This article is part of our DraftKings EuroLeague DFS Picks series.
Slate Overview
It's the last Round of the regular season, so we should mention the playoff scenarios once again. First off the teams that are eliminated playing Thursday are Zalgiris, Bayern, Red Star and ALBA. I don't think we see these teams completely mail it in because that's not how the EuroLeague works, but I do question the minutes ceiling for their top players and you absolutely need to be locked in when starting lineups are announced just to be safe. After the eliminated teams we then have Real Madrid and Maccabi, who are locked into their particular seeding so I once again advise checking starters. Lastly we have Monaco, Panathinaikos, Milan and Efes all either fighting for playoff positioning or a spot in the Playoffs itself. I imagine all will push their top guys, particularly Efes and Milan, who are seeking the 10th and final spot.
Guards to Go After
Players listed in order of confidence
Preferred Plays
Shane Larkin, Anadolu Efes Istanbul ($10,400)
I said it last week, but with Efes having its back against the wall I'll continue to pay the tag for Larkin, who will surely be determined to keep his team's playoff hopes alive. He gets an elite defense vs. position matchup, as Red Star has had a tough time with point guards lately.
Mike James, AS Monaco ($11,100)
He's been extremely mediocre of late, but we once again get a little price decrease in a good matchup. I'll be starting most of my lineups with Larkin or James.
Kendrick Nunn, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens ($9,700)
Kostas Sloukas, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens ($10,300)
This one is pretty simple. They're still fighting to hold the second seed and ALBA just bleeds points. Whichever one of these guys gets hot from deep could put up a big score against ALBA's pack-the-paint defense.
Keenan Evans, Zalgiris Kaunas ($10,500)
Great GPP look here despite Evans and Zalgiris only playing for pride. He gets a pace-up spot against the best team in the league. I think he'll want to finish out the season on a high note and could still see at least 30 minutes.
Valuable Values
Sergio Llull, Real Madrid ($6,200)
Facundo Campazzo is questionable and Sergio Rodriguez is out. I'll feel way more confident here if Campazzo is ruled out, but if he plays, Llull is still a fine value option that just comes with more risk.
Carsen Edwards, FC Bayern Munich ($7,300)
He's always a wild card due to being shooting-dependent, but the minutes have been nice lately and we get him at a cheap price. We could see a little back-and-forth with him and the league's all-time leading scorer, James.
Marius Grigonis, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens ($6,600)
I've been nailing the buy-low guys a bit lately and I think the Grigonis game is coming. He's had some foul issues lately but could really light ALBA up from behind the arc.
Elijah Bryant, Anadolu Efes Istanbul ($7,900)
Rodrigue Beaubois, Anadolu Efes Istanbul ($7,200)
Both these guys have huge ceilings but terrible floors. Bryant has elite peripheral upside and Rodrigue can get hot and put 20 points on the scoreboard. This should be an up-tempo game and if one of them gets hot they could break the slate.
Yago Dos Santos, Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade ($7,900)
Milos Teodosic, Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade ($8,100)
I wish I knew what Red Star was going to do minutes-wise but I do not. Teodosic is a veteran so I was surprised they pushed him so much in the first game back. If Dos Santos starts I think he's very appealing. If you told me Teodosic gets 25 minutes again I'd be all over it but we just do not know.
Jordan Loyd, AS Monaco ($7,000)
Always love some value on Loyd if he's starting.
Frontcourt in Focus
Players listed in order of confidence
Preferred Plays
Nikola Mirotic, EA7 Emporio Armani Milan ($10,700)
Shavon Shields, EA7 Emporio Armani Milan ($10,100)
This is pretty self-explanatory. They will be pushed minutes-wise and play one of the worst defenses in the league. I think they both have solid floors. I'd want one or the other, though, because it's unlikely they both get hot in the scoring column, which is how they rack up most of their fantasy points.
Will Clyburn, Anadolu Efes Istanbul ($10,200)
Red Star just doesn't care about this game. It's even talked about around the league how Efes should lock up a playoff spot due to Red Star just mailing in the season. I definitely want to make a decision on which Efes stud I'm going to take when I start my builds.
Mario Hezonja, Real Madrid ($10,300)
Guerschon Yabusele, Real Madrid ($9,000)
Dzanan Musa, Real Madrid ($8,800)
They're playing for nothing but I want to make a point to talk about the Real Madrid situation if we have guys rest. If two or more of their top players sit out, only then will I start having interest in the other top guys who are active.
Konstantinos Mitoglou, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens ($8,900)
His coach had some discouraging words about him and Luca Vildoza after the weekend game so he could come out motivated in a soft matchup.
Valuable Values
Alex Poythress, EA7 Emporio Armani Milan ($4,300)
He's been playing well and wing Devon Hall is out, so they could go with bigger, almost exclusively two-guard lineups and there should be ample minutes at the power forward and center spots available.
Juancho Hernangomez, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens ($4,800)
Ioannis Papapetrou, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens ($3,700)
If you think Mitoglou continues to struggle or this becomes a blowout, both these guys benefit and they are very cheap.
Justin Bean, ALBA Berlin ($5,300)
Tim Schneider, ALBA Berlin ($4,600)
If Louis Olinde joins Johannes Thiemann on the inactive list I think these two will be asked to play 15-to-20 minutes each.
