Bryan Armetta makes his DraftKings NBA Pick6 selections before Thursday night’s games.
The NBA is back, but only eight teams will take the floor tonight. Even though the number of games are limited, there’s still plenty of ways to get in on the action with DraftKings Sportsbook.
While superstars like Luka Doncic, Nikola Jokic, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander are suiting up for the first time this season, there’s more NBA betting value on some of the ‘other’ guys taking the floor. Make sure to play these DraftKings NBA Pick6 selections ahead of Thursday’s matchups.
When signing Isaiah Hartenstein this summer, the Thunder hoped to pair a budding superstar in Holmgren with a more grizzled center to combat some of the Western Conference’s bigger teams. Unfortunately, I-Hart suffered a hand fracture in the preseason, forcing Chet back into the 5 spot.
That isn’t great for OKC, but it is good for those hoping to see the 7’1 Holmgren pull down more rebounds. Over his final 34 regular season games, Chet averaged 8.3 boards per game. With limited competition down low, I’d expect him to clear this number.
We go from one freakishly athletic big man to another. Wembanyama, last season’s rookie of the year, was a man possessed down the stretch. Post-All Star break, the first overall pick averaged 23.5 points, 12.5 rebounds, and 5.3 assists. Most importantly, his playing time went up from 28.4 minutes to 32.5.
Although the Frenchman struggled against Dallas last year (17.7 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 3.3 assists), he only averaged 27.5 minutes in all three matchups. In his first game of the 2024-25 season, with the Spurs clearly more committed to fielding a winning team, there’s no doubt Wemby will clear 30+ minutes. I’ll trust a generational talent over a small sample size any day.
Even without Karl-Anthony Towns, Naz Reid played just 26 minutes against the Lakers on Tuesday night. However, I’m willing to bet that won’t be the case in most games moving forward. An aggressive, poor shooting Los Angeles team demanded bigger bodies like Rudy Gobert and Julius Randle on the floor. At 6’9, Reid is undersized to defend Anthony Davis and LeBron James.
That won’t be the case when the Timberwolves take on the Kings, who don’t have much height other than Domantas Sabonis. Reid’s elite three-point shooting should come in handy against a Sacramento squad that can put up points in a hurry. Even if he’s stuck in the high-20’s for minutes, this line could cash before the fourth quarter.
Seeing Warriors legend Klay Thompson in a different jersey will be a strange sight. It remains to be seen how the sharpshooter will acclimate to his new role as a complimentary option to Doncic and Kyrie Irving with the Mavericks. What does seem apparent is that the veteran is a better fit on a Western Conference-winning team than as a frustrated sixth man with middling Golden State.
As is often the case when a new player joins a title contender, I’d expect Klay to defer to his new teammates more often than not. Even in a sub-30 minute role last season, the future Hall of Famer averaged 2.3 assists, so dishing out a couple of dimes on this Mavs squad shouldn’t be difficult. Add on a few threes, and there’s no reason to think Thompson can’t put together a solid Dallas debut.
Whenever Kristaps Porzingis misses time, which might be the case through December, Al Horford warrants a closer look. As was the case for almost every Celtic, the big man played a good game against the Knicks on Tuesday, racking up 11 points, five assists and three rebounds. After playing him 30 minutes, it’s clear that head coach Joe Mazzulla has no trouble trusting the veteran to handle a large workload.
Horford should have ample opportunity to contribute tonight against a porous Wizards defense. With all the attention on Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, it’s hard to envision Al not having four or five open looks from long distance. Even as a bench player, Horford still averaged close to nine points. There’s no reason to think he can’t get a few more as a starter.
For those of you who weren’t keeping tabs with the 22-win Spurs last season, Wembanyama’s ascent to superstar status came at the cost of another center. A starter to begin the year, San Antonio eventually opted to move Collins to the bench, shifting Wemby over to the 5. After a marvelous second half of the season from the Frenchman, it’s safe to say Greg Popovich and company made the right decision.
Post-All Star break, Collins averaged just 18.7 minutes and 0.8 three-pointers per game, despite making a ridiculous 47.8% of his shots from beyond the arc. I’d expect the court time to stay the same, but not the ridiculously good shooting. Bank on no three-pointers on one or two attempts from the backup big tonight.
Pick6 is a peer-to-peer fantasy variant where you build a lineup (your “Pick Set”) of 2+ players and select whether or not 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 can not pick the same player twice and you must pick players from at least two different teams.
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I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is barmy) 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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