In FanDuel, you get $60K to build a nine player team. Ideally, you want to score 300+ to put out a solid lineup and 325+ to have a solid chance at a larger tournament. That means we need to get at least 5X value on each player. If Player A costs $10,000, we’d need a 50 FPS night to justify that salary.
FanDuel scoring: Point = 1pt, Rebound = 1.2pts, Assist = 1.5pts, Block = 2pts, Steal = 2pts, Turnover = -1pt
Last night’s value plays were hit and miss. Jameer Nelson had 10 assists but failed to register double-digit points and finished with just 24.4 FPS though we were looking for something closer to 33. Alec Burks was a solid value play, finishing with 25.3 of the 28.5 FPS he needed to make value. Ray Allen posted 16.8 of the 18 FPS he needed to make value. Jeff Green was disappointing as he needed 28 FPS to make value and posted 19.7. Jason Thompson provided solid value for just $4,100, posting 23.1 FPS. Andray Blatche came through again, more than making value with 30.5 FPS. Enes Kanter was our desperation budget center and didn’t even come close to making value, collecting just 10.7 FPS.
So, we’ll put Nelson, Green, and Kanter in the disappointment column while everyone else either made value or came very close. With a larger slate today, we’ll have a lot more options from which to choose and that will allow us to save money we can use for Kevin Durant, Carmelo Anthony, and DeMar DeRozan, all of whom are in our optimized lineup today.
Create Your Own Daily Fantasy Basketball FanDuel Lineup
Point Guard:
Ramon Sessions vs LAC ($4,200): With Kemba Walker out, Sessions is starting but is still available for the cost of a bench player. At $4,200, he’d need just 21 FPS to make value, a number that he’s eclipsed in three of his last four games and in both of his starts since Walker went down. Meanwhile, the Clippers had been giving up the fewest points to opposing guards with Chris Paul but have fallen to eighth over the last two weeks with Paul out and should continue to slide.
D.J. Augustin vs CLE ($5,600): FanDuel pricing is usually designed to make meeting value a 50/50 proposition at best. With Augustin, you have a guard who needs just 28 FPS to make value but has eclipsed that number by at least nine fantasy points in three of his last four games and four of his last six. Buy Augustin while he’s still a bargain.
Shooting Guard:
Kyle Korver vs ORL ($5,000): At $5,000, Korver needs just 25 FPS to make value against a Magic team that gives up the third-most fantasy points to opposing shooting guards. Korver has eclipsed 23 fantasy points in five of his last six games so this one is a no-brainer.
Rodney Stuckey vs MIL ($4,100): Stuckey needs a mere 20.5 FPS to make value yet has surpassed that in three straight games and scored over 30 in two of those, including a 39.8 day against the Clips on Monday. Tonight, he’ll face a Bucks team giving up the sixth most fantasy points to opposing shooting guards over their last two weeks.
Small Forward:
DeMarre Carroll vs ORL ($5,000): Carroll returned to the lineup on Monday and posted a solid 27.2 FPS. He’ll need 25 FPS to make value today which he’s been able to do in four of his last seven games. He shouldn’t have much problem doing it again today against a Magic team giving up the fourth-most fantasy points to opposing small forwards over the last two weeks.
Power Forward:
Patrick Patterson vs DAL ($4,300): Patterson is a solid budget play as he’d only need 21.5 FPS to make value, a number he’s surpassed in four of his last six games. He’s facing a Mavericks team that is giving up the second most fantasy points to opposing power forwards over the last two weeks.
Josh McRoberts vs LAC ($5,200): McRoberts will need 26 fantasy points to make value. He’s averaging 23.9 fantasy points over his last six games, so he should at least come close. Considering he’s facing a Clippers team that is giving up the sixth-most fantasy points to opposing power forwards, he should eclipse that value.
Center:
Tyson Chandler vs PHI ($5,000): Stacking against the Sixers is a great strategy but the Knicks aren’t exactly filled with fantasy assets. Our low-priced budget plays will allow us to buy Carmelo Anthony who is a must-play (but will also be in many, many lineups) today. Chandler has been banged up all season but since returning to form last week, he is averaging 26.7 FPS over his last three games and needs just 25 FPS to make value against a Sixers team giving up the second-most fantasy points to opposing centers.
Optimized Lineup:
PG- Ramon Sessions vs LAC ($4,200)
PG- D.J. Augustin vs CLE ($5,600)
SG- Kyle Korver vs ORL ($5,000)
SG- DeMar DeRozan vs DAL ($8,100)
SF- DeMarre Carroll vs ORL ($5,000)
SF- Kevin Durant vs SA ($12,100)
PF- Carmelo Anthony vs PHI ($9,800)
PF- Patrick Patterson vs DAL ($4,300)
C- Tyson Chandler vs PHI ($5,000)
Create Your Own Daily Fantasy Basketball FanDuel Lineup
