Friday night starts off the weekend with a 10-game NBA slate. There aren’t as many high-priced studs on Friday’s slate which could open up an opportunity to go with a more balanced approach during lineup construction. Also, be wary of teams that are favored by a lot and are playing in the first game of a back-to-back set such as the Bucks and Jazz who may rest players or cut back minutes of their starters if they are up big.
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.
One Stud
Karl-Anthony Towns (C – MIN): $9,900 vs. ORL
With Giannis Antetokounmpo and Russell Westbrook as the only healthy players with a five-figure salary on Friday night, I’m going to dip down into the four-figure salaries to scoop up one of the hottest players in the league right now with Towns. He has put up at least 52 DraftKings points in five straight outings including three over 69 DK points. During that stretch, he is averaging 28.2 points, 17.2 rebounds, 5.8 assists and 3.0 blocks per game. He also typically posted better numbers at home which is where he will be with the Magic coming to Minnesota on Friday night.
Friday night starts off the weekend with a 10-game NBA slate. There aren’t as many high-priced studs on Friday’s slate which could open up an opportunity to go with a more balanced approach during lineup construction. Also, be wary of teams that are favored by a lot and are playing in the first game of a back-to-back set such as the Bucks and Jazz who may rest players or cut back minutes of their starters if they are up big.
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.
One Stud
Karl-Anthony Towns (C – MIN): $9,900 vs. ORL
With Giannis Antetokounmpo and Russell Westbrook as the only healthy players with a five-figure salary on Friday night, I’m going to dip down into the four-figure salaries to scoop up one of the hottest players in the league right now with Towns. He has put up at least 52 DraftKings points in five straight outings including three over 69 DK points. During that stretch, he is averaging 28.2 points, 17.2 rebounds, 5.8 assists and 3.0 blocks per game. He also typically posted better numbers at home which is where he will be with the Magic coming to Minnesota on Friday night.
Core Plays
Aaron Gordon (SG/PF – ORL): $7,100 @ MIN
On the other side of the Magic/Timberwolves matchup is a reasonably priced Gordon. He does carry some risk but has played well over his last three games averaging 18.0 points, 8.3 rebounds and 6.0 assists per game. The Timberwolves have allowed increased production in points and assists to forwards this season and Gordon has plenty of upside.
Danilo Gallinari (SF/PF – LAC): $7,000 @ PHO
Gallinari has scorched the Suns in their two previous meetings this season averaging 26.5 points and 7.5 rebounds for 45.6 DK points per game. He has also been playing consistently good over his last nine outings averaging 22.6 points and 7.0 rebounds for 37.8 DK points per game. The Clippers match up with the Suns brings one of the highest Vegas totals on the slate in a game that should be competitive with the Clippers as a small road favorite.
Brandon Ingram (PG/SG – LAL): $6,800 vs. NY
With LeBron James still out, a variety of other Lakers continue to get more playing time and usage. Ingram has played 38 or more minutes in three of his last four games and has posted 19.3 points, 7.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists during that stretch. Ingram gets a favorable matchup against the Knicks who have allowed increased production in rebounds (+9.6%) and assists (+1.3%) to SGs this season. Josh Hart ($6,200) is also worth consideration, especially if Kyle Kuzma misses the game.
Tyus Jones (PG – MIN): $5,800 vs. ORL
Assuming both Derrick Rose and Jeff Teague miss another game for the Timberwolves on Friday night, Tyus will once again get all the minutes he can handle running the point. He has played at least 36 minutes in each of the last three games while putting up 13.7 points, 9.0 rebounds and 3.3 steals per game during that stretch. If Teague and/or Rose play then consider pivoting to Terry Rozier ($6,100) at a similar price point with Kyrie Irving out for the Celtics.
Value Plays
JaVale McGee (C – LAL): $5,200 vs. NY
McGee has exceeded 30 DK points his last two outings since returning from injury for the Lakers. He is averaging 11.5 points and 10.0 rebounds in those games and could see a few extra minutes on Friday if Kuzma is out. McGee draws a plus matchup against the Knicks who have given up increased production to opposing big men in points (+14.9%), rebounds (+2.1%) and blocks (+24.0%) this season.
Jeff Green (SF/PF – WAS): $5,100 @ MIA
The Wizards frontcourt is getting thin with Markief Morris out for the next month-plus. Both Green and Thomas Bryant ($6,000) have benefited with increased minutes and production. Green is the cheaper option of the two and has posted at least 40 DK points in back-to-back games while averaging 17.5 points, 6.5 rebounds and 6.5 assists in those games while playing 36-plus minutes. He should see big minutes again on Friday against the Heat in a neutral matchup for forwards.
DJ Augustin (PG – ORL): $4,300 @ MIN
Augustin has scored double-digit points and dished out at least six assists in four straight games for the Magic. His minutes and scoring production can be a little inconsistent at times but he should be able to rack up the assists against the Timberwolves who have allowed an increase of 13.5% to PGs this season which gives him a shot at the double-double bonus while coming in with a cheap salary.
Dante Exum (PG/UTH): $3,900 @ CLE
Exum has played well over the last four games averaging 14.0 points and 5.5 assists per game. He could get a big boost in playing time on Friday if Ricky Rubio is held out with his injury while the Jazz play the first game of a back-to-back set. Even if Rubio plays, Exum could be worth a flier for increased minutes which at his recent rate of production should put him well past five times value on his current salary.
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.