GUARDS WE LIKE

Jalen Pickett, PSU (G, 8700) – Pickett is currently KenPom’s 6^th highest rated player on the young season. The senior has multiple double digit rebound and double digit assist games as well as a triple double this year. The price is steep, but the floor is high. We have no issues with Pickett if he fits your builds. 

Adam Flagler, BAY (G, 7700) – For the slight savings, I’ll lean towards the veteran over the electric freshman George (G, 7900). Flagler is a safer option, hitting 30+ DK in 4 straight, while George is more volatile with potentially higher ceiling. Marquette is playing at the 16^th fastest tempo in the nation this year, so we definitely want some Baylor heat in our lineups tonight.

Judah Mintz, SYR (G, 7300) – Assuming no additional fallout from slap-gate, Mintz will be key to the Orange’s ability to stick around with this sped up Illini team. Illinois has had trouble keeping athletic playmakers out of the lane and that is Mintz’s deal in a nutshell. Girard (G, 7300) is also at that same price after going 2-22 in his last two games. Both should be live GPP plays.

Chase Hunter, CLEM (G, 7000) – Hunter has taken the reigns of this Clemson team this year and his usage has jumped from 16% to 26% as a full time point guard. He is shooting 60% from deep in this young season and handing out 5.3 assists per game. Brevin Galloway (G, 5700) is also at a nice price considering he won’t leave the floor in this one too. I like both for cash builds.  

LJ Cryer, BAY (G, 6700) – The Baylor forwards haven’t really emerged yet, so I’m focusing on the guards tonight. Cryer gives us another opportunity for exposure to a high total, but at a price discount from Flagler and George. Cryer generally gathers DK points via scoring, so he’ll need to find some ancillary production to hit a ceiling, but it’s a fair price for a guy averaging 18 ppg in a track meet.

Jahmir Young, UMD (G, 6600) – The former Charlotte standout has been a huge get for Maryland this off-season. He leads the team in usage and shot share at 28%. In addition, he’s got a 21% assist rate and shooting 89% from the line. His biggest games have been against inferior competition, going 5x twice. So have to like his matchup against another cupcake in Louisville.

Reece Beekman, UV (G, 6500) – Michigan hasn’t been all that great defensively, so this is a game Virginia could get loose in the scoring column. Beekman is probably the Cav’s best player and most likely to hit in a GPP contest, however, any of the core players are solid cash options. Beekman is fairly low risk, leading the team with a 36% assist rate and dominant defensively. If he can get up double-digit shot attempts like he did against Illinois, he could have a nice ceiling.

Jaykwon Walton, WICH (G, 6400) – Mizzou wants to play with pace (17^th in tempo) and Wichita State wants to slow it down (330^th). Therefore upgrade your Shockers and downgrade your Tigers. That said, I am not keen on the price of Craig Porter Jr. (G, 7800). I’d much rather pay down for the stat stuffing Walton. While Porter has had some nice rebounding games, Jaykwon has just been more consistent with ancillary production. 

Cameron Hildreth, WAKE (G, 6400) – Appleby (G, 7600) has been terrific this year, but just like Applebee’s, I can’t stomach going there. Wisconsin has been top 20 defensively this season while playing at a snail’s pace, so if I’m going to spend up, I’ll look elsewhere. Our long-time Bucketheads remember us writing up Hildreth last year as a cheap punt option who can do a bit of everything. Well, he did a bit of everything last game, hitting a triple double en route to a 50 burger. It’s a big step up in competition from the likes of Hampton and South Carolina St., but at least we know Hildreth can score DK points in a variety of ways, which makes him a potential cash game option. For $1300 less, you can look at Damari Monsanto (G, 5100), who finally appears to be healthy and is a point per fantasy minute machine. He’s hit 5x+ in 3 of his last 4 despite limited minutes. 6’10 frosh Bobi Klintman (F, 4600) would be a desperation dart throw coming off his two best games of the season.

Tony Perkins, IOWA (G, 6300) – Perkins looks to be over his thigh issue and should be in line for his normal workload tonight. The 6-4 junior has 26% usage and shot rates when on the floor as well as being a excellent perimeter defender. Iowa’s offense feeds a lot of mouths, but with the pricing where it is Murray (below) and Perkins feel like our best options.

Kam Jones, MARQ (G, 5900) – This is a pretty balanced Golden Eagles attack, which is a bit frustrating from a DFS perspective. Jones is the cheapest of the starters and actually has the highest shot share on the team at 28%. Similar to LJ Cryer, he’s more of a scorer only, which hurts his upside, but Baylor hasn’t been as elite defensively as year’s past so he should have plenty of opportunity to score. Tyler Kolek (G, 7200) should have a high floor in this game as well; top 10 assist rates nationally and should land right around 4x his price point.

Skyy Clark, IL (G, 5600) – The highly touted freshman got off to a slow start, focusing more on getting his teammates involved than being a scorer. That changed last game however, going 8-9 from the field, good for 6x. Clark is shooting 50% from 3 so far this season, so I expect he’ll be active against the zone. You can pivot down to another freshman, Jayden Epps (G, 5200) as well. He’s a pure bucket and already hit 5x three times this season.

Connor Essegian, WISC (G, 4800) – Anyone who watched Wisconsin play over the holiday break saw Essegian blossom into a player the Badgers need on the court to provide much needed scoring. He was sensational against KU and solid against USC. He’ll have ups and downs like any freshman, but provides scoring punch at a reasonable price point against a Wake Forest team that wants to play fast and is giving up one of the highest 3-point FG rates in the nation. Maybe with Essegian’s emergence, Hepburn (G, 6100) can go back to a facilitator role instead of throwing up a bunch of bricks, although he finally showed some efficiency last game and his price point is more than fair.

Miles Kelly, GT (G, 4800) – Kelly likes to shoot and Iowa games have a lot of extra possessions. Those are two good things we like when targeting DFS options. Kelly also cracked the starting lineup for the first-time last game and played 30 minutes. At 4800 he is a great play in all types of builds. Expect high ownership though.