If you’ve read my stuff from the NBA, it has been about the draft, as that is my primary focus, but seeing that FanDuel NBA has been my most successful DFS endevour, it makes sense to put together a lineup for the big Friday main slate each week for you all. There is a lot of value to be found for the next few weeks until salaries adjust appropriatley. With that said, let’s dig into some of these more obvious plays and the pieces I’ll be pairing with them for cash games this evening.
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Point Guard
Dennis Smith Jr. (DAL): $6,500 vs SAC
If you’ve watched the kid play, you will know right away that his price is far too low and will quickly rise in the coming weeks. Smith will compete for Rookie of the Year honors and put on a show in his first start with 16 points and 10 assists. Dallas has an implied total of 104 tonight at home against Sacramento and if Smith plays another 30 or so minutes, he should have no worries about hitting value.
Terry Rozier (BOS): $4,600 @ PHI
Marcus Smart is currently doubtful to play, but keep an eye on his status because if he somehow goes, Rozier’s minutes should drop from near 30 to around 15. He is a high-volume scorer who has shredded value in each of his first two games despite limited minutes. Now that Smart is out, we could see upwards of 7x or even 8x value, making him my top play of the evening.
Shooting Guard
Victor Oladipo (IND): $7,100 vs POR
Myles Turner is unlikely to play, which would make Oladip a must-start. Even with Turner, he would be in my lineup, as his usage rate should skyrocket with his move from Russell Westbrook‘s team to a team where he is the No. 1 option. He has been tearing it up in the preseason and posted 43 FanDuel points in his first game despite sitting out most of the second half in their route over Brooklyn.
Avery Bradley (DET): $5,100 @ WAS
Most people will take one quick look at Bradley’s 23 minutes and suggest he isn’t ready for a big role in this Pistons’ offense, but they are clearly the people who paid no attention during the preseason. Bradley only played 23 minutes because he was in foul trouble. Tonight, he should see close to 35 and is a crazy good value with the new bump in defensive statistics on FanDuel this season.
Small Forward
Kevin Durant (GS): $9,600 @ NO
Take a look around at the top stars on the slate and you’ll see Anthony Davis is sick, Lebron James is dealing with an ankle injury, Myles Turner is out, and so forth. You can pay up for The Alphabet, but I’ll save nearly $2,000 and go with the safe production of the reigning Finals MVP who will get us points on the boards, with dimes and likely 20+ points. The Warriors have another 114-point implied total so this is about as safe as it gets.
TJ Warren (PHO): $5,200 vs LAL
Recency Bias will leave most off Warren after he went 3 for 11 in the blowout against the Blazers, but I’m having trouble forgetting how he ended last season with 19 points per game and 8 rebounds per game over his final 8 contests. The Suns will continue to rely on him as a scoring option and this price will rise over the next month so get your cheap shares while you are able.
Power Forward
Ben Simmons (PHI): $7,700 vs BOS
This is another case of the price just not having caught up to how good, or in this case, great, a player is. Simmons was sensational in his debut against the Wizards with 18 points, 10 boards and 5 assists. With Jayson Tatum moving up to the four thanks to the Morris and Hayward absence, Simmons should have little trouble surpassing 5x value once again this evening, with 7x a legitimate upside.
Thaddeus Young (IND): $6,300 vs POR
As I mentioned, Myles Turner is expected to miss tonight’s contest, which means Young should have the opportunity to pick up extra usage. He started off his season with a bang, scoring 44.7 FanDuel points, and could match that 7x production again this evening in a much bigger role. He should play closer to 35 minutes in this game and could post a 20-10 type of game against the Blazers.
Center
Jusuf Nurkic (POR): $7,900 vs IND
Have I said yet that Myles Turner is out? The Pacers are going to have a nightmare in the paint defensively with Sabonis or TJ Leaf trying to cover this year’s breakout star. Nurkic was not impressive in his first contest, but based on what we saw this preseason and at the close of last year, he is primed to be a monster. Don’t stress on the 23 minutes either. That had much more to do with the 48 point blowout over the Suns than what we should expect from Nurkic this season.