Point Guard
Top Tier: Ben Simmons- I don’t see myself going here in cash games tonight, but the matchup with Phoenix is so good and I will continue to say that I think the addition of Jimmy Butler actually helps Simmons in the long run. The usage certainly doesn’t look better with Butler on the floor, but it’s another body the defense has to worry about which should open up more drives for Simmons, something Dario and Covington simply didn’t do because they weren’t playing well.
Mid Tier: De’Aaron Fox (DraftKings)- This is the lock of the night on DraftKings as Fox is priced at just $6,100…WHY! 220+ total, and I don’t know if it’s name or what but people hate playing Fox despite him having a monster season thus far. Even if he has a bad scoring night, he can smash $6,100 and I won’t have a lineup on DK without him tonight.
Low Tier: Bryn Forbes- Derrick White has struggled like rookie point guards so often do, and Forbes has seen 25+ minutes consistently for the Spurs for the entirety of the season. He has a great matchup with the Pelicans backcourt, and he fits so perfectly on FanDuel where it’s so beneficial to punt two spots and if you can lock in 20+ from one of the punts you are miles ahead of the field.
Shooting Guard
Top Tier: Jrue Holiday- It’s really tough to make a case against Jrue tonight with Elfrid Payton out. He takes on such a big role distributing the basketball without Elf, and he is at home where the score keeper notoriously takes on a few extra peripherals for Pelicans players. This Spurs defense is not good, and they played a tough game against the Warriors last night so I’m anticipating a big Pels performance tonight.
Mid Tier: Dennis Schroder- As long as Westy is out this season, Schroder is going to be thrust into play especially in a pace-up game against the Kings. I don’t think he is a must play on this particular slate, but if I ended on him in cash games I wouldn’t be upset seeing as his floor is nowhere near as low as you would think it is.
Low Tier: Kevin Huerter (FanDuel)- I wouldn’t go here on DraftKings, but you can still roster Huerter on FanDuel even with Taurean Prince coming back tonight. He’s still going to see 22-24 minutes and you basically just want him to be your low score drop anyways, since pure puntingat least one position raises your ceiling so much more.
Small Forward
Top Tier: Giannis Antetokounmpo- Giannis vs Anthony Davis is the key to this slate in my opinion and with all of the value opening up it will be weasy to fit whichever you want. The Bucks have a massive 115 implied team total tonight and the Nuggets have been bottom-three in rim protection for the majority of the season, which bodes well for someone that drives as much as Giannis does. I slightly lean Anthony Davis, but the savings you get by dropping to Giannis might be the sharpest route.
Mid Tier: Paul George- If you can’t quite get to Giannis, you can easily drop down to PG who sports a 30% usage rate and 1.4 fantasy points per minute without Russell Westbrook on the floor this season, and don’t worry, those numbers include Dennis Schroder on the floor as well. I love how fast this Kings team is playing for fantasy, and you have to feel comfortable with George beating value even at around $10,000 in salary.
Low Tier: Tyreke Evans- This is probably going to end up being the chalkiest play of the night, and for good reason with Victor Oladipo ruled out for the Pacers. He’s cheap, and sports a 30% usage rate with 1.1 fantasy points per minute without Dipo on the floor this season. Lock city!
Power Forward
Top Tier: Anthony Davis- As I said above, I think Giannis vs AD is the key to this slate and the only reason I see Davis being a let down tonight is the pace of this game. The near $13,000 price tag on FanDuel is warranted given his production, and nobody on the Spurs will be able to match up with him. Ultimately, I see myself leaning more towards Giannis given the savings but both are elite options overall.
Mid Tier: Tobias Harris- I actually expect that LaMarcus Aldridge will be the highest-owned player in the PF mid tier, which I totally get, but I’m going to lean with the consistency of Harris over LMA who played 40 minutes last night against the Warriors. I don’t expect LMA to sit, but his scoring has suffered a ton on back-to-backs this season and then factor in the 40 minutes, if this game isn’t close in the second half we could definitely see him somewhat limited. Harris has topped 30+ FanDuel points in eight straight games.
Low Tier: Marcus Morris- Neither Morris bro is ever a sexy option in DFS, but Marcus has quietly 17 FanDuel points in four of his last five games, and draws a stellar matchup with Charlotte. I’d like to spend up at PF today, but if you need to drop down to Morris it wouldn’t kill you, especially if his score just gets dropped anyways.
Center
Top Tier: Andre Drummond- Joel Embiid is a smash play today, and a fantastic GPP-pivot off of Giannis/AD, but there’s no way I’m not going to mention Drummond in this matchup against the Cavaliers. The Cavs remain bottom-ten in defensive efficiency to opposing centers this season, and their frontcourt is so under-sized they cannot matchup with a team like the Pistons. Drum dropped 26 and 22 against them earlier this season and I’m making a bold call of another 20-20 game coming tonight.
Mid Tier: Steven Adams- Again, I love taking guys against Sacramento this season given how fast they are playing and Adams potential rebounds jump up a ton without Westbrook on the floor. I don’t think he has a truly massive ceiling, but the floor is there and it;s a great matchup.
Low Tier: Mike Muscala- I don’t have a ton of conviction here, but if you want to punt with Muscala on FanDuel where is just $3,900 playing 25+ minutes against Phoenix and then basically jamming in anyone else you want, I can get behind that in tournaments.
Written by Ben Hossler (Follow @BenHossler on Twitter)
