Anthony Davis is either doing this, or in the locker room. Here's to him doing this tonight.
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Opponent - NY
Proj Pts FD - 37.85 DK - 39.02
After a day full of turkey and football, we jump right back into the NBA with a fun 9-game slate. There's plenty of different options at each position and no clear guy you have to pay up/down for. Ownership should be pretty spread out, making tournaments all the more fun. We start off with our favorite PG in Dennis Schroder. Schroder, who's now the number 1 option on the Hawks, has held an insane 30% usage rate that's lower than just 10 other players in the league. He's shooting 20+ times in many games and getting 10+ assists in the others. It's given him a level of consistency that we didn't see when he was forced to defer. The Knicks rank 2nd worst in basketball against point guards with 46.1 FP allowed. The price on Schroder is very fair and he's in play in all formats. You can count on him being around 20-25% owned.
Opponent - DEN
Proj Pts FD - 31.58 DK - 32.41
The price has risen, so it's not as easy as it's been the past few days. You could argue on FanDuel that he's a pretty average play when you consider the price of the next guy we touch on. On DraftKings, though, $5300 is too cheap for 30+ minutes of Mario Chalmers against the Nuggets. He still has the upside on FD, I'm just not making it a priority. Chalmers is the clear backup to Mike Conley, but he isn't a backup type of player. He initiates the offense and is willing to shoot 15 times a game. This is a guy I bet the Grizzlies trade because he could be starting on many different teams. He's shown his ability the last 4 games with Chalmers out and sees the best match-up yet with the Nuggets. Expect another 30ish FP performance. Safe and fairly priced. All you can ask for on a slate that lacks value.
Opponent - MIN
Proj Pts FD - 32.71 DK - 34.1
We know exactly who Goran Dragic is, so it just comes down to the match-up with him. While Jeff Teague is known as a good defender, the T-Wolves have allowed the 9th most FP to opposing point guards. As a team, the Wolves have been very bad defensively, ranking 7th worst with a 106 def-eff. It doesn't make much sense with Jimmy Butler and Andrew Wiggins on the perimeter, but it speaks to how bad Towns is at protecting the rim. Vegas has this game at a 207 over/under with just a 4 point spread. You can bank on this game being close and Dragic coming in for 30-35 minutes. His price is too low and he is as safe as anyone on the slate. He should be one of the higher owned plays in cash games.
Opponent - NO
Proj Pts FD - 36.6 DK - 38.14
We skipped over this game at point guard because, well, neither of the teams really have one. Rajon Rondo is back from injury, but getting just 20-25 minutes at most. For now, he's off the radar. On the Suns side, it'll be a combo of Tyler Ulis and Mike James. The real fun starts when you get to SG. Devin Booker has been a very inconsistent fantasy player over the last few years, which hasn't been the case this year. With Bledsoe gone, he can do whatever he wants and is no longer reliant on getting hot from the field. His price is still fair and I'm surprised it hasn't eclipsed $8k on both sites. The only way the Suns will win this game is if Devin Booker goes off. The Pelicans stink at perimeter defense and we see them get crushed all of the time. Jrue Holiday is an average defender that will do nothing if Booker is feeling himself. Just a friendly reminder that he's dropped 40-real-life points on guys like Tony Allen and Klay Thompson, so don't worry about Holiday.
Opponent - PHO
Proj Pts FD - 34.35 DK - 35.16
Speaking of Jrue Holiday, he's in play on the other side of things. We obviously love the Pelicans big men and we'll get to them later. The guards are a bit more variant, but the Suns play extremely fast and we know guards benefit most from it. Holiday isn't getting all of his minutes at point guard anymore, but handled the ball just as much as Rondo did last game and played more minutes. We can expect the assist numbers to go down, but I think scoring may go up. Rondo is another guy defenses have to give attention to and Holiday is too talented to be treated as a 3/ option. In a match-up with a Suns team that runs more than anyone in basketball, he should have a good time. I know he's disappointed with Rondo back so far, but maybe that lessens his ownership. Holiday is fairly priced in the mid $6k's and makes sense for all formats.
Opponent - CLE
Proj Pts FD - 23.32 DK - 23.5
Shooting guard value is pretty ugly, so this could be a spot we end up on. Nicolas Batum is currently questionable, giving us a possible 28 or so minutes up for grabs. Lamb is the main guy to benefit and would see 30+ minutes as a lock, with the upside for 36+. He shows his upside all the team, as well as his floor. This is a guy who does a lot when on the court, so it's rare to see him disappoint with opportunity. The Cavs are nothing special on offense and Lamb wouldn't draw LeBron unless he got hot, so there's nothing to worry about. His price is fair and he'll only need to grab you 25 or so in cash games.Kepp an eye out for an update on Batum. If he's playing, find other value.
Opponent - CHA
Proj Pts FD - 54.58 DK - 55.65
We've yet to touch on any superstar yet, so let's jump in on LeBron James. On the surface, MKG and Nicolas Batum are great defenders that you shouldn't go out of your way to target. The reality is a lot different. LeBron put up 62 real-life points on Batum and MKG just 2 years ago, so they obviously don't have any type of shot to slow him down. I don't use that as a barometer for measuring this game, but when you have 2 "lockdown" defenders double-teaming a guy, he shouldn't get to 62. LeBron is playing the best fantasy basketball of his career and producing on a nightly basis. The Hornets have played extremely well early on this season and I expect this game to be close throughot, You can count on another 35+ minutes of extreme production out of the king. In terms of superstars, he is slightly lower and than Cousins and Davis.
Opponent - DEN
Proj Pts FD - 20.94 DK - 20.5
Opponent - DEN
Proj Pts FD - 20.9 DK - 21.24
These guys aren't too different. Chandler Parsons is the better player and is guaranteed to produce when on the floor, but you won't see more than 25 minutes out of him, no matter what. In cash games, that's perfectly fine and I have a lot of exposure. In tournaments, I'd rather have a Dillon Brooks that can get to 35 minutes and get hot from the field. He's been over 30 minutes in 2 of the last 3 games and has been more than willing to shoot. The Denver Nuggets are a bad defensive team overall and they play a lot faster than the Grizzlies are used to. They also give up the 4th most 3-pointers pace-adj., which should play well for both of these guys. Both Brooks and Parsons are in play as value options, depending on what type of lineup you're building.
Opponent - PHO
Proj Pts FD - 59.25 DK - 59.33
Davis is right up there with Cousins as the top play on this slate. He's a top 3 NBA DFS player and is in what I think is the best possible match-up. Let's quickly touch on this garbage talk that you can't play him. If you have a "never again" tag on Anthony Davis, you're one of the worst DFS players in the entire industry and the reason the rest can make money. You should also never play Andre Drummond, John Collins, Nikola Jokic, and Clint Capela as they get into foul trouble 5%+ of the time. Secondly, getting head-butt and getting a concussion is not injury-prone. AD is definitely an injury-prone guy, but I'm not sure a concussion suffices. On to this match-up, it couldn't be better. The Suns play faster than anyone has before and rank 9th against opposing big men. It'll be a combo of Marquese Chriss and Dragan Bender to cover him, along with some Tyson Chandler. Nobody to be worried about in 2017. That's for sure. AD makes for a top cash game and tournament play. He wil be in 100% of my lineups, bar none.
Opponent - NY
Proj Pts FD - 33.24 DK - 32.93
There isn't much to dislike about this spot. The Hawks are clearly letting Collins loose and it's resulted in 36 and 37 minutes the last two games. With Babbitt and Muscala remaining out and the Hawks facing a large Knicks team, this won't be the game to rest. You can chalk in at least 35 minutes tonight against a frontcourt of Porzingis and Kanter. To play devil's advocate, Collins has the highest foul rate in the league right now and Porzingis isn't the easiest guy to cover. Outside of very unpredictable foul trouble, Collins is a perfect play. The Knicks aren't good on defense (22nd vs PF) and play at a very average pace. With a 207 O/U and -2 spread, it'll be tight to the buzzer. Collins is far too cheap on both sites and makes for a solid play in all formats. If he continues seeing these minutes, he'll be $7-$8k and rightfully so.
Opponent - MIA
Proj Pts FD - 27.75 DK - 27.24
I know Taj Gibson stinks, but we have to remember who his coach is now. Tom Thibodeau runs his starters as much as he possibly can and we're seeing Gibson end up around 33 on most nights. He's been weirdly consistent and is actually seeing a decent amount of looks for whatever reason. it's definitely not optimal for the T-Wolves to give him the ball, but it's happening, so we might as well take advantage. The Heat are far from intimidating against big men and anyone they do have that can play defense will be far away from Taj Gibson. I like John Collins 50x more, but Gibson is safe for 20 in cash games and could hit 35 if the game stays close.
Opponent - PHO
Proj Pts FD - 63.17 DK - 65.74
I think most people will have of AD+Cousins tonight. It's certainly the right move as both of them are in prime positions to go off. I don't even hate playing both of them and playing Devin Booker in hopes he single-handedly keeps it close. Like Davis, this match-up with the Suns is as good as it gets. Tyson Chandler was once a good defender, but isn't allowed out of the paint at this point and we know where Cousins likes to play. He should hait plenty of outside shots here and eventually work himself into the paint as the bigs tire out. His price is high, but rightfully so. He's a lock for 55 fantasy points with the upside for know knows how many. Don't ignore both of these guys anywhere.
Opponent - NY
Proj Pts FD - 29.21 DK - 28.69
It feels weird to be on the Atlanta Hawks frontcourt, but they finally have some structure. It's Collins and Dedmon getting most of the minutes and they play well together. Dedmon doesn't require any plays called for him, so he doesn't really take the stats of anyone. His points come off of putbacks and backdoor dunks, which come easy against Enes Kanter (atrocious defender). He has the clear rebounding advantage over Kanter and will be needed for the size. You'll rarely see him get to 30 minutes, but I actually wouldn't be surprised to see it in this particular match-up. He'll definitely see 24+ and makes for a solid cash game play just above $5k.
Mason Plumlee is a strong value play if Nikola Jokic is out. The match-up is as tough as it gets, but 34+ minutes of Plumlee at that price is tough to pass up.
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View Comments
Can you elaborate on what Taj Gibson stinks at? He has been a solid player his entire career and is an excellent defender/rebounder. So he only scores .83 fp/min. Is that what you are referring to?
Yes, he stinks in DFS terms. He somewhat stinks in real-life with the way the game is changing, but had some very solid nice years in Chicago. Back-to-basket efficiency and Def. Eff both way down over last 3 years and always relied on good perimeter play for spacing.
No he doesnt he has been a valuable punt all year. And those things your talking about mean squat for fantasy. All that matters are minutes and price and what he can provide. Seriously you guys talk out your ass a lot thats why you get so much flack in comments. And also Rondo has averaged 30 minutes per game the last two games. Stick to objective facts and not some of your worst opinions/ out right not facts.
You see I recommended him for that reason, right?
KH...I wouldnt come to a page that i knew talked out of its ass...why you keep coming back bro?
Not to be picky but Rondo averaging 27 mins last 2 games play with holiday Davis and cousins.. If your going to talk trash on the site dont come here.. Obviously something keeps you coming back