This article is part of our FanDuel NBA series.
We were set to have an even bigger slate tonight, but in the wake of the MIL/MIN postponement, we have 11 games on tap tonight. It's important to stay vigilant as games lock due to the extensive amount of late-breaking injury news to discover.
SLATE OVERVIEW
(odds are best available US odds and are subject to change)
Games to Target in BOLD
Games to Fade in ITALIC
CLE @ CHA (-3.5) O/U: 213
BKN @ PHI (-6.5) O/U: 232
SAS @ TOR (+2.5) O/U: 221.5
LAC @ DET (+9.5) O/U: 222.5
NYK @ NOR (-2,5) O/U: 220
ORL @ CHI (-9.5) O/U: 219
IND @ HOU (+5.5) O/U: 233
GSW @ OKC (+11) O/U: 224.5
DAL @ MEM (+2) O/U: 226
WAS @ SAC (+2) O/U: 236.5
MIA @ DEN (-4) O/U: 213
Looking at the odds is of special importance on a huge slate like this, as weeding out places where output might be lower is a great way to thin the player pool. A game like WAS/SAC will be a huge DFS target, so even though you have some pivot options on a team like Charlotte, the King's value will be much more fruitful based on the overall pace.
INJURIES
CLE Collin Sexton (groin) - QUESTIONABLE
CLE Darius Garland (ankle) - QUESTIONABLE
Matthew Dellavedova ($3,600) will see more time if either of these players is out. Cedi Osman ($3,500) emerges as an option if both of these guards are out.
CHA Terry Rozier (knee) - QUESTIONABLE
CHA P.J. Washington (ankle) - QUESTIONABLE
CHA LaMelo Ball (wrist) - OUT
CHA Gordon Hayward (foot) - OUT
CHA Malik Monk (ankle) - OUT
The Rozier situation would alter things quite a bit, but Caleb Martin ($3,500) should see extended run and possibly start again. Miles Bridges ($6,300) will still be a good play as Hayward remains out. Jalen McDaniels ($5,700) should also see around 30 minutes.
BKN James Harden (hamstring) - OUT
BKN Kyrie Irving (personal) - QUESTIONABLE
BKN LaMarcus Aldridge (illness) - QUESTIONABLE
It's possible that we could see Irving and/or Aldridge tonight, so we'll need to look at things before lock. If Aldridge misses, expect DeAndre Jordan ($3,500) to get out of the doghouse and run for 20-plus minutes, which will limit Nicolas Claxton ($3,700) to some degree. Joe Harris ($5,000) will be a great option if Irving remains out. There is a SMALL possibility that Durant gets rested on the back-to-back, which is all the more reason to wait-and-see on this team.
TOR Fred VanVleet (hip) - OUT
TOR Kyle Lowry (rest) - PROBABLE
TOR DeAndre' Bembry (hamstring) - QUESTIONABLE
Lowry will likely play after a rest night, and he could be a fine option. A decent pivot for VanVleet isn't a great way to go, as it's inadvisable to get too cute at either guard position tonight.
LAC Kawhi Leonard (foot) - QUESTIONABLE
LAC Paul George - POSSIBLE REST
Keep your eye on this game, as we could see both elites sit against Detroit. A sensible option might be to allow for some Detroit players to begin and then pivot to one of these guys if they play. With such a huge slate, it's better not to guess the value here if either of these guys are out, but Marcus Morris ($5,600) and Nicolas Batum ($5,500) would be the top pivots if the elites don't play.
NOR Lonzo Ball (hip) - DOUBTFUL
NOR Nickeil Alexander-Walker (ankle) - OUT
NOR Josh Hart (thumb) - OUT
NOR James Johnson (wrist) - QUESTIONABLE
Eric Bledsoe ($5,500) should be safe here, but the Pelicans are diving deep into their bench to see what they've got. The team gave Wes Iwundu ($3,500) 27 minutes in their last game, and they could put Naji Marshall ($4,000) out there as well.
ORL Chuma Okeke (hip) - QUESTIONABLE
ORL Otto Porter (foot) - OUT
ORL Mo Bamba (hip) - QUESTIONABLE
I like Wendell Carter ($6,000) in a revenge game against his old team, and he should see more minutes in Bamba misses.
IND Myles Turner (ankle) - QUESTIONABLE
IND Doug McDermott (ankle) - QUESTIONABLE
We'll discuss an Indiana elite later in the article.
HOU Eric Gordon (groin) - OUT
HOU Danuel House (ankle) - OUT
HOU Sterling Brown (knee) - OUT
HOU D.J. Augustin (ankle) - OUT
These injuries affect the second unit of a team becoming less and less appealing by the day. I won't recommend pivots here, as you'll have many other value options open up today.
GSW Kelly Oubre (wrist) - DOUBTFUL
GSW James Wiseman (knee) - OUT FOR SEASON
Kevon Looney ($3,500) stays at a low price as the newly-minted center. Kent Bazemore ($5,100) will be Oubre's direct pivot if he is out. Andrew Wiggins ($7,400) is a tad expensive but will also see an increased run in an Oubre absence.
OKC Aleksej Pokusevski (arm) - QUESTIONABLE
Luguentz Dort ($5,700) isn't the most dependable fantasy option, but all you can say is wow after a 65 FP performance against the Jazz. It's a back-to-back, so who really knows what we'll see from Dort, but his new upside is worth chasing. If we look at usage from the last game, Kenrich Williams ($5,300) only played 21 minutes, so he should be one of their fresher players.
SAC Richaun Holmes (hamstring) - DOUBTFUL
SAC Buddy Hield (illness ) - QUESTIONABLE
This is probably my favorite matchup on the slate and also a great source of potential value. Hassan Whiteside ($3,600) is a great option with Holmes out, and I think it's a good night to consider Harrison Barnes ($6,000), as he should grab a few more boards in this spot. If Hield is out, it looks like it's time to consider Maurice Harkless ($4,000), as he started and logged 34 minutes in a spot start against the Pelicans.
DEN Jamal Murray (knee) - OUT FOR SEASON
While it's far too early for Denver to throw in the towel, Murray's loss is a huge blow and affects the entire team's production. Facundo Campazzo ($4,600) and Monte Morris ($5,500) will share time at point guard moving forward.
ELITE PLAYERS
We have a whopping seven guys at $10k or above on this gigantic slate, but luckily, we can start to exclude some of them right away. I don't think Nikola Jokic ($10,900) and Luka Doncic ($10,300) will be worth their salt tonight and would only consider them as contrarian elite options. Your best two spend-ups are Russell Westbrook ($11,200) and Stephen Curry ($10,300). What else can you say about Westbrook? He's triple-doubled in five straight games and is in a great spot against the Kings. As for Curry, it's on him to carry this team for the remainder of the season, so he should be a nightly three-point threat moving forward. I also like Joel Embiid ($10,100) a great deal, especially if LaMarcus Aldridge misses for the Nets as expected. Embiid should have no problem dominating the inside here. Finally, you can never count out Zion Williamson ($10,100), but he may be too expensive for this back-to-back. As for Kawhi Leonard ($10,100), he definitely works if George sits, but Kawhi might sit as well. The top three: Westbrook, Embiid and Curry, in that order.
Moving into the 9k range, Nikola Vucevic ($9,100) is one guy that stands out right away. This is a double-center revenge scenario, but there's more at stake for Vucevic to show up his old team than Carter for his former squad. He should have fun working the Magic inside. De'Aaron Fox ($9,600) is a good play in a huge pace-up spot against the Wizards and is the only viable point guard at this level. It's not a night to be particularly confident in Jimmy Butler ($9,300) as the pace is pretty awful, but he has a shot at some contrarian rostership. Julius Randle ($9,400) is also a guy that fits the Butler narrative. The pace certainly isn't great, but we may see lower popularity from him as a result. I'm not yet confident in spending on Kevin Durant ($9,600) due to his minute restriction, and Paul George ($9,200) is a wait-and-see guy tonight. If he plays, he's definitely worth a roster spot.
EXPECTED CHALK
Domantas Sabonis, IND ($8,800) @ HOU
This is a favorable matchup against the Rockets, and Sabonis is a nightly consideration whenever Myles Turner is out, which should be the case tonight. He had a bit of a downtick against the Clippers last night and played 37 minutes, but his back-to-back history is decent enough to roster him.
Bradley Beal, WAS ($8,500) @ SAC
A Westbrook/Beal stack? It's definitely doable against the Kings. Beal is a $10k guy when he's 100 percent, so it's not a bad play at all at this price. He came very close to 5x value against Utah, and this could be a night where he tops 50 FP.
Michael Porter, DEN ($7,400) vs. MIA
Again, I'm not a huge fan of this game's pace, but this should be a notable game for Porter. With Murray gone for the season, the time for Porter to step up and be a leader is right now. He needs to meet and exceed the hype to help this team out down the stretch. He has all the tools to do just that, and the big numbers could begin to fall tonight. I also think Will Barton ($5,400) will join in that effort.
Draymond Green, GSW ($7,100) @ OKC
While you could also go with Moses Brown ($4,700) on the other end of this matchup, Green is a PF on FanDuel and is always a double-double threat. Although the Warriors will roll with Looney at center, Green will certainly get his shot to put up points. When he's not selling footlong subs, he's contributing in almost every category.
There are so many spots on a slate like this, and you can't outline them all. Here are a few more from above the FD median price:
C Jonas Valanciunas, MEM ($8,100) vs. DAL
SG Caris LeVert, IND ($8,200) @ HOU
C Chris Boucher, TOR ($8,000) vs. SA
PF Tobias Harris, PHIn($7,300) vs, BKN
VALUE PLAYS
Value abounds in the injury section, as almost every team has some scenario that warrants a closer look before lock. Here are some additional plays that need to be considered as well.
Kevin Porter, HOU ($6,500) vs. IND
Porter continues to do a bit of everything for the Rockets, and at his salary point, he's ultimately a better option than John Wall for DFS in their backcourt. He's been an assist magnet of late, with 14 dimes against the Suns in his last game. The Pacers are tough, but they are on a back-to-back on the road.
Daniel Theis, CHI ($4,000) vs. ORL
The Bulls have been giving Theis more time, and he absolutely crushed his salary value with 34 FP against the T-Wolves and followed it up with 25 FP against Memphis. At least for those two games, Chicago preferred Theis over Thaddeus Young. We don't know if that trend will continue, but it's worth a shot based on the potential side relative to this low salary.
Additional value options:
PG Cory Joseph, DET ($5,200) vs. LAC
SG Bruce Brown, BKN ($5,200) @ PHI
SG Seth Curry, PHI ($3,900) vs. BKN
PF Kenyon Martin, HOU ($3,600) vs. IND
