This entire operation hinges on me being a complete leech using the brains of other Roto Sports, Inc. employees and the optimizer.
Let's get back to it...
I have not been as diligent about blogging each and every lineup that I play for hoops (as Liss did in his Amateur Hour series), but that is the function of real-life hinderances including, but not limited to: Thanksgiving weekend travel, actual job responsibilities for RSI, and scouring Dane County for great beer.
Every weeknight at 6p ET, I look around the office and count the number of smart hoops minds around me. Then, I click over to the FanDuel Lobby and ctrl+F my way to the Happy Hour contest.
Pavlov's dogs would be proud.
Playing a mix of Happy Hour tournaments ($10 entry) and Double-Ups ($5 and $10 varieties), I have lost $15 while obtaining one $25 ticket for the upcoming 12/2 $1M NBA MEGA Slam tournament. My hope is that I will have mastered NBA DFS by then, and that ticket will lead me to win a factory that includes a multi-directional elevator, lickable wallpaper, and a river of chocolate.
PG - Rajon Rondo $8,300 v. DAL -- Revenge game narratives are stupid. Prior to the crash Saturday in the blowout loss at Golden State, Rondo had posted at least 35 FanDuel points in six straight games. He's also cracked 50 four times in the last 10 games. Boogie is probable to play Monday, and Rondo gets to pick apart the soft Mavs backcourt.
PG - Jerryd Bayless $4,500 v. DEN -- Why did the Bucks trade Brandon Knight for Michael Carter-Williams again? I don't feel great about this. Bayless is coming off of a ridiculous workload Sunday night against Charlotte (43 minutes), and he's played 30+ in four games spanning the previous seven days. I'm not entirely convinced he'll be in my lineup when the lock happens at 7:30p ET.
SG - Will Barton $5,300 @ MIL -- Let's just pretend that game against the Clippers last week (0-for-6 FG, 1 pt, 3 reb) never happened.
SG - Gerald Green $3,700 v. BOS -- Luol Deng is out again Monday, leaving Green as an excellent target in the sub-$4k range.
SF - Gordon Hayward $6,500 v. GS -- The hope is that he will safely return 4x his salary in FanDuel points each night (6.5 x 4 = 26..he's averaging 27.5), and that a matchup with the Warriors, assuming the Jazz can keep it within range of the 7.5-point line, will lead the Jazz close to the 100-point mark Monday.
SF - Khris Middleton $5,600 v. DEN -- Is it strange that the only two guys named Khris in the four major sports both play in Milwaukee? At least compared to Bayless, Middleton's recent uptick in minutes seems reasonably sustainable.
PF - Draymond Green $8,200 @ UTA - I love rostering players capable of doing a little bit of everything. With plenty of talented scorers around him, Green should continue to pile up assists at a steady clip to go with his usual complement of points and boards.
PF - Paul Millsap $8,600 v. OKC - With an over/under of 213.5, the Thunder-Hawks matchup is in line with the Mavs-Kings at the high end of the board for offense Monday. Unfortunately, Millsap will likely be the casualty of any decision to pivot away from Bayless.
C - Andre Drummond $9,300 v. HOU - Is there anything left to say at this point? He's unbelievable.
Banned Player List: Jose Calderon, Ersan Ilyasova
Contest Entered: Happy Hour: $5K Mon NBA $10 Special + 100 NBA Slam Tickets
Follow me on Twitter @DerekVanRiper.