Jay Brancato | Sat, Mar 17th 2018, 2:37pm EDT

FanDuel NBA Value Plays: Saturday (3/17)

It’s Saturday night and we have a ten-game slate over on FanDuel. There are two teams that have injuries that will shape this slate, as the Warriors and Cavaliers are both missing key pieces of their offenses. This opens up a ton of value and will make it easier to afford studs like LeBron James and Anthony Davis tonight.

Here are a few value plays, $5,500 or less, at each position that will allow us to free up some salary we can afford our stud players.

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Point Guard

Cameron Payne (CHI): $4,400 vs. CLE

With the Bulls in full tank mode, Payne has seen some extended run over the past few weeks. In the last four games, Payne has turned an average of 21.7 minutes into 22.3 FD points per game. He gets a great matchup tonight against a Cavaliers team that has struggled to defend anybody this season. The Cavaliers rank 28^th in defensive efficiency rating and 26^th in FD points allowed to SGs. With Payne’s strong play and increase opportunity, he is a solid play against the Cavaliers second unit. His price tag is up, but he still has the ability to pay it off.

Yogi Ferrell (DAL): $4,200 at BKN

Wesley Matthews is set to miss the rest of the season and, due to that, Ferrell has been playing increased minutes. In the three games that Matthews has missed with his latest injury, Ferrell has topped 28 minutes in each matchup. While Ferrell has only averaged 15.4 FD points in these games, he has proven himself to be a reliable fantasy asset at times this season. The matchup is also beatable, as the Nets rank 27^th in defensive efficiency rating this season. D’Angelo Russell is also a horrendous defender, ranking 97^th out of 101 guards in DRPM. Ferrell is a great bounce-back candidate in this matchup.

Shooting Guard

Jordan Clarkson (CLE): $4,700 at CHI

Kyle Korver and Rodney Hood have both been ruled out of tonight’s game against the Bulls. In their absence, Clarkson should see a huge boost in production. He has put up a modest 24.8 FD points over the past two games, but this is a situation where the potential opportunity is almost too good to pass up, as he should push for 30 minutes in a plus matchup. The Bulls rank 28^th in FD points allowed to PFs this season and 24^th in overall defensive efficiency rating. Clarkson hasn’t flashed 30+ FD point upside in a while, but this is a game where he can possibly get there.

Manu Ginobili (SAS): $3,700 vs. MIN

Ginobili has been extremely inconsistent this season, but he flashes of upside at times which is evidenced by his 22.3 FD points in Thursday night’s game. The Timberwolves are ranked 18^th in FD points allowed to SGs and Andrew Wiggins ranks 80^th out of 90 in DRPM. With the Spurs holding the eighth and final playoff spot over the Nuggets by one game, we have to think Coach Popovich will give veterans like Ginobili some extended run down the stretch. He has the ability to put up 20+ FD points in this matchup and get us a 7x return on investment.

Small Forward

Wilson Chandler (DEN): $5,200 at MEM

Chandler comes into this game surprisingly red-hot, averaging 32.9 FD points across the last three contests. The Nuggets haven’t played a tough defense in that stretch and that will continue to be the case tonight, as Memphis ranks 20^th in defensive efficiency rating this season. One thing to love about Chandler here is the fact that he has exceeded 40 minutes of playing time over the past two games. With the Nuggets sitting one game behind the Spurs for the eight seed in the West, their rotation is going to be extremely tight for the rest of the season. Chandler should continue to keep it rolling against a Grizzlies’ team that ranks 26^th in FD points allowed SFs this season.

Andre Iguodala (GSW): $4,200 at PHX

The Warriors are ravaged by injuries right now. Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Kevin Durant are all out for the next few days and to make matters worse, Omri Casspi got hurt last night filling in for Durant last night. Due to this, the Warriors have no choice but to lean on Iguodala. In Friday night’s game, Iguodala played nearly 31 minutes and produced a solid 20.8 FD points on a 20.8% usage rate – which is clearly a huge boost from his 11.2% usage rate for the season. The Warriors also have a matchup against a Suns’ team that ranks 30^th in defensive efficiency rating this season. I will be going right back to Iguodala in this matchup.

Power Forward

Jeff Green (CLE): $4,400 at CHI

With Larry Nance already ruled out for this game, Jeff Green is likely to enter the starting lineup again tonight. In his first spot start against Portland on Thursday, Green was phenomenal, putting up 27 FD points in 34.8 minutes of action. The Cavaliers are going to be shorthanded tonight, which makes it likely that Green sees heavy minutes yet again. The Bulls as a whole are ranked 24^th in defensive efficiency rating this season and Green should have no problem beating the Bulls frontcourt in this matchup.

Dwight Powell (DAL): $4,800 vs. BKN

Powell has been tough to peg over the past few games with outcomes ranging from 9.4 to 37 FD points. Powell’s minutes have also started to dip over the past few weeks, but it was encouraging to see him get 33 minutes of run in Friday night’s game. The Nets are ranked 29^th in FD points allowed to PFs this season and have zero incentive to win games the rest of the way. With Powell’s price tag dipping below $5,000, this seems like a great spot to hop on board and take a chance in tournaments.

Center

Zaza Pachulia (GSW): $3,600 at PHX

As I mentioned earlier, the Warriors are absolutely crushed by injuries right now. Over the past three games, Pachulia has picked up some extended run and he is actually playing some solid basketball. He has averaged 21.9 minutes and put up 28.8 FD points per game during that stretch. In terms of tonight’s matchup, the Suns are ranked 25^th in FD points allowed to centers and 30^th in defensive efficiency rating. The Warriors’ matchup against the Suns makes all of the Warriors’ cheap options playable tonight. Pachulia has the potential for a solid game at a near-minimum price tag.