NBA DFS Position Coach: November 18, 2016

The NBA brings us a solid 10 game slate for Friday night and it’s one of those nights where you’ll need 370 to take home a GPP. There’s tons of exploitable matchups tonight and I’ll help highlight a few of those. 

Point Guard

It’s all about Kyle Lowry tonight. While DeMar DeRozan is off to an incredible start, Lowry has also been playing well. He’s gone under 30 fantasy points just twice this season and those happened to be his first two games. In his last seven games, he’s had one sub-40 fantasy point performance. He’s less than $8,000 and is facing the Nuggets? Fire him up, folks!

Around the same price range emerges Kemba Walker. He’s been a monster to start the season and he’s shown no signs of slowing down. Walker has favorable matchup against Dennis Schroder and the Hawks. I’d much rather roll out Lowry tonight but Walker is worth a look as a GPP pivot. Both are fine cash plays.

Jeff Teague has been a tough case to crack so far. He’s struggled from the field but has still been a solid DFS play thus far. After an awful start to the season, Teague has picked up a bit and he has a beautiful matchup against the Suns. Throw him into a couple GPPs and hope he gets the 50-burger. 

Russell Westbrook may a bit tough to pay up for so I likely won’t play him unless some value opens up later in the day. Fire him up if you can confidently play the Andre Roberson’s and Jared Dudley’s of the world in the same lineup.

My last PG play of the day is Isaiah Thomas. I will not be spending down at the PG position (if that wasn’t obvious already). With Jae Crowder and Al Horford likely missing tonight’s game, IT will need to chuck up plenty of shots. He should have no problem exceeding value in Vegas’ highest-scoring game of the night.

Shooting Guard

In cash games, the Toronto backcourt will likely find their way into my cash games. DeMar DeRozan is the NBA’s leading scorer and he will too stay hot in against Denver who is bottom-five against SGs. 

Seth Curry’s price has risen considerably despite several lackluster performances. It’s tough to love Curry in this gross matchup with the Grizzlies but he should at least hit his value. The Dallas backcourt is depleted and he should see all the minutes he can handle. 

Nicolas Batum is rolling and has scored over 40 fantasy points in his last three games.  The matchup is nothing to be afraid of and Batum will look to stay hot once again. I’ll only be deploying Batum in a number of GPPs so limit your exposure. 

Avery Bradley is another player worth targeting. The GS and BOS game is currently expected to have a total of 222 and you’ll want a piece of this game. Bradley remains a bit pricy but he’s averaging over 8 boards a game and if you can get lucky enough for him to notch a few assists, he should be able to hit or exceed value pretty easily. 

Small Forward

The SF value plays are horrendous tonight. There’s a few mid-range plays that could very well pan out but once you get under the $5,000 threshold, it gets ugly. 

Paul George is worth targeting against the Suns because, who isn’t a good play against the Suns? He’s $8,200 but he hasn’t been the same player as last year because he actually has a solid group of starters surrounding him. 

This Celtics and Warriors game is too tough to shy away from. Kevin Durant makes for a great play tonight with Jae Crowder likely out once again. The Warriors have a ton of scoring options (obviously) but this makes it a bit of a conundrum in terms of DFS plays. They’ve all been pretty consistent but it’s tough to pinpoint who will get the 60-pointer. All Warriors players are in play tonight against a struggling Celtics team. 

Wilson Chandler has been one of the biggest surprises this season. The oft-injured wing is off to a great start. He’s coming off a flukey 55 fantasy point game but he’s still been solid aside from his last explosion. He’s a fairly safe option so feel free to fire him up. 

Andre Roberson is the only value play I’d consider throwing in at this point but I don’t love him against the Nets. He’s a decent play and should be able to hit value but I’m not too sure he’ll exceed value. Maurice Harkless is a bit safer but he also comes at a higher price. 

Power Forward

You have to love Anthony Davis in a GPP tonight. I’m expecting most of the field to be off of him just because it’s an injured Anthony Davis. Though, he is under $11,000 and wouldn’t be entirely surprised if his ownership is a bit higher than expected in a cupcake matchup. If you think Myles Leonard or Noah Vonleh can slow down AD, exit out of this article. 

The Kings have given up the most fantasy points to PFs to start the year. Blake Griffin has been one one of the most consistent PF options to start the season and he’s yet to score under 30 fantasy points this season. Along with that, he has scored over 39 fantasy points in his last seven games. He’s a great, safe play today. 

If only Kenneth Faried would get 35 minutes… With Nikola Jokic and Jusuf Nurkic basically out of the picture, Faried is now the starting PF and averaging 25 mpg. Faried has scored 96 fantasy points over the last two games and he’s on fire right now. The manimal is a decent play tonight but the low minutes are a bit concerning. 

At $3,700 Jared Dudley is a decent play. I can’t even imagine recommending anyone to play Dudley so take this advice with some caution. If you’re really stuck and have the F spot left on DK or on FanDuel, feel free to lock him in. His minutes are safe and he can get hot in a hurry. Dudley has the word ‘dud’ in his name so tread carefully for that reason (no, not actually for that reason).

Center

Alex Len is a near must-play for me tonight. Tyson Chandler is out once again and Len will have the difficult task of guarding fellow up-and-coming big, Myles Turner. Despite the subpar matchup, Len’s minutes should remain relatively safe and I fully expect him to exceed value. 

How can you not love Pau Gasol? He’s been a bit volatile to start the year but he’s performed quite well in a few games this season. Gasol should feast against the Lakers but I always limit exposure to Spurs players because you never know what Pop will do. 

I’m really not a fan of any expensive center tonight but I could understand DeMarcus Cousins and Draymond Green. Obviously, Green is listed as a PF but he has center eligibility on DK and I may use him their tonight.

 Good luck everyone!