Point Guard
Raymond Felton ($4500, 18.2 USG) – From Tim MacMahon . . .
Most efficient lineup in NBA to play at least 100 minutes? Raymond Felton, Deron Williams, Wesley Matthews, Dirk Nowitzki, Zaza Pachulia
That Mavs lineup is +22.2 points per 100 possessions. Golden State’s small-ball 5 is +69.9 (!!!) but has only played 64 minutes.
Yeah, it’s hard to believe but it’s true. Personally, I don’t get it either. Felton owns the lowest PER of his career (9.8) and a RPM (Real Plus-Minus) of -2.90 (359th overall). He’s absolutely been terrible but as DFS has taught us, opportunity can trump talent. With all the injuries the Mavericks are currently dealing with to their backcourt, Felton continues to get solid minutes playing the backup point or two guard. He’s played 34 min or more in 4 consecutive games and keeps producing quality fantasy outings (averaging 28.28 DK points over his last 5 games). I tend to have an uneasy feeling in my stomach every time I roster him but the gold at the end of the rainbow has been working much better than the Pepto Bismo that I’m used to taking for relief. The Atlanta Hawks are a mediocre defensive team and Dallas has an implied team total of 102.5, so I’d expect him to reach and exceed value as long as he stays in the starting lineup.
[Play the NBA $300K SHARPSHOOTER contest on DraftKings tonight!]
Shooting Guard
Terrence Ross ($3500, 17.0 USG) – I’ll be spending up at shooting guard tonight with so many upper tier options having prime matchups but if you wanna go cheap, take a look at Ross. DeMarre Carroll is listed as questionable after missing Monday’s game against the Lakers. In that game, Ross scored 35.5 DK points in 39 minutes! Now, if you roster him tonight, please do not expect similar results. We’re looking at 2 completely different animals with the Lakers on Monday night and the Spurs tonight. The matchup couldn’t be any worse for Ross likely going up against Kawhi Leonard. The only thing I like about Ross is that I know he’ll get minutes if Carroll is out and he’s going to attempt his fair share of shots. All Raptors should be faded tonight if you ask me (team implied total of 91.3, going up against the best defense in the league) but I can’t blame you for going in on Ross being priced near minimum.
Small Forward
Marcus Thornton ($3800, 22.4 USG) or Corey Brewer ($3500, 18.9 USG) – Happy Marcus Thornton day to everyone out there reading!
If Trevor Ariza is sidelined tonight as expected after that terrible fall he had last night, just plug Thornton (or Brewer if starting) in your SF slot and move on. Ariza left last nights game early so we have ourselves a clear reference to how the minutes should be spread around at SF. Marcus Thornton played 26 minutes (52 DK points!) and Corey Brewer played 34 (34.8 DK points). A lot of people will be choosing between the two of them (likely Thornton more because of the 52 DK points) but I have no problem at all rostering both. Brewer and Thornton see such a huge bump in minutes and USG without Ariza. It’s not a coin flip. They’re both going to reach and likely exceed value going up against WAS, who is one of the worst wing defending teams all of basketball (no team gives up more fantasy points to the SF position). I hate overthinking things, which is why I’m likely to take my own advice here and roster both of them, moving right along.
Power Forward
Jon Leuer ($4800, 17.6 USG) – Another Suns game, another Jon Leuer mention. Under the $5000 range, there are really only 2 choices. Leuer or Zeller. I’m going to lean Leuer here even though he’s priced $200 more. After looking like Shaq against Andre Dummond on Monday, Zeller faces a much tougher matchup in Hassan Whiteside. Miami is a top 7 team defending centers and play at a much slower pace (95.5) than most teams around the league. Zeller is an obvious fade for me as I’m expecting the field to be chasing points (34 and 31.5 in back to back games). I’d much rather go with a guy like Leuer (Tyson Chandler doubtful tonight) who has a better matchup (ORL) and been a bit more consistent. It really looks as if the Suns are ready to move on from Markieff Morris, who received only 7 min on Monday after a DNP the previous game. If you want some more in depth analysis, just read any other column I’ve written this week. I’m sure I’ve yet to miss a day recommending him.
Center
Gorgui Dieng ($4900, 17.3 USG) – This dude’s minutes just keep on rising and finally on Monday, he reached the 30 min mark against the Clippers. Dieng is the primary backup to Karl Anthony-Towns and plays alongside him at PF as well. He’s been very productive in the playing time rewarded to him averaging 24.5 DK points over his last 5 games. A lot of that has to do with his recent improvement to his offensive game.
At only $4900 and an ideal matchup against the Lakers (4th worst against centers), I’ll be having lots of exposure to Dieng in all formats.
Featured Image Credit: By photo taken by flickr user ReneS (flickr) [CC BY 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons
