Monday starts off the week with a huge 11-game NBA slate. With such a big slate there are plenty of different ways to build out your lineups including many pivots at the similar price points. I’ll try to mention a few of the pivots at each position that I also strongly considered when constructing the sample FanDuel lineup below.
Note that some of the stats referenced in this article are my custom DvP calculations that combine both season and last five games data along with blending similar positions production allowed together.
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Point Guard
Dennis Schroder (ATL): $8,400 vs BKN
I don’t really want to pay $8,400 for Dennis Schroder but he does offer a solid floor and he gets about a 6% usage increase with Dewayne Dedmon and John Collins off the court this season. He also has a prime matchup against the Nets who have allowed the most FanDuel points per game to opposing PGs. Schroder just put up 38.6 FD points against the Nets on Saturday and could push into the 40s in the rematch in Atlanta on Monday.
Monday starts off the week with a huge 11-game NBA slate. With such a big slate there are plenty of different ways to build out your lineups including many pivots at the similar price points. I’ll try to mention a few of the pivots at each position that I also strongly considered when constructing the sample FanDuel lineup below.
Note that some of the stats referenced in this article are my custom DvP calculations that combine both season and last five games data along with blending similar positions production allowed together.
Create Optimal DraftKings lineups using our DFS Lineup Optimizer tool
Point Guard
Dennis Schroder (ATL): $8,400 vs BKN
I don’t really want to pay $8,400 for Dennis Schroder but he does offer a solid floor and he gets about a 6% usage increase with Dewayne Dedmon and John Collins off the court this season. He also has a prime matchup against the Nets who have allowed the most FanDuel points per game to opposing PGs. Schroder just put up 38.6 FD points against the Nets on Saturday and could push into the 40s in the rematch in Atlanta on Monday.
Jamal Murray (DEN): $5,600 @ DAL
This is one of the spots I strongly debated when building this lineup. Jamaal Murray is coming off a big 28-point effort against the Lakers and he gets a 5.4% usage bump with Nikola Jokic and Paul Millsap out. His fantasy production is closely tied to how many points he scores since he doesn’t help much in rebounds or assists and the Mavericks allow a small increase in points (+2.3%). The other options I considered for this spot included Elfrid Payton ($7,400) and Rajon Rondo ($5,700).
Shooting Guard
Tyreke Evans (MEM): $7,400 vs MIN
Tyreke Evans seems to be responding nicely to the interim head coach in Memphis by posting a huge 59.4 FD point outing against the Cavaliers on Saturday. He saw a season-high 39 minutes while scoring 31 points with 12 assists. Evans should continue to get big minutes, usage and fantasy production with Mike Conley still out and a favorable matchup against the Timberwolves who have allowed increased production in points (+3.4%) and assists (+9.4%) to opposing SGs. The other SG in this price range that I seriously considered was Devin Booker ($7,000).
Alec Burks (UTH): $4,800 vs WAS
Let’s keep riding the Alec Burks’ train until Rodney Hood boards. In the last two games that Hood has missed, Burks is averaging 26 points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals while crushing value for his salary. Well, his salary is still reasonable to exceed again on Monday as long as Hood remains out. If Hood plays than I’ll likely pivot off to Burks. The best option to pivot to at Burks’ price range would be J.J. Barea ($5,000).
Small Forward
Jonathon Simmons (ORL): $5,600 @ CHA
Small forward is a position that I’m looking to save some salary on Monday’s slate. Simmons has taken on big minutes since Terrance Ross went down with 37 and 38 in his last two games. Those big minutes have translated into solid fantasy production averaging 17 points, four rebounds and two assists per game. He should see similar big minutes against the Hornets who have allowed increased production in points (+7.3%) and rebounds (+4.1%) to opposing SFs.
Courtney Lee (NYK): $5,500 @ IND
The two SFs I’m rostering may get the most minutes of any SFs on the entire slate. Courtney Lee usually plays 30-plus minutes a game but that number could reach closer to 40 on Monday with Tim Hardaway Jr. out. Lee has also turned into a better scorer recently with seven straight games in double-digits and he usually chips in a few steals per night.
Power Forward
Ben Simmons (PHI): $10,500 vs PHO
Many nights my decision for which high-priced stud I roster comes down to what positions I feel the top value options exist. On Monday, I really like the value at SF and C which moves me off players like LeBron James and DeMarcus Cousins and brings me to Ben Simmons at PF. Simmons has a great matchup with the Suns in a game with two up-tempo teams that features one of the highest Vegas totals on the slate. No matter the position you feel Simmons really plays on the court the Suns don’t have anyone to matchup with him. It could be a triple-double kind of night.
Ersan Ilyasova (ATL): $5,600 vs BKN
This is another position that I toyed around with a few different options at similar salaries. I landed on Ersan Ilyasova gets a minutes and usage boost with the depleted Hawks’ frontcourt. In his last two games, Ilyasova is averaging 15.5 points and 7.0 rebounds per game. The Nets have allowed the second most FD points to opposing PFs this season. If not Ilyasova, other strong options include both Kenneth Faried ($5,500) and Michael Beasley ($5,000).
Center
Enes Kanter (NYK): $6,600 @ IND
At center on Monday, I think there are only two options. Either you pay up for DeMarcus Cousins who is playing without Anthony Davis against the Warriors or you get some value with Enes Kanter who will get increased minutes and usage (+4.1%) with Kristaps Porzingis out. Kanter also has a favorable matchup against the Pacers who have allowed increased production in points (+10.4%), rebounds (+1.4%) and blocks (+36.6%). Kanter has topped 40 FD points in two straight games and should make it three straight on Monday.
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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.