Highest Scoring Teams:
(by Implied Points & Spreads per KenPom)
Gonzaga -- 86 Points (-14 vs. Santa Clara)
USC -- 76 Points (-9 vs. Utah) **DK ONLY**
Maryland -- 75 Points (-5 vs. Iowa)
Stanford -- 73 Points (-10 vs. Oregon State)
Colorado -- 71 Points (-7 vs. UCLA)
Oregon -- 70 Points (-10 vs. California)
Illinois -- 70 Points (-5 vs. Minnesota) **FD ONLY**
Arizona -- 70 Points (-2 vs. Washington)
Iowa -- 70 Points (+5 vs. Maryland)
Washington -- 68 Points (+2 vs. Arizona)
Top Guards
Payton Pritchard - Oregon ($9,000 DK / $8,400 FD)
There aren’t many sure things in DFS CBB like Payton Pritchard and he deserves to be strongly considered even at these expensive salaries. The Ducks’ senior point guard is one of the most consistent college basketball players in the country and his legit DFS floor is about 35 DK points - which is saying something because many top players in the nation are bound to have bad games. Not Pritchard. Since Pac-12 play began, he’s averaging 38.5 DK points with per-game averages of 21.8 real points, 5.1 assists, 4.4 rebounds and 1.5 steals over the eight-game span. His DFS value is so safe because he’s so heavily involved on both ends for Oregon - with a 28% usage rate, 30% shots share, 30% assist rate and 42% three-point shooting during conference action. Pritchard will have the ball in his hands all night on the road vs. California and you can basically pencil him in for 34-40 DK points and not have to worry about it.
McKinley Wright - Colorado ($8,200 DK / $6,600 FD)
If you’re not paying up for Payton Pritchard, an interesting pivot is Colorado’s do-it-all point guard who also owns a fairly high DFS floor because of his stat-stuffing tendency. During Pac-12 play, McKinley Wright is averaging 14.6 points, 6.9 assists, 5.9 rebounds and 33.8 DK points per game. The junior’s 39% assist rate is tops in the conference so far and he’ll be on the court virtually all game as the floor general. There aren’t many high-priced guards that can challenge Pritchard on tonight’s slate, but Wright is certainly in the conversation as he’s proven to have triple-double upside for 40-45 DK points at times this season. Colorado’s offense mainly runs through Tyler Bey and Wright and the easier matchup tonight vs. UCLA is in the backcourt - which favors Wright over his teammate slightly.
Chris Duarte - Oregon ($7,500 DK / $7,000 FD)
There may not be any other player in the country who has raised his DFS value more than Oregon’s Chris Duarte lately. The junior wing exploded for 66 and 57 DK points over the last two games, respectively, with combined stat totals of 54 real points, 17 rebounds, 14 steals, five assists and four blocks. He’s been extremely active on both offense and defense - and his DK salary has (unsurprisingly) increased by $1,000 after those two outings. Duarte had been putting up 25-30 DK points on a regular basis before this recent outburst - so he needs to be classified as a GPP play tonight because of his big salary increase. He’d be a lock play if he was still priced in the 6k range, but it’s a bit risky dedicating that much salary to a guy who’s just seen a major price bump. Still, Duarte can easily put together another stat-stuffing performance - which should keep his floor pretty high, even if he’s not making a ton of shots like he’s done the last two games.
Bryce Wills - Stanford ($4,800 DK / $4,400 FD)
Although he put up less than 10 DK points last time out, Bryce Wills should be able to bounce back tonight and become a solid salary-saver who can at least 4x his price tags. Before that dud on Sunday, Wills had averaged 24.8 DK points over the three games prior and he’s averaging 18.1 DK points over the last ten outings overall. The sophomore wing is a regular starter for Stanford and with his 25-35 minutes on the court, he’ll usually produce just enough in ancillary stats to return value. At 6-foot-6, Wills and his taller frame will be needed more defensively tonight to match up with Oregon State’s bigger guards than most of the Pac-12. We should see him return to his 20-25 DK points tonight with more minutes than his last game.
Marcus Tsohonis - Washington ($4,300 DK / $3,800 FD)
Washington is still trying to figure out how to replace Quade Green after the Huskies’ starting point guard was ruled academically ineligible for this semester - and Marcus Tsohonis seems like the best solution right now. Although Jamal Bey is starting in Green’s place, it’s Tsohonis who’s getting the most playing time at point guard lately despite coming off the bench. The freshman was originally planning on redshirting before Green’s absence, but it seems he’s now going to be playing a lot more minutes as one of Washington’s best ball-handlers and passers running the point. In Tsohonis’ first two games with extended action, he put up 22 and 21 DK points in 29 and 36 minutes played, respectively - and that’s the type of production we can hope for tonight after he was a little worse in the past two outings.
Other Guards to Consider:
Marcus Carr - Minnesota ($7,600 FD Only)
Joe Wieskamp - Iowa ($7,200 DK / $6,700 FD)
Jonah Mathews - USC ($6,100 DK Only)
Admon Gilder - Gonzaga ($5,800 DK / $5,100 FD)
CJ Fredrick - Iowa ($5,400 DK / $5,300 FD)
Shane Gatling - Colorado ($4,100 DK / $4,200 FD)
Top Forwards
Luka Garza - Iowa ($9,200 DK / $8,900 FD)
Garza is in the midst of one of the more surprising, breakout seasons in the country and he’s single handedly playing himself into the Player of the Year conversation. Over the last ten games, the Iowa center is putting up 46.7 DK points per game while averaging 23.6 real points, 11.6 rebounds and 2.2 blocks. He’s a legit force in the paint against Big Ten competition and only once over the last ten games has he put up less than 42 DK points. With his elite post scoring and rebounding ability on both ends, Garza has such a high DFS floor because he can stay out of foul trouble as a consistent double-double threat. Plus, Garza will have a favorable matchup tonight against a Maryland frontcourt that lacks size and is one of the worst defensive rebounding units in the conference. When Iowa played Maryland earlier this month, Garza had a monster game with his 21 points scored, 13 rebounds and 46 DK points. Even though this rematch is on the road, we should expect more of the same from Iowa’s big man.
Jalen Smith - Maryland ($8,500 DK / $8,200 FD)
The guy who will be battling Luka Garza in the paint tonight is Maryland’s Jalen Smith - and it’s about time we put some respect on his name. Smith has slowly become the focal point in the Terps’ offense and he’s coming off back-to-back performances of at least 25 points scored and 11 rebounds for 48 and 54 DK points, respectively. Over the last four games, Smith is averaging 22.5 points, 10.3 rebounds and 2.5 blocks/steals with double-digit shot attempts each time out. This Maryland offense has changed recently to feature Smith taking more three-pointers and getting the ball down low - and we should expect that to continue as the team is on a three-game winning streak. When Smith faced Iowa earlier this month, the sophomore only had 24 DK points in a down game - but we should expect him to far better this time around at home.
Chandler Lawson - Oregon ($4,800 DK / $4,400 FD)
Oregon’s frontcourt has been a revolving door all season, but the Ducks may have finally found their answer in Chandler Lawson. The freshman came off the bench all year until the past two games when he entered the starting rotation in place of Francis Okoro. In a reserve role three games ago, Lawson had 16 points scored, 12 rebounds and 36 DK points - and this is the performance that likely earned him a starting role moving forward. In his first start last week, he had 21 DK points before a less-than-stellar 8.25 DK points last time out. Still, it’s encouraging to see Oregon starting Lawson and giving him more playing time over Okoro and C.J. Walker lately. During conference play, Lawson has been Oregon’s best rebounder and that should keep his DFS value safe tonight against a Cal frontcourt that is not good on the offensive boards.
RaeQuan Battle - Washington ($4,300 DK / $4,100 FD)
Washington has been changing around its rotation a lot lately and it’s resulted in a much bigger role for RaeQuan Battle. The freshman wing had played sparingly to begin the season, but he’s now one of the main Huskies off the bench and even cracked the starting rotation twice in the past couple weeks. Washington has needed someone to step up with Quade Green ruled ineligible and Jaden McDaniels battling an ankle injury and inconsistent play. Battle is definitely one of those players to have a bigger role in the past month with an increase in offensive usage, shots share and minutes. He started the last game over McDaniels and this is something we could definitely see again tonight with the latter falling out of favor of the Washington coaches. In his two starts, Battle put up 24 and 20.5 DK points in 24 and 31 minutes - and he’s gone a combined 7-for-17 from three-point range. The upside is definitely there if we see Battle’s name amongst the starters once again.
Stone Gettings & Ira Lee - Arizona
Arizona big man Chase Jeter is a game-time decision tonight, and both Stone Gettings and Ira Lee would continue to be solid values if Jeter remains out. Gettings ($4,200 DK / $3,800 FD) has started the last three games with Jeter sidelined and he put up 15 and 18 DK points in two of those starts. Meanwhile, Lee ($4,100 DK / $3,900 FD) has stayed on the bench but he’s actually played 20-25 minutes over the last two games and had 15 and 18 DK points of his own in two of the last three outings. If Jeter remains out - which is looking likely as of Wednesday night - then both Lee and Gettings are solid salary-savers on tonight’s slate.
Other Forwards to Consider:
Tres Tinkle - Oregon State ($8,800 DK / $8,500 FD)
Onyeka Okongwu - USC ($8,700 DK Only)
Killian Tillie - Gonzaga ($7,000 DK / $6,500 FD)
Spencer Jones - Stanford ($5,300 DK / $4,600 FD)
Lucas Siewert - Colorado ($5,100 DK / $5,000 FD)
Hameir Wright - Washington ($5,000 DK / $4,400 FD)
DraftKings Example Lineup:
G: Payton Pritchard - ORE ($9,000)
G: Bryce Wills - STAN ($4,800)
G: Marcus Tsohonis - UW ($4,300)
F: Luka Garza - IOWA ($9,200)
F: Jalen Smith - MD ($8,500)
F: RaeShon Battle - UW ($4,300)
U: Admon Gilder - GONZ ($5,800)
U: Ira Lee - AZ ($4,100)
FanDuel Example Lineup:
G: Payton Pritchard - ORE ($8,400)
G: McKinley Wright - COLO ($6,600)
G: Bryce Wills - STAN ($4,400)
G: Marcus Tsohonis - WASH ($3,800)
F: Luka Garza - IOWA ($8,900)
F: Jalen Smith - MD ($8,200)
F: RaeQuan Battle - WASH ($4,100)
U: CJ Fredrick - IOWA ($5,300)