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 (12/27)
Scottie Barnes (G/F – TOR): 22.5 points
Scottie Barnes has scored 23 or more points in five of his last seven games and six of his last nine. Averaging 20.2 points per game on the season, Scottie has dropped 30 in two of his last three games. He has averaged 23.8 points per game in December. Barnes has faced Washington once already this season, scoring ‘just’ 19 points on 17 shots. He has been more aggressive recently, and while he still has yet to turn on the takeover mode switch for an entire game, the results have been encouraging. Washington has surrendered the most points per game to the small forward position this season at 25.51 per contest. Bump the More on Barnes for Wednesday night.
Pick: More
Jordan Poole (G – WAS): 22.5 points
Poole went off on Tuesday night, draining 30 points on 11/20 shooting. As echoed yesterday, Less plays always leave me a bit weary when it comes to Poole, as shot selection is usually what holds him back from being able to drop 23+ nightly. Averaging 17.9 points per game on the season, Poole has been set at 22.5 based on the strength of four 25+ point games in his last six played. Poole has faced the Toronto Raptors once this season already, managing just 14 points on 16 shots. Toronto has allowed 22.32 points per game to the shooting guard position this season. Form says More, but head-to-head data suggests that Poole will hit 22 or fewer points tonight. Jab the Less on Poole for tonight’s game against the Raptors.
Pick: Less
Tobias Harris (G/F – PHI): 22.5 points
I spent all night waiting for the Alperen Sengun line to appear, but with it still not posted at the time of writing, Tobias Harris makes for a solid alternative. Tobias has caught fire, scoring 27 or more points in each of his last two games. He has taken at least 18 shots in each and should have another high-volume night if Joel Embiid remains sidelined with the ankle injury, as expected. This, of course, is a More play only if Embiid is sidelined, as Harris has averaged just 17 points per game on the season and has scored 23 or more in just four of the other 27 games this season outside of the last two mentioned above. Tap the More on Tobias for Wednesday night.
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.
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Raju Byfield is a featured writer for FantasyPros. For more from Raju, check out his profile and follow him @FantasyContext.
