Wednesday’s daily fantasy slate includes quite a few teams who are best known for their defense. That could make this one a little bit tricky, but it also lends itself to some stacks in the Notre Dame vs. North Carolina contest. Draftkings has also included a heavily favored Purdue team against Green Bay, so that is certainly a game to target as well.
Studs
Garrison Brooks, F, North Carolina (DK: 6,800, FD: 6,300)
Brooks is the only returning starter on North Carolina and he will be a leader on this team for at least a little while. He may not be the type of player who could explode for 25+ points, but the big man is steady in the paint. In UNC’s lone exhibition game, Brooks led the team with 18 points and 11 rebounds. While the Tar Heels rework their rotation, they will lean on Brooks as much as needed and that will make him a very good DFS play for now.
Prentiss Hubb, G, Notre Dame (DK: 6,200, FD: 5,900)
Notre Dame is hoping Hubb can do more scoring this year after averaging 8.1 points per game as a freshman last season. The point guard will pick up quite a few assists, but it does remain to be seen if he can be a consistent scoring threat. But with Rex Pflueger (DK: 8,000, FD 3,000) limited due to his recovery from an ACL injury, Hubb will have to take some shots against a North Carolina team that wants to push the tempo. Hubb did struggle from the floor in Notre Dame’s first exhibition game, but went 5-of-9 from beyond the arc in the latest contest.
Kaleb Wesson, F, Ohio State (DK: 7,500, FD: 7,800)
Kaleb Wesson is a big 6-9 center who averaged 14.6 points and 6.9 rebounds last season. Cincinnati will be a tough matchup since they are one of many teams on this slate that will slow down the pace and play very tough defense. That makes Wesson a bit risky, but he is a solid player who is going to score some points and work hard on the glass
Bargains
Aaron Wheeler, F, Purdue (DK: 4,600, FD: N/A)
Without Carsen Edwards on the team, Purdue has a lot of shots to go around. Wheeler only scored in double digits four times during his freshman campaign, but the 6-9 forward will cause all sorts of matchup problems against Green Bay. Wheeler can score from anywhere on the floor and is not afraid to shoot from long range. In Purdue’s exhibition game, Wheeler led the team with 17 points and added four rebounds and three blocks in 18 minutes of play.
Kameron Hankerson, G, Green Bay (DK: 3,000, FD: N/A)
This is an experienced and relatively talented Green Bay team. They will not beat a team like Purdue, especially with the Boilermakers size in the paint, but do not be too surprised if the Phoenix stick around and make things interesting for a little while. Kameron Hankerson was the team’s sixth man last year and could step into a starting role this year. Either way, the 6-5 guard can knock down outside shots and attack the basket effectively.
Avoid
Rex Pflueger, G, Notre Dame (DK: 8,000, FD: 3,000)
Rarely do we see a pricing difference like this. Rex Pflueger is coming back from an ACL injury and is expected to play on Wednesday night. However, Pflueger has struggled in Notre Dame’s two exhibition games in limited playing time. In a total of 33 minutes in those two games, he shot just 2-of-9 from the floor and garnered a grand total of five points. Pflueger will make a big impact on this team, but it does not look like it will happen yet. However, on FanDuel he may be worth the risk.
Xavier Johnson, G, Pittsburgh (DK: 7,700, FD: 7,300)
Xavier Johnson is the best player on Pitt, but even at home the Panthers have a very tough matchup against Florida State. The Seminoles defense was not as dominate last season as we have become used to, but Coach Leonard Hamilton is going to make this a very tough game for Johnson and the Pitt offense.
