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 3rd:
Value Plays
Guard
Patrick Beverley ($4,800) or Isaiah Canaan ($3,800), Point Guard, Houston Rockets
Whoever starts at point guard for the Rockets is the go-to value play at guard tonight. All signs point to Beverley, as he practiced yesterday, but if he cannot go then Canaan will be an excellent value at $3,800. The Sixers are last in the NBA in allowing fantasy points to point guards in the early parts of the season, take a look at the fantasy output on DraftKings for opposing point guards against Philly so far in three games:
Donald Sloan – 16 points, 10 rebounds, six assists, and one steal for 39.5 DraftKings points.
Brandon Knight – 13 points, seven rebounds, eight assists, and two steals for 36.75 DraftKings points.
Norris Cole – 10 points, one rebound, four assists, and two steals for 22.25 fantasy points.
Whoever starts for the Rockets will be next in line for production, and a high probability of reaching value. If Beverley starts, value can be reached at 24 fantasy points. If Canaan starts, value can be reached at 19 fantasy points.
Other values at guard: Tony Allen, MEM $4,100 and Avery Bradley, BOS $3,500
Forward
Kostas Papanikolaou, Small Forward, Houston Rockets $3,000
Papanikolaou is one of the few players left at the minimum on DraftKings who has value, and is our value play at forward tonight. In the Rockets’ three games this season, Papanikolaou has played over 20 minutes in each contest, and has gotten more minutes in each game. With the Rockets facing the Sixers tonight, there is a possibility for a blowout as the line current sits at Rockets -9.5. Papanikolaou has reached value in each of the first two games this season, totaling 47 fantasy points before scoring just 13 in the last contest. The Sixers are allowing the seventh-most fantasy points to opposing small forwards this season and have allowed opponents to shoot almost 40 percent from long distance, which directly plays into Papanikolaou’s strengths. His name may be a mouthful, but he’s a great value play, given the matchup and his cap hit at the price minimum.
Other values at forward: Hollis Thompson, PHI $4,000
Center
Unfortunately, with the shortage of centers in tonight’s slate, there are no cheap value plays that are worth adding to your lineups at this time. Unless an unexpected late scratch causes a change, it’s worth it to spend at center. Normally, spending at center has led to a profitable lineup, but tonight is one of those nights where it’s almost a must. One of the top five options will likely be on every team tonight, so take your pick.
DeMarcus Cousins $9,700 against the Nuggets.
Dwight Howard $8,500 against the Sixers.
Marc Gasol $7,700 against the Pelicans.
DeAndre Jordan $7,300 against the Jazz.
Omer Asik $6,500 against the Grizzlies.
Howard is the safest play tonight, as the Sixers are one of the worst teams in the NBA in terms of rebounding and have given up the most fantasy points to opposing centers so far this season. If you have enough to spend, Cousins is a good high-floor play as well with the third-highest usage rate among all NBA players through the first week of the season. At his price it’s tough to reach value, but Cousins could finish as one of the top performers of the evening.
Other values at center: No cheap values in this short slate.
Lineup
PG – *Patrick Beverley $4,800
SG – James Harden $10,300
SF – Kostas Papanikolaou $3,000
PF – Serge Ibaka $7,300
C – Dwight Howard $8,500
G – Tony Allen $4,100
F – Rudy Gay $7,600
UTIL – Jameer Nelson $4,300
*Keep an eye on the Rockets lineup tonight. If by some chance Beverley is out, start Canaan and use the extra $1000 to upgrade your lineup. Moving Nelson to guard in place of Tony Allen and upgrading at UTIL, or placing Gay at SF and upgrading Papanikolaou would improve your lineup if this happens.
