Tuesday’s NBA Sleeper Picks Player Predictions: Kevin Durant, Jusuf Nurkic, Jalen Brunson (12/5)

Welcome to Sleeper Picks. Sleeper’s newest offering promised plenty of entertainment and action, and they delivered. We will break down our top three picks for tonight’s NBA action. Sleeper is quickly becoming one of the most popular season-long fantasy platforms, and they are expanding into other areas based on demand. Each week in this space, we’ll talk about some strategy for the new platform while providing our favorite NBA more/less picks.

NBA Sleeper Picks Player Predictions (12/5)

Kevin Durant (F – PHX): 27.5 points

Durant continues to be a scorer extraordinaire in his age 35 season, averaging 31 points, 6.4 rebounds, 5.8 assists, 0.8 steals, and 1.2 blocks on .512 shooting. He scored 28 or more points in nine straight before scoring ‘just’ 27 points against Memphis on Saturday. The number is high, but KD has been on a tear and averages well over the 28 needed for this total to hit. KD has scored 38 and 39 points in his two games against the Lakers this season. Tap the More on Durant for Tuesday night’s In Season Tournament quarterfinal action.

Pick: More

Jusuf Nurkic (C – PHX): 11.5 points

Nurkic has been solid in the middle for the Phoenix Suns this season, averaging 12.1 points and 9.2 rebounds per game. He has scored 14 or more points in each of his last three games and in six of his last nine. He will likely never have a point explosion this season, and his numbers may dip when Bradley Beal returns to the lineup, but for now, he should be good for 12-15 points a night. Tonight, he will face off against a Los Angeles Lakers team surrendering 22.11 points per game to the center position. Jab the More on Jusuf for Tuesday night’s action.

Pick: More

Jalen Brunson (G – NYK): 26.5 points

My initial lean here was on the Less, as Brunson seems to be more of an efficient volume guy who doesn’t get to the line as much as his usage dictates. However, Brunson, who is averaging 24.9 points per game on 19.1 shots per game, has scored 32 or more in four of his last eight. With that said, what really pushed this from a potential Less play to a More is the head-to-head data from earlier this season when Brunson scored a season-high 41 points on 30 attempts. Brunson should have another volume-filled night in his tete-a-tete with Damian Lillard and the Knicks frontcourt duo being contained by Brook Lopez and Giannis Antetokounmpo. Milwaukee allows the sixth most points per game to the point guard position at 25.44 per contest. Factor in the far from average Brunson, and we have the ingredients for at least 27 points. Bump the More on Brunson for tonight’s In Season Tournament action.

Pick: More

Writers note: The lines are constantly changing on Sleeper (and sometimes expiring), so there is a high probability that one or all of the numbers may no longer be the same when you open your app. There are excellent values when they are first posted, with the only catch being that they are not all released at the same time. Vigilance could provide a solid return on investment this season, literally.