Daily Fantasy Basketball is back, which means each day XN Sports will have a column detailing advised plays and lineups for the remainder of the NBA season. For those familiar with DraftKings, their daily fantasy basketball is formatted differently this season. There is no multi-position eligibility, which makes it a bit harder to set your lineup.
For those unfamiliar with DraftKings, you are given $50,000 in cap space to select a point guard, shooting guard, small forward, power forward, center, a guard, a forward, and a utility player. There are no points deducted for missed shots, which changes the strategy from other sites. To read the full scoring, click here. Keep in mind that a double-double awards a bonus, which can be the difference between cashing in and winning nothing.
Generally, the goal for value is at five times a players salary. That brings a lineup to 250 fantasy points, which will cash on most days.
Give DraftKings a shot, as there will be a few free roll opportunities each night in Daily Fantasy Basketball. Click here to play.
Without further ado, the value plays and lineups for November 1st:
Value Plays
Guard
D.J. Augustin, Point Guard, Detroit Pistons $4,700
Augustin’s price has risen by over 25 percent, but he is still a value play in Detroit. Starting point guard Brandon Jennings is coming off of an achilles injury and has only averaged 18 minutes per game in his first two contests. Augustin is the “backup” point guard, yet has logged 61 minutes in two games and has been very effective in those minutes. Augustin is averaging just under 30 fantasy points per game in the young season, and at $4,700 that average is over six times his salary. With Jennings set to receive around 15-20 minutes a game until he is 100 percent, Augustin is a sneaky play almost each game. His usage rate is among the highest in the NBA at 27.4 percent, which indicates the offense flows through him on the floor, leading to not only points, but assists as well. Tonight, the Pistons face the Brooklyn Nets, who allowed Rajon Rondo to score 13 points, notch seven rebounds and dish out 12 assists in just 29 minutes on opening night.
Other values at guard: Tony Allen, MEM $3,900 and Moe Williams, MIN $3,300
Forward
Chris Copeland, Power Forward, Indiana pacers $3,400
Copeland has been a hot commodity off the waiver wire in the first few days of the season in regular leagues, but he’s an excellent play in daily fantasy as well. In the Pacers first two games, Copeland has logged 57 minutes and has taken 25 shots. 14 of the 25 shots have come from beyond the arc, which attracts those in daily fantasy because each made three is an extra half-point. At $3,400, value can be achieved with anything higher than 17 fantasy points. In Copeland’s two games, he has accrued 19, then 26.5 fantasy points respectively. If he can reach his average, he’ll be an essential value to your lineup. Tonight, the Pacers take on the Atlanta Hawks, who allowed Amir Johnson to accrue 16 points and 10 rebounds and Patrick Patterson to attain 10 points and five boards off the bench at power forward. Combined, that is 26 points and 15 rebounds to a power forward. Add that to the fact that the Raptors made eight three pointers against the Hawks, and that is an excellent matchup for the low-priced Copeland.
Other values at forward: Hollis Thompson, PHI $3,900 and Chris Johnson, PHI $3,000
Center
Alex Len, Center, Phoenix Suns $3,000
At the minimum price, it’s not often to find a center with any value, let along starting value in your lineups. Len played 32 minutes against the Spurs last night and accrued 10 points and led the Suns to a five rebound advantage over San Antonio with 11 rebounds of his own. With Miles Plumlee playing just 15 minutes, this could finally be the changing of the guard at center for the second year center, who did not play much last season. At the minimum price, 15 fantasy points is the goal to reach value, but with Len likely to receive the bulk of the minutes again, 20 fantasy points or more is not a reach. The Suns will face Utah tonight, who has allowed Dwight Howard to notch 22 points and 10 rebounds, and Tyson Chandler to reach 13 points and six rebounds in only 25 minutes of work this season. Should Len play similar minutes as he did in the Suns’ last game, he should be in line for a double-double, which is a huge plus for a center at minimum salary.
Other values at center: Lavoy Allen, Indiana Pacers $3,000
Play of the Day
Chris Bosh, Center, Miami Heat $8,700
With LeBron in Cleveland and Dwyane Wade at the end of his career, Bosh is finally back to being the number one option on his team. He showed what he can accomplish in that role in the Heat’s first game, as he dropped 26 points, 15 rebounds, four assists and added a block and a steal for a whopping 56.25 fantasy points on DraftKings. Bosh and the Heat face the Sixers, who look to be one of the worst teams in the NBA yet again this season, and a gold mine for daily fantasy basketball players. Bosh will get his share of shots as always, but he should also see double-digit rebounds as the Sixers are currently the third-worst rebounding team in the NBA at just 44 percent.
Lineup
PG – D.J. Augustin $4,700
SG – Tony Allen $3,900
SF – Hollis Thompson $3,900
PF – Chris Copeland $3,400
C – Chris Bosh $8,700
G – Stephen Curry $10,200
F – Anthony Davis $10,800
UTIL – Kentavious Caldwell-Pope $4,200
