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 (4/17)
DeMar DeRozan (G/F – CHI): 24.5 points (alt line)
DeMar DeRozan has been going crazy lately. He averaged 24.0 points per game on the season but bumped that to 27.1 in February, 25.5 in March, and 30.7 points per game in six April contests. Due to his recent outburst, this total was set at a rather ludicrous 29.5 points. This, coupled with the playoffs being here, led to our first-ever foray into the alt-lines market, which is something that we will continue to consider on days with two or fewer games. This is an alt line with a 1.30x multiplier, but 24.5 is much more appealing than 29.5. DeRozan is going to be aggressive and has always been one of the more efficient wings in the league due to never going high volume from deep. DeMar scored 25, 29, and 31 against Atlanta during the regular season and is the rare player who doesn’t drop off production wise during the playoffs due to his extensive postseason experience. Dap the 36th leading scorer in NBA history for the More for Wednesday night.
Pick: More
Coby White (G – CHI): 14.5 points (alt line)
Alt lines for the win. The alt line drops Coby’s total from 19.5, which he should still hit, to 14.5, which should be almost automatic. Coby averaged 19 points per game during the season, scoring 19, 20, and 22 against Atlanta during the regular season. Coby is expected to be inconsistent during the playoffs, especially after he limped to the finish line with a .413 field goal percentage after the all-star break. Still, the alt line gives us some breathing room as Coby scored 17 or more points in nine of his last 11 games. Add in the bonus of facing the ‘defense is optional’ Atlanta Hawks and this alt line figures to be a nice multiplier builder. Clap the More on Coby for Wednesday night.
Pick: More
Tyrese Maxey (G – PHI): 5.5 1st quarter points
Tyrese has been cooking with gas to start games for the Sixers recently, pouring in six or more first quarter points in four of his last five games, a stretch in which he averaged 9.8 points per first quarter. He has continued to have strong starts despite the return of Joel Embiid, who has also been hot in the first, averaging 10.8 over his last four. The Sixers will look to get their star duo going early, so 5.5 points for Maxey could click within the first few possessions of the game. Maxey has scored six or more first quarter points in 15 of his last 19 games overall. Mash the More on Maxey for Wednesday night’s Play-In Tournament basketball.
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.
