It’s been a crazy week and we should have another fun slate here. The good news is that we only have three teams playing the second half of a back-to-back set, with Detroit and Portland playing again after a matchup on Saturday and Cleveland looking at another defeat. It happens to be a rather large Sunday slate too, with 10 games in total and eight making up the nightcap. That means there’s a lot to discuss so let’s break it down!
If you have any comments or questions, reach me on Twitter @Bartilottajoel
Create FanDuel lineups using our DFS Lineup Optimizer tool 
Most Value Per Dollar
I can’t remember the last time we didn’t have at least three centers in this section. That’s not the case here, with this being one of the most well-rounded player pools in recent memory. That makes things easier in terms of lineup construction and it looks even better when you consider that all of our studs are below $10K too!
If you’d like to see more information on how the betting landscape will be for this slate, check out BettingPros.
Below is a list of the top-10 players of the day expected to generate the most value relative to their salary. These are ranked in order.
It’s been a crazy week and we should have another fun slate here. The good news is that we only have three teams playing the second half of a back-to-back set, with Detroit and Portland playing again after a matchup on Saturday and Cleveland looking at another defeat. It happens to be a rather large Sunday slate too, with 10 games in total and eight making up the nightcap. That means there’s a lot to discuss so let’s break it down!
If you have any comments or questions, reach me on Twitter @Bartilottajoel
Create FanDuel lineups using our DFS Lineup Optimizer tool
Most Value Per Dollar
I can’t remember the last time we didn’t have at least three centers in this section. That’s not the case here, with this being one of the most well-rounded player pools in recent memory. That makes things easier in terms of lineup construction and it looks even better when you consider that all of our studs are below $10K too!
If you’d like to see more information on how the betting landscape will be for this slate, check out BettingPros.
Below is a list of the top-10 players of the day expected to generate the most value relative to their salary. These are ranked in order.
Chris Boucher (TOR) $7,000:
Boucher has been one of the best per-minute producers in the NBA this season and now that his role is finally increasing, he’s impossible to fade. He’s started five-straight games coming into this matchup and is averaging 32 minutes a night over his last three games. That’s huge from a guy this talented and it’s no surprise that he’s averaging 40 FanDuel points per game in that span as well
Bam Adebayo (MIA) $8,800:
Bam is one of the most consistent centers in the NBA, despite being put at power forward on FanDuel. He’s scored at least 31 FD points in 13 games since returning from injury, averaging over 44 fantasy points per game in that span. That’s really bad news for a Portland club that ranks 29th in defensive efficiency while surrendering the fifth-most fantasy points to opposing centers.
Malcolm Brogdon (IND) $6,600:
This price is crazy. Brogdon has been playing at an $8K level all season long, averaging nearly 40 fantasy points per game. That makes him hard to avoid south of $7K, especially with Memphis and Indiana both ranked Top-7 in pace. In their one meeting earlier this season, Brog dropped 37 FD points, despite playing just 29 minutes in that blowout.
Isaiah Stewart (DET) $5,200:
It looks like Mason Plumlee might sit out the second half of a B2B set here and that’d be huge news for Stewart. He’s actually started in three of the last four games, averaging over 30 FanDuel points per game in those starts. That makes it hard to believe he remains so cheap and getting to use him at the power forward position only adds to his intrigue.
Brook Lopez (MIL) $5,200:
Here he is again! Lopez has been in my articles for a month now and it’s hard to understand why they keep his price tag so affordable. Over his last 16 games played, Bro-Lo is providing 27 FD points per game in 28 minutes a night. That’s huge from a $5K player and he shouldn’t have an issue duplicating that against the G-League roster that Orlando is sending out right now.
Cole Anthony (ORL) $5,500:
Oops! We didn’t mean to make fun of your team Anthony but all of trades have really opened up a spot for you! They sent off Evan Fournier, Nikola Vucevic, and Aaron Gordon at the trade deadline and lost Markelle Fultz to injury early on. That means this rookie should be the focal point of the offense and he’s looked like it in his first two games back. In fact, he’s got 52 combined fantasy points in those two games, despite barely cracking 33 percent from the field.
Derrick White (SAS) $6,100:
White was terrible in the first month of the season but he’s really turned things around recently. He’s scored at least 25 fantasy points in each of his last eight games, en route to a 33-point average in that span. That’s all you can ask for from a player in this price range, especially against a Dallas team that surrenders the sixth-most fantasy points to opposing point guards.
D’Angelo Russell (MIN) $7,100:
It’s been a rough year for Russell and the T’Wolves but he’s shown some serious flashes in his new role. He’s averaging 35 FD points per game since his return from injury, seeing his minutes and ball-handling expand the more he plays. That’s huge for such a talented guy and we certainly don’t mind at he faces a Chicago club that ranks 10th in pace and 20th in total defense.
Kevin Love (CLE) $6,100:
It’s shocking that Love is back and playing so well but here we are! He’s recorded double-doubles in two of three games since returning and that’s the All-Star we used to know and love. That makes him a worthy GPP play at this price and getting to face a 28th-ranked Pelicans defense only makes him more enticing. With that said, he is a candidate to sit in a B2B and if that’s the case, look for Isaiah Hartenstein to be a nice value!
Josh Richardson (DAL) $4,900:
J-Rich has been in this article all season and it’s easy to see why when you look at this price. Since the beginning of March, Richardson is averaging 26 FanDuel points per game in 33 minutes a night. That’s great from such a cheap player and it’s not like the Spurs have a scary defense.
Check out our NBA Prop Bet Cheat Sheet for the top bets of the day
Studs Worth Their Salary
- Kawhi Leonard (LAC) $9,900: The stud plays are lacking on this slate but Kawhi should roll in a matchup like this. The main reason we say that is the opposition, with Detroit surrendering the fourth-most fantasy points to opposing power forwards. That’s bad news against a beast like this, with Leonard scoring at least 48 FD points in eight of his last 10 games. UPDATE: Kawhi has been ruled out. Because of that, we love Paul George as the primary playmaker for the Clippers and Marcus Morris in an expanded role.
- Zion Williamson (NOR) $9,700: This 20-year-old is a freak of nature. He’s now scored at least 33 FD points in 11-straight outings, en route to a 48-point average in that span. We certainly don’t expect Cleveland to slow him down, owning one of the worst defensive ratings since a flukey first month.
- Jimmy Butler (MIA) $9,300: Butler is playing some of the best basketball of his career right now, flirting with triple-doubles on a nightly basis. Over his last 31 games played, Jimmy Buckets is averaging 22.7 points, 7.8 rebounds, 7.5 assists, and 2.0 steals per game. We obviously can’t overlook that against a 29th-ranked Portland defense.
Notable Players to Fade
- Mason Plumlee (DET) $6,200: Plumlee has seen his minutes drop recently and it’s becoming clear that Detroit wants to go full-on rebuild. Before missing the last two games for an injury, he played just 23 minutes per game in his previous five outings. We expect that to continue to drop and dealing with a concussion only makes him riskier in the second half of a B2B.
- Gary Trent Jr. (TOR) $6,200: You’d think Trent would have some big numbers with Kyle Lowry and Fred VanVleet nicked up but that hasn’t been the case. He’s averaging just 15.2 FD points per game across his last three outings, no thanks to his putrid 30 percent shooting. He fixed that with an absurd game on Saturday but with Kyle Lowry returning here, we want to fade him at what will likely be high ownership.
- Lauri Markkanen (CHI) $4,700: With Vucevic and Daniel Theis now in town, Markkanen’s role is in big trouble. He’s played 23 or fewer minutes in four of his last five games, averaging an ugly 16 FD points per game in that span.
Create FanDuel lineups using our DFS Lineup Optimizer tool
Beyond our daily fantasy basketball content, be sure to check out our Daily Fantasy Basketball Tools. Our Lineup Optimizer allows you to build winning DFS lineups in seconds for Cash and GPP contests – to our DFS Cheat Sheets – that helps you get a quick read on the day’s players we’ve got you covered this fantasy basketball season.
Joel Bartilotta is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Joel, check out his archive and follow him @Bartilottajoel.
