This article is part of our DraftKings EuroLeague DFS Picks series.
Slate Overview
It will be another injury filled-slate Friday with a lot of options and mid-tier smash plays -- particularly for Real Madrid. A couple other teams will be shorthanded as well, so I will once again refer everyone to Friday's Round 22 EuroLeague Primer to view the list of absences before reading below to find out who benefits. This will be a very news-based slate, as there are no obvious game stacks at the moment, so be sure to turn on the notifications for the @RotoWireEuro Twitter account. Good luck, everyone!
Guards to Go After
Players listed in order of confidence
Preferred Plays
Mike James, AS Monaco ($11,000)
It's a tough matchup and Monaco should have its full backcourt available Friday, but like Shane Larkin on Thursday, guys like this can just grind to 30.0 DraftKings points, which is vital. I believe James is a luxury and not a priority Friday.
Keenan Evans, Zalgiris Kaunas ($10,500)
Another tough matchup here, but with the uncertainty surrounding Rolands Smits we could see even more usage shift to Evans, and also some minutes so that Zalgiris has a key offensive presence on the court for most of the game.
P.J. Dozier, Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade ($8,300)
James Nunnally, Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade ($9,200)
Kevin Punter, listed as a forward but a player who spends most of his time in the backcourt, is out for Round 22, which opens up significant minutes and usage for Partizan. These two guys are the most likely beneficiaries, and one of them will avoid the stout defender that is Jerian Grant.
Kendrick Nunn, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens ($9,500)
Kostas Sloukas, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens ($8,400)
It's a great matchup, and it's really hard to pinpoint which one will have the better day. However, these are the only true facilitators on the roster with Luca Vildoza out. Marius Grigonis is a spot-up shooter and Grant -- while capable of stuffing the stat sheet -- is out there mainly for defensive purposes, so I emphasize these two more because they can score and run the offense.
Valuable Values
Marko Guduric, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul ($7,200)
Tyler Dorsey, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul ($6,900)
These two have a good matchup, and although their floors are much worse than Scottie Wilbekin and Nick Calathes, I'm much more comfortable throwing darts at this price than hoping for ceiling games from the starters. These two generally work off the bench, but one could start Friday with Fenerbahce thin at the forward spots. Fortunately, they play in the first game up.
Sergio Rodriguez, Real Madrid ($5,900)
He should handle the bulk of the backup point guard duties with Sergio Llull out, and even if that's only 15-to-20 minutes, the usage will be massive and he can rack up DraftKings points very quickly.
Jared Harper, Valencia Basket ($5,500)
Kevin Pangos, Valencia Basket ($4,200)
I never know how Valencia's rotations shake out, but these two should back up Chris Jones and are talented enough to pay off their tags if they get at least 20 minutes.
Frontcourt in Focus
Players listed in order of confidence
Preferred Plays
Mathias Lessort, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens ($10,000)
Konstantinos Mitoglou, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens ($9,700)
There aren't many options up here today -- check out what happens if you enter a DraftKings lineup and navigate to the forward section -- so we will talk about the two guys who do have ceilings. Lessort gets a big price increase coming off a monster game, and if circumstances were different I'd ignore him here, but he should be plenty fired up playing against the team he spent last season with and there pickings are slim. Mitoglou hasn't been knocking down shots but is bound to wake up at some point.
Semi Ojeleye, Valencia Basket ($8,200)
It remains a minutes thing with Ojeleye. He's super talented and matchup-proof if he sees minutes in the high 20s, but will he get them?
Nicolo Melli, EA7 Emporio Armani Milan ($8,700)
We're finally seeing Melli's price come back down, and I think with how weak the forwards are Friday he is very much in discussion.
Valuable Values
Vincent Poirier, Real Madrid ($7,500)
Poirier should start at center in place of the injured Walter Tavares. Poirier put up 10 points, seven rebounds and three assists over a season-high 24 minutes when Tavares sat out Round 1, so he should possess a nice floor despite the matchup and the fact he is working back from an injury.
Dyshawn Pierre, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul ($7,900)
He filled the Nigel Hayes-Davis role nicely in Round 21, recording his first EuroLeague double-double. He's very volatile, but he's below $8,000 and will fill the same role Friday -- and he could be even busier with both Nate Sestina and Tarik Biberovic added to the list of inactives.
Brady Manek, Zalgiris Kaunas ($6,100)
I love Manek him for GPPs if either Smits or Edgaras Ulanovas is forced to miss this game.
Eli Ndiaye, Real Madrid ($5,800)
He should man the backup center spot Friday, so if you're fading Poirier it makes sense to land here.
Gabriel Deck, Real Madrid ($6,300)
Guerschon Yabusele, Real Madrid ($5,700)
Real Madrid is very tough to pin down, but both these guys should see minutes in the 20s and can get hot depending on the individual matchup.
Uros Trifunovic, Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade ($4,300)
Trifunovic is a versatile frontcourt guy that Zelkjo Obradovic loves to deploy. He's cheap and should see at least 20 minutes Friday.
Sertac Sanli, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul ($4,700)
The stretch big man will be forced to play some power forward Friday with Fenerbahce thin at the forward spots, and his size could create some mismatches.
