Tuesday night offers up just a small, mini, tiny, scant three-game slate of NBA action. On small slates like this, I like to try to identify who I think the best player is for each team given the matchup and their salary. Then I’ll attempt to see how many of them I can fit into my lineup. This usually brings together a nice balanced lineup that provides a solid floor and some upside with players spread out from all of the teams.
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One Stud
Russell Westbrook (PG – OKC): $11,000 vs UTH
There is only one true stud option on the mini three-game slate and Russell Westbrook is his name. Westbrook is the top option for the Thunder in a tough matchup with the defensive-minded, slow-paced Jazz. Westbrook is back to posting triple-double numbers (almost) over his last eight games with 25.0 points, 11.0 rebounds and 9.9 assists per game. He is hard to fade on a short slate.
Core Plays
Kyle Lowry (PG – TOR): $8,700 vs PHO
The Raptors have the highest Vegas implied team total on the night facing the up-tempo Suns who will be playing in the second game of a back-to-back. The Suns have allowed the fifth most DraftKings points to opposing PGs this season and Lowry has been playing really well lately averaging 20.4 points, 8.2 rebounds and 7.6 assists over his last nine games. My only concern is Lowry’s salary and the potential for a blowout but I have a contingency pivot at the bottom of the value section.
Tuesday night offers up just a small, mini, tiny, scant three-game slate of NBA action. On small slates like this, I like to try to identify who I think the best player is for each team given the matchup and their salary. Then I’ll attempt to see how many of them I can fit into my lineup. This usually brings together a nice balanced lineup that provides a solid floor and some upside with players spread out from all of the teams.
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One Stud
Russell Westbrook (PG – OKC): $11,000 vs UTH
There is only one true stud option on the mini three-game slate and Russell Westbrook is his name. Westbrook is the top option for the Thunder in a tough matchup with the defensive-minded, slow-paced Jazz. Westbrook is back to posting triple-double numbers (almost) over his last eight games with 25.0 points, 11.0 rebounds and 9.9 assists per game. He is hard to fade on a short slate.
Core Plays
Kyle Lowry (PG – TOR): $8,700 vs PHO
The Raptors have the highest Vegas implied team total on the night facing the up-tempo Suns who will be playing in the second game of a back-to-back. The Suns have allowed the fifth most DraftKings points to opposing PGs this season and Lowry has been playing really well lately averaging 20.4 points, 8.2 rebounds and 7.6 assists over his last nine games. My only concern is Lowry’s salary and the potential for a blowout but I have a contingency pivot at the bottom of the value section.
CJ McCollum (PG/SG – POR): $7,000 vs WAS
The Wizards are coming off an embarrassing 47-point loss to the Jazz that saw Jazz SGs (Donovan Mitchell and Alec Burks) combine for 48 points. Cue up C.J. McCollum who as the second offensive option in the Blazers’ offense after Damian Lillard, fires up close to 20 shots a game and offers significant salary savings from Lillard with similar upside.
Otto Porter (SF/PF – WAS): $6,900 @ POR
Speaking of the Wizards, I fully expect them to bounce back from their blowout loss to play a good close game against the Blazers on Tuesday. The players that I’m most intrigued with for his price is Otto Porter. Porter doesn’t have to score a lot of points to put up a good fantasy score with his ability to chip in with rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks. Look for the Wizards’ energy player to bring it on Tuesday.
TJ Warren (SF/PF – PHO): $6,400 @ TOR
Sure, I could select Devin Booker as the Suns player to own. After all, Booker is currently on fire averaging 42 points over his last two games. With his recent hot streak, I expect Booker to get a lot of defensive attention from the Raptors and playing the second game of a back-to-back could affect the legs of a jump shooter. So, I’m pivoting to Warren who continues to produce and is priced $1,600 cheaper than Booker. Warren has topped 37 DK points in three of his last four games.
Value Plays
Steven Adams (C – OKC): $5,900 vs UTH
The center position is a disaster on the scant three-game slate. I don’t love using Stephen Adams with Rudy Gobert back for the Jazz but with the Jazz playing the second game of a back-to-back, I expect Gobert’s minutes to be limited. Meanwhile, Adams has produced two big games in a row averaging 23 points and eight rebounds. The price is right, so let’s roll with Adams.
Markieff Morris (SF/PF – WAS): $4,700 @ POR
On a tiny three-game slate maybe more than a typical-sized slate, you need to get a couple value options that have big upside. Morris is that type of player as he showed two games ago when he scored 23 points with seven boards on his way to 41.25 DK points against the Pistons. Morris has the potential for another big night on Tuesday against a Blazers’ defense that has allowed the second most DK points to opposing PFs this season.
Alec Burks (PG/SG – UTH) (PG/SG – UTH): $4,500 @ OKC
Burks has been in every article that I have written for the past week and as long as Rodney Hood remains out and Burks’ salary only creep upwards he will continue to be in every article I write. He has been sensational over his last three games scoring at least 24 points in each outing while piling up an average of 43.4 DK points per game. He draws a more difficult matchup on Tuesday against the Thunder but his price and upside still make him the one Jazz player I want to own.
Fred VanVleet (PG – TOR): $3,400 @ TOR
If you think the Raptors could blow out the Suns who are playing the second game of a back-to-back, then you may want to pivot away from Lowry and grab his backup Fred VanVleet. VanVleet has reached over 6x his current salary in four of his last six games. If the Raptors can jump out to a big lead on Tuesday, VanVleet could see a few extra minutes in a great matchup to reach at least 6x his salary again.
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Brad Richter is a correspondent at FantasyPros and a contributor at DailyOverlay and GoingFor2. For more from Brad, you can view his archive or follow him @RotoPilot.