Welcome to another edition of Ben’s Building Blocks! You can gain access to our Core Plays and my Final Thoughts’ sheet by clicking here.
Guard
James Harden- This slate took a major turn this afternoon when Kyrie Irving was ruled out due to back tightness. We have a 162 minute sample size of Harden without both Irving and Kevin Durant on the floor, resulting in a massive 32% usage rate and 1.66 fantasy points per minute. That 1.66 points per minute would be the highest of any player in the NBA this season, edging out Luka Doncic. There is definitely some risk in this spot, with the Nets being down two of the best players in the NBA and on a back-to-back on the road. That being said, we can’t overlook the potential for Harden tonight and he is the top play in all formats.
Forward
JaMychal Green- Denver is one of the top sources of value on Tuesday night with Gary Harris, Will Barton, Paul Millsap all out and Monte Morris questionable. Green has been splitting time with Millsap this season, and should start in his absence tonight. He’s been surprisingly efficient at over a full fantasy point per minute this season, but that number ticks down to under 0.8 when on the court with Nikola Jokic. As expected, his rates won’t be as good in the starting lineup but he is cheap, and will push for 30 minutes. I also have interest in his backup, rookie Zeke Nnaji who Mike Malone seems to like a lot.
Center
DeAndre Jordan- This one I’m labeling with an asterisk because I am not sure as of this second if I will 100% play him. That being said, Jordan is extremely affordable on DK and projects very well with the absence of Irving. It’s a smaller sample for him than Harden, but with Irving/Durant off the floor DJ has turned in just south of 1.1 fantasy points per minute. Our projections portal has him in line for upper-20’s in minutes, which makes him one of the better value plays on the slate. For the reasons I outlined with Harden, it’s not the safest bet especially when it looks like he will get a ton of ownership. I’m tagging him as a core play for now, and will update my stance in Final Thoughts.
Outlook
As always we will need to stay tuned to news leading up to lock, and after as well. I’ve heard rumblings of games potentially being postponed due to inclement weather, so always be prepared for a curve ball when it comes to NBA DFS. This is where we find value in out discord channel and my Final Thoughts cheat sheet, as they will keep you updated with last minute news. As for now, there are some other punt plays on my radar such as Facundo Campazzo, Zeke Nnaji, Talen Horton-Tucker and Robert Williams. If news breaks right, we might have ourselves a good old-fashioned stars and scrubs bonanza.
Written by Ben Hossler (Follow @BenHossler on Twitter)
