Tonight brings a five game slate starting at 7:30 p.m. ET.
The “Droppin Dimes,” article will go over my favorite plays for the slate. It will consist of three to five core plays along with a few additional plays and a few value plays. You won’t always see the highest-priced players or the most obvious plays. Players listed first at each position are my favorite play and or return on value(projected points divided by salary).
(Note: All pricing and fantasy points are based on DraftKings but can be used for all sites.)
Keep an eye on the injury status of players as they can be ruled out right before lock.
NOTES:
FPPM= Fantasy Points Per Minute, FPPG= Fantasy Points Per Game, PPG=Points per Game, Value=Projected points/salary(This will differ depending on the site).
Game/s to Target
Lakers@Spurs- Fastest pace game on the slate and the second highest total with a close spread.
The Spurs are popping in my model- Derrick White, Jakob Poeltl, Keldon Johnson and Dejounte Murray.
If/Then….(Injury scenarios)
-Not much on the injury report today
- If Joel Embiid sits out then Andre Drummon if he plays. Tobias Harris, Georges Niang and Tyrese Maxey
- If Andre Drummond sits then Geroges Niang and Paul Reed will get additional minutes.
- If LeBron James sits out then Anthony Davis and Russell Westbrook both get a bump. Westbrook get the slight edge. These two in play if James sits.
Dejounte Murray, San Antonio Spurs ($7300/$7800)
The first thing I see when looking at Murray is his minutes. Minutes have been consistent and in the mid 30s. This kid has triple-double upside just about every night as he is one of the better rebounding guards. In addition, Murray is an aggressive player on defense as he is averaging 2.3 steals per game this year. The Spurs play against the Lakers tonight and they are not the same defensive team as they were last year. They added Russell Westbrook and just about everyone else on the roster other than LeBron James and Anthony Davis. So far this year, the Lakers are allowing the 5th most points. They also run at plus 5 pace differential, which is another plus for Murray. This is the type of game where you can see a triple-double from him or at least a double-double.
Also consider: Luka Doncic, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Value: Jalen Brunson, Alec Burks-pivot off Brunson with similar upside.
Luguentz Dort, Oklahoma City Thunder ($4700/$4800)
Dort is averaging over 30 minutes a game and will play in the higher 30s if the game stays close. He will be needed on the court today for his defense to try and slow down Curry and Poole. Averaging 22 FPs on the season and averaging double digit shots. A faster paced game where he should play some additional minutes and will be active defending Curry will give Dort higher upside.
Also consider: Derrick White, Jordan Poole
Value: Lonnie Walker IV, Andre Iguodala
Jae’Sean Tate, Houston Rockets ($5300/$6200)
Playing solid minutes, especially in close games. The first game he played only 21 minutes and had a poor showing of only 7.8 FPs. Over the last two games, Tate has averaged 32 minutes, 14 points, 11 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.5 steals (33.5 and 44.5 FP respectively). This is more of a DraftKings play at just over 5K as his floor is somewhat safe at this price. This is a tougher matchup, but I can still see him getting double-digit rebounds and if he can put up some additional points this is where his upside will come in. Small Forward is a bit weak tonight on this 5 game slate and Tate looks like one of the better options to return value.
Also consider: Josh Giddey, Kevin Porter Jr. (FanDuel), RJ Barrett
Value: Alec Burks
Keldon Johnson, San Antonio Spurs ($5200/$5600)
Here is another Spur player that I like a lot tonight. Johnson has seen a boost in usage and shot attempts this year averaging 16 so far. The fast pace of this game give Johnson some upside with some additional scoring and rebounding. As I mentioned earlier, I like the Spurs in this spot against the Lakers tonight and I expect Johnson to play well in what should be a close game. I could see a 20-25 points, 5-7 rebounds and a few peripheral stats from him tonight.
Also consider: Julius Randle- averaging just shy of 40 minutes and 60 FPs, Kristaps Porzingas
Value: Jeremiah Robinson-Earl
Mike Muscala ($3500 DK) /Darius Bazley ($5000 DK) , Oklahoma City Thunder
The Thunder will be without Derrick Favors tonight which opens up more minutes for a few other players- Mike Muscala, Darius Bazley and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl. Muscala and Bazley have the higher upside and my favorite f the three. Mike Muscala is only 3.5 K and has been playing around 12-16 minutes a game and could see an additional 5-7 minutes tonight. He is averaging 1.3 FPPM and with this pace up spot and the additional minutes we could see Muscala exceed 20 FPs which gives him around a 6 times return. Bazley o nthe other hand is 5K and has played over 30 minutes in to of the three games so far and is averaging 23 FPPG. In the past, he has shown close to 50 FP upside. I am leaning towards Muscala as he is the cheaper option, but both are good plays to return value with some upside.
Also consider: Jakob Poeltl, Mitchell Robinson
Value: Dwight Powell, Hassan Whiteside
CORE PLAYS
Dejounte Murray
Keldon Johnson
Mike Muscala
Dimes Play(GPP Play of the Night)
Alperen Sengun-averaging 1.4 FPPM and could see some additional minutes tonight.
**Options to help build lineups- Take these core plays and enter into optimizer with your favorite setting(rating, FBrating, FBprojections, FunkProjections, ownership or ratings). OR use this article to help you build a lineup with some of your favorite plays. The Dashboard is also a great tool to help build lineups- It contains a good variety of stats and projections from multiple sources.
Good Luck!