Happy Friday all! We’ve again made it through another week, and what better way to celebrate than to play some NBA DFS! I hope everyone had a chance to watch some of the Sixers-Lakers game last night; the fourth quarter was one of the more entertaining basketball quarters I’ve seen so far this year. Julius Randle and Joel Embiid went at it, HARD, and there was a series of possessions where words and stone cold stares were exchanged every time down court. Brandon Ingram hit the game-winning shot on a sweet kick-out by Lonzo Ball, and I’m really starting to think that Ingram is going to develop into a star. My favorite thing about Ingram is that whether he’s shooting 3-for-15 or hitting the game-winning shot, his facial expression and body language does not change.
Alright, let’s take a look at today’s interesting eight-game slate which features star and value options at every position and leads to a lot of unique possibilities for lineup construction. As always, be sure to check late injury news and adjust your lineups accordingly.
Create DraftKings lineups using our DFS Lineup Optimizer tool 
Guards
Gary Harris (DEN): $6,400 @ ORL
Harris sees the most consistent minutes of anyone on Denver, and he’s become a favorite cash play of mine. He is priced up a bit here tonight, but he’s averaged 37 minutes and 34 DK points over his last five games. He should be in line for numbers similar to those again tonight. He’s a plus defender who consistently adds peripheral stats to his box score, and that, combined with the 35+ minutes, is exactly what we’re looking for in cash lineups. Harris can shoot poorly, and still get to 30 DK points without a problem. If you need a solid, mid-priced guard, Harris is your guy tonight.
Happy Friday all! We’ve again made it through another week, and what better way to celebrate than to play some NBA DFS! I hope everyone had a chance to watch some of the Sixers-Lakers game last night; the fourth quarter was one of the more entertaining basketball quarters I’ve seen so far this year. Julius Randle and Joel Embiid went at it, HARD, and there was a series of possessions where words and stone cold stares were exchanged every time down court. Brandon Ingram hit the game-winning shot on a sweet kick-out by Lonzo Ball, and I’m really starting to think that Ingram is going to develop into a star. My favorite thing about Ingram is that whether he’s shooting 3-for-15 or hitting the game-winning shot, his facial expression and body language does not change.
Alright, let’s take a look at today’s interesting eight-game slate which features star and value options at every position and leads to a lot of unique possibilities for lineup construction. As always, be sure to check late injury news and adjust your lineups accordingly.
Create DraftKings lineups using our DFS Lineup Optimizer tool
Guards
Gary Harris (DEN): $6,400 @ ORL
Harris sees the most consistent minutes of anyone on Denver, and he’s become a favorite cash play of mine. He is priced up a bit here tonight, but he’s averaged 37 minutes and 34 DK points over his last five games. He should be in line for numbers similar to those again tonight. He’s a plus defender who consistently adds peripheral stats to his box score, and that, combined with the 35+ minutes, is exactly what we’re looking for in cash lineups. Harris can shoot poorly, and still get to 30 DK points without a problem. If you need a solid, mid-priced guard, Harris is your guy tonight.
Kris Dunn (CHI): $5,800 @ CHA
Looking at Dunn’s five most recent games, it’s not clear why his price has dropped from $6,100 to $5,800. He’s averaging 35.55 DK points over his last five games, with a floor game of 26 and a ceiling game of 48.5. Charlotte is playing at the ninth-fastest pace in the league, so a drop in pace can’t explain the price drop either. Dunn is also $900 cheaper here than he is over on FanDuel, another sign that he’s a bargain pick on DK. I like him to land somewhere between 28-35 DK points tonight, and that’s enough to pay off his price. I think he’s viable in both cash and GPP lineups tonight, but beware of the fact that he may end up being fairly chalky tonight.
Forwards
Kevin Durant (GSW): $10,700 @ DET
I actually think that KD is priced fairly tonight, given the fact that Stephen Curry is out tonight and his usage is going to be off the charts. However, I still think he’s a solid play at this price. Detroit really doesn’t have anyone who stands a chance to defend him and I just can’t see a scenario where he scores less than 50 DK points tonight. The problem is that at this price, we need 50-55 DK points just to hit value, so there’s a little risk there, but we know the ceiling is massive (high 60’s is always a possibility), and because of that, I don’t think fading KD is a good idea. He’s a bit pricey for cash, but if you can fit him in, do it. I recommend getting him in some GPP lineups, in case he goes off.
Jonathon Simmons (ORL): $5,600 vs. DEN
With Evan Fournier out, Simmons appears to be the biggest beneficiary, and this is a pace-up spot for the Magic against Denver (218 O/U), which plays at a fast pace and remains very poor defensively. Simmons has averaged 36 minutes and 23.5 DK points over his last five games. The problem is that five games ago, he played 33 minutes and only ended up with 8 DK points, which seems like some kind of record but probably isn’t. That floor game really dragged down his average and if you take that one out, the average goes up to high 20’s. In a pace-up game tonight, I see no reason he shouldn’t hit 30 DK points, which exceeds his salary expectation. Beware of the floor game with Simmons, as he’s always capable of busting, but for GPP lineups, I think he’s a solid play tonight.
Trey Lyles (DEN): $4,000 @ ORL
Trey Lyles offers the chance to get additional exposure to DEN/ORL game (218 O/U) with a guy who is going to have to play some minutes tonight, since Nikola Jokic remains sidelined with injury. I think Lyles matches up reasonably well against Orlando, and I think Denver might need him for defense, particularly against Aaron Gordon. Since Jokic has been out, Lyles has played 22, 29, 15, and 27 minutes, and at this price, I’m happy with 20-22 minutes tonight. He has averaged 26 DK points over those last four games as well, which is more than enough to pay off his salary and then some. I’d project him somewhere in the range of 22-28 DK points tonight, and he’s playable in all formats.
Centers
DeMarcus Cousins (NOP): $11,800 vs. SAC
Yeah, I know, I’m really going out on a limb here. Cousins absolutely went off in his last game against Denver (81 DK points), and if Anthony Davis is announced out (he’s questionable as it stands now) he will probably be fairly highly-owned tonight, although this price may drag his ownership down slightly. Willie Cauley-Stein is out for the Kings tonight, and they just have absolutely no one to defend Cousins. Zach Randolph, bless his heart, is old and slow, and he likes to expend the majority of his energy executing mid-range face-up jump shots. I think he’s going to end up in foul trouble tonight. After that, the Kings will just throw random guys at Boogie, and if you think JaKarr Sampson can adequately defend him, I know a Nigerian prince with an investment opportunity that might interest you. Cousins is viable in all formats; with some of the value already available and late value sure to open up, I think he can fit into cash lineups, and should certainly be considered for GPPs as well.
Draymond Green (GSW): $7,700 @ DET
Draymond is PF eligible as well, allowing for some lineup flexibility, but I’m going to put him at center here today because there are options for paying down at PF and I’m not seeing a ton of value options at center. With Stephen Curry out tonight, I like Draymond to see some extra usage (at times, he will even become the primary ball handler which should bump up his assist numbers) tonight. He’s $500 cheaper on DK than he is over on FanDuel, and I like him to score somewhere in the range of 33-40 DK points tonight, which is enough to pay off his salary. He feels like a fairly safe option tonight, so I’d be comfortable firing him up in cash games, and potentially in GPPs as well.
YOLO Pick of the Night:
Last week’s YOLO pick was Paul George, who went off for 62 DK points at an $8.1K price. Please do not expect such success tonight, as there’s a reason this pick is listed as “YOLO.” Today’s YOLO pick is Nikola Vucevic (ORL): $8,100 vs DEN. Vooch is priced too high tonight, and I think Draymond Green is a much better value at $400 less at center. HOWEVER, Vooch offers that sky-high ceiling that you can’t find from too many other players in this price range, and Denver has no one who can defend him. I wouldn’t recommend him for cash lineups because I think there’s better per-dollar value out there, but I’d recommend throwing Vooch in a GPP lineup or two on the off-chance that he goes ham against Denver tonight.
Create DraftKings lineups using our DFS Lineup Optimizer tool
Jason Biggins is a correspondent at FantasyPros. For more from Jason, check out his archive and follow him @biggsportsfan.
