Welcome to Bales’ NBA Game Theory (10/30)! In this article, I’ll outline my favorite cash game and GPP options at each of the positions. I’ll utilize our Projections Portal when making decisions about what types of leagues specific players are best suited for. You can get all of my Core Plays along with our Cheat Sheets, projections, and Premium Discord channels with our Premium NBA Package.
| Guards | Forwards |
Centers | Game Stacks |
| C. Cunningham | J. Butler | G. Antetokounmpo | DEN/MIN |
| J. Ingles | G. Trent | N. Jokic | SA/MIL |
| C. Duarte | D. Sabonis | M. Bamba | OKC/GS |
| F. VanVleet | J. Giddey | K. Towns | MIA/MEM |
| C. Anthony | O. Anunoby | B. Adebayo | ATL/PHI |
*If you don’t already play 3 max entry contests daily, try using the teams provided in the stacks above to maximize upside and correlation in your NBA lineups.
Guards
Cash
We have a terrible price on a rookie making his debut tonight. Cade Cunningham is finally healthy and expected to start for the Detroit Pistons. He was the number one overall pick, and there’s no reason he should be under $4k (or even close to that) on any slate. The only concern is how many minutes he’ll get in his first game back from injury. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s caught fire over his last 3 games, scoring 40+ DK points in each of those games. He’s still a bit too cheap, and he gets a rematch against the Golden State Warriors, who he just posted 40.75 DK points against. Jordan Clarkson’s far too cheap with Mike Conley out tonight. He’s averaging 28.5 DK points in only 24 minutes per game over his last 3 games, making him an elite salary relief option in all leagues.
Joe Ingles is another player that will benefit from the absence of Conley, as his role tends to grow in that situation. He’s scored 24+ DK points in each of his 3 games with real minutes, and he’s another player that’s far too cheap tonight. De’Anthony Melton continues to play well in extended minutes, and he’s still underpriced. Although Ingles is clearly the cash option above him, he’s a player that can be considered, as well. There aren’t too many other routes I’d consider, as there will be more shooting guard eligible players at other positions in this article.
GPP
You can consider the majority of the top point guards on this slate. Stephen Curry, Trae Young, and Ja Morant all make sense tonight. They’re a group best suited for tournaments, though. Cole Anthony continues to enjoy somewhat of a breakout over his last few games. He’s averaging 45.1 DK points per game over his last 4 games. Anthony boasts enough upside to be considered on this slate. Derrick White, D’Angelo Russell, and Darius Garland are all high-upside GPP options in the mid-$6k range tonight. Kemba Walker is a bit cheaper than that group, and he’s locked into a big role for the New York Knicks. Walker’s extremely scoring dependent, though, adding to his risk on any given night.
Fred VanVleet leads the way at shooting guard in GPPs tonight. He was a cash option last night, and he burned quite a few people. That should keep his ownership low, but he gets a good matchup against comes with tremendous upside. Malcolm Brogdon and Caris LeVert are both questionable tonight, and their statuses will change the role of Chris Duarte. If one of them is out tonight, he’s too cheap and makes a solid option. If they’re both out, Duarte likely becomes a cash game option once again. Donovan Mitchell and Devin Booker make great options at the top of this position, while Collin Sexton can be considered for a significantly lower price tag. All three are boom or bust options at this point, though.
Forward
Cash
There are two players that stand out above the rest at small forward. Jimmy Butler isn’t going to come cheap, but he’s posted 50+ DK points in 3 consecutive games. He also gets a great matchup against the Memphis Grizzlies tonight. He’s the top spend-up on this slate. Gary Trent Jr. continues to be grossly mispriced. He’s locked into 30+ minutes per game, and he’s scored 27+ DK points in 4 of his last 5 games, flashing 35+ DK point upside. Trent gets a great matchup against the Indiana Pacers, and he’s an elite salary relief option in cash games tonight.
Scottie Barnes is quietly performing well for the Toronto Raptors, and he’s still only priced at $6k tonight. He gets a good matchup against the Indiana Pacers, and he can be considered in all leagues on this slate. Jermai Grant’s performed well early this season, scoring 36+ DK points in 2 of his 3 games. He’s still a bit too cheap for his upside, and he gets a solid matchup against the Orlando Magic tonight. He’s another player that can be considered in all leagues.
GPP
I listed Josh Giddey as a “Safe GPP” option, although I would be willing to use him in cash games. With that being said, I believe he’s better suited for GPPs, scoring 27+ DK points in each of his last 3 games. He posted 47 DK points in one of those games, as well. Franz Wanger’s another rookie who comes with plenty of upside for his price tag. I don’t necessarily love the matchup, but that should keep his ownership low. OG Anunoby’s locked into a massive role for the Toronto Raptors, and he gets an elite matchup against the Indiana Pacers tonight. Anunoby’s coming off of a bad game, but he boasts tremendous upside for his price tag, making him an elite tournament option on this slate. Brandon Ingram, Will Barton, and Lonnie Walker can be considered here, as well.
This isn’t my favorite position on this slate, as there aren’t many players I want to use. Domantas Sabonis isn’t going to come cheap, but he does come with quite a bit of upside. The Toronto Raptors don’t have anyone that can guard him, and he boasts tremendous potential in this matchup. Evan Mobley’s looked great early in his rookie season, but he’s been a bit of a boom or bust option for his price tag. Mobley’s ability to contribute steals and blocks on any given slate gives him a tremendous ceiling. Julius Randle and Wendell Carter Jr. can also be used in GPPs tonight.
Center
Cash
If possible, you’re spending up at center tonight. Giannis Antetokounmpo’s been enjoying an elite start to the season, and he gets a solid matchup against the San Antonio Spurs tonight. He’s scored 78.5 and 62.5 DK points in his last 2 games, and Antetokounmpo is one of the best plays on the entire slate. Nikola Jokic’s game log doesn’t look great but he got hurt two games ago and wasn’t needed in a blowout last night. He should return to big minutes tonight, and Jokic is an elite option at this point. If for some reason you need to save salary at this point, Derrick Favors is likely the top option, although I wouldn’t recommend that route in cash games.
GPP
Once again, I’m starting GPPs with Mo Bamba, who’s coming off of a 51 DK point performance against an undersized Toronto Raptors frontcourt. He gets another great matchup against an undersized Detroit Pistons frontcourt tonight, and Bamba’s an elite option. Opposite from Jokic, Karl-Anthony Towns will be needed to keep the Minnesota Wolves in this game. His peripheral stats have been inconsistent throughout the season, but he boasts as much upside as nearly anyone on this slate. Bam Adebayo is projecting for some ownership tonight, but I prefer him in GPPs rather than cash games. He gets a plus matchup against the Memphis Grizzlies, but he’s best suited for tournaments with some of the other options in cash. Jonas Valanciunas, Joel Embiid, and Nikola Vucevic are three more options that stand out as solid GPP options.
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