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This article aims to highlight some of the best NBA DFS Plays at every position for your cash game lineups. Keep in mind that the following player write-ups were constructed earlier in the day, and sometimes injury/rest situations can alter the fantasy landscape. Monitoring our NBA News & Headlines Feed throughout the day will keep you in the loop while giving you the subsequent DFS consequences of each information piece.
We’ll take a look at Friday’s nine-game slate starting at 7:00 ET. Note that Yahoo is running an eight-game main slate starting at 7:30 ET, which excludes the San Antonio and Philadelphia game.
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POINT GUARD
Jalen Brunson – Dallas (at Houston) - DK: $7,000 / FD: $5,300 / Yahoo: $23
Luka Doncic is doubtful tonight, and the Mavericks are also without Kristaps Porzingis tonight. They get the league’s best fantasy matchup with the Rockets. Houston allows the most fantasy points to point guards as well as the most overall fantasy points to their opponents. They play fast and loose, as they also rank first in turnover rate. Brunson had 35 fantasy points the first time these teams met, and while I’m having a tough time fitting him on DK, the other sites are pretty easy to make it happen. Consider pivoting to the uber-cheap Trey Burke on DraftKings.
Also Consider: Dejounte Murray, James Harden, Fred VanVleet, Patrick Beverley, Trey Burke, Delon Wright (if Trae Young is out), Anfernee Simons
SHOOTING GUARD
Malik Monk – LA Lakers (vs. Atlanta) - DK: $5,800 / FD: $5,900 / Yahoo: $15
Monk in the starting lineup for the Lakers is playing heavy minutes and making a big impact. He’s put up between 22 and 42 fantasy points in each of the last six games, since Christmas day. He’s scored at least 20 points in four of those games. Tonight’s matchup with Atlanta should be a high scoring and fantasy-friendly one, with the highest over/under (229 points) and narrow spread (Lakers minus-3). Atlanta is a great guard matchup and Monk is an affordable way to take advantage.
Also Consider: Bradley Beal, Darius Garland, Josh Giddey, Tim Hardaway Jr., Will Barton
SMALL FORWARD
Kevin Huerter – Atlanta (at LA Lakers) - DK: $5,000 / FD: $5,600 / Yahoo: $17
I just noted the great game factors this one has going for it and I think it makes sense to target it for value given how I want to spend tonight. Huerter showed that it makes no difference whether he starts or plays in a reserve role Wednesday night, as he had one of his best games off the bench in Sacramento. LA is also a noteworthy guard matchup (Huerter’s true position). Cam Reddish and Bogdan Bogdanovic are questionable to return tonight, but I’m not interested in Bogdanovic coming off protocols, and I prefer Huerter’s salary to Reddish’s, at least on DK, where things are tightest. The Hawks, if Young misses another game, should have plenty of minutes to go around for both wings.
Also Consider: Anthony Edwards, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Khris Middleton, Danilo Gallinari
POWER FORWARD
Giannis Antetokounmpo – Milwaukee (at Brooklyn) - DK: $11,400 / FD: $5,900 / Yahoo: $56
Antetokounmpo missed the Bucks’ last game with an illness but should return to his normal form for a fast-paced, high scoring, and close game with the Nets. Jrue Holiday’s absence adds some extra insurance that Giannis’ usage will be sky-high. The first time these teams met, he put up 66 fantasy points in just 30 minutes. There are plenty of ways to build lineups tonight, but I’m preferring a slightly more stars/scrubs strategy to not miss out on two of the biggest stars of the game.
Also Consider: Kevin Durant, LeBron James, Tobias Harris, Royce O’Neale, Maxi Kleber
CENTER
Nikola Jokic – Denver (vs. Sacramento) - DK: $12,000 / FD: $11,400 / Yahoo: $56
Despite the big slate, I find the center position fairly uninspiring tonight. There are some potentially interesting value plays, but when you can only roster one true center, I want it to be Jokic. Andre Drummond was back for Philadelphia last game, and Joel Embiid’s numbers took a hit. Other games don’t have as much potential for fantasy goodness as this one, either. The over/under is 226 points and Denver is the big home favorite over a Kings team that ranks fourth in overall fantasy points allowed, with the fifth-most to opposing centers. Jokic is putting the Nuggets on his back as usual, and should once again be the best option at this position.
Also Consider: Nikola Vucevic, Mike Muscala, Dwight Howard
ADDITIONAL NOTES
Royce O’Neale (F – UTA) is on track to play tonight for a very short-handed Jazz team. The matchup is nothing to get excited for but O’Neale is very good when given enough run and run is what he should get tonight. He’s a key piece to the affordable side of a lineup that includes two superstars. He double-doubled Wednesday vs. Denver, a much tougher assignment than tonight’s, yielding 40 fantasy points for his meager salary (about 10X value).
Patrick Beverley (G – MIN) and I have a long history of love/hate. I love him right up until I decide to finally trust him and then he lets me down. He’s on a string of really strong performances, including Wednesday vs. the Thunder, a game D’Angelo Russell returned for. Things I like about Beverley include the matchup and the fact that even when his shot isn’t falling like it has been lately, he is a master of the peripherals, often adding multiple steals, blocks, and of course assists. I expect a better effort from Russell in his second game back, but like both Timberwolves guards in GPP formats.
Dwight Howard (C – LAL) is a cheap risk/reward play. In his last game he awarded those who trusted him as a starter with over 40 fantasy points and a nice double-double. You’ll want to keep an eye on the Lakers’ starting lineup but it seems possible that they’ll stick with a bigger lineup vs. Clint Capela and the Hawks after Howard’s more than capable performance.
