Draftkings Best NBA Showdown Picks: Cavaliers vs. Magic 5/3/24

The NBA presents a matchup between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Orlando Magic. Let’s take a look at this game from a DFS perspective.

Before we dive into the Cavaliers vs. Magic Game let’s review the rules for Draftkings single Game showdown contest.

Draftkings Single Game Showdown Contest Rules

You have $50,000 to utilize on five players from either team. However, one of those players will be designated as your team captain. The captain accumulates 1.5 times the standard fantasy points. Additionally, the captain is 1.5 times the standard cost of the flex position.

The remaining four players in your lineup will receive the standard fantasy points. Having stated that, it is highly important for you to identify the correct player for your captain position if you hope to win a large field DFS GPP (guaranteed prize pool) showdown contest.

If you have additional questions regarding the rules for the single Game showdown contest, I recommend that you check out the Draftkings website for more details.

Here are my Draftkings picks for tonight’s Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Orlando Magic matchup.

Draftkings Picks

Captain-Paolo Banchero $11,000

Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero has been the leader in the paint that the Orlando Magic have needed to win Games in the 2024 Eastern Conference playoffs.

Let’s take a look at Paolo Banchero’s recent game data to see how Banchero has been playing from a statistical perspective.

In the Orlando Magic’s five playoff games played in the 2024 Eastern Conference playoffs (all versus the Cleveland Cavaliers), Paolo Banchero has averaged a whopping 25.4 points, 7.2 rebounds, 4.4 assists, and 0.8 steals a game.

More recently, in the Orlando Magic’s 104-103 Game 5 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers three days ago, Paolo Banchero posted some outstanding fantasy numbers. Banchero accumulated 39 points, 8 rebounds, and 4 assists in the Magic’s loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers.

I noted in the rules section above just how important it is to select the correct captain for your Draftkings lineup if you hope to win a large field GPP (guaranteed prize pool) contest. Having stated that, I think that Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero fits the captain narrative perfectly for this one Game slate.

Flex Plays

Donovan Mitchell $11,400

Talented Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell has certainly been the heart and soul of the Cleveland Cavaliers offense this season. Having stated that, how has Mitchell been playing in the 2024 Eastern Conference playoffs?

In the Cleveland Cavaliers last five games played (all playoff games), Donovan Mitchell averaged 22.4 points, 4.4 rebounds, 4.4 assists, and 1.8 steals a game.

Isaac Okoro $4,000

Cleveland forward Isaac Okoro has been a key contributor off the bench for the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2024. In the Cavaliers last five games played in the 2024 Eastern Conference playoffs, Isaac Okoro has averaged 11.62 Draftkings points a game.

This morning, the Cavaliers announced that Cleveland center Jarrett Allen is listed as questionable for tonight’s pivotal Game 6 on the team’s official injury report. In my opinion, the potential loss of Allen in the paint will force Isaac Okoro to be more involved in the Cavaliers offense in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference playoffs later today.

Additional players I like (Draftkings price noted): Franz Wagner $9,400: Wendell Carter Jr. $5,600: