Welcome to another edition of Bales’ Top GPP plays. In this article, I will outline my favorite NBA GPP plays for today’s games. If you want all of my core plays along with our staff’s Final Thoughts articles and access to our Discord, click here.
Guards
Garrett Temple
Temple’s struggled early this season for the Chicago Bulls. He’s averaging only 5.8 points with 2.2 rebounds and 2.0 assists (13.0 fantasy points) in 23.3 minutes per game through 6 contests. Temple posted 19.25 fantasy points in 29 minutes against the Washington Wizards. Most importantly, he’s shooting only 35.1% from the field and 26.1% from beyond the arc this season.
Temple gets a matchup against the Portland Blazers tonight. Portland currently ranks 12th in the NBA in pace and 29th in defensive efficiency this season. Temple doesn’t see a ton of usage, as it rarely sits above 15% in a game. With that being said, he’s free to shoot, specifically from deep, when on the floor, and he possesses the ability to contribute in four of the categories at some level each night. Temple’s expected to play around 25 minutes tonight. He’s a bit underpriced based on his early struggles from the field this season. Temple is a player that needs to score to hit value in fantasy, and he gets a matchup against one of the league’s worst defenses tonight. There’s a bit more obvious value on the slate, keeping Temple’s ownership down on this slate.
Bigs
Joe Harris
Harris has seen mixed results through seven games this season. He’s averaging 13.9 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 1.6 assists (24.5 fantasy points) in 29.3 minutes per game. Harris has quietly posted 30+ fantasy points in 3 of his last 4 games, scoring 25+ fantasy points in each of those games. He’s also averaging 28.7 fantasy points per game in Brooklyn as opposed to only 14.1 per game on the road.
Harris gets a relatively tough matchup against the Utah Jazz, who rank 23rd in the league in pace and 13th in defensive efficiency this season. Harris’ usage rating has sat around 15% throughout the season, although it’s expected to increase a bit without Kevin Durant in the lineup tonight. He’s also expected to be locked into 30+ minutes, as he finds a larger role in the offense. Durant’s absence will leave a plethora of shots for other members of the rotation, although Harris is more likely to benefit from the extra rebound and assist opportunities, as his scoring role is relatively set. Other players for the Brooklyn Nets are likely to see increased ownership tonight, and Harris is a player that could go a bit overlooked. He’s a bit too cheap for his production, though.
Gorgui Dieng
Dieng continues to be an elite per-minute option for the Memphis Grizzlies. He’s averaging 8.8 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 1.5 assists (20.0 fantasy points) in only 16.3 minutes per game. Dieng’s played 20+ minutes in each of his last 3 games, scoring 30+ fantasy points in 2 of those 3 games. Overall, he’s averaging 1.2 fantasy points per minute over that span.
Dieng gets a matchup against the Los Angeles Lakers tonight. They rank 17th in the NBA in pace and sixth in defensive efficiency this season. Dieng has a usage rating that quietly sits around 20%, and he boasts double-double upside with the ability to contribute in each of the five categories. He’s expected to find roughly 20 minutes again tonight. He’s coming off of a tough matchup against Los Angeles, struggling from the field. This could cause his ownership to drop a bit tonight, although he still comes with elite upside for his price tag. Dieng’s a dominant per-minute option, and he’s always in play at $4K when he’s going to find 20+ minutes, regardless of his matchup.
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