PG
Dennis Smith Jr. is one of my favorite GPP options today because I think the field is going to pay up for Steph Curry and Damian Lillard due to the concern of virtually every player between 7k-9k. His usage rate is around 30% on most nights and if his shot is falling he can rack up points in a hurry.
IF Kyrie Irving sits for whatever reason, the LOCK of the night would be Rozier. If Kyrie plays, I won’t touch anybody on Boston other than Horford in cash.
IF Westy plays, I like him because nobody else on the slate has the ceiling he has. I would prefer to roll out Westy + Barae in a GPP rather than Curry + Dennis Smith at the same price because of the Westy ceiling. He could score 75 and outscore both Curry and Smith Jr combined by himself if he explodes. He also hasn’t exploded recently so his ownership likely will be lowered a few points. Hey, on six game slates like this with injuries everywhere and trades all around options are limited so anyway we can gain an edge we have to take it or make one.
SG
Tim Hardaway Jr will carry decent ownership tonight without Porzingis and Kanter, however, I think I will fade him because of the Derozan/OG defense on him all game. His usage rate has been 24% with kanter and porz off the court this past month so it currently isn’t as elite as we would first think. If you are MME playing tonight then you need exposure here, however, if rolling one or two lineups he’s not a jam him in there type play.
Klay Thompson’s birthday is tonight and the Warriors might be without Kevin Durant. The matchup with the Mavs is tasty as guards have ruined them all year, specifically from the outside. Klay is a great cash game option and has superb upside for GPPs *IF* Kevin Durant is OUT. IF he’s not out, I think Klay is only a cash option and I wouldn’t touch him in GPPs.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope at just $4,700 is my preferred GPP play tonight and makes for a decent cash option as well. He’s too cheap and likely picks up some extra minutes with Clarkson now gone. The Thunder defense has looked terrible without Roberson so there is upside here if he can knock down some threes.
Evan Fournier is going to be locked down by Kent Bazemore who is an elite wing defender, please fade Fournier. Bazemore on the other hand bring elite upside, although his price isn’t as tasty as it was in the 5k range.
Batum is my preferred 6k GPP option tonight and I don’t think I’ll touch McCollum against Batum, who much like Bazemore, has super long arms and can lower the ceiling of the person he’s guarding.
SF
PG13 will be the most owned player on the entire slate (IF Westbrook is out), well, second to possibly the guy I mention next. He might be playing against the team he could be playing for next season and just put up a 41 spot on them two games ago. With Melo + Westy off the court in the past four weeks, PG13 only has a 33 minute sample size BUT he averaged 1.99 FPM during that time with over a 50% usage rate. That’s nutty and likely way higher than what the true numbers would be over the course of the game. Regardless, he’s an elite play if Westy and Melo miss and if they do play I still don’t mind plugging him in and enjoying a 60-point ceiling and solid 30’sh point floor.
Michael Beasley has a 30.9% usage rate with Porzingis and Kanter off the court over the past month. He can score in a hurry and likely plays PF today against Ibaka which I actually like more than if OG was guarding him at SF. I think OG slides down to Tim Hardaway Jr. which takes him out of play. Beasley is a chalky cash game play and don’t mind him in GPPs with the lack of SF options. A nice pivot would be to Brandon Ingram (scary matchup with PG13) or a nice upside play with Jonathon Simmons who is a few hundred dollars cheaper. If Harrison Barnes is active then he’s a solid cash option and great GPP play at just 6k!
PF
Kyle Kuzma is the most appealing player on the entire slate and if making one GPP lineup tonight I 100% would want him in that lineup. He is a fantastic offensive player and two of his main second-unit offensive pieces he was sharing with were just traded to the Cavs (Clarkson + Nance Jr).
He’s not cash viable on most slates but with the lack of options at PF tonight he might actually be a serviceable cash option. He’s currently in my dummy lineup for cash and I likely won’t take him out just due to his upside and my belief that he picks up most of Nance’s minutes.
Jerami Grant is about to play mid-30’s minutes against the Lakers. With 30’s minutes he’s a double double threat and could rack up 3-5 combined steals and blocks. He’ll be chalky in cash if Melo is out and I wouldn’t mind rostering both him and Kuzma in cash if it allows me to pay up for the guys I mentioned above.
C – NO LOCKS for the DS here for me. Plenty of great GPP options.
Brook Lopez – An elite GPP center for tonight at mid-5k price tag. I think with Nance gone Kuzma, Randle, Lopez will run a three man rotation at the 4/5 and all get solid 26+ minutes. He scored 35 FanDuel points against OKC two games ago.
Julius Randle – Strong cash game option but prefer Steven Adams in cash. Another solid GPP option though because most people won’t pay up for Randle, they’ll likely settle for Adams or go up another $100 to Horford.
Horford and Adams are the top two cash centers for me currently. However, the Brook Lopez/Kyle OQuinn ownership should be tracked.
Kyle O’Quinn – He’s the last true “big” on the Knicks for tonight’s active roster. He might play all the run he can handle. I can’t make him a cash game option though because he’s been in this spot a few times in the past and failed miserably. That said, if he does score 30 and play 35 minutes at a hefty ownership in cash we are sunk. Pay attention to industry wide talk and see where people are touting. If he’s going to be chalky we might have to eat the chalk here.
***ON a more FUN note, we can officially be back on the Ivica Zubac watch again for future Lakers games***
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