This article is part of our FanDuel College Basketball series.
For those of you who consider yourself avid college basketball fans, like myself, you've probably been chomping at the bit for opening night to arrive – and the wait is finally over. Friday night will mark the beginning of a new journey for 314 college basketball teams, and the anticipation of the opening tip-off has college hoops fans excited across the country. Much like last year, we are going to provide a weekly column which will include our FanDuel value plays of the day for each and every Saturday throughout the season. Due to the fact that opening night happens to fall on a Friday, we are going to use Friday's contests to select our picks from in Week 1.
FanDuel gives members a $60,000 salary budget to construct a nine-player team, which includes five forwards and four guards. There are no flex players included. That breaks down to an average of $6,667 per player. The scoring format for FanDuel looks like this:
Points Scored = +1 PT
Rebound = +1.2 PT
Assist = +1.5 PT
Block = +2 PTs
Steal = +2 PTs
Turnover = -1 PT
The true beauty of FanDuel, and the reason the site has become so popular, is because of the wide variety of contests they have to offer. Regardless of your interest, overall knowledge, or the size of your bankroll, there is a game for you. Whether that's head-to-head for $2, or a tournament with 10,000 entries for $50 each. Below are just a few of the contests that FanDuel is offering for this Friday.
$10K Fri CBB Bank Shot – First prize = $1,000 ($2 entry fee) 5,747 participants
$6K Fri CBB Press – First prize = $600 ($1 entry fee) 6,896 particpants
$2K Fri CBB Blue Chip – First prize = $750 ($100 entry fee) 22 particpants
Fri 5-Player League – First prize = $500 ($109 entry fee) 5 particpants
Fri H2H (Head-to-Head) – First prize = $9 ($5 entry fee) 2 participants
Friday's contests include just a five game schedule to select your lineups from, likely because many of the other matchups will be very lopsided. Below are the listed games that will determine the player pool:
Colorado @ Iowa State
North Carolina @ Temple
Alabama-Birmingham @ Auburn
Texas @ Washington
Rice @ California
Salary Cap formats allow the fantasy owner to act as the general manager of their team, which is where all of the fun lies. If you're serious about making some money, this is also where all of the research and strategy lies. The winner of these salary cap contests is the guy that gets the most value and production out of the players that aren't going for top dollar. Finding the 'diamond in the rough' so to speak. This requires tapping into opponent matchups, home and away sets, player's recent production, and a player's time on the floor.
Owning more than just a couple of the high-priced players is impossible due to the budget restrictions. Finding a player in the $4,000-$7,000 range that can provide big time production on any given night is the key to success. Over the next few months leading up to the big dance, we will provide players on a weekly basis that match those credentials. Below are Friday's FanDuel value plays of the week.
Cinmeon Bowers (Forward), Auburn, $7,500 – Bowers is a 6-foot-7 forward with great athleticism and strength, which allows him to rebound at an extremely high level. He averaged 12.1 PPG and 9.6 RPG as a junior and those numbers are sure to go up in his senior campaign. Bowers will be relied on heavily in Friday's matchup against the scrappy Alabama-Birmingham team that upset No. 3 seed Iowa State in the opening round of the dance last year. Bowers will average a double-double this year, and he'll begin with just that, and more, on Friday night.
Monte Morris (Guard), Iowa State, $8,400 – If you read my Big 12 preview last week, then you've already received the scoop on Morris, but let's just briefly touch on it again. Although the $8,400 price tag is tough to swallow, you can afford a couple of these guys on each roster, and Morris is a stud. During his sophomore campaign, he led the country in assist-to-turnover ratio, and it wasn't even close. Morris averaged 4.63 assists to every turnover, and the second place finisher had a ratio of 3.66/1. The Cyclones have a stacked roster that will generate tons of fast-paced offense, and Morris will be leading the attack. An average of 13.0 PPG, 4.0 RPG, 6.5 APG and 2.0 SPG is very realistic for the Iowa State floor general.
Prince Ibeh (Forward), Texas, $4,900 – This is one of those guys that could provide great production on different occasions throughout the season and if you take him on the right night, you'll get tons of value for such a low-end price tag. In his sophomore campaign, Ibeh averaged just 10.6 minutes per game, which led to a line of 2.1 PPG, 2.5 RPG, and 1.4 BPG. At 6-10, Ibeh is very athletic and his minutes are sure to go way up after the departure of Myles Turner, who left for the NBA. The 'Havoc' defense and fast-paced style of play should be a good fit for an athletic big that can run the floor. There will be numerous nights throughout the year where you you'll need both hands to count Ibeh's blocked shots total, and blocks are worth two points apiece. While he's not a guarantee every night, this kid is a solid value play at $4,900.
Max Guercy (Guard), Rice, $6,200 – At 5-9, Guercy is a quick, athletic point guard that breaks down defenses and distributes the ball with the best of them. In his junior campaign he averaged 9.8 PPG, 2.7 RPG, 4.5 APG and 1.5 SPG. With the departure of Seth Gearhart, who led the team in scoring a year ago, the Owls will rely on Guercy for more scoring during the upcoming season. Guercy will lead the team in minutes and he has a good shot at averaging 7-plus assists per game, which would be great production based on his corresponding price tag.
Marcus Jackson (Guard), Rice, $6,100 – While Max Guercy will lead the team in assists, Marcus Jackson will likely lead them in scoring. Jackson averaged 14.5 PPG during his sophomore campaign to go along with 3.5 RPG and 2.7 APG. He has a good shot at averaging 17 PPG this year, which is solid production at $6,100. The Owls will rely on both of these players on Friday against the Golden Bears of California.
Wesley Gordon (Forward), Colorado, $6,200 – Gordon averaged 6.6 PPG, 6.9 RPG and 1.4 BPG across 26.3 MPG during his sophomore season, while shooting 55 percent from the field. The junior forward will see his playing time creep over that 30-minute mark and he should have a decent shot at averaging near a double-double. He's extremely athletic, and the block totals will really help you from night-to-night when you find him a roster spot.
Other Notables
Brice Johnson, (Forward), North Carolina, $8,400
Isaiah Taylor, (Guard), Texas, $7,700
Jaylen Bond, (Forward), Temple, $6,600
Chris Cokley, (Forward), UAB, $5,400
