NBA DFS Playbook Position Coach: November 11, 2015

I sometimes act like a spoiled child. Like last night. Every Tuesday I grab my set of darts my late mother left me and go play in a dart league against guys who play with unbelievable skill. The problem is I do not have the same skill. I don’t even play darts unless it is Tuesday night. So usually I end up getting spanked like an unfortunate fellow at a bachelor party. This, on most nights, is OK and I can get past it and have a good time despite the beating I take.

Last night, though, was a wee bit different. Mid-throw I hear my cell phone go “ding," alerting me to some breaking NBA news. Kevin Durant left the game and will not return the message reads. Then I notice some of my guys are not performing so well. Not all of them, but just enough to ruin your night. It was all down hill for me from here. The end result of the evening was a miserable DFS showing and a wife I owe an apology too. It was one of those nights she decided the best option was to take my phone away from me like a misbehaving teenager.

The lesson is, no matter how much research we do or how much time we put into building our lineups we can only do so much. The rest is on the players we choose. I hate losing. Who doesn’t? It sucks right? So let’s try to turn it around tonight.

On Wednesdays you may notice the Position Coach comes out much later in the afternoon. This is because we have a full slate on Wednesdays, which doubles the research time and I am pretty thorough. There is a ton of information to go over.

Point Guard

The point guard position tonight is stacked. We have great players in good matchups everywhere, making it even more difficult to narrow it down in cash game play.

Without a doubt my favorite play of the evening at the position is Damian Lillard. Talk about incredible, Lillard is averaging almost 28 points per game with eight rebounds and is coming off a 30-point performance on Monday night versus the Nuggets. Tonight the Trail Blazers are 7.5 point underdogs and I expect Lillard to easily put up over 40 fantasy points. If you spend up at any guy tonight at this position then Lillard is the man.

For the price and great matchup tonight you should take a look at Jeff Teague. Teague is averaging over 33 fantasy ppg and has scored double-digit points in every game this season. Tonight he is facing the newly victorious Pelicans who are allowing the most points to the PG position on the young season.

It is not often Stephen Curry is not at the No. 1 spot of the evening. It is one of those moves when writing that just feels wrong. Curry in the last five games has scored over 30 points three times with one double-double thrown in and is averaging 50 fantasy ppg. With so much value everyone will be fading him tonight which does make Curry the guy I will be running out in all my GPP stars and scrubs lineups.

Another guy I love tonight is Reggie Jackson. The thing is, I am not sure if I like him because he is the right play or I just love the name. I assure you I was a much bigger fan of the candy bar than the player. As for the NBA version of the beloved Bronx Bomber, he is on a tear. Whenever I think of him I think 20-5-5. That is 20 points, five rebounds, and five assists minimum. Tonight he is in what is supposed to be a close, high-scoring affair with Detroit as the slight underdogs. You could make an argument to roll him out in either cash or GPP play.

The Lakers are horrible. I believe I say this almost daily. Elfrid Payton is one of those guys you have to catch in the right matchup to make him worth your while. He is coming off two back-to-back games where he has put up double-digit points with decent numbers in assists as well. The Lakers are allowing the 26^th-most points to the PG position on the season, making Payton a viable option for a cheap price and could get a double-double tonight.

I am going back to the well tonight with Jerryd Bayless as a cheap punt play regardless of whether he is starting or not. Tyler Ennis has zero upside. Bayless has reached the thirty-minute mark in two straight games and put up a double-double the game before last. This game is slated to be a close one and Denver is allowing the 29^th-most points so far to the PG position.

A few other guys who just missed the cut on a huge list were Ty Lawson in a great matchup versus a defensively inept Nets team, Kyle Lowry get the Sixers who are allowing the 23^rd-most points to the position, and Mike Conley who is averaging almost 27 fantasy ppg. All of these players are decent options depending on where you spend elsewhere.

Shooting Guard

James Harden is playing the SF position in real life but FanDuel still has him at the SG slot. Tonight he is facing Brooklyn Nets who are allowing the 27^th-most points to the SF position on the new season. He is averaging almost 46 fantasy ppg and I expect him to absolutely go off tonight. I am using him in all my cash games.

Have I mentioned how bad the Lakers are? Here is another guy playing at SF who FanDuel has listed at SG. Evan Fournier is putting up almost 20 points per night and nearly 28 fantasy ppg. He had last night off but the night before he put up 21 points on the slow moving Pacers. Tonight facing the Lakers, who are allowing the 25^th-most points to the SF position, for the price makes him a great play.

I love players tonight from the Pistons. The Kings defensively are just plain terrible and are facing a team full of fantasy studs. One of those studs is Kentavious Caldwell-Pope whose name always pains me to type. KCP is dirt cheap and averaging almost 25 fantasy ppg. In the seven games the Pistons have played this season, he has scored double-digit points six times and I cannot imagine why that would not happen tonight in this close shootout.

If you really want to get cute thanks to FanDuel you can run a combo of James Harden and Marcus Thornton in the SG slot. Thornton is averaging almost 27 fantasy ppg and gives you a shot at 18 points and seven assists in a game with a 206 expected point total for cheap.

The other team I am hot on tonight is the Hawks. I have mentioned before how last season Kyle Korver was my go-to guy. The last time he faced the Pelicans he put up 22 points, seven rebounds, and five assists. The Pelicans are allowing the 26^th-most points to the SG position, begging you to take a flyer on Korver in GPP if nothing else.

Small Forward

26, 36, 32, and 27. That is, in order, how many points Paul George has scored in his last four games. Should I also mention that in this span he has had three double-doubles? George is averaging over 40 ppg and faces the Celtics, who are allowing the 21^st-most points to the SF position. If you are going to spend up tonight at SF then this is the guy.

In what is a constant dilemma fantasy-wise, Khris Middleton is playing in the SG position but FanDuel has him in the SF slot. I find this actually a benefit in DFS in a position that is usually full of so-so players. He is averaging 15 ppg and had a near double-double versus the Nets on Saturday. The Nuggets are allowing the 29^th-most points to the SG position on the young season and Middleton should take full advantage of it.

Getting back to the bevy of value in the Detroit game Marcus Morris has to be in consideration tonight. This should be a close back-and-forth game and Morris should get plenty of shots. He has put up double-digit points in every game this season and is averaging almost 29 fantasy ppg. The Kings have defensive woes versus well…every position, which pretty much makes him a viable cash and GPP play.

If you check his game log Tobias Harris has just missed a double-double six times in eight games. He is averaging almost 15 points and eight rebounds per game. In real life he is playing at PF but FanDuel has him at SF, adding more depth to this position for us DFS players. The Lakers are allowing a ton of points to the PF position on the season and by my duck theory, as previously stated, this trend should continue.

There are three guys worth looking at who are all priced at $3600 on FanDuel tonight. James Johnson if he starts is a viable option facing the team allowing the second-most points to the SF position in the Sixers, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson is starting tonight in what should be a close, high-scoring game, and last but not least Metta World Peace the player formerly known as Ron Artest put up a great performance last night in a spot start and at this point it honestly seems like Kobe Bryant is on Dick Clark status. Just roll him out once and awhile to fill the seats. All of these guys do not come without risk but in GPP play could free up a ton of salary to load up elsewhere.

Power Forward

Blake Griffin will be the one other guy tonight without a doubt I am spending up on. In four straight games he has put up over 20 points with four straight double-doubles. He is averaging 46 fantasy ppg and almost 29 in real life with 10 rebounds thrown in for good measure. The Mavericks are allowing the 29^th-most points to the PF position to this point and I imagine it will move to 30^th after tonight. It almost feels like Nelson Cruz facing John Danks in Chicago. Too easy.

Draymond Green tonight is in a spot to score a ton of points and do some real fantasy damage. He is putting up near triple-doubles nightly, always just missing somewhere by a hair. Tonight, facing the Grizzlies who are allowing the 27^th-most fantasy points to the PF position, he has a great shot at achieving that goal. I say he puts up over 40 fantasy points tonight.

I just love saying the name Kristaps Porzingis almost as much as I love the value he provides for a low price across the industry. He is averaging over 11 points and eight rebounds per game right now and should see plenty of shot opportunity facing a Hornets team yielding a ton of points to the PF position.

It seems impossible to not get some action against the Knicks on a nightly basis. Tonight Marvin Williams could make a fine GPP play for a super low price tag. He has double-double potential on a nightly basis and is averaging almost 26 fantasy ppg.

The Houston Rockets are dead last in defense versus the PF position. This kind of makes it hard for $5700 on FanDuel to not give some serious consideration to Thaddeus Young tonight. He is averaging over 26 fantasy ppg and has tallied double-digits in 6-of-7 games thus far while never getting less than five rebounds. He is a great play in all formats.

A few other guys I am going to give some GPP consideration to tonight are Jared Sullinger, mostly because I will be watching the Celtics game, and Kenneth Faried who is averaging over 28 fantasy ppg facing the 24^th-ranked Bucks defense.

Center

And here we are at the end. The center position. You know where this is going already I assume. Andre Drummond is an absolute monster. Godzilla versus Tokyo status right now. He is averaging almost 50 fantasy ppg. On the court he is averaging almost 20-20. Yes, 20 points and 20 rebounds. He had one night where he was even flirting with 30-30. He is an absolute must-play tonight in cash games, facing a Kings team allowing the most points to the center position in the NBA.

There are other options outside Drummond I really like tonight like Al Horford. Although the Hawks tend to spread the love around scoring-wise, Horford is getting his. He is averaging 16 points and eight rebounds and is facing a Pelicans team allowing the 27^th-most points to the center position. For a great price you could get 40 fantasy points here tonight.

This position is stacked with value tonight and I cannot stop looking at Jahlil Okafor. He is dirt cheap and making some real rookie impact. The No. 3 overall pick is averaging almost 20 points and seven rebounds per game and is coming off a double-double versus the Bulls on Monday night. If you want to save this is a great option.

Another fellow I will have some exposure with tonight in GPP is Willie Cauley-Stein. He is playing at PF in real life but FanDuel has him at C. He is averaging around 20 minutes per game, putting up six points and six rebounds per contest. Tonight he is starting, facing a team allowing the 22^nd-most points to the PF position in the Pistons. He makes a fine boom or bust GPP.

A few other guys I liked but didn’t make the cut were Dewayne Dedmon who remains cheap but in my opinion keeps failing to give you that big game even in good matchups and my man Zaza Pachulia who reminds me of the show "Green Acres" and faces the Clippers who are allowing a ton of points to the center position.

Tonight is my wife's birthday so I will be hit or miss on here. I pulled over on the road last night, almost causing a huge pile up, to post the news about the guy formerly named Ron Artest. You can hit me up on Twitter if you need me @geraldcovin73 or as usual I will check back in on here at some point. Good luck!