A very cool moment occurred in the NBA last night. With only a 3-game slate, all the focus was on Dirk Nowitzki. Entering last night’s game against the Lakers, Dirk needed 20 points to become the 6th player in NBA history with 30,000 points. After the first quarter, Dirk had 18 points. Early into the […]
Welcome back to another full week of the Value Index. We hope you enjoyed your weekend and are ready to get back to another full week of DFS basketball.
The NBA regular season is winding down, meaning baseball will be returning soon. Keep on the lookout here at DO for an update on when our basketball coverage will subside and for updates on the 2017 baseball season.
Tonight we have a 12-game slate in the association. If you have been a follower, you know we have been utilizing DraftKings pricing for recommendations. For today’s slate, I feel DraftKings has made it clear it wants salaries to be meeting production.
There’s not a lot of cheap options at the moment to fill in our lineups with value, so we must keep any eye on things closer to lock if we want to comfortably use the studs on this slate. It’s definitely a stars and scrubs slate, we will just have to wait to see who the scrubs are closer to lock. All of my selections won’t be able to be crammed into one lineup, so you will need to fill in with low-salary plays should you use some of these guys in your lineups.
Below you will see 5 players, one at each position, that I feel will hit 5x or better tonight. Since it is a Monday, today’s Index will be premium. But after you get a taste and you want to finish the meal, sign up for our 7-day free trial!.
Good luck!
Damian Lillard – PG – Trail Blazers
Analysis: Lillard and the Blazers travel to Minnesota to take on the Timberwolves tonight and with new addition Jusuf Nurkic fitting in nicely, Lillard is still the usage machine on this team. He will take on Ricky Rubio on the offensive end, so we know that is a boost to potential production for Lillard, couple that with his increase in usage since the Mason Plumlee trade and we have all the makings of a solid performance for Lillard at $8,800. He’s scored at least 40 DK points in his past five outings and this has all the makings of a close, high scoring game.
Nicolas Batum – SG – Charlotte Hornets
Analysis: I have had a difficult time picking a SG on this slate and I keep deferring back to Batum against the Pacers. This is a pace-up game for the Hornets and both teams match up well. They are conference foes and should be in a close contest down to the end. Who is going to guard Batum at SG? Exactly. He scored under 40 DK points in these two teams’ first matchup, but the offense still rolls through Kemba and Batum, who can also fill up the stat sheets with rebounds, assists, boards and steals. His price is coming down a bit and he should be locked in for 35 fantasy points tonight.
This is the part where I provide a great big thank you. And you should follow suit and feel grateful. Because I am filling up this space to commend FantasyDraft for their selfless efforts to make sure everyone spurned by FantasyAces was taken care of…including little ol’ me. If you aren’t aware of the FantasyAces […]
So how many of you experience what I call the DFS “Rabbit Hole?” No, it’s not a streak of losses, but rather a point of panic. This panic might occur when making lineups or when making a lineup or lineups with very little time left until lock. For me, it occurs when I feel like […]
I mistakenly thought today was only a 4-game slate, then this morning before work, I noticed I was mistaken.
It’s actually 6. Not a huge slate, but I did have to tinker with my official selections for today. I am going to be quick with the chit chat and dive right in!
But first, remember to get in on the 7-day free trial to our premium content available now! Below are my 6 picks (one bonus pick because I am feeling generous) for today that I believe will finish at least 5x their salary based on DraftKings’ pricing and position eligibility.
Power Forward
Nikola Mirotic – Denver Nuggets at Chicago Bulls – $5,000
Analysis: It’s the night of Nikolas! First we have Mirotic, who has seen his minutes drastically increase with the trades of Dougie Fresh and Taj Gibson. Mirotic’s price hasn’t skyrocketed too much despite two straight 30-fantasy-point efforts. This is where he becomes super chalky in tournaments due to his price and matchup. Denver is middle of the pack in fantasy points allowed to PFs, but would be deficient defensively should Kenneth Faried sit again. Even if Faried plays, I am OK with Mirotic considering he should see a ton of minutes in what could be the highest-scoring and closest game of the entire slate.
Center
Nikola Jokic – Denver Nuggets at Chicago Bulls – $8,900
Analysis: Denver is healthy outside of Faried, and that’s taking some toll on NIKOLA Jokic’s production of late. But his price isn’t in the 5 figures any longer (and it should be!). This is a huge discount for Jokic, who is one of the league’s brightest, budding talents. Foul trouble also has plagued Jokic in the past couple of games, so don’t let his minutes’ dip fool you. I am not worried about Robin Lopez defending Jokic all around the floor. I also like Jokic’s ability to snag some assists with Denver’s other scorers being healthy coming in. The floor is safe and the upside is monstrous.
6th Man
Jon Leuer – Detroit Pistons vs. Portland Trail Blazers – $5,000
Analysis: Not really a 6th man anymore on his own team (that’s now Tobias Harris, Leuer checks all the boxes against Portland. The Blazers are one of the worst rebounding teams versus front courts in the NBA and have been a sieve for opposing power forwards all season long. Leuer is coming off a poor performance against Boston, but still managed 16 fantasy points in 25 minutes. Normally he sees around 30+ minutes with a 25-30 point average when he sees that kind of floor time. For cash games, Leuer is a great fantasy asset with a safe floor and safe minutes.
Welcome back to another edition of the NBA Value Index. This will be our first full week back since the All-Star Break.
We’ve had a trade deadline come and go since the break, and there’s still a feeling out process for some of these new players on their new teams.
Slowly, we are seeing minutes rise, usage rise, and how these teams’ new offenses and defenses operate. We can see that New Orleans wants everything to go through Brow and Boogie, Lou Williams and Eric Gordon might actually be able to co-exist on Houston’s second unit, and Nerlens Noel should soon be the starting center in Dallas.
With us returning for a full week of content, this is the perfect opportunity to start your 7-day free trial of our premium subscription. Hopefully you will take advantage of this opportunity and continue to be a subscriber.
Now that the housekeeping has been taken care of, let’s get to some picks, shall we?
Remember, today is a premium day for the Index, so you will get two picks for free, but must become a member to view the remaining picks. Good luck to you moving forward!
Center
Nerlens Noel – Dallas Mavericks – vs. Miami Heat – $5,300
Analysis: Noel came off the bench in his last outing, but played nearly 30 minutes anyway. Rick Carlisle has said that Nerlens should soon enter the starting lineup. This trade was huge for the Mavericks, and while I know they want to get that 8th seed playoff spot, I think it’s more important for them to keep Nerlens fresh and not push his minutes moving forward. He is coming off of a major injury after all. But for right now, I think the Mavs want to unleash him, and if they do get eliminated from playoff contention, I could see Nerlens playing less minutes down the stretch. Tonight I can see Noel entering the starting lineup, and if he doesn’t, I might like him even more getting some high usage on the second unit against a second unit. This price is ridiculously low for Noel who should push for 30 minutes every night as long as the Mavs will let him. The Heat are one of the most generous teams in fantasy points allowed to centers, thanks to the regression of Hassan Whiteside. I feel this game won’t be heavily targeted at any other position, but Noel might be the chalk at center, for good reason.
Point Guard
Isaiah Thomas – Boston Celtics vs. Atlanta Hawks – $8,700
Analysis: I don’t know if I have really ever gotten Isaiah Thomas right this year, but I feel he is one of the safer PG options on the board tonight. We shouldn’t see Avery Bradley return tonight, meaning Thomas is going to continue to run the offense through him. Atlanta and Dennis Schroder have been dreadful against opposing point guards all season long, allowing 55.8 FPPG, the second most by teams on tonight’s 7-game slate. It’s hard not to worry about a blowout with the way Atlanta has played in its past three contests (all blowouts), but this game has the makings of a stackable game with tons of fantasy production and the reduced price for Thomas provides a much safer floor with 60-point upside.
The trade deadline has come and gone. Thursday wasn’t filled with a ton of blockbuster news, but for this Mavs’ fan, something happened that I was hoping for back in November. Nerlens Noel is a Dallas Maverick. And the Mavs waived Deron Williams. It’s Yogi and Noel time in the Big D and I can’t […]
Well, are you nice and relaxed after your week off from NBA? I’ve been chomping at the bit to get back to work. Hockey and golf (with a little NASCAR) wasn’t cutting it for me. A lot has changed since the All-Star Break began, most notably the Boogie Cousins trade to New Orleans for chump […]
Well, this is it. For awhile anyway. The last big slate of games before the NBA All-Star Break. Tonight we have a 14-game slate to work with. Only Chicago and Washington are off tonight. There are two games Thursday, but let’s face it, the ASB kind of starts after tonight, and for a whole week. […]
Happy Valentine’s Day! The worst “holiday” of the year. Despite my wife and I getting our marriage certificate on this day, V-Day has little significance for me. For one, I don’t need a day to force me to appreciate and tell my wife I love her. Secondly, flowers die. V-Day is a lot like DFS […]
I have a broken heart, and it’s not even Valentine’s Day yet. I took a short hiatus from DFS this weekend as I went out of town to visit family. After I got home and helped get the baby to bed, I checked twitter and began a little research. Sifting through my feed, I see […]
Can we get some late swap action on DraftKings? My goodness was yesterday tilting. All 3 Cavs are supposed to sit, then they are active, but are we sure they are going to actually play? Oh, they start and play.. Well, alright then… Short slate Tuesday, ungraded Value Index – Results: Awesome Special Edition Thursday, […]