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 Saturday’s one-game slate starting at 8:30 ET.
Editor’s Note: Dominate daily with our premium DFS Tools that are packed with our lineup optimizer, a salary tracker, projections and much more. And don’t forget to use promo code WELCOME10 to get 10% off. Click here to learn more!
NOTES
The Clippers are down two games to Utah as the series heads to LA for Game 3 tonight. Vegas likes the home team, and has the Clippers favored by five points tonight with an over/under of 223 points. The Jazz wins haven’t been as dominant as they’ve felt from watching. Game 2’s victory was largely the result of superior three-point shooting by the Jazz, while in Game 1, the difference was points in the paint. The team statistics have been remarkably similar, so I do think this is still anyone’s series. However, the Jazz have been winning without Mike Conley, who has a chance to return tonight, and Utah is definitely a better team with him on the floor, so keep an eye on that news.
TOP PLAYS
Donovan Mitchell – G – Utah
Mitchell is the most expensive play on FanDuel, which I think is appropriate, so I’m happy to roster him on DraftKings and Yahoo, where he feels like a bargain. He’s been the best fantasy player in this series, and it’s not really close (average 50 fantasy points per game). His scoring is well above his average, as he alone has contributed 82 of the Jazz’ 229 points in the first two games. We know Mitchell is capable of 50-plus fantasy points with Conley running the point, but according to stat muse, Mitchell averages about eight more fantasy points per game when Conley is out. If Conley starts tonight, I’m probably taking Kawhi Leonard in the MVP spot on FanDuel.
Kawhi Leonard – F – LA
The only argument against Leonard is his high salary. Sure, he hasn’t been dominant in this series, yet, but he has been better at home this season, and with Vegas believing in the Clippers, it’s hard to fade the star of the team. It’s got to once again feel like a must-win game for him, and he responded in Round 1, closing out the series with a huge near triple-double. The main difference between Leonard’s home and road lines are in the peripheral stats, which have been the issue so far in this series. If he can get those up tonight, he’ll be worth the price.
Paul George – G – LA
It’s a pretty tight salary grouping among the top three guys tonight, and I truly think we’ll be able to fit all three superstars. The order I have them here is the order I’d roster them for bonuses, unless, as noted, Conley plays (I’d have Kawhi on top). George has double-doubled in both of the first two games vs. Utah, though his fantasy numbers are down because he’s had zero blocks or steals. Playing one of the best defensive teams in the league is going to depress production, but if there were a game in the series to see PG13 bounce back to the 50-fantasy point range, it’s this one.
NOTABLE BARGAINS
DeMarcus Cousins – C – LA is a key to fitting the three stars above. He’s a risk, for sure, as he didn’t see the floor in Round 1. But the Clippers have used him for small stretches to match up with Rudy Gobert, and he’s responded well. In these last two games, Cousins is averaging about two fantasy points per minute, which is amazing. The problem, of course, is that he’s played a total of 15 minutes. So you’re gambling on that minutes total making another jump from 11 in Game 2 to 15 or so tonight. The salary is worth the gamble, however: $10 Yahoo, $1400 DraftKings, and $7000 FanDuel.
Joe Ingles – G/F – Utah will save you some salary if Conley does remain out tonight. He’s always fine when starting in place of the oft-injured point guard, and while not a player that can vault your lineups to the top of a GPP very often, he’s a solid filler for the price. He made a notable contribution hitting four-of-seven threes in Game 2 for a final line of 19 real points and 33 fantasy points.
Reggie Jackson – G – LA is a great mid-range bargain, too, if he can stay out of foul trouble and get his 30-ish minutes. After fouling out in Game 1, Jackson led the Clippers in scoring in Game 2, with 29 real points. His peripherals are up and down, so volume is key for him. Jackson has made at least three triples in every game of the playoffs so far except the first one vs. Dallas.
[[ad:athena]]
OTHER NOTES
Rudy Gobert – C – Utah is a fine tournament play tonight, but I don’t like him enough to fade one of the big three above. He’s been up and down, with a high enough floor for the salary, but you’ll have to be very lucky with your bargain plays to survive a floor game from Gobert on this slate.
Jordan Clarkson – G – Utah is also a great player that I won’t have much exposure to, simply because of how I’m targeting the top three salaries. At $8200 (DK), $11,500 (FD) and $23 (Yahoo), he’s extremely tough to fit. It’s compounded by my tendency to believe the Clippers get their first win tonight and therefore have more potential. I think Clarkson absolutely comes through with his usual 30-ish fantasy points if you do want to build a more middle-of-the-road style squad.
Marcus Morris/Nicolas Batum – F – LA and Royce O’Neale – F – Utah
One of these three may make it into your last utility slot tonight, and I have no issue with it. They’re all very cheap, near minimum salary in Batum’s case, and playing heavy minutes. O’Neale leads in that category, giving him an assumed high floor, but he has been known to come up short. Batum plays fewer minutes than the other two, but contributes across the board every night. Morris, find your three-point shot tonight, please! He takes a lot of threes, and when they fall, like they did in Game 7 vs. Dallas, (7-of-9) it’s fantastic. However, even when he goes 0-5, like he did Thursday, Morris can reach value, as he did with 10 rebounds, three assists and a block. You’ll be guided mostly by salary as you choose one of these guys, but I rank them Morris, Batum, O’Neale for total value, as does our NBA DFS Optimizer.
