Point Guard
Top Tier: Kemba Walker(DraftKings)- You could easily slot John Wall in here as well, as both him and Kemba are under $9,000 on DraftKings, but Kemba slides in as my top option despite this game being on the road in Brooklyn. I typically only want Kemba at home, but this game is should be one of the most competitive on the slate (1.5 point spread) and that has me locked in on what should be a full workload for Walker tonight. He’s only $8,400 on DraftKings and that makes him viable in all formats.
Mid Tier: De’Aaron Fox (FanDuel)- If you’re looking to spend up for PG on FanDuel, Fox is massively cheaper than both Wall and Wlaker, which makes him my favorite play there. This is a great game pace-wise with a 238 O/U, and the Clippers are bottom-five in defensive efficiency against opposing point guards this season. Fox has been one of my most rostered players this year, and I won’t stop tonight in this matchup.
Low Tier: Fred VanVleet- With Kyle Lowry moved to doubtful today, FVV becomes a near must play in all formats at his price. His rates increase without Lowry, but the biggest factor is how far up his minutes go and despite the matchup being average I want to lock in the minutes he will see at a depressed price tag.
Shooting Guard
Top Tier: Victor Oladipo- The question for for me comes down to Oladipo vs Hield in cash games on FanDuel tonight, and you could also throw De’Aaron Fox into that conversation. Fitting Anthony Davis and Karl-Anthony Towns will be no issue, but given the low score drop scoring format, we are always able to fit in an extra higher-priced player, and with Dipo under $9,000 he enters that conversation. He hasn’t been his usual self, but this is a massive pace-up spot for the Pacers are the matchup doesn’t get better as the Hawks are bottom-seven in defensive efficiency against SG’s. We get the rare perfect storm of matchup + pace-up and I find it hard to avoid Dipo on FanDuel tonight.
Mid Tier: Buddy Hield- Hield has been one of my go-to guys over the last few weeks, and he’s in play again tonight vs the Clippers. Both of these teams come in inside the top-ten in pace, and Hield has touched 35+ minutes in each of the last three games. Like I said above, I think I will end up leaning towards Dipo in cash games, but I love Hield overall and he makes sense in all formats at under $7,000 on FanDuel.
Low Tier: Jordan Clarkson- This is a very gross game, sporting a sub-200 O/U, but with David Nwaba and Rodney Hood both out, Jordan Clarkson is going to be forced into an even larger role on Wednesday night. Clarkson looks to score first and foremost, which is fine with me for fantasy, and I am interested in him at his price in all formats.
Small Forward
Top Tier: Danilo Gallinari- Gallinari has been uber consistent for the Clippers as of late, and there are no “studs” to jam in at small forward tonight. Kawhi Leonard makes sense with Kyle Lowry doubtful, but he’s priced over $10,000 on FanDuel. Gallinari provides $3,000 in savings and provides us access to one of the best games of the night, a 230+ O/U between the Clippers and Kings.
Mid Tier: Trevor Ariza- Ariza struggled in his last game, which isn’t a stretch considering he had played 54 minutes the night before, but overall he has been consistent both fantasy-wise and in playing time for the Wizards without Otto Porter. Given the lack of a Giannis or LeBron on this slate, SF is a spot to save and Ariza sticks out in the mid tier.
Low Tier: Nemanja Bjelica- Bjelica has logged 29+ minutes in three of his last four games, excluding the Kings starters debacle, and he should be locked into minutes again with Marvin Bagley still out. Like I noted with Gallinari, this is one of the top games of the night and it’s always nice to get some cheap exposure to a positive game environment.
Power Forward
Top Tier: Anthony Davis- I don’t think I really need to dive into why AD is an elite play tonight, with Miro still out, he is the top overall play on this slate and is a staple in cash games for me.
Mid Tier: Blake Griffin- I’m expecting quite a few teams to be built around AD/Kurucs in cash games on FanDuel tonight, which leaves Blake Griffin as an elite tournament pivot. Griffin does so much for the Pistons on offense that he routinely features a higher-floor than Andre Drummond, but I like the matchup for both tonight against a weak defensive frontcourt in the Wizards.
Low Tier: Rodions Kurucs- Not many people know about Rodions Kurucs, but after excelling in the Summer League he has put up very respectable numbers starting for the Brooklyn Nets in place of Allen Crabbe. His ability to shoot makes him a big-time matchup problem, and I really don’t see anyone matching up with him on Charlotte. He will be owned for sure, and the floor is still low, but I’ll take the savings tonight to fit in AD/KAT.
Center
Top Tier: Karl-Anthony Towns- Towns has been on a cold streak the last few games, but his price tag of $9,100 is way too cheap for this matchup with the Chicago Bulls. The Bulls rank bottom-three in defensive efficiency against the center position, and overall Towns has been fantastic fantasy-wise since Jimmy Butler was traded. I’m not buying the game-log, and Towns sticks out as one of my favorite plays of the night.
Mid Tier: Nikola Vucevic- The top pivot off of Towns tonight to me is Nikola Vucevic, in a similarly strong matchup with the Phoenix Suns. Outside of his dud against the Heat, Vuc put up 48+ in three straight games and should feast against the defensive struggles of DeAndre Ayton tonight. This is home game for Orlando, and if you dig into the numbers they are actually even slightly worse than the Bulls. I will be going KAT in cash games, but I love Vuc in GPPs.
Low Tier: Cody Zeller- Game-log watchers will be off Zeller, as always tonight, as he has had some major foul issues in recent games, but he draws are favorite matchup against the Brooklyn Nets. Zeller makes more sense on DraftKings where you can roster two centers + Anthony Davis / Julius Randle at PF.
Yahoo Thoughts
Yahoo continues to roll out fantastic tournaments, and a $25K overlay NBA tournament ($10 buy-in) is on tap tonight. If looking to play there, my core would most likely contain Rodions Kurucs ($12), Jeff Green ($12) and one of DJ Augustin ($10) or Mason Plumlee ($12). By locking in these value options, we have some room to spend-up and I would obviously be looking at the same guys I like above in Anthony Davis, Karl-Anthony Towns, Nikola Vucevic and De’Aaron Fox as my favorite spend-ups. Victor Oladipo sits at $35, which is affordable but you would have to choose between him and Fox, like on FanDuel.
Written by Ben Hossler (Follow @BenHossler on Twitter)
