NBA DFS Position Coach: January 4

Point Guard

Rajon Rondo has completely fallen out of favor of head coach Fred Hoiberg and there’s no sign of a return to the rotation. With that being said, Michael Carter-Williams has been the clear beneficiary of the Rondo benching and seems to be locked into a starting role. Fire up MCW. 

Ride the hot hand. NBA players can be quite streaky and Kemba Walker is hot right now. He’s scored 40,50 and 61 fantasy points in his last three games. Is a 70-pointer coming tonight? He’s facing Russell Westbrook and fading Walker would not be wise.

Darren Collison is coming off his best game of the season by far and it’s fully expected that he’s the chalk for tonight. Ty Lawson is currently listed as questionable but the Kings tend to be careful with their players, so expect Lawson to sit unless you hear otherwise. Collison is a great value play alongside MCW.

Goran Dragic was able to get some revenge against his former Suns team, however his team got the loss despite his strong play. Dragic gets the Kings today and the Heat will likely only have a few healthy players on the roster, meaning Dragic will have a very high usage rate.

 Shooting Guard

After missing the last few weeks, Victor Oladipo is back. He’s playing like his usual self and his price is just too low on DraftKings at $5,500. The Hornets are one of the worst teams in the league against SGs, so this is the perfect recipe for success. 

If Dwyane Wade misses tonight’s game, Jimmy Butler is a must-play in cash games and is a tough fade in GPPs. With Wade out last game, Butler dropped 80 fantasy points. Even if Butler were to get half of that, he’d still be turning in near 5x value. 

Nicolas Batum is a tough play in cash due to his inflated price of $8,000, but he’s worth a look in GPPs in a matchup with the Thunder. He has 50 point upside everytime he touches the floor and this should be a high-scoring bout. Batum’s ability to rack up assists, boards, blocks and steals makes him an appealing tournament option each and every night. 

Klay Thompson has hit five threes in four of his last five games. In the fifth game, he hit four. It’s safe to say Thompson has found his shot and he’s the best shooter on the Warriors right now while he’s hot. The Blazers and Warriors game should be the highest scoring game of the night and grabbing Thompson at $6,600 is a great way to get exposure.

Small Forward

Carmelo Anthony will be the chalk play of the night, but at just $7,100 it’s tough to imagine fading him. Kristaps Porzingis will likely sit out once again and that means Melo will have to carry most of the offensive load with Derrick Rose also seeing a bump in usage. He’s never an exciting play, but if Porzingis sits, he’s a must play in cash. 

DFS noobs often fall victim to the recency bias contracted from looking at a player’s game log and that will likely happen with Kevin Durant tonight. He should still be around 15-20 percent owned because of the O/U, but it may be lower with Butler and Melo likely being on most people’s teams. Durant could easily drop 60 tonight and he’s a great play against the Blazers. 

James Johnson is questionable tonight with an illness and there’s a good chance he sits. However, if he suits up he’ll be a great value play with the Heat battling a few injuries. He averages an impressive 0.98 FP/min and his bench role should not scare anyone away.

Jabari Parker has been rolling lately, but unfortunately his price has climbed to an uncomfortable $7,200. It’s a needed increase, but his upside is limited at this price. He’s a great play in cash games against the Knicks and I’d give him a long look for those looking for a safe 30-35 fantasy points.

Power Forward

Draymond Green always seems to destroy the Blazers and I’ll have exposure to Green tonight. The Blazers are bad against PFs this season and Green is coming off a triple-double. While I’m not expecting a triple-double, it’s fair to expect Green will stuff the stat sheet as per usual. Expect between 37-42 fantasy points tonight. 

Many DFS players missed out on Paul Millsap’s 56 fantasy point explosion against the Spurs including myself. That game was a simple reminder of the upside that Millsap possesses and he’s in play tonight against the Magic despite a tougher matchup with Serge Ibaka. 

On the other side of the ball, Serge Ibaka is also in play against Millsap. Millsap has much more upside than Ibaka, but the $1,000 price difference makes Ibaka a bit more appealing for cash games. 

Zach Randolph continues to be one of the safest cash game plays. He has a high-floor, but a relatively low ceiling due to his bench role. With Gasol healthy, Randolph will rarely eclipse the 30-minute mark, so just fire him up in cash games.

Center

Dwight Howard was rolling over his last five before flopping in his last start against the Spurs. The Spurs typically shut down opposing big men and it’s a forgivable dud. The dud should lower Howard’s ownership against a Magic team that struggles against centers. Howard is loaded with upside at $7,300.

Greg Monroe finally seems like he has crawled out of Jason Kidd’s massive doghouse, but as we’ve seen before, no one is ever safe from Kidd’s wrath. Monroe has played over 27 minutes in two straight games and he’s worth a look in GPPs considering he’s nearly a lock for 30 fantasy points if given the minutes.

Joakim Noah has been stepping up for the Knicks with Porzingis on the sidelines and he’s playing nearly 30 minutes per game with him out of the lineup. He has the potential for a double-double ach and every game and we know he can rack up the counting stats as well. Give Noah a look as a pivot from Willie Reed or Greg Monroe. 

Nikola Vucevic has scored 40 fantasy points in three straight games and he’s shown no signs of slowing down. Dwight Howard and the Hawks have been pretty solid against opposing big men, but let’s not forget he comes off the bench. Mike Muscala will not be able to stop Vucevic and look for him to notch another double-double.