Slate Overview
Four nations remain in the Men's Olympic Basketball competition, and all four will have a chance to take the gold medal.
We will see some extremely chalky builds Thursday with both some obvious plays and obvious fades. I think you only need to differentiate at one spot to wind up with a lineup that could win a DraftKings contest by itself, so there's no need to go overboard.
Good luck, everyone!
Guards to Go After
Players listed in order of confidence
Preferred Plays
Dennis Schroder, Germany ($7,700)
I'm really not sure why Schroder's price dropped so significantly, as France has been getting torched by opposing guards throughout the tournament -- including by Schroder himself. We're getting a bargain below $8,000, and I think only an unlikely bout with foul trouble would prevent him from hitting his floor.
Bogdan Bogdanovic, Serbia ($8,800)
There aren't many great options in this section, but if Serbia wants to stay in the game it can't just be all Nikola Jokic all the time. They will need a phenomenal shooting night from their second best scorer.
Anthony Edwards, United States ($8,200)
Stephen Curry, United States ($8,300)
Devin Booker, United States ($8,100)
On a short slate we will need to look at some Americans, who I have mostly avoided thus far. If you think Team USA will be leading by a lot late in the contest, Edward's is your guy in this range . If you think the game comes down to the wire I don't mind taking a shot with Curry if you're entering multiple lineups. Surely he has one big night in him if need be. Booker has really impressed me in his role and I think he could post a solid floor. All in all, though, I'm not sure how likely it is one of these guys winds up in the winning lineup.
Jrue Holiday, United States ($6,600)
Holiday is better priced than those above, will start, and has averaged more than a fantasy point per minute in the two games he has been healthy for. He should put up a DraftKings point total in the high 20s with a typical day at the office, and that could be enough at this rate.
Vasilije Micic, Serbia ($6,900)
Micic shot the ball well the last couple games and has been contributing in other areas as well. I don't love this matchup for him, though, so I will be lower on him than others might be.
Valuable Values
Isaia Cordinier, France ($3,800)
Cordinier has come on in a big way, and the playing time seemingly has to stay steady. He started last game and actually lost some minutes due to foul trouble, which he is susceptible to given his style of play. If everything goes right Thursday, though, there's a lot to like.
Nick Weiler-Babb, Germany ($3,300)
Marko Guduric, Serbia ($4,600)
These players check in at different prices and on different teams, but they have very similar situations. Both have been seeing solid minutes despite leaving a lot to be desired from a fantasy point per minute perspective. However, they both have been closing games, which signals that their coaches trust them opens up the possibility for even more minutes if rotations shrink.
Andrew Albicy, France ($3,400)
if you're entering 20 lineups Thursday, I think sprinkling in Albciy is warranted. He appears to have made the medal-round rotation whereas Nando de Colo and Matthew Strazel have not.
Frontcourt in Focus
Players listed in order of confidence
Preferred Plays
Nikola Jokic, Serbia ($11,800)
He's at his highest price point yet, but not high enough to stop us from again fielding a lineup that includes him and other guys with secure minutes and roles. As we saw in the last matchup with the United States, Serbia cannot afford to keep him off the court for long, and he might only rest at the end of quarters.
Anthony Davis, United States ($8,200)
I'll once again bring up how absurd his fantasy points per minute mark has been. If he gets 25 minutes you will absolutely regret not including him in the majority of your lineups. He will work as a reserve if Joel Embiid is able to go, but if Embiid's ankle injury is more than minor, Davis will presumably slot into the starting lineup.
LeBron James, United States ($9,700)
Much like Davis, James has been awesome in terms of fantasy points per minute, but he's $1,500 pricier, which is an issue if you want to pair an American with Jokic. James is a great play, though, particularly if you want to avoid a chalky Isaac Bonga at the small forward spot.
Franz Wagner, Germany ($9,200)
I wish Wagner was priced just a little cheaper. He has been incredible in this tournament, but he has not reached 40.0 DraftKings points yet, and you're sacrificing a lot at this price point unless you are confident the Americans blow out Serbia and want to avoid Davis or James.
Victor Wembanyama, France ($10,800)
It pains me to have him so low, but it has been a bit of a clunky tournament for Wembanyama. He has put up some big numbers in games he -- in my opinion, at least -- did not play well in, and that's a testament to the ceiling he possesses. If I pass on Jokic in a given lineup, it would definitely be because I'm going with Wembanyama to conserve the dollars and hoping Jokic finds himself in foul trouble.
Filip Petrusev, Serbia ($6,800)
The last game went to overtime, but Serbia cut its rotation, and I can now envision Petrusev getting minutes in the high 20s. He lost some fourth-quarter run his last time out due to some fouls. He is one of my favorite upside plays in the middle tier of Thursday's slate.
Nicolas Batum, France ($6,700)
The minutes are huge and I don't think he will leave the floor much Thursday. He disappointed the last couple games, but playing time is what you are looking for here, and he did top 30.0 DraftKings points in France's opening game.
Bam Adebayo, United States ($7,300)
I only have interest if Embiid is ruled out for Thursday's game. The United States would need his size to match up with Jokic.
Valuable Values
Mathias Lessort, France ($4,300)
Guerschon Yabusele, France ($5,200)
These two have been cooking and I don't think DraftKings priced them up enough after the last game. Rudy Gobert's injury provides an elite minutes floor for a couple guys who have been solid in the fantasy points per minute department.
Isaac Bonga, Germany ($4,700)
It has been a great tournament for Bonga and there aren't a lot of options at the small forward spot. If he continues lighting it up from long range I'm sure he will continue providing meaningful value.
Johannes Thiemann, Germany ($3,700)
He has been providing far better minutes than fellow big man Johannes Voigtmann, and his versatility could give him a better matchup against France, particularly if Gobert is limited or sidelined.
