The Locks
Philadelphia 76ers- With Joel Embiid out for tonight’s game, the 76ers will dominate our attention and ownership in a home date with the Miami Heat. Boban Marjanovic is a near must-play for me in all formats at his price, and Ben Simmons will pick up extra touches in a big-time narrative spot on Australian Heritage night. Tobias Harris is under-priced for his role without Embiid, and these are three that will absolutely be in my cash game builds on both FanDuel and DraftKings. Jimmy Butler is a viable option as well, but he is more accurately priced and I have him behind the aforementioned trio.
Josh Jackson- Jackson is one of the top value plays on this slate in a matchup with the worst defensive team in the NBA, the Cleveland Cavaliers. Outside of the Suns last game, Jackson topped 30+ minutes in seven straight games and that type of workload should not decrease tonight with TJ Warren out for the Suns.
Pick Your Stud- With the value of Jackson, Boban, and one of our secondary options, we will easily have enough money to get another stud in alongside Ben Simmons. The decision comes down to Giannis Antetokounmpo and LeBron James for me. On FanDuel, the decision is easy for me with James being priced $700 less, but on DraftKings where only $200 separates them, we have a much tougher decision. LeBron’s recent history against the Rockets isn’t great, but he truly will need to do everything for the Lakers as they attempt to get back in the playoff picture. I ultimately think they will land pretty close in ownership, and I’m leaning LeBron for now…but I have no issues playing either of them.
Secondary Options
Caris LeVert- He honestly could probably be in the locks section, and for the price he is one of my favorite plays on this slate. His usage has climbed to almost 27% this season, and prior to his injury he was well on his way to being a serious contender for most improved player. In the Nets last game against the Cavs, LeVert saw 30 minutes but only just over three of those minutes came in the three overtime periods. We should easily see him eclipse 30 minutes again tonight and his price has not fully adjusted to that yet.
Chris Paul (FanDuel)- This is one of the biggest nights for narratives I can remember, if you are into that sort of thing, with Paul taking on Rajon Rondo for the first time since their fight at the beginning of this season. This also is a great matchup, and the Lakers have suffered miserably defensively in the absence of Lonzo Ball. Since LeBron returned (without Ball) they are a bottom-five defensive team and Paul is priced at under $8,000 on FD. on DraftKings, I would like to take the savings we get with Damian Lillard against the Brooklyn Nets compared to his over $10K price-tag on FanDuel.
Dion Waiters- Waiters has topped 30 minutes in four straight games, and as long as Goran Dragic remains out tonight I don’t see that changing much in huge narrative spot playing in his hometown of Philadelphia. He should be motivated to shoot, even more than he usually is, and his role is secure enough right now for me to take him on in cash games at his price.
GPP Plays
Center- With the cheap Boban dominating the ownership at center, spending up on FanDuel will be great for leverage tonight and playing two center’s will be the route to go on DraftKings tonight. I think the next highest-owned options will be DeMarcus Cousins and Jusuf Nurkic, both in exceptional matchups. Nurk would be my GPP play as he is more expensive, but he gets our favorite matchup against the Brooklyn Nets. Cousins enters the cash game conversation on DK where is only $6,100 in a matchup with the Kings. He is averaging just south of 1.5 FPPM on the Warriors…why is he this price again?
Devin Booker- I love Booker in GPPs tonight, especially on DraftKings where is priced under $8,000. Booker had time to heal his nagging injuries over the All-Star break, and is way too cheap for his ceiling in a matchup with the worst defensive team in the NBA.
Written by Ben Hossler (Follow @BenHossler on Twitter)
