Daily Fantasy Basketball

Daily fantasy basketball has really taken over in terms of being the “go-to” option for fantasy basketball players.  The reason?  Well, it’s nice that you don’t have to draft a team, see a player get hurt or struggle, and see your entire season go down the drain.  In daily fantasy basketball you are going to be able to choose your lineup each and every night, which means that you can play the match-ups, pick players who have been on fire, and make decisions based on anything that you’d like to.  Daily fantasy basketball games are going to have a salary that you can spend, which means that you’ll have to look for sleepers and players who aren’t usually starters if you want to pencil in some of the big name expensive players.

Picking studs isn’t exactly as easy as just picking and choosing.  You need to be careful and choose the studs that have great match-ups.  The reason that I say this is because you aren’t going to be able to fit multiple studs in your lineup in most situations, so you’ll need to use the one that has the best match-up in your opinion.  For example, if you have a night where both LeBron James and Kevin Durant are playing, and you are choosing between the two, then you should likely play the one that has the best match-up against an opponent who could struggle to guard him.  There are many different options each night, but be sure that you don’t just use a stud for the sake of using a stud, because that can just get you into a tough situation where you are spending money that doesn’t need to be spent!

We mentioned the idea of playing the match-ups above when you are choosing superstars, but when filling out your lineup it’s even more important.  Sure, your studs are likely going to score pretty well, but you need to find players who have the best match-ups that are going to light up your daily fantasy scoreboard.  For example, if you are choosing between two point guards, and one of them is playing a team who gives up the most fantasy points to opposing point guards, then it’s a pretty good sign that this would be the direction that you’ll want to go.  Match-ups are so crucial, and it’s not tough to find the rankings for teams against specific positions.  This alone can help you narrow down the choices at each and every position, especially ones like big men inside and point guards, which are both incredibly important positions to fill, as they can fill up the stat sheet each night.

The best way to save yourself some money in the daily fantasy basketball world is to look into players who are going to get a start and get a ton of minutes because the starter on the team is out with an injury.  Even if a player is just going to miss one or two games, you may be able to pencil in his back-up for a very low cost that can save you money and make it so that you can spend money on other positions.  This is a great way to be able to get multiple studs into your lineup that have a higher cost, especially if you can find more than one back-up player who is going to get the start.  On top of all of this, using a back-up player will give you the chance to get someone in your lineup who may have something to prove and is looking to make a name for himself.

The most frustrating thing in all of daily fantasy basketball is using a player who is just up and down.  One night they may have 40 fantasy points, and the next night could have 10.  If a player like this is up and down, then choosing them for your lineup probably isn’t the right decision.  You want to find players who are consistent and can put up numbers night in and night out.  Pairing these players with the fact that they have great match-ups is huge.  For example, if you find an NBA player who has been scoring between 25-30 points, and is going against a team who allows one of the highest point totals per game to that specific position, then it’s a prime spot to get that player into your lineup.

With the grind of the NBA season, you are going to find that some players are going to become late scratches even though it looks like they are set to play.  I’ve seen scratches come as close to just a few minutes before the tip off of their games, and if you have a late game player then this can be quite a disaster unless the daily fantasy site you uses allows you to change players after the 7pm start of other games.  Regardless, if you have a player who is iffy to play and you have him in your lineup, you better either feel very comfortable with his chances of playing, or keep your eyes locked into the news wire so that you don’t miss the announcement that he’s either playing or he’s out, so that you can adjust accordingly if needed.

With so many types of daily fantasy basketball games out there (depending on which site you use), it can be tough to decide what you want to play.  This is why choosing to play a mix of games including the head to head games and the big tournament games is a great idea.  When playing in the head to head games though, you will want to keep your lineup consistent and not take a ton of risks, but instead look for those players who put up solid numbers nightly.  On the other side of things, if you are playing in a big tournament, then using the players who are subbing in for injuries or just have high upside to be strong sleepers can be a great way to fit the stars in your lineup.

Managing your bankroll is incredibly important as well, because if you give yourself a specific amount of money to play with each month, then playing in the high dollar games can end up burning you through your bankroll quickly.  Obviously you can still hit a nice pay day, but just like any type of fantasy games, you’ll go through some ups and downs, so you need to be sure to prepare for that.  Base the amount of games and cost of each game that you play on how much money that you have in your bankroll at that time.

There are many things to consider when playing daily fantasy basketball, but this should definitely get you going in the right direction.  Taking your time when choosing your lineups, and keeping an eye on the news to see who is going to be a late scratch or who could be a strong sleeper option is very important.  Take these types of things into consideration when you are choosing your daily fantasy basketball lineup.