Nikola Jokic now has some work to do to get back to leader in the MVP race after he was embarrassed by Joel Embiid on Saturday afternoon. He is the clear spend-up option for tonight’s Showdown NBA slate, but who else should join him in this game between two of the top eight teams in the Western Conference? Here are the NBA DFS top plays we can invest in for our lineups on FanDuel and DraftKings!
NBA DFS Injury Report
New Orleans Injuries:
Dyson Daniels – OUT
Zion Williamson - OUT
Denver Injuries:
Jamal Murray - QUESTIONABLE
MVP/CAPTAIN
Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets (C)
Even though Joel Embiid stole the show on Saturday, Jokic still put up another 49 fantasy points, and it would have been a much bigger day if not for his seven turnovers. Jokic had four straight triple-doubles heading into his last game, so he is certainly worthy of the salary that is much, much higher than anyone else on this slate. In his two games against New Orleans this year, Jokic is averaging 65.6 fantasy points per game.
CJ McCollum, New Orleans Pelicans (PG)
If we are going to sprinkle in some McCollum in the MVP spot, we really need him to be the player from his last two games, and not his last two games against Denver. In two matchups against the Nuggets this year, McCollum only averaged 23.6 fantasy points per game in 34.5 minutes on the floor. That is not going to cut it tonight. But, McCollum is on fire recently, averaging 47 fantasy points per game in his last two matchups. Even with Brandon Ingram back in the lineup, he is still shooting 17-20 times per game and has been over 40% of his threes in three straight games.
Brandon Ingram, New Orleans Pelicans (SG)
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope has been doing a number on opposing shooting guards, holding them to the fourth-fewest fantasy points per game over the last 15. Can he keep that up against Ingram, an atypical shooting guard with massive length and ball-handling skills? We are getting a $6,000 discount off of Jokic in the MVP spot tonight, so if he can approach 30 minutes again, there is a strong possibility he opens up space for other spend-up options throughout your lineup.
UTILITY
Jamal Murray, Denver Nuggets (PG)
Murray is officially Questionable tonight, and the decision may not come for quite a while. But if he does go, he hopes to build off his latest hot streak where he scored more than 37 fantasy points in six straight games. He has been at 39 fantasy points per game in his two contests against the Pelicans this year and just dropped 43 fantasy points on them one week ago. Over the last 30 games, the Pelicans allow 24 points per game and nine assists per game to the position.
Aaron Gordon, Denver Nuggets (PF)
Gordon has been very up and down lately with three games under 37 fantasy points and two games over 42 over his last five contests. But he tends to always step up when the Nuggets have an injured player and Gordon sees a 4.3% increase in usage when Jamal Murray misses. That bumps him up to a 25.6% usage and 1.21 fantasy points per game. If Murray misses, Gordon is someone you want in your lineups.
Jonas Valanciunas, New Orleans Pelicans (C)
The first two games against the Nuggets this season have not been kind to J-Val at all. He averages just 22.6 fantasy points per game in only 15.5 minutes on the floor. Foul trouble going up against Jokic has severely limited him in each of those contests, but the Pelicans desperately need him on the floor for 26-28 minutes tonight. The fact that Valanciunas averages 1.46 fantasy points per minute in his limited time against Denver this year tells us there is hope if he can just stay out of foul trouble tonight.
DART THROWS
Bones Hyland, Denver Nuggets (PG/SG)
Another huge beneficiary when Jamal Misses or is off the floor is Bones Hyland. In those situations, he puts up a 29.3% usage rate and scores 1.12 fantasy points per minute. Even with Murray in the lineup lately, Hyland is seeing 20 minutes on the court and has posted back-to-back games with more than 20 fantasy points. The $4,800 salary on DK is slightly higher than we would like it, but it will look like a steal if we don’t see Murray suit up.
Larry Nance, Jr., New Orleans Pelicans (PF/C)
Let’s imagine for a minute that Valanciunas’s streak continues and he does get into foul trouble again. The biggest winner in that scenario would be Larry Nance who already plays 22-28 minutes every night. That would shoot up to around 30 minutes if J-Val is limited by foul trouble. Even without that boost, Nance is averaging 23 fantasy points per game over the last ten days and has even popped off for 30 or more twice in the last nine days.
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