Draftkings NBA Showdown Picks: Nuggets vs. Thunder 5/18/25
Denver Nuggets vs. Oklahoma City Thunder
May 18, 2025 3:30 pm EDT
The NBA presents Draftkings basketball fans with a Western Conference playoff matchup featuring the Denver Nuggets and the Oklahoma City Thunder. Let’s take a look at this game from a DFS perspective.
Before we dive into the Denver Nuggets vs. Oklahoma City Thunder game let’s review the rules for the 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.
*I recommend that all readers review the starting lineups for both teams prior to setting your DFS lineup for this one game slate.
Here are my Draftkings picks for tomorrow’s Denver Nuggets vs. Oklahoma City Thunder matchup.
Draftkings NBA Showdown Picks
Captain-Nikola Jokic, Center, Denver Nuggets $13,800
Talented center Nikola Jokic has been the driving force behind the Denver Nuggets success on the basketball court this season. Let’s examine Jokic’s player data from the 2024 NBA season (including playoff games) to better shed light on my previous statement.
In the 83 games that center Nikola Jokic has played for the Denver Nuggets in the 2024 NBA season Jokic is averaging 29.1 points, 12.7 rebounds, 10.1 assists, 1.9 steals and 0.7 blocks a game.
Examining the data just presented more closely, in the 83 games that Nikola Jokic has played for the Nuggets this season, Jokic is averaging a rather impressive 67.1 Draftkings points a contest.
More recently, in the Denver Nuggets 119-107 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves two days ago, Nuggets center Nikola Jokic amassed a whopping 66 Draftkings points.
As I noted in the rules section above, selecting the correct player at the captain position for a Draftkings NBA showdown lineup is absolutely vital if you hope to win a large field GPP (guaranteed prize pool) DFS contest. Keep that in mind as you construct your lineups.
In summary, I think Nikola Jokic is the most likely player to post the most Draftkings points in this NBA playoff game. For that specific reason, I am backing Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic at the captain position for this one game Draftkings NBA single game contest.
Flex Plays
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Guard, Oklahoma City Thunder $12,200
Point Guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has been a standout performer for the Minnesota Timberwolves this season. With that said, how has Gilgeous-Alexander performed from a statistical standpoint? Let’s review the veteran point guard’s relevant player data from the 2024 NBA season to answer that question.
In the 84 games that Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has played for the Oklahoma City Thunder this season, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is averaging 32.2 points, 5.1 rebounds, 6.4 assists, 1.7 steals and 1.1 blocks a game.
In conclusion, I fully expect Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to continue his outstanding play in tomorrow’s playoff matchup with the Denver Nuggets.
Additional flex plays I like to play well in this Western Conference playoff game (Draftkings price noted): Jalen Williams, Forward (Oklahoma City Thunder) $9,600: Jamal Murray, Point Guard (Denver Nuggets) $9,200: Christian Braun, Guard (Denver Nuggets) $7,000.
