Good morning to you beautiful people out there in DFS land! You have managed to find yourself in a great spot here at DFS Army. I look forward to providing you with analysis and picks throughout this 2018-2019 CBB season! Remember, if I mention a player as a cash game play they most likely are OK for GPP play. Let’s take a look at what games are on the slate for DraftKings and Fanduel. The KenPom score projections are in parenthesis.
Oklahoma St (68) vs TCU (73)
Butler (68) vs Providence (67) – DK Only
Georgia (65) vs Missouri (68)
Notre Dame (64) vs Louisville (72) – DK Only
West Virginia (69) vs Oklahoma (76)
Stanford (75) vs UCLA (76)
Vanderbilt (67) vs Texas AM (69) – DK Only
Northwestern (69) vs Illinois (68)
Pittsburgh (63) vs Syracuse (68) – DK Only
DePaul (76) vs St Johns (80)
Washington St (65) vs Oregon (76) – DK Only
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OKLAHOMA ST vs TCU
This is an interesting game that I think most people will bypass. Oklahoma St is playing a 6 man rotation so the minutes are extremely predictable at this point. I think that all 6 of the guys are in play on this slate. McGriff has struggled mightily against TCU but the paint is where they can be attacked the most. Likekele fits this spot a ton because he doesn’t take very many threes. Waters is always one of my favorite plays because he contributes across the board. Dziagwa has the toughest match-up but seems to play really well against TCU. Anei is higher priced than I would like but has massive upside. Jones, coming off the bench, is an interesting GPP option but one that I probably end up not using on this slate.
I actually have very little interest in the TCU side in this match-up. Nembhard is still really cheap and should play 20+ minutes while Kendric Davis is $3800 on FD and in play over there. I would consider the guys in the mid-range, Noi, Miller or Samuel for GPP purposes as I think they offer the most upside. Robinson hasn’t looked right recently and Bane is just too expensive for me on this slate.
Preferred Plays: Likekele, Waters, Nembhard
BUTLER vs PROVIDENCE – DK Only
I have zero interest in Butler in this spot. The rotation is messed up, the players just aren’t playing motivated and the team just sucks. I could see somebody using Baldwin or Jorgensen but they are definitely not for me. I will pass and look elsewhere.
I have no desire to pay up for Diallo (I never do) and Watson has really disappointed lately. With that said, this match-up is ideal for Watson to dominate the interior. It is just a matter of him getting minutes or not. If you think his minutes continue to trend downwards, then you have to consider K.Young as a GPP play. The guy I will continue to ride is I.Jackson as he has been extremely solid and even though his priced jumped, I still think this is a great spot for him. I will also be mentioning Reeves, yet again, as a GPP play because of his scoring upside.
Preferred Plays: Jackson
GEORGIA vs MISSOURI
Georgia is another team that I am basically taking a pass on minus one player. Harris is somebody we have been using for a while and after a few duds in a row, he looks to be shooting it a bit better. I think he is totally fine at his price point and will definitely be my only exposure to a Georgia team that scored just 39 points against this Missouri team, two games ago.
Missouri is a tough team to figure out as far as their rotation goes. Overall, they aren’t very good but I do have some interest in a few players for GPP purposes. Geist went for over 31 in the last match-up and seems like a Cash/GPP play while the other guards, Pinson, Pickett, and Watson are in play for GPP purposes. I want to say Watson is cash safe at his price but Pickett’s return gives me reservations. The F position is a crap shoot and while I like Tilmon‘s upside, his foul issues and disappearing worry me. If for some reason Mitchell Smith starts again, he is an interesting GPP dart play at his price.
Preferred Plays: Harris, Watson
NOTRE DAME vs LOUISVILLE – DK Only
Notre Dame is so short handed that nearly every guy that will see the court is in play, minus Gibbs (What is wrong with him?) and Doherty. Mooney has become one of my favorite players in the NCAA. He put up over 51 fantasy points the first time against UL and is in play for GPP purposes as he is priced up. Hubb makes sense for cash purposes but I think his price increase has taken away his GPP upside. Laszewski is questionable after starting out extremely hot yesterday and makes sense for GPPs if he is deemed to be good to go. Durham and Goodwin are probably my favorite plays. Durham should see an increase in minutes and offers GPP upside while Goodwin barely saw a price increase and makes sense for all formats.
Louisville should win this game by double figures, the problem is I do not know where to go necessarily. I think Nwora is the smartest play with M.Williams being an interesting GPP option. I am considering Cunningham for GPPs while fading Sutton because I just do not know what is up with the kid. He was one of my favorite GPP options all season long but has totally disappeared.
Preferred Plays: Goodwin, Nwora
WEST VIRGINIA vs OKLAHOMA
We finally get WVU priced up to around where they should be after getting them for basically nothing the last couple of weeks. Culver is a beast and deserves GPP consideration. I would prefer to go to Doolittle for cash from this game but we know Culver has immense upside. Haley has been priced up a bunch but I still think he is my favorite play for WVU in this spot. McCabe and West are definitely in play but are no longer the instant plug and play options that they were. Matthews Jr is very much a strong cash play and should be pretty popular in GPPs as well.
For Oklahoma, it comes down to Doolittle and Bieniemy for me. I have been riding Doolittle for months and am not prepared to stop now. Bieniemy should see some upside thanks to the turnovers that the backcourt of WVU commits. James is just priced too high for the way he has been playing but I suppose he has shown the upside so he could be a super low owned GPP option.
Preferred Plays: Haley, Matthews Jr, Doolittle
STANFORD vs UCLA
A lot of Stanford depends on the status of D.Davis. I have heard he is closer to doubtful than probable at this point. If I plan on Davis not playing then I have to love Okpala and Wills as they should see a bunch of usage. Sharma is going to garner a bunch of ownership and I understand it but that price tag is just wowzers. I am not interested in anybody else at this point.
For UCLA, it is all about Hands for me. I have been using him a ton this year and will continue to do so. I think he makes an excellent option in a game that could be the highest scoring on the slate if it breaks right. I rarely use Wilkes but understand his intrigue for GPP purposes. I will not have any shares of Brown at all. Bernard is going to continue to be on my list and I am not worried about whether Ali returns or not. Hill is an interesting GPP option but I worry about his minutes going down with Brown returning.
Preferred Plays: Okpala, Wills, Hands, Bernard
VANDERBILT vs TEXAS AM – DK Only
I am not sure what has happened to Nesmith but I do know that I can’t use him at his price right now. I have an interest in two players from Vandy, Lee, and Wetzell. The rest of Vandy is such a dart throw that I just do not have an interest in trying to figure it out. Lee has been their most consistent player and Wetzell seems to be earning more and more minutes.
Texas AM isn’t exactly a juggernaut but they do have a few players that make sense for all formats. Flagg, Mitchell, and Mekowulu are in play for cash and GPPs tonight as they should put up a bunch of points. My preference is Flagg because of how he contributes across multiple categories. If Nebo would ever get 25-30 minutes he could put up a monster stat line. Chandler is seeing a bunch of minutes so he makes sense as a GPP play.
Preferred Plays: Wetzell, Flagg, Mekowulu
NORTHWESTERN vs ILLINOIS
For Northwestern, I will probably pass on Law even though I think he is an intriguing GPP option. I want exposure to Pardon against the Illinois interior while also having interest in Kopp as a value play and Gaines as cash, last man type of play. This is essentially like a home game for both teams with the B1G10 tourney being held in Chicago this year.
For Illinois, I have some interest in Dosunmu but really the only interest I have is Bezhanisvhili. The price keeps rising so that gives me some concern and takes him out of the cash arena for me. I think he has upside in this spot as I have been using bigs against Northwestern for much of the season.
Preferred Plays: Pardon, Kopp
PITTSBURGH vs SYRACUSE – DK Only
I really want to have exposure to Pittsburgh here after I was impressed by their play yesterday but this spot may be one that is not worth attacking. The one guy that I will for sure have exposure to is Wilson-Frame. He is the shooter out on the floor and should get a bunch of shots against the zone. I think Johnson and McGowens are in play for GPPs but they bring a pretty low floor as they are both much better as slashers into the lane.
I may end up passing on Syracuse in this spot. I think Brissett, Battle, and Howard are usable in GPPs but I do not feel great about any of them in this spot. The backcourt of Pittsburgh is athletic enough to give Battle and Howard problems. Brissett averages 34 fantasy points over 2 meetings with Pitt this season.
Preferred Plays: Wilson-Frame
DEPAUL vs ST JOHNS
Honestly, the entire starting 5 is in play for DePaul in this one plus Butz off of the bench. I really like the way Strus is playing and I think he makes a solid mini stack option with Olujobi or Reed. Gage and Cain are guys I would consider in cash as they seem to be safe for 20+ at this point. Olujobi torched St Johns twice this season while Reed did so in one game but put up a dud in the other.
For St Johns, I am only interested in Ponds and Figueroa. Heron just returned from injury and hasn’t looked very good and Simon seems to have hit a wall at this point in the season. Clark II makes sense for GPPs but I am extremely afraid of foul trouble for him going up against the interior of DePaul. DePaul’s defensive interior is extremely weak so whichever guy you think is going to attack the hoop the most is the one I would target.
Preferred Plays: Strus, Olujobi, Figueroa
WASHINGTON ST vs OREGON – DK Only
This game doesn’t interest me very much, even with WSU being so weak. I have zero interest in using anybody from WSU. I am sure you could make an argument for Franks or Elleby due to their upside but I just think this is a tough spot for them.
Oregon offers a few guys that I like for various reasons. Pritchard is extremely cash safe and should be a lock for 30-35 fantasy points without much for upside above that. King has the upside for GPPs while Paul White is probably my preferred play from Oregon for all formats. The last guy I have interest in for GPPs is Okoro. He could dominate the interior of this game or he could get in foul trouble and be non-existent.
Preferred Plays: White, Okoro
Make sure you tune in to the slack channel to get my updates as news comes out! We will be discussing CBB all afternoon and evening long. I will be updating my Coaches-Notes throughout the day and we will discuss what injuries we need to monitor and what they mean to our construction. I will also be posting my cores for each site in slack!