Saturday’s main NBA slate features six games, with many of the league’s top teams taking the court. There are some great defensive teams on the floor tonight, but note that Boston, Denver, and Milwaukee all get some of the most fantasy-friendly matchups in the league. The only big injury news to watch is Derrick Favors and Hassan Whiteside. I’m assuming Anthony Davis remains out tonight in addition to Jrue Holiday, Joel Embiid, and Kristaps Porzingis. In this column, I generally set $6000 FD/$5000 DK as the bargain threshold, and I try to indicate when I think a position is particularly well-suited--or not--to using the cheap plays given the landscape of the particular slate. DraftKings’ pricing is notably sharper than FanDuel’s tonight, so I tried to provide a couple extra options to consider where it was feasible. Tonight’s slate tips at 7:00 pm EST.
Point Guard
Rajon Rondo, LA Lakers at Oklahoma City ($3900 FD, $3800 DK)
Rondo is still capable of a big game performance, but they are few and far between. Davis being out does create some extra usage, maybe, but Rondo has put up two nice games against the Thunder already this season (average 21 fantasy points). He’s been better on the road this season, about six fantasy points per game better, and if I’m going to save at this position, I’m going to save BIG. That’s really what Rondo gets you – 20 super-cheap points.
George Hill, Milwaukee Bucks at Portland ($4000 FD, $4200 DK)
Not an exciting player, but there are too many reasons to spend up here tonight. Hill is at least an affordable, consistent option, in a great matchup with a favorable spread.
Shooting Guard
Josh Hart, New Orleans Pelicans at Boston ($4600 FD, $4800 DK)
It’s kind of a coin flip between Hart and JJ Redick on FanDuel, but Hart is significantly less expensive on DraftKings. Both guys are up and down but Redick depends much more on his shot than Hart. I prefer the guy who is cheaper and has the chance to contribute with meaningful rebounds, steals, and assists too.
Marcus Smart, Boston Celtics vs. New Orleans ($5100 FD, $4800 DK)
Smart was exceptional against the 76ers Thursday night, pouring in 24 real points in addition to his usual multiple steals and scattered other peripherals. He gets an easier go of it tonight vs. New Orleans, and should be a solid play in this salary range in his usual 30-plus minutes.
Small Forward
Dorian Finney-Smith, Dallas Mavericks vs. Philadelphia ($4500 both)
I could also include Tim Hardaway Jr. here, but he’s one of those guys that burns me just when I start to believe in them again. FWIW, Hardaway is coming off a great game, and had a great game the first time these teams played. Finney-Smith wasn’t bad either, with 11 points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals vs. Philly earlier in the season. He’s had a very good and consistent January, playing 28-38 minutes a night. This is one of the more competitive and higher scoring games on the slate, and this is a good way to get some cheaper exposure. Gotta love that his initials are DFS too.
Gordon Hayward, Boston Celtics vs. New Orleans ($6000 FD, $6500 DK)
Hayward should be a fairly contrarian play tonight as he is either at the very top or well over the bargain threshold depending where you’re playing and is coming off an awful game vs. Philadelphia. I expect him to bounce back tonight after playing really well and really consistently over the last 2-3 weeks.
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Power Forward
Jerami Grant, Denver Nuggets vs. Cleveland ($4000 FD, $4900 DK)
There is a ton of PF value and it’s a good position to save on if you plan to spend up at PG, SF and/or C. Grant was outstanding in Millsap’s absence Wednesday night, scoring 15 points with a full stat sheet including three blocks. Cleveland is not only the third-best overall matchup for fantasy, they rank 10th in fantasy points allowed to opposing forwards.
Sekou Doumbouya, Detroit Pistons vs. Chicago ($4900 FD, $5300 DK)
I’m not ready to stop using Doumbouya, since his price is barely rising and Chicago is literally the best PF matchup in the league. Tony Snell seems to have maybe put a damper on his potential as his minutes (and production) did drop in the last game against Cleveland. I’m willing to give him another chance, assuming that Detroit wants to continue to get a good look at the rookie.
Kyle Kuzma, LA Lakers at Oklahoma City ($4100 FD, $5400 DK)
With Davis out, Kuzma had one of the best games of the year. He scored 26 points with six rebounds and two assists vs. Dallas last night. Though there have been a few exceptions, Kuzma is about a fantasy-point-per-minute guy, so if he sees 30-plus minutes again, you’re got great value here.
Daniel Theis, Boston Celtics vs. New Orleans ($4400 FD, $4500 DK)
Because some of the PF value is so obvious tonight, consider Theis for an out of the box play. He’s not going to vault you to the top of any tournaments, but he is a safe play for the price, generally playing about 24 minutes and scoring in a variety of ways to eek out 20-30 fantasy points. New Orleans is the eighth-best overall fantasy matchup and also eighth-best against power forwards…and is probably without Favors.
Center
Jaxson Hayes, New Orleans Pelicans at Boston ($4000 FD, $3800 DK)
Speaking of being without Favors, Hayes should be on your cheap center radar for sure. I’m not all-in here because the consequences of fading Andre Drummond or Nikola Jokic tonight could be fatal. That said, for GPPs, Hayes produced well when given the chance earlier in the season and is crushing this week with back-to-back double-doubles for an average of 39 fantasy points per game in his last two.
