NBA DFS Value Vault: February 19

FanDuel

Willy Hernangomez , C NO ($4,400)

Follow the playing time. Over the past few weeks Hernangomez has begun to encroach on Steven Adams from a playing time perspective, but now with the incumbent dealing with an ankle injury, things are looking even better for him tonight. After watching Adams exit early in each of the last two games with said injury, Hernangomez is slated to start tonight as he looks for his fourth double-double of the month with the most recent one coming on Wednesday. With 11 points and 17 rebounds on Wednesday, Hernangomez is coming off his best game of the season. I wouldn’t consider it a fluke as it came after the center scored 14 points while grabbing eight rebounds in just 17 minutes of play as he certainly is capable.

Michael Carter-Williams , PG (ORL) $4,500

With Cole Anthony sidelined, Carter-Williams continues in the starting lineup and in those three games, since returning from an injury of his own, the point guard is averaging 28.7 minutes per game. That appears to have given us a floor of about 20 fantasy points, but in his first game back we saw the best of what Carter-Williams has to offer as he put up 21 points, seven rebounds, and seven assists. We clearly need Carter-Williams to score more than the six points he did in his last game, but with 13.7 points over those last three games, he is capable of it while the assists and rebounds help to ensure his performance won’t be a complete bust.

Cedi Osman , SF (CLE) ($4,200)

Let’s keep the good times rolling. After scoring 20 points in 25 minutes of play on Sunday against the Clippers, Osman found himself in the starting lineup the next night and he certainly took advantage of the situation. The forward promptly scored 17 points while grabbing 10 rebounds and he likely finds himself back in the starting lineup tonight. It has been an up and down season for Osman, but with his 11.5 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 2.5 assists per game there is a decent floor here but being in the starting lineup certainly helps alleviate a lot of that risk as momentum in his friend.

DraftKings

Theo Maledon , PG (OKC) $4,700

Order is now restored in the Thunder’s backcourt and perhaps the best news of that from Maledon’s perspective, is that he can co-exist with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander . With both in the backcourt on Wednesday, Maledon played 34 minutes and scored 14 points to go with five rebounds, two assists, and two steals. Based on what we have seen out of the rookie to this point, that appears to be a reasonable expectation of his performance going forward with one variable; the scoring. In the game prior we got a peak at Maledon’s floor from a fantasy perspective as he scored seven points which was good for 16 fantasy points compared to the 27.75 fantasy points he put up on Wednesday. Between the two games I think we have a good picture of the potential range of outcomes for Maledon, and at his price and expected minutes load, it could fit nicely into your lineup tonight.

Darius Garland , PG (CLE) $5,400

For a true value play, Garland is at the high range of that pricing, but he is also a far cry from the elite point guards on tonight’s slate. But when it comes to upside, he is a lot closer to their level than it may appear based on his cost. Over his last five games, Garland is averaging 27 fantasy points and in two of those games he has 32 and 34.75 fantasy points while playing an average of 33 minutes. Five games ago, Garland was priced at $6,200 which seems to be more reasonable, so we will take tonight’s price without complaint as there is no compelling reason for him not to hit his season averages of 15.9 points and 5.3 assists per game with room for upside based on his scoring ability.

Garrett Temple , SG (CHI) $4,000

If Temple doesn’t excite you, that is reasonable, but as the Bulls continue to deal with injuries, he is playing around 30 minutes a game at a very affordable price. In three of his last five games, Temple eclipsed double digits in points, and in a fourth, he scored nine points. What catches my attention even more so, is the fact that in the game where Temple scored just two points, he still finished with 16.25 fantasy points thanks to nine rebounds. Depending on the game there is a little upside in play here, but Temple’s value resides more in cost certainty and predictability of around 20 fantasy points.

NBA DFS Value Vault: February 19

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