This article is part of our DFS College Basketball series.
We've got a busy Tuesday night across college basketball, and DraftKings has responded with a two different slates that don't have overlapping games. Our main slate is tipping at a slightly earlier 6:30 p.m. EST, featuring a robust eight games, while there's also a five-game late slate that tips at 9:00 p.m. EST.
Main Slate
This large slate offers five players priced at $9,000 or above, and while they all have reasons to be considered, I prefer a more balanced build. That's further evident by the low implied totals we're seeing. Despite 16 teams playing, only four have expected 70+ point expectations.
Top Tier
GG Jackson, F, South Carolina ($8,000)
When finding a lineup anchor, we're always seeking the high floor, high ceiling. Jackson seems to check the former at the very least, having seven games of better than 30 DKP. He sports a robust 30.8 percent usage rate, and perhaps the upside is starting to peak through as well, as Jackson had a career-high 24 points last time out, and grabbed 16 boards in the game prior. There is concern here about pace, but Jackson will be leaned on to produce.
Joey Hauser, F, Michigan State ($7,700)
Hauser is in great form, coming off of his fourth double-double of the year while also recording at least four assists in three straight. Tempo is a concern here as well, with neither the Spartans or Corn Huskers pushing pace, but Hauser has multiple paths to contributing and is priced at a nice discount from the slate's upper tier while carrying similar upside.
Middle Tier
Tyler Kolek, G, Marquette ($7,100)
This price point is sort of no mans land, as it's not really cheap nor expensive. But this is a game we know we want shares of as it has the highest total by 18 points. We have to ask whether we prefer Kam Jones ($7,200) and his high usage, or Kolek and his ability to contribute in most categories other than points. I like Kolek over Jones, as I think the pace lends itself to assist expectations, while also allowing him more scoring opportunities than he usually finds.
Andre Curbelo, G, St. John's ($6,900)
We noted the high scoring total of this game, and I land on Curbelo by default. Only three members of this offense average in double-digits, and he's the cheapest. He's also handed out seven assists in three of the last four, and similar to Kolek above, I expect him to have ample chances to get there again with this game going up and down. He's not cheap per say, so we'll have to get creative to fit all this depth in if you're intent on actually using all four names featured to this point in the column, but it's certainly doable.
Value Tier
Cam Hayes, G, LSU ($4,800)
Hayes is the opposite of Hauser above, as he's in poor form over his last two games, putting up a combined 21.75 DKP. But he had three games north of 30 DKP prior, giving him about as much upside as you'll find at this price point. I'm oddly drawn to secondary Tiger pieces despite Kentucky's solid defensive metrics (30th in efficiency, per KenPom), and LSU will need the good version of Hayes to stay competitive here. The more stable option is Adam Miller ($5,100), he just has a minimal ceiling.
Jaden Akins, G, Michigan State ($3,900)
At no point in time did I intend to have multiple Spartans included in this piece, but here we are. If that makes you feel uneasy, maybe punt Hauser above for the likes of El Ellis ($7,100) who surely will get ample 3-point looks against Syracuse's zone. But Akins may flirt with must-use territory give form and price. Akins has been north of 20 DKP in three straight and needs a mere 15.6 DKP for a 4x return. He's done that in all but three games to date, with his low spot being a 9.25 DKP/2.4x return. At this price, there's minimal to no risk.
Evening Slate
Points could be even harder to come by on this slate, with two of the five games having totals under 130. The easy way to differentiate is to not be scared off of the top options in those games, just dont get too infatuated with the underdogs in those spots, namely Pittsburgh who is off an upset of North Carolina, but now gets Virginia. Adding further challenges here is the presence of Texas on this slate. The Longhorns just play too many players nightly for us to trust any.
Top Tier
Brandon Miller, F, Alabama ($8,800)
Normally, I prefer balance over pay ups, but I don't know how we avoid Miller Tuesday evening. The Tide have an implied total of 80 points thanks to a 17th-ranked offense and third-ranked tempo, and Miller is their ace. He's had a 37.5 DKP floor across his last four games and has eclipsed the 40 DKP threshold six times overall.
Kevin McCullar, G, Kansas ($7,800)
These contests are supposed to be fun, right? So why not mix in a little revenge-game narrative here. McCullar faces his former school for the first time, and the Jayhawks come in with the second-highest total of the evening. He's been a bit inconsistent, sprinkling in five games of 38 DKP or better amidst two of 18.25 DKP or less. Expect he'll have a little extra juice for this matchup.
Middle Tier
Dawson Garcia, F, Minnesota ($6,700)
Garcia leads the team in scoring (14.3 PPG), rebounding (5.6 RPG) and usage (25.6 percent), which is a rare find in this pricing point. Sure, we can be rightfully concerned about the Gophers' anticipated 56 points, but Garcia put in 34.0 DKP in his last outing despite Minnesota finishing with 58 points. Perhaps more concerning is Garcia's struggles in conference games against Michigan and Purdue previously. Still, at the low-ish price, a 4x return (26.8 DKP) is a fair expectation.
Reece Beekman, G, Virginia ($6,200)
I'm anticipating many gravitating towards teammate Jayden Gardner ($6,300) at his plummeting price point, and that's fair given his team-high 26.3 percent usage rate. But Beekman has seen his price plummet from an unsustainable $7,500 four games prior. Beekman flirts with scoring 10 points nightly, while providing five assists and 3+ boards. He's healthy following a hamstring issue, will get 30+ minutes and can flirt with a 5x return when he's clicking.
Value Tier
Daeshun Ruffin, G, Mississippi ($5,500)
It makes sense to target the Rebels side of this game too as 'Bama's pace should provide their 100th-ranked offense some additional chances. Ruffin doesn't start, and his minutes tend to vary as well, but he's got a massive 30.1 percent usage rate when on the court. As conference play becomes the norm, you have to think Ole Miss will revert Ruffin back to the minutes he saw last season prior to a knee injury. The low price point creates minimal risk and the tempo/usage rate brings potential.
Cam Carter, G, Kansas State ($3,900)
Carter profiles as Akins did in the main slate. There's minimal upside, and there's minimal risk. He a good bet for 25 minutes and small but diverse contributions in multiple categories, resulting in 3-4x return while allowing you to spend freely elsewhere. We don't need much more than 10 DKP here, which Carter has failed to produce only twice all season.
