DFS NBA Position Coach: April 8

Point Guard

The Jazz will be traveling to Portland on Saturday to face the Trailblazers for the second time this week.  Utah did a great job at shutting down Damian Lillard, but that game was in Utah where the Jazz are holding opponents to the fewest points per game in the league.  On the road, the Jazz are a bit worse defensively and Lillard, who has struggled in Utah, torched them for 39 points all the way back on opening night when the game was played in Portland.  Lillard will likely be under owned given the matchup but I like the fact he is playing at home.

T.J. McConnell continues to do a little bit of everything for DFS players and at a mid-value price tag on a relatively small slate I feel like he offers solid value.  Over the last five games he is averaging 9.8 points, 8.2 assists 4.0 rebounds and 1.8 steals per game.  In two games against the Bucks this season McConnell is averaging 4.5 points, 10.5 assists, 2.5 rebounds and 2.0 steals per game.

The Jazz are likely going to be without George Hill again on Saturday which opens the door up for Shelvin Mack.  Over the last five games Mack is averaging 11.4 points, 3.6 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.0 steals over 27 minutes per game.  His numbers are not flashy but given his price tag he should have little trouble reaching value and open up some cap space for you to spend up at other positions.

Shooting Guard

Giannis Antetokounmpo is averaging 21.3 points, 4.0 assists, 8.7 rebounds, 2.0 blocks and 2.7 steals over three games against the Sixers this season.  Philadelphia has nobody that can guard the Greek Freak, not that many team do, but even at his price tag tonight I have little doubts he will be able to hit value.  Over the last five games Giannis has stepped his game up even more, averaging 23.4 points, 11.0 rebounds, 6.2 assists, 2.2 blocks and 1.6 steals per game.

The Warriors are likely going to be without Stephen Curry on Saturday night and while Kevin Durant is expected to make his return and be without a minutes restriction, I still think the Warriors take the cautious approach here, which should be Klay Thompson in a prime spot against a Pelicans team that struggles defensively and have been unable to stop Thompson as he is averaging 23.0 points, 3.0 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.3 steals in three contests against them this season.

Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot or TLC for short has exploded onto the DFS scene in recent weeks.  Over his last four contests he is averaging 19.8 points, 3.3 rebounds, 1.5 assist and 1.8 steals per game while taking exactly 15 shots per contest.  The 76ers are going to let their 2016 first round pick play regardless of the score and at his mid-level price tag is a must start, even against a tough matchup against the Bucks.

Small Forward

The Spurs rested Kawhi Leonard in their last contest so he will be ready to go for Saturday’s tilt against the Clippers.  While there is always that inherent risk that Coach Pop will decide to limit the minutes of his start players without notice the matchup for Leonard here is one too hard to ignore as Kawhi is averaging 20.7 points, 6.0 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 1.0 blocks and 1.0 steals in three games against the Clippers this season.

Gordon Hayward just had a big night against the Trail Blazers on Tuesday when he dropped 30 points with four rebounds, two assists, one block and four three-pointers over 35 minutes.  On the season, Hayward is averaging 26.0 points, 5.0 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game against Portland.  Saturday’s game is going to be on the road where the Jazz tend to find themselves in higher scoring contests which should bode well for Hayward’s production.

Khris Middleton continues to be solid since returning to the Bucks lineup and has at times flashed the scoring ability that he put on display last season.  While Giannis dominates the usage rates there are few players at Middleton’s price tag that has his ceiling which makes him a solid play given the upside in a game that should be relatively high scoring given the 209 total.

Power Forward

The Warriors rested Draymond Green in their last contest but he will suit up on Saturday against the Pelicans.  The Warriors are expected to be without Steph Curry which should put Draymond into more of a ball handler role which will only up his value.  Take into account the fact that the Pelicans are going to be without both DeMarcus Cousins and Anthony Davis it’s hard to figure who will stop Green on the defensive end as well.  The price tag is very reasonable and while there is definite blowout potential here I do like the upside.

Like Kawhi Leonard the Spurs decided to rest LaMarcus Aldridge during their last contest so he would be ready to go on Saturday against the Clippers.  This matchup is a potential playoff preview and while the Spurs are locked into the No.2 seed in the West I am sure this is a game they want to win.  LMA has put up relatively pedestrian numbers against the Clippers this season but did post a double-double in their last meeting with 15 points and 11 boards over 34 minutes.

James Johnson has really enjoyed his first season in Miami and DFS players have enjoyed it just as much as the veteran forward has put up some pretty big games while maintaining a very reasonable price tag throughout the season.  Against the Wizards this season Johnson is averaging 15.5 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.0 blocks per game.  Over his last five games however James has really had it rolling, averaging 17.4 points, 5.6 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 2.2 steals and 2.2 three-pointers per game.

Center

Let’s face it, without Jusuf Nurkic the Trail Blazers have nobody that is going to guard Rudy Gobert.  Gobert is averaging 15.0 points, 12.3 rebound, 1.3 assists and 2.7 blocks per game against Portland this season and just this past Tuesday scored 20 points with 11 boards, two assists and three blocks in a Utah win.  The Stifle Tower is one of the best centers on the board today and should really be in your lineup given the value at the other positions.

This is a must win for the Clippers on Saturday and with that motivation against a Spurs team that is locked into the No.2 seed regardless of the outcome, I expect the Clippers to come out firing on all cylinders and one of the guys leading that charge should be DeAndre Jordan.  Jordan should have little troubling bullying Pau Gasol on both ends of the floor and while on the year Jordan is averaging just 11.0 points, 8.3 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game against the Spurs he is averaging 14.4 points, 15.6 rebounds and 1.6 blocks over his last five games.  If you need to save a few bucks from Gobert then Jordan is the man to play.

As I mentioned before the Pelicans are going to be without Demarcus Cousins and Anthony Davis on Saturday which leaves Alexis Ajinca as the Pelicans center.  Ajinca has played sparingly this season but in the Pelicans last contest he scored 15 points with seven rebounds, one block and one steal over 28 minutes against the Nuggets.  I do not feel like center is a position you need to spend down on tonight but if you want to then Ajinca would be that min-value option.