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 (5/2)
Tyrese Maxey (G – PHI): 5.5 1st quarter points
Maxey continues to be a tone-setter for the Philadelphia 76ers, scoring seven or more first quarter points in four of the five games of this series. He needs to be one of the sparks on offense in the opening stanza for the 76ers to have a chance, so expect Maxey to continue to fill it up early. Maxey scored 11 first quarter points in his last game while also mixing in two seven pieces, a nine piece, and an uncharacteristic three piece in Game 4 (which is why we got a 4.5 early line). Mash the More on Maxey for Game 6.
Pick: More
Joel Embiid (C – PHI): 2.5 1st quarter rebounds
Embiid has hauled in six or more first quarter rebounds in three of his last four games. The total here has been set at 2.5 due to Embiid hitting three in one game and two in the other. The inconsistency is a cause for concern, but the fact that Sleeper set this at 2.5 and not 3.5 leaves some value on the More. Embiid has recorded three or more first quarter rebounds in four of the five games of this series. Jab the More on Joel for Game 6.
Pick: More
Pascal Siakam (F – IND): 22.5 points
I have no clue what happened to Pascal Siakam, aka Spicy P, in the last three games, but he has not shown the same type of aggressiveness he showed in the first two games of this series when he was leading the NBA in playoff scoring with a remarkable 36.5 points per game and jacking up 24 shots per contest. In his last three, Siakam has shot under .500 and has taken less than 20 shots in each. Readers of this column will know that I have been a proponent of Siakam sliding into a 1b role behind Tyrese Haliburton, who I believe needs to be playing close to his peak as a scorer if the Pacers truly have designs of emerging not only from the first round but from the second round and beyond. However, the Pacers, who won the first two games of this series, have won just one of the last three, and that was thanks to some late game heroics from Siakam and Haliburton.
This was just a very long-winded way of saying it is near impossible that the Pacers do not realize that when Pascal goes off, it makes things easier for everyone else and has led to wins in this series. Expect Haliburton and TJ McConnell to make a concerted effort to feed him throughout. Press the More on Pascal for Thursday 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.