This article is part of our EuroLeague Primer series.
PREGAME UPDATES
- Gabriel Deck, Thomas Heurtel and Trey Thompkins all remain out for Real Madrid.
- Monaco's Alpha Diallo will not play Friday due to an injury.
- Dogus Balbay is unavailable again Thursday for Efes.
- Milan's Trey Kell remains sidelined.
- Bayern's Paul Zipser will be available for Game 2.
- Barcelona's Pierre Oriola is inactive again Thursday.
STATS AND INFO.
- Betting Odds
- Starting Lineups
- Injury Report
- Team Stats
- Opponent Averages
- Team Trends
- Twitter - @RotoWireEuro
THE SLATE
FC Bayern Munich at 
FC Barcelona
Status Check: Darrun Hilliard (BAY), Corey Walden (BAY), Paul Zipser (BAY), Cory Higgins (BAR), Pierre Oriola (BAR)
Best Bets for Success: In addition to taking the loss in Game 1, Bayern also lost one of its best players in Hilliard, who will miss the rest of the series with a fractured collarbone. That will make it even harder for them to keep pace with Barcelona, which is now 3-0 against the German team this season and is favored by more than 10 points Thursday. If Bayern hopes to keep it close in Game 2, they will likely need another big night from Vladimir Lucic, who recorded 20 points and 26.5 DraftKings points in the opener. Lucic is quite a bit pricier than he was Tuesday, but he's still pretty affordable at $8,800. With Hilliard out, it's likely Augustine Rubit will be more involved after getting up just three shots in Game 1. He still nearly hit the 20-point mark on DraftKings in that contest, and he should have a shot to surpass it Thursday even if he gets around the 8.1 field goal attempts he averaged during the regular season. Nikola Mirotic and Nick Calathes were both a bit quiet in Game 1, but given their track records it's tough to list any other Barcelona player here. Mirotic is averaging just 12.0 points in three matchups with Bayern this season, but with his price slipping below five figures on DraftKings for the first time since March, he brings a lot of upside to the table. Calathes is now nearly cheap enough on DraftKings to be considered a bargain, as he put up at least 20.0 points on that website in 10 straight games prior to Tuesday's. The main concern for theses two players is the scoreboard, as if Bayern can't keep up without Hilliard, neither player could see extended minutes.
DFS Darlings: Brandon Davies left no doubt about his health in Game 1, easily leading his team in both points and index rating. In 18 career postseason appearances, Davies is averaging 13.6 points and 5.5 rebounds -- numbers that are markedly better than his career averages. It seems likely he will show up again, and he looks like a good fit in DraftKings lineups at $8,000. Dante Exum showed up Tuesday as well, putting up at least 27.0 DraftKings points for the third time in nine appearances, and he remains reasonably priced at $8,300. No one else on the Barcelona side really did much in Game 1, but if Thursday's game gets out of hand, Rokas Jokubaitis and Rolands Smits could deliver just above the $6,000 mark. With Hilliard unavailable, there will be some opportunities open in Bayern's backcourt, and Ognjen Jaramaz seems like the best bet to claim the bulk of them. Jaramaz had a 29-point DraftKings night less than two weeks ago, yet he checks in at just $6,800. Nick Weiler-Babb has some value potential at $7,800, but with him still getting up to speed it could be tough for him to play more than the 21 minutes he did in Game 1. Zan Mark Sisko, despite his Game 1 dud, also remains in the mix at $6,400.
Anadolu Efes Istanbul at 
AX Armani Exchange Milan
Status Check: Dogus Balbay (EFS), Nicolo Melli (AXM), Konstantinos Mitoglou (AXM), Luigi Datome (AXM), Trey Kell (AXM)
Best Bets for Success: Milan entered this series as the higher seed and were favored in Game 1, but with the defending champions taking it to them in the opener and Melli done for the series with a calf injury, the visitors are slight favorites in Game 2. If the hosts hope to even things up, they are going to need more from Shavon Shields than they got in Game 1, when he put just eight points on the board. He is plenty capable of more, having averaged 13.3 points during the regular season and 18.7 points over the three games he appeared in prior to Tuesday's. Shields checks in at $10,000 on DraftKings for the first time since December, but no one's circumstances on the slate look better, as he figures to play at least the 34 minutes he did Tuesday and will be facing an Efes team that has been friendlier to opposing forwards than any other squad. Efes looked as good as they have all season in Game 1, and unsurprisingly, they were carried by their starting backcourt of Shane Larkin and Vasilije Micic. Milan has been tough on opposing guards all season, but each of them hit the 30-point mark on DraftKings, and Micic erased any concerns about the injury that sidelined him for nearly a month. Both players will cost you a pretty penny Thursday, and Larkin's DraftKings prospects seem a tad better, as he is a few bucks cheaper than his teammate and is more likely to cross the 30-minute threshold.
DFS Darlings: With Melli joining Mitoglou and Datome on the sidelines, there will be a major void in Milan's frontcourt to fill. Ben Bentil is the favorite to replace Melli in the starting lineup, and he will be particularly attractive on DraftKings at just $6,100. It seems likely he will play 20 minutes for the sixth time this season, and he will have about as good a matchup as you can hope for. Kyle Hines figures to pick up some of the slack as well, and you could take a shot with Kaleb Tarczewski or Gianpaolo Ricci, who both check in beneath the $5,000 mark. The Italian team could use a lot more out of Sergio Rodriguez than they got in Game 1, and he remains an affordable $7,500. With both Micic and Larkin at full speed and Milan faring well against backcourt players, it's tough to find a lot more to like on the Efes side. Tibor Pleiss remains a potential bargain at $6,500, and Krunoslav Simon is cheap enough to consider at $7,000.
AS Monaco at 
Olympiacos Piraeus
Status Check: Hassan Martin (OLY)
Best Bets for Success: Olympiacos lost just once on its home court during the regular season, and they extended their dominance Wednesday, bouncing back from a slow start to win Game 1 going away. Given that result, it should be no surprise that the home team is a clear favorite Friday. Neither Sasha Vezenkov nor Kostas Sloukas had a huge night, but they did both reach double digits and play more minutes than the rest of their teammates, so they will occupy this spot again for Game 2. Fortunately for those considering them on DraftKings, but both players check in a little cheaper than they were Wednesday. Mike James scored just 10 points in the opener, but he did still manage to put up 26.5 DraftKings points. James has bounceback potential, as he scored 25 points against Olympiacos last month and continues returning the most average value on the board.
DFS Darlings: Thomas Walkup was key for Olympiacos in Game 1, as he scored 11 points and put the clamps on James on the defensive end. He figures to fill a similar role in Game 2, and that makes him a top target on DraftKings at $6,500. Shaq McKissic nearly brought the house down Wednesday, and he remains a bargain at just $6,900. Both Tyler Dorsey and Moustapha Fall played complementary roles in Game 1, but Dorsey has a lot of upside at $8,000, and Fall has a plus matchup and will be the Greek team's only available center. Fall's DraftKings price did jump a bit, but he can still be considered at $8,500. Alpha Diallo landed in the section above in Game 1, but with his price slipping to $8,800 we're going to list him here for Game 2. As anticipated, Donta Hall was more of a factor than Donatas Motiejunas in Game 1, and he retains the edge Wednesday. Don't forget about Dwayne Bacon, who is listed at just $8,600.
Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv at 
Real Madrid
Status Check: Gabriel Deck (RMB), Thomas Heurtel (RMB), Trey Thompkins (RMB), Carlos Alocen (RMB)
Best Bets for Success: Heading into Game 1, Maccabi was on a roll and Real Madrid was struggling. However, everything changed Wednesday, as the home team comfortably claimed victory. The Spanish squad is a clear favorite Friday, but as we saw the day before, what happened in the opener has little bearing on what will happen in Game 2. While Walter Tavares was pretty quiet in the opener, that's not enough to knock him from this spot, as he is quite affordable at $9,400 and did average 25.8 DraftKings points against Maccabi during the regular season. If you pass on Tavares, Guerschon Yabusele -- who scored 15 points in Game 1 -- remains the next best option. Scottie Wilbekin was the only player among Maccabi's core six who returned meaningful value in Game 1, and he's an even better option Friday with his price slipping to an even $10,000. James Nunnally just missed 20.0 on DraftKings on a slow night, giving him some bounceback appeal even with the matchup working against him.
DFS Darlings: A few Real Madrid players proved to be bargains in Game 1, but their roster remains unsettled with all of Deck, Heurtel and Thompkins uncertain, so don't necessarily expect the same players to deliver Friday. Nigel Williams-Goss still seems like a pretty good option, as Maccabi has had issues with opposing guards and -- despite a healthy price jump -- still checks in on DraftKings at a pretty cheap $6,600. Fabien Causeur is filling a guard spot these days and averaged just under 30.0 DraftKings points over his last two appearances, so he remains in the mix even with his price jumping noticeably as well. At least one more Real Madrid forward figures to come through, but it will be tough to peg who that will be without knowing if Deck will play or not. Ante Zizic has had a couple duds of late, but he could be a sneaky option on DraftKings at $8,300. Keenan Evans remains in the conversation at $8,200, and a case could be made for Roman Sorkin, who is listed at $5,000 and put up at least 19.0 DraftKings points in two of his last three appearances.
