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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 one-game slate starting at 7:00 ET.
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Game Summary: Orlando is a 3.5-point favorite over Detroit in what is one of the league’s premier tanking battles. Both teams play at average pace, and both are ranked near the bottom of the league in defensive rating (Detroit is 24th, Orlando is 21st). Offensively, the Magic rank 29th and the Pistons rank 28th, so it will truly be interesting to see whether bad offense trumps bad defense in the final box score tonight. The Pistons are the worst rebounding team in the league and both teams have an above-average turnover rate. Orlando is overall the fourth-most generous fantasy matchup, while Detroit ranks ninth in fantasy points allowed to opponents. In three previous games this season, Detroit is up 2-1.
Multiplier Slots
Cade Cunningham (G – DET)
Currently carrying a questionable tag, but for an illness that kept him sidelined Tuesday night rather than an injury, Cunningham is one to lock in at that top multiplier slot and stay tuned for his status updates. With just the one NBA game today, news should be easy to come by. It’s a plus that Detroit released several inactives early Thursday morning, a list that did not include Cunningham. Prior to this illness, Cunningham had been tearing it up, with about half of his games in March going for over 50 fantasy points. His best games have come against his less defense-oriented opponents, too, which bodes well for him tonight.
Cole Anthony (G – ORL)
Anthony is pretty much a must-play tonight given the scarcity of options, and because of his consistency, I do like him in one of the top multiplier slots. Jalen Suggs is out, and R.J. Hampton has not been picking up the slack. Anthony has flashed a high ceiling at times, but I expect another steady 30-35 fantasy point performance tonight.
Marvin Bagley III (F – DET)
Given that the Pistons are going to be without Jerami Grant, and Bagley has been playing well alongside Grant, he is elevated to a must-play guy tonight. Though his minutes might not go up a ton (he’s averaging around 30 MPG), his usage should and this matchup is one that he can take advantage of. Orlando ranks second in fantasy points allowed to opposing power forwards. He’s likely to double-double tonight and come away with a couple of steals and/or blocks to boost his line.
Saddiq Bey (F – DET)
Everything I just said about Bagley, but for tournaments, I’m choosing Bey. He’s a little more expensive than Bagley, and hasn’t been putting up quite as good numbers as Bagley, but is playing a ton of minutes, and certainly has shown great potential. Earlier in the season, he was routinely putting up 40-50 fantasy point games and his ability to fill up the stat sheet is his path to increased value tonight.
Value Plays
Markelle Fultz (G – ORL)
While Hampton hasn’t really been taking advantage of his recent opportunity, Fultz has put together several impressive games. He still profiles as a risk/reward option, given that he has yet to play 20 minutes in a game. Still, he’s twice put up more than 30 fantasy points in his limited time, so for minimum salary (Yahoo), or very cheap ($4400 DK), he’s worth a look tonight.
Moritz Wagner (F/C – ORL)
Orlando has already ruled out Chuma Okeke, and Wendell Carter Jr. is questionable. For reasons that aren’t clear to me, Mo Bamba has not been playing up to his potential, which has opened up some extra opportunity for Moe Wagner. Wagner has actually had some nice outings this month, including two double-doubles. He’s scored in the double-digits in five of his last six games and is averaging almost eight rebounds per game in that span. Unfortunately, points and rebounds are probably all you can expect, but given Detroit’s defensive woes and league-worst rebounding rate, you can probably expect a bunch of them.
