Thursday's DraftKings college basketball slate is a single game, WAKE @ VAND, and it locks at 6:00 p.m. ET (3:00 p.m. PT). With one game and a captain slot that scores 1.5x points at 1.5x salary, every roster decision runs through the same two teams.
The top of our model's ranking is led by the highest-priced players. Tyler Tanner of VAND costs $11,800 and carries a 67.0 ceiling with a DraftKings average of 37.1, the biggest numbers on the board. Kevair Kennedy of WAKE is right behind in price at $10,800, with a 59.9 ceiling and a 33.2 average. Bangot Dak ($9,600, 47.1 ceiling) and Ace Glass ($9,000, 45.7 ceiling) round out the VAND options in the upper tier, with averages of 26.1 and 25.3.
The value plays come from WAKE. Ring Nyeri is just $1,600 with a 38.0 ceiling and a 20.2 DraftKings average, which is a lot of scoring for the price. Justin Ray at $4,000 offers a 34.1 ceiling and an 18.9 average. Both give a lineup room to afford the stars. Isaac Carr, at $6,400, has a 15.4 ceiling and a 6.5 average, so he is not a fit for this price. One note on the VAND side: Gabe Nesmith carries an OUT tag from DraftKings.
The fact sheet gives no ownership figures for this slate, so we will not guess where the crowd is headed.
Our model's top lineup uses $47,600 of the $50,000 cap. It puts Nyeri in the captain slot at $2,400, which captures the 1.5x scoring on the cheapest high-upside player on the slate. The UTIL spots go to Tanner ($11,800), Glass ($9,000), Dak ($9,600), Ray ($4,000) and Kennedy ($10,800). It leans on VAND's top three while using Nyeri and Ray to fund the build.
Get your lineups in before the 6:00 p.m. ET lock.
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