FanDuel DFS NBA Strategy Advice: Sunday (8/2)

The NBA returns with back-to-back six-game slates for this Sunday’s action in Orlando. FanDuel has plenty of contests to enter for the league’s double slate tonight, so let’s take a look at some lineup possibilities with value plays, studs, fades, and more!

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Value Plays

Point Guard

 
It’s no surprise that Westbrook is at the top of the list for point guards after his monster Friday performance. He recorded 59.2 fantasy points and versus the Bucks, he’ll play an Eric Bledsoe-less guard duo that works heavily in his favor. Derrick White is an underrated pick and after his first performance, his DFS ownership will skyrocket. He’s in for another solid game versus the Grizzlies ninth-ranked defense versus point guards.

In Morant’s first game action of the resume season, he had the luxury of going to overtime but finished with an impressive 22 points, 11 assists, and five rebounds versus the Blazers. The Spurs allow the sixth-most points per game (24.95), the eighth-most assists (8.46), and second-most three-pointers made (3.04) to point guards. Kings guard De’Aaron Fox had quite the game versus the Spurs, so Morant should be on double-double alert for back-to-back games.

Shooting Guard

 
Luka Doncic and James Harden are yet again the top plays after Friday. Harden recorded a ridiculous 88.9 fantasy points and Doncic had 56.6. Both players have great matchups versus weak backcourt duos that they could expose over and over. Both Doncic and Harden should be near the top of the leaderboards Sunday.

In the Suns’ first game since the hiatus, Booker followed up his stellar exhibition play with an even better regular-season opener. Booker scored 27 points, recorded five rebounds and dished out four assists in 35 minutes versus the Wizards. Versus the Mavericks, he averages 25 points, 8.5 assists and 5.5 rebounds in two meetings. He’ll be another wise stream as he could shred Tim Hardaway and the Mavs’ small guards outside of Doncic.

Small Forward

 
Giannis Antetokounmpo had another monster game versus the Celtics and in the Rockets’ last game, they struggled with Porzingis allowing 39 points and 16 rebounds. Enter Giannis. The Greek Freak is going to be a mismatch every second he’s on the floor and could put up the most fantasy points in the association tonight.

Jaylen Brown picked up the slack for Jayson Tatum‘s horrific game and versus the Blazers, Carmelo Anthony will draw the defensive matchup. Brown could eat versus the Blazers and after they allowed 135 points to Memphis, Boston could open the offense more than they did versus Milwaukee. A sleeper pick on the slate again is Mikal Bridges. He played 33 minutes in the last game and the further the schedule goes, the more Bridges is going to play and have a DFS impact.

Power Forward

 
Kristaps Porzingis is the most expensive power forward on the DFS slate after his 68.8 fantasy point performance on 39 points and 16 rebounds. Versus the Suns, he’s a mismatch versus Deandre Ayton and Aron Baynes on the perimeter. Wizards’ rookie Rui Hachimura had 21 points and eight rebounds for 30.1 fantasy points versus the Suns. In a matchup with the Nets earlier this season, Hachimura had 17 points and four rebounds. Without DeAndre Jordan, he could outplay his value versus Jarrett Allen.

Jaren Jackson went for 33 points, and three rebounds on 10-of-22 shooting (45.5%) and a career-high six made three-pointers. He and Morant kept the Grizzlies alive and the Spurs allow the fifth-most made three-pointers per game to power forwards (2.56). This is a solid follow-up game for Jackson to continue scoring from all facets.

Center

 
Whiteside was in foul trouble versus the Grizzlies, so he only played 17 minutes recording seven points and four rebounds. The Celtics struggle with bigs and rebounding in general and that was on notice with Antetokounmpo’s 68.5 fantasy point effort versus them. If Whiteside stays out of foul trouble, he could be effective off the bench or in the starting lineup.

Vucevic recorded 22 points, seven rebounds and five assists in the Magic’s victory over the Nets. The Kings allow the 11th-most points per game to centers (22.05) and without Marvin Bagley, Vucevic could have another game-changing performance. Valanciunas had a quiet 16-point game on 4-for-4 shooting and 7-for-8 from the free-throw line. He didn’t make an impact rebounding like he usually does with his 11.2 rebounds per game (6th), but the Spurs are a much more favorable matchup allowing the 10th-most rebounds per game to centers (15.56).

5 Studs Worth Their Salary

• Russell Westbrook, Rockets ($9,900): Westbrook is on a career-high 35 game-streak with 20 more points scored and he’s able to go for 30 any night. The Bucks backcourt should struggle to contain him.
• Ja Morant, Grizzlies ($7,500): Morant’s monster double-double kept the Grizzlies in their matchup with the Blazers and after a loss, they’re going to need a win versus a Spurs team that’s creeping up the standings.
• Giannis Antetokounmpo, Bucks ($11,200)
• Jonas Valanciunas, Grizzlies ($9,000): Valanciunas should be a favorite for a double-double and to get back on track with rebounding versus Poeltl and the Spurs.
• Khris Middleton, Bucks ($6,900): Middleton is going to have Danuel House and Robert Covington switching on and off him all night. He could have an excellent scoring and rebounding performance for the Bucks.

5 Notable Players to Fade

• Ricky Rubio, Suns ($6,300): Rubio recorded 35.4 fantasy points versus Washington, but the Mavericks have allowed the sixth-fewest fantasy points per game (44.65).
• Aaron Gordon, Magic ($6,200): Gordon double-doubled in his first game back, playing in 26 minutes, and the Kings rank 1st against power forwards with 40.86 fantasy points per game.
• Jakob Poeltl, Spurs ($5,900): He recorded 30.7 fantasy points in 31 minutes and in a matchup with Valanciunas, he’s not reaching those totals again.
• Carmelo Anthony, Blazers ($4,900): Melo had a great game versus the Grizzlies, but against the Celtics stingy defense, his fantasy relevance is on the decline. 
• Buddy Hield, Kings ($4,800): The Magic are tied for 14th with 3.11 three-pointers per game allowed to shooting guards, and Hield only played 19 minutes, scoring six points versus the Spurs.

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Vaughn Dalzell is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Vaughn, check out his archive or follow him @VaughnDalzell.