Point Guard
Top Tier: Russell Westbrook- The Charlotte Hornets have been exceptional against point guards to start this season, but tonight we get an under-priced Westbrook matching up with them in a 228 total and just a 6.5 point spread. Westy has routinely seen 35+ minutes in close games this season and I love suing Westy at home, especially when he is reasonably priced.
Mid Tier: Kyrie Irving- I really haven’t been on Irving much this season, but if there was a time to jump on it’s tonight against the Hawks. The Hawks combine the perfect storm of bad defense and pace, they’re playing at the fastest pace in the NBA this season and their defense has been non-existent especially to guards.
Low Tier: Trey Burke- This is an extremely risky play, but I still would be comfortable with Burke in cash games tonight. In four games since a DNP-CD, Burke has played over 25 minutes in every game and is averaging a fantasy point per minute. This is the top game of the night featuring a 235.5 O/U and I want as many pieces of it as I can get.
Shooting Guard
Top Tier: Jrue Holiday- Holiday is probably my most written/talked about players so far this season and I can’t see myself fading him tonight in this game against the Knicks with Elfrid Payton still out. Holiday sports a near 40% assist rate without Payton on the floor the season and he possesses a solid floor/ceiling combo that I will continue to want to lock in for cash games.
Mid Tier: Tim Hardaway Jr- Like I said, I want as many pieces of this game as I can get and THJ has been playing monster minutes. The Pelicans have been vulnerable to guards this season and Damyean Dotson has pretty much been a non-factor over the last week and a half.
Low Tier: Rodney McGruder- This seems like to easy of a value play, especially o FanDuel where McGruder sits at just $4,900. McGruder has taken a much bigger role on offense this season and he is averaging 32 minutes per game in a great matchup with the Chicago Bulls.
Small Forward
Top Tier: Kevin Durant- I totally get anyone that wants to slot in Giannis here, but with Steph Curry and Draymond Green still out for the Warriors Durant becomes the top point per dollar option. His sage rate is north of 35% in this scenario this season and it should be a close game against Portland.
Mid Tier: Josh Richardson- Richardson is always a strong cash game option without Goran Dragic in the lineup, and that is the exact situation we find ourselves in tonight. Richardson sports a 28% usage rate without Dragon this season and he takes on a lot more of the ball handling duties on offense, raising both his floor and ceiling.
Low Tier: Tyreke Evans- Yes, he has sucked twice in a row without Victor Oladipo, but he also has been in two blowouts and hasn’t seen fourth quarter run in either game. This game features just a 2.5 point spread and if we expect Tyreke to see full minutes then I’m going to have to go back to the well once again.
Power Forward
Top Tier: Anthony Davis- As of now, I’d like to jam in both of Westbrook and AD on FanDuel and with some of the value opening it should be possible. Davis will be higher-owned than Westy given the game environment I described above and if I was prioritizing one of them it would be him.
Mid Tier: John Collins- This might seem risky to some people. but Collins played a season-high in minutes in the Hawks last game, and they are off tomorrow which tells me he should push 30 minutes tonight. Collins is a beast, and while he has foul issues, he can easily smash his $5,100 price tag if he gets around 30 minutes.
Low Tier: Noah Vonleh- Here we have our highest owned power forward, with Vonleh still sitting below $5,000. He’s posted 40+ fantasy points in two straight games and thee minutes have been secure as well, factor in the game environment and you have the perfect recipe for cheap chalk.
Center
Top Tier: Joel Embiid- It’s really tough to trust him with the major blowout potential in a game against the Cavs, but he will undoubtedly be lower owned with guys like Giannis, AD, Durant etc on this slate. Embiid has been an absolute force since the Butler trade, and I talk about attacking the Cavs with big men all the time given how under-sized they are. He’s going to eat, it’s just a matter of how many minutes he ends up playing.
Mid Tier: Kyle O’Quinn- This is only a great play if both of Domantas Sabonis and Myles Turner are out, so monitor the news up until lock.
Low Tier: Aron Baynes- This is an easy value play with Al Horford not expected to play, he doesn’t own a monster ceiling but he can easily smash his price tag and it makes sense to use him on FanDuel where you are protected from a bad game regardless.
Written by Ben Hossler (Follow @BenHossler on Twitter)
