DFSGhost 
Another NBA slate to tackle with plenty of news to follow; the list of questionable and doubtful players is endless tonight, so following the news will be as crucial as ever as we enter the latter stages of the season. It’s Wet Wednesday’s edition of the Gems – let’s ride.
One thing I want to clarify based on the questions I have received is that I will never list a player under the $5,000 FD price tag simply because I use the projection model to identify all targets in these price ranges and below. While there are often plenty of options that I like in this range, you all have access to the very model I use to make my own selections, so when asking “Should I use player X or player Y?”, make sure to check the model because that is how I make all of my own decisions and I truly ride or die by it on a daily basis.
Before running to the DraftKings, FanDuel, or Yahoo lobby to construct your NBA DFS lineup after reading this article, please make sure to utilize the abundance of tools we have at Win Daily:
Point Guards
Russell Westbrook ($11,100 FD / $11,100 DK)
Not sure we can fade him on any NBA slate for the rest of the season, to be honest. He’s likely going to be a daily writeup when Washington plays and rightfully so; Westbrook has been getting triple-doubles like it’s his day job and provides with a floor/ceiling combination like no other on this slate. Sporting a 29.8% usage rate this month, Westbrook has averaged 21.7/13.1/11.9 across 37.6 MPG for the Wizards in April, where they are now 10-5 in 15 contests.
Damian Lillard ($8,100 FD / $9,300 DK)
I wrote up yesterday for being an elite option at mid-tier pricing and his tag went down – you knew this one was coming. I did point out that the matchup was tough versus Brogdon yesterday, and even with a mediocre performance, he was in the 100k winning lineup. Tonight, Dame gets a friendlier matchup versus Ja Morant and the Grizzlies, who rank 13th in defensive efficiency in their last three games and let Dame post a 23/6/5 scoring line in a 120-113 loss just a few days ago despite Lillard shooting 8-for-27 from the field. Elite option on this NBA slate at such low pricing.
Also Consider:
- Chris Paul ($8,200 FD / $7,600 DK)
- Terry Rozier ($7,700 FD / $7,700 DK)
- Dejounte Murray ($7,500 FD / $7,300 DK)
Shooting Guards
Devin Booker ($7,700 FD / $8,000 DK)
Despite my preference being CP3 in this one due to my resiliency of playing primary ball handlers versus LA, Book has been getting his fair share of ball handling duties to close out quarters in the opening half; Phoenix has been going back to its old ways, whereby Booker essentially closes the first and second quarters on his own, leaving him plenty of potential to get hot when PG comes off the floor; despite the 23.5% usage rate in two games versus LA this season, Booker has a 24.5/4/5.5 scoring line on 50% shooting and will have ample opportunity with a depleted rotation in Phoenix.
Jordan Clarkson ($6,300 FD / $6,900 DK)
I get it’s a pretty penny to pay for a pure scorer that often comes off the bench, and even with both Mike Conley and Donovan Mitchell already ruled out for the Jazz tonight, that still may still be the case for Clarkson, although I do expect him to start alongside Joe Ingles. Nonetheless, Clarkson saw a whopping 41 minutes in Utah’s last game without their starting backcourt, where he dropped 27/5/4 and took 27 shots with an increase in usage rate, assist rate, and scoring. There’s plenty of spots to attack on any given NBA slate, but it always starts with the worst defense in the NBA for me, which Clarkson gets tonight in a matchup versus Sacramento.
Also Consider:
- Paul George ($9,900 FD / $9,800 DK)
- Bradley Beal ($9,500 FD / $10,000 DK)
- CJ McCollum ($7,700 FD / $8,100 DK)
Small Forwards
Jaylen Brown ($8,100 FD / $8,500 DK)
From yesterday’s writeup:
“I’ll keep this one short and sweet since I shouldn’t have to explain why JB should be highly considered no matter what his ownership is on tonight’s NBA slate with both Kemba Walker and Jayson Tatum ruled out; Brown sees an 8.2% usage increase (37.7%), 10% assist rate increase (26.9%) and a 0.14 FPPM increase (1.18) with both of his teammates of the floor and gets a favorable matchup versus an OKC squad ranked 24th in defensive efficiency on the season and 27th in their last three games.”
JB put up 67 fantasy points. Hopefully you didn’t fade because of ownership and for the sake of “leverage” – if you did, well, lesson learned – don’t do that again.
Michael Porter Jr. ($7,700 FD / $8,600 DK)
With 20 or more points in nine of his last ten, it’s clear that MPJ has stepped up for the Nuggets in the absence of Jamal Murray. Sporting a 23.9% usage rate in that span, MPJ has dropped 24.8/7.5/1.3 on 55% shooting while logging 36 MPG for a Denver team still seeking a championship run. With a 27th ranked New Orleans defense on tap for tonight’s NBA slate, MPJ is a great GPP play with high upside.
Also Consider:
- Joe Ingles ($6,100 FD / $6,700 DK)
- Cedi Osman ($5,500 FD / $5,000 DK)
- Bojan Bogdanovic ($5,200 FD / $6,400 DK)
Power Forwards
Julius Randle ($9,900 FD / $10,300 DK)
Leading the way for the Knicks all season long, who are now 10-4 in April, Julius Randle has been a force for Tom Thibodeau and company. Sporting a 32% usage rate this month in their 14 contests, Randle has posted a 26.6/9.1/6.6 scoring line on 43.4% shooting while taking over 20 FGA per night, in addition to logging a ridiculous 39 MPG. Although the addition of Nikola Vucevic improved the Bulls frontcourt defense, Randle has had his number in three previous meetings this season, averaging 21.3/11.3/7 on 41.4% shooting. On an NBA slate with power forward options, none are safer than Randle.
Tobias Harris ($7,000 FD / $7,400 DK)
Like I said above, the options at PF are thin, which means the PF2 spot on FD is up for grabs by almost the entire player pool. We need to get risky with this one, which is why I have chosen Tobias Harris, who is the clear cut #3 options on a healthy 76ers roster. However, Harris draws a favorable matchup versus John Collins tonight, who everyone knows I love to pick on; averaging 3.1 fouls per night, Collins struggles mightily on the defensive end, where the Hawks rank 24th versus opposing power forwards with over 45 FPPG allowed.
Also Consider:
- Zion Williamson ($9,400 FD / $10,200 DK)
- Jaren Jackson Jr. ($6,200 FD / $6,300 DK)
- Aaron Gordon ($5,200 FD / $5,200 DK)
Centers
- Nikola Jokic ($11,100 FD / $11,000 DK)
- Jonas Valanciunas ($7,100 FD / $7,900 DK)
- Enes Kanter ($4,900 FD / $4,900 DK)
- Willy Hernangomez ($4,300 FD / $4,200 DK)
Value Gems: Check the projection model.
I will continue to stress the importance of having both the projection model and cheat sheet open when building lineups for a further player pool and to ease a decision between two players, in addition to finding additional value plays.
You can find me on Twitter @DFS_Ghost
