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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 Thursday’s seven-game slate starting at 7:00 ET.
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POINT GUARD
Chris Paul – Phoenix (vs. Milwaukee) - DK: $9,200 / FD: $9,500 / Yahoo: $40
Writing on the trade deadline is always fun and sometimes an exercise in futility. With this PG play, though, no need to worry. That’s also true of the other top PGs tonight, making it a good spot to spend. You get the overlapping range of outcomes with Steph or Luka for less if you roster Chris Paul tonight. I also like that the point total on this game is the highest of the night, but the spread is narrow. Both teams play fast, and are well-matched offensively and defensively. It should be a four-quarter effort from all the stars, and is my favorite game to spend up on.
Also Consider: Luka Doncic, Ja Morant, Steph Curry, Fred VanVleet
SHOOTING GUARD
Desmond Bane – Memphis (at Detroit) - DK: $6,300 / FD: $6,000 / Yahoo: $23
Memphis is a big road favorite in Detroit tonight, so I think it makes sense to get some exposure to them where there is good value. I love Desmond Bane, but some recent struggles have caused his salary to drop. Shooting 22 percent from the field isn’t ideal, but it’s also not permanent. It is something of a gamble that tonight is the night he bounces back, but Detroit plays at a fast pace, ranks 25th in defensive rating, gives up the most fantasy points to small forwards (also good DvP to SG), and ranks 30th in rebounding. Even if Bane doesn’t completely get his shot back tonight, he should kick in enough peripherals to reach value in a plus game environment.
Also Consider: Kyrie Irving, Cam Thomas, CJ McCollum, Gary Trent, Klay Thompson
SMALL FORWARD
Deni Avdija – Washington (vs. Brooklyn) - DK: $3,600 / FD: $3,800 / Yahoo: $10
The last man standing in Washington? No, there is KCP and of course, Kyle Kuzma, but Avdija should benefit from the trade frenzy today. This is a nice matchup for the Wizards, given the Nets’ fast pace and lax defense (they allow the 10th-most fantasy points to opponents) made even better by the lack of both Harden and Durant. Vegas has it as a relatively close one, and although the Wizards could be in some disarray this afternoon, Avdija will have a hard time not reaching value at these salaries given the shorthandedness they’re dealing with. As bad as it’s been, the same could be said for Thomas Bryant, also super-cheap tonight and with no positional competition.
Also Consider: Jimmy Butler, Brandon Ingram, Evan Fournier, OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges, Khris Middleton
POWER FORWARD
Jaren Jackson Jr. – Memphis – (at Detroit) - DK: $7,300 / FD: $8,100 / Yahoo: $31
Jackson is pricey, but this is a doable stars/scrubs lineup night. He’s been worth it, scoring at least 21 points per game in his last three, two of which were double-doubles. He’s had multiple blocks and steals going back a much longer streak too. This is a juicy matchup with the league’s worst rebounding team, and Jackson projects as a safe, solid with upside play for any lineup tonight. The Grizzlies are scoring a million points a game, or close to it, which is a trend I’m trying to take advantage of tonight.
Also Consider: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Julius Randle, Kyle Kuzma, Scottie Barnes
CENTER
Pascal Siakam – Toronto (at Houston) - DK: $9,800 / FD: $10,400 / Yahoo: $42
Houston is the league’s best center matchup and they did not trade Wood today. The Rockets are also overall the best fantasy matchup, playing at the fastest pace and ranking last in defensive rating. Siakam has been solid gold for fantasy, with at least 50 fantasy points in each of his last four games. His heavy minutes should not be a concern, considering he is fully healthy and played 40-plus in both legs of a back-to-back last week, part of the 50-fpts streak.
Also Consider: Bam Adebayo, Christian Wood, Isaiah Stewart
Additional Notes
Cam Thomas (G – BKN) was already on the radar given Harden was ruled out tonight, but now that he’s gone, gone, maybe Thomas plays with a bit more motivation? I like everything about him, his usage, his matchup, his multi-category contributions…and find him a really nice fit at $5000 on DraftKings, $15 on Yahoo, and even $6000 on FanDuel.
Garrison Matthews (G/F – HOU) is an option if you really want to fit another star PG or maybe Adebayo or Butler. Matthews is essentially free, but has been over 20 fantasy points in his last two games, and over 30 three additional times since mid-January. There’s nothing about the trade deadline that makes him stand out today; if anything, people will probably be higher on Alperen Sengun. Matthews is a risk, but at his salary, it’s a small one with a potentially big pay off if he can get his shot working tonight.
Klay Thompson (G – GSW) is a solid mid-range play for a Warriors team otherwise on a back-to-back tonight vs. the Knicks. Thompson should be fresh and has played well recently. The matchup with New York isn’t particularly great, but quality shooting guards can get it going against the Knicks. Thompson is going to score, but he’s also been filling the stat sheet, giving himself a higher floor in games that aren’t as high scoring as the Warriors typically see.
