Geoff Lambert discusses Friday night’s NBA lineup advice on FanDuel.
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Point Guard
Rajon Rondo (CHI): $5,800 @ WAS
Apparently, all Rondo had to do to get minutes was to question the Bulls’ upper management and their commitment to winning, because after doing so he has averaged over 35 minutes and nearly 40 FanDuel points per game. The Wizards have struggled defensively recently, giving up over 100 points in nine of their last 10 games, including 112 points to a slow-paced Dallas Mavericks team in a home loss two night ago.
Tyler Ulis (PHO): $5,400 vs ORL
Eric Bledsoe has been shut down for the year with “knee soreness,” and Ulis will take his spot in the starting lineup. In his last game, he played 39 minutes and had 38.7 FanDuel points, nearly one point per minute. He will continue to log huge minutes on this young team, and he gets a great matchup with a Magic team ranked fifth worst in FanDuel points allowed to PGs.
Shooting Guard
James Harden (HOU): $11,800 vs NO
With the amount of value on this slate, paying up for Harden is not that hard at all. He hasn’t been his normal dominant self of late, at least from a fantasy perspective, but he has the best chance to lead all players in FanDuel points today, and on an eight-game slate, you will need him in your lineups.
Avery Bradley (BOS): $6,400 @ BKN
Isaiah Thomas has already been ruled out for this game, leaving Bradley to pick up the slack in the backcourt. Bradley has a pretty high usage rate of 21 when Thomas is on the floor. Without him, you can expect it to go up into the 30 percent range. It helps that he gets a matchup with my favorite punching bag, the Brooklyn Nets.
Small Forward
Jimmy Butler (CHI): $8,700 @ WAS
In games without Dwayne Wade, Butler’s usage rate goes into the mid-30s. Wade has been ruled out for the rest of the year, meaning Butler will have to put this team on his back if they want to make the playoffs. I’ve already documented the Wizards’ defensive struggles, meaning Butler should have a nice game in “The District” tonight.
Brandon Ingram (LAL): $4,400 vs MIL
For some salary relief, I’m going with a guy that may not put up a ton of FanDuel points per minute but plays so many minutes that sheer volume makes him a good play. The Bucks struggle defending the small forward position, giving up the fourth most FanDuel points to the position on the year. They have defended it better over the last few weeks with the return of Kris Middleton, but Ingram will still get enough minutes to return value.
Power Forward
Julius Randle (LAL): $6,800 vs MIL
Another spot the Bucks struggle to defend is the power forward position, and Randle has been playing as well as any PF in the league over his few games. He has three 40-plus FanDuel point games over his last five. The two in which he did not go over 40, he was on the road — this game is in L.A.
Marquese Chriss (PHO): $4,800 vs ORL
Much like Ingram, Chriss is a young player getting a ton of “show me what you got” minutes for a team that is just playing out the season. He is a bit risky, and it’s not a great matchup for him, but the Suns will need to find scoring from somewhere now that Bledsoe is gone for the season. Why not Chriss?
Center
Alan Williams (PHO): $5,800 vs ORL
Completing my trifecta of Suns players is Williams. Despite still not starting, he has outperformed and logged more minutes than the starter over his last few games. The Magic are bottom seven in points allowed to opposing centers, and the fact that Williams comes off the bench should help him to dominate the second unit of the Magic.
