Yahoo's Perfect 5 leans on three Warriors as Golden State hosts Lakers in NBA Cup opener

Three Warriors made Dan Titus' Perfect 5 lineup at Yahoo Sports for Friday's Prime Video doubleheader. It's a show of faith in Golden State's supporting cast on the night the Warriors open NBA Cup group play against the Lakers at Chase Center. Titus put Luka Dončić ($5) and Joel Embiid ($4) at the top of the lineup and filled the rest with rookie Yaxel Lendeborg, Brandin Podziemski and Draymond Green at $2 apiece. He says the group matches the slate's highest possible projection, 198.92 fantasy points.

Lendeborg is the main pick. Yahoo projects him for 22.6 points, 9.2 rebounds and 4.0 assists, worth 38.79 fantasy points, and 54% of entries had him when the piece was published. He has played through left foot soreness since his 31-point, 12-rebound, six-assist game in Denver. Golden State Warriors On SI reported that the team cleared him for Wednesday's game in Minnesota, which the Warriors won 119-114. Going into that game, SB Nation had him averaging 21.8 points, 9.3 rebounds and 4.8 assists. Titus wasn't worried by how popular the pick is: "I'm not fading this much value just to be different," he wrote.

Podziemski is the cheaper way in. He projects for 34.15 fantasy points on a line of 14.7 points, 4.6 rebounds and 4.7 assists, but only 18% of entries had picked him. Green's 31.22-point projection comes almost entirely from playmaking and glass work: 6.8 assists and 5.5 rebounds. He was in just 14% of lineups. Titus said he had planned to use Matisse Thybulle at $1 until Green's projection rose. He also admitted the risk of tying 60% of a lineup to one team.

On the other side, Dončić was the most expensive and most popular player on the board at 66%. He is averaging 36 points, 8.3 assists and 6.8 rebounds, and his 50.52 projection led the slate. He sat out the Lakers' 103-87 win over the Clippers on Wednesday but has been cleared for Friday, according to Athlon Sports. That sets up a second meeting with Lendeborg after the two traded words in the opener.

What it means for Friday

The Warriors are 2-3 and arrive with some momentum. After three straight losses to open the year (127-105 at the Lakers, 111-108 at home to Memphis and 131-122 at Phoenix), they won 134-114 in Denver and 119-114 in Minnesota. Friday is only their second home game, and their first chance to answer the 22-point loss in Los Angeles that opened the season.

The Lakers are favored across the 12 venues on this site's board. Novig has Los Angeles at -138 and Golden State at +133. On the spread, Novig has the Lakers at -3.5 priced at +106. Pinnacle has the best Lakers number anywhere: -3 at -110. Novig sets the total at 233.5, with the over at -104 and the under at +102. FanDuel has the best under, 234.5 at -110. Sportsbook hold runs only 2.5% to 4.8% on the moneyline and up to 5.0% on the spread and total, so the venues are close. The biggest gaps are the half-points on the spread and the total, not the prices.

For Golden State, the fantasy view lines up with the real one. If Lendeborg's foot holds up and Podziemski and Green keep doing a bit of everything, the Warriors have the depth to keep this one closer than the first meeting.