FanDuel DFS NBA Strategy Advice: Friday (8/7)

Just as it was yesterday, today’s schedule of games is an all-day six-game slate, but there are only five games featured on the main slate. Lineups lock at 1:00 p.m. EST for the all-day slate and at 4:00 p.m. EST for the main slate. The New Orleans Pelicans and Sacramento Kings are both operating on a back-to-back — keep that in mind as you assemble your rosters. And as always, keep an eye out for the injury news.

Check out today’s NBA Layup from FanDuel

Point Guard

Johnson has managed to hover around value in three of his past four contests. He’s in line for another potential start today, and at his price tag, he is worth a shot at cheap exposure, even if his ceiling has been hovering around value thus far into the NBA bubble. Ish Smith has now been re-inserted into the starting lineup and has performed quite well since the NBA bubble kicked off — he has only one game with less than 28-plus FanDuel points. The matchup is also a brilliant one, as the New Orleans Pelicans rank 21st in defensive rating and third in pace.

Shooting Guard

Bogdan Bogdanovic is coming off a monster 47.3-point performance. His matchup today against the Brooklyn Nets is a solid one, as the Nets rank 10th in pace and are banged up across the board. Quietly, Dillon Brooks has been one of the more consistent players in the bubble. While his ceiling isn’t tremendously high, Brooks has hovered around value in every contest — he presents a strong bargain-bin option at the two-spot.

Small Forward

Philadelphia 76ers starting point guard Ben Simmons will miss time due to a knee injury. With Simmons sidelined, Matisse Thybulle could enter the starting lineup. Thybulle doesn’t offer much of an offensive presence or a tremendously high ceiling, but it’s his defense that always keeps him performing admirably. At his minimum price tag, you can’t go wrong. Troy Brown has put together three strong performances in his past three contests — his matchup against the Pelicans is also a tremendous environment for both teams. Joe Harris is a risky play, as he’s still nursing the injury that has sidelined him recently, but the Nets are starting players you’ve probably never even heard of. If he does play, Harris will have free-will at shooting a ton of volume.

Power Forward

As you can probably tell, I’m all in on the Wizards and Pelicans game. Both teams rank inside the top five in pace and in the bottom nine in defensive rating. Theoretically speaking, this game should feature a lot of points, and Rui Hachimura is one of the Wizards’ bright spots. For the Grizzlies, Brandon Clarke will continue to draw starts at the four-spot with Jaren Jackson Jr. out for the season. Clarke has yet to explode for a big performance, but he’s been consistent and solid. Daniel Theis — like Clarke — is expected to start tonight for the Boston Celtics. He’s been a consistent 20-point weapon in the bubble, but his matchup is incredibly tough as he opposes the second-ranked defense in the Toronto Raptors and an elite defensive big in Marc Gasol.

Center

Jarrett Allen, like Harris, is a potential go today, but you’ll need to monitor his status to make sure. If he plays, Allen provides one of the better defensive presences in the league among the bigs and carries a great ceiling. He plays on a team with limited talent at this point in time and can contribute in many facets of the game. Steven Adams has been priced down a decent amount, and while he doesn’t have the highest ceiling, he should have a good shot to reach value today as he opposes the Memphis Grizzlies.

5 Studs Worth Their Salary

• Zion Williamson (NOR) $6,800: Zion’s minutes are finally trending upward, and while the Pelicans have nothing to play for, Zion has still totaled 36.9 and 29.4 FanDuel points in his past two contests. The matchup is a great one tonight — fire up Mount Zion.
• Caris LeVert (BKN) $7,900: LeVert has one of the highest ceilings on the slate. His Nets team is devoid of talent, which clears the way for him to jack up as many shots as needed. His price tag is also not tremendously high.
• Joel Embiid (PHI) $9,800: Embiid has experienced a major boost in usage with Simmons sidelined. The matchup against the Orlando Magic is a bad one, but Embiid should have every opportunity to accumulate points galore tonight.
• Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (OKC) $7,500: SGA has topped 30-plus FanDuel points in all three of his games in the bubble. Tonight, he opposes the 16th-ranked defense of the Grizzlies, who also operate at the sixth-fastest pace in the NBA.
• Pascal Siakam (TOR) $7,500: The Raptors are a hard team to peg offensively, but Siakam could be a tournament winner tonight. He’s coming off a weak performance, is affordable, and is a perfect option for a contrarian build.

5 Notable Players to Fade

• Kemba Walker (BOS) $4,800: Walker continues to bounce in and out of the Celtics’ lineup as his hamstring injury lingers. He has yet to top 26 minutes since joining the bubble and has an incredibly tough matchup going against the Raptors’ defense.
• Nikola Vucevic (ORL) $7,800: Vuce is a great player, but this game is bound to operate at a slow pace, and he’ll oppose a dominant big in Embiid. Vuce’s atmosphere for tonight will be tough to overcome, which is why it’s probably best to just avoid altogether.
• Lonzo Ball (NOR) $6,900: It’s tough to suggest sitting anyone in this contest, but Ball hasn’t been great since the bubble kicked off. He’s topped 30-plus FanDuel points just once in four attempts and is likely to see even less offensive usage with Zion’s minutes trending upward.
• Evan Fournier (ORL) $5,200: Outside of one strong game, Fournier has struggled in the bubble and hasn’t reached value in the past three games. He’ll draw an incredibly tough matchup opposite Josh Richardson and the 76ers’ defense.
• Markelle Fultz (ORL) $4,400: Fultz, like Vuce and Fournier, has a tough matchup ahead. While Fultz comes for a cheap price tag, he simply hasn’t performed that well. Limit your exposure to this contest as much as possible.

Check out today’s NBA Layup from FanDuel

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