his minutes are limited in this particularly tough matchup. He has not proven capable of reliably knocking down three-pointers this season so count on him to record less than 1.5 long-range shots for the seventh time this season.
Pick6 is a peer-to-peer fantasy variant where you build a lineup (your “Pick Set”) of at least two players and select whether you believe each will outperform their listed stat projection. Enter your Pick Set in Pick6 contests to compete against other users. Get enough picks correct and win a share of cash prizes.
Create a Pick Set by choosing 2+ players from the same sport and Pick Group (a set of picks available from a group of set competitions). For each player, simply select if you think they’ll have more or less than their listed stat projection. In each Pick Set, you cannot pick the same player twice and you must select players from at least two different teams.
Once you finalize your Pick Set, choose your entry fee amount. Your entries will be automatically distributed into available contests, subject to your confirmation.
When the games go live, use the My Picks tab to follow your picks in real time to track how your players are performing against their projections and how they stack up against other users.
Make enough correct picks and win a share of the contests’ guaranteed prizes. Any prizes won will be credited to your DraftKings account after contests are finalized.
Play at DraftKings Pick6 or by downloading the DraftKings Pick6 app on Apple or Google!
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I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is seanbarnard) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and do not constitute a representation that any particular strategy will guarantee success. All customers should use their own skill and judgment in building lineups. I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.
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