Main Slate Breakdown for NBA DFS 5/4:

Welcome to another year of the DFS Army NBA Full Court Press! Members had a ton of success using the Full Court Press along with various articles and tools that DFS Army provides last season, so we are glad to be back with another year of the all-inclusive article. You have to start your research somewhere, and oftentimes going game by game and breaking down every matchup and its key players is the first step in our process. My name is Michael aka @MadnessDFS on Twitter, make sure to give me a follow as I’ll occasionally make updates to the advice in the article. But, you’ll mostly find me in our VIP coaching forums where I provide detailed lineup maneuvers and answer all lineup questions. With that said, let’s get it started!

I want to give a quick shoutout to VIP Member “TheSoprano12” on their $100,000 win earlier this season!! Better go buy a Boban jersey after that one!

Phoenix Suns @ Cleveland Cavaliers

Vegas Total: N/A

Vegas Spread: N/A

We’ll kick the slate off with the Suns, it’s always tough for me to get to this Suns team when they’re at full strength, but Devin Booker and Chris Paul are both fine options if you’re looking to get exposure here. DeAndre Ayton has been held under 30 DraftKings points in three straight games, Jarrett Allen is sneaky good on defense as well, but I’m okay with the price on both sites if you really like him. Then we get to these wings with guys like Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson, and Torrey Craig. They’ll all see solid run with Jae Crowder off the court, but Bridges is pretty easily your safest option. I don’t really see a way that fading Johnson and Craig can kill your lineups, but they’re solid value options nonetheless. From the Cavs, Darius Garland is expected to miss this game again which opens up some usage on this team, but it’s an incredibly tough matchup against a good defense. That said, Collin Sexton has a 30.3% usage rate and 1.12 fantasy points per minute with Garland and Nance off the court this season. I am okay getting to some Jarrett Allen as well here, DeAndre Ayton isn’t all that great on defense, although it does seem like he’s trending in the right direction. Kevin Love is coming off a nice game against Miami where he shot really well, and when I say really well… I mean 7-10 from three-point range. I like his price tag better on FanDuel however. Then you can round this team out with Isaac Okoro and Cedi Osman, Osman has more upside but Okoro’s minutes are more locked in.

5-star play: None

4-star play: Devin Booker, Chris Paul, Collin Sexton, DeAndre Ayton

Deeper Value: Cam Johnson, Torrey Craig

GPP Sleeper: Jarrett Allen, Isaac Okoro, Cedi Osman

Charlotte Hornets @ Detroit Pistons

Vegas Total: N/A

Vegas Spread: N/A

Starting with the Hornets, Terry Rozier saw his minutes come down last time out, but the price has come down with LaMelo Ball coming back. I do like the matchup, however, so I think you can make a case for him. Speaking of LaMelo Ball, he has returned to score at least 35 DraftKings points in two straight games and the price tag on FanDuel is far too low, I like him quite a bit over thee as it seems he won’t be limited moving forward. Miles Bridges had a down game last time out, but you may see his production start to fall a bit as this team starts to get healthy. For the moment though, I would still expect him to play 30+ minutes. PJ Washington has been pretty good lately and gets a great matchup again here, he’s more of a GPP guy for me but a guy nonetheless. From the Pistons, I would think Jerami Grant and Mason Plumlee are out again here, along with Cory Joseph which will open up minutes for the rest of these guys to come grab an opportunity. Isaiah Stewart has been the guy you want with those two frontcourt guys out, he’s been a bit more volatile as of late, but he should do whatever he wants in this matchup. Saddiq Bey has at least 44 DraftKings points in two straight games and is clearly a guy they want to get some run as we close out the season, he’s a solid option in all formats. Josh Jackson is your GPP pivot off of him, but still, a fine filler play if you want to get a piece or two. Lastly, Killian Hayes should continue to see good run with Joseph out and makes for a solid mid-range option. One thing to note is Hamidou Diallo got the start over Josh Jackson last night, if that’s the case again, we can just go right back to Diallo.

5-star play: LaMelo Ball (FanDuel)

4-star play: LaMelo Ball (DraftKings), Terry Rozier, Miles Bridges, Isaiah Stewart, Saddiq Bey

Deeper Value: None

GPP Sleeper: PJ Washington, Josh Jackson, Hamidou Diallo, Killian Hayes

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Brooklyn Nets @ Milwaukee Bucks

Vegas Total: N/A

Vegas Spread: N/A

We just saw this game on Sunday, so we have something to work off of here. Kyrie Irving scored 40.75 DraftKings points in this matchup, but really struggled to get loose from Jrue Holiday at times, so even though it’s a fast-paced matchup and should be a competitive game, it’s a tougher matchup than it may seem for Kyrie. Kevin Durant is the guy I want from the Nets, he was able to get pretty much whatever he wanted last time out and now has two straight games with at least 62 DraftKings points, his price is much cheaper on DraftKings, but I’m okay with him on FanDuel as well, I like him that much tonight. Joe Harris and Landry Shamet are guys I like getting exposure to in GPP as well with how many three’s the Bucks are willing to give up, it’s pretty easy to see one of those guys just getting scorching hot from deep. From the Bucks, Giannis Antetokounmpo had an awesome game last time out on his way to 74.5 DraftKings points without the double-double bonus which is pretty crazy. He’s an elite play on both sites, but again, a spot where I like him more on DraftKings due to the price, but he’s in play on both sites. Khris Middleton has been really good as of late and scoring much better from the field, I have no issue getting to him here. Jrue Holiday has been a bit more volatile, but he’s still going to play a ton of minutes, similar to Middleton, no issue with getting to him in what should be a great game. It sounds like Bobby Portis will return here, but I don’t love the price tag, I need to see more minutes out of a near $6k guy for me to feel comfortable. Lastly, a guy I do like quite a bit is Donte DiVincenzo, his price has fallen too far, and a guy that can score in bunches when he’s on.

5-star play: Kevin Durant, Giannis Antetokounmpo

4-star play: Khris Middleton, Jrue Holiday, Donte DiVincenzo

Deeper Value: None

GPP Sleeper: Joe Harris, Landry Shamet, Jeff Green, Bobby Portis, Brook Lopez

Dallas Mavericks @ Miami Heat

Vegas Total: N/A

Vegas Spread: N/A

Starting with the Mavericks, Kristaps Porzingis comes into this one as questionable so we can fire up Luka Doncic again. Luka has a 36.9% usage rate and 1.53 fantasy points per minute with Kristaps off the court this season. The only issue here is the matchup with the Heat, they play really good defense and pretty slow overall as well. As weird as it sounds, he’s about as far as my interest goes on the Mavs. The frontcourt is a disaster, but if you want to throw a dart and see if you can pick the correct guy between Maxi Kleber, Dwight Powell, and Willie Cauley-Stein, go for it, I’ll find somewhere else. That said, you can get to some of these ancillary pieces in GPP if you have an interest in guys like Dorian Finney-Smith, Jalen Brunson, and Tim Hardaway Jr., you can probably throw Josh Richardson in that group as well, but it’s not pretty. From the Heat, I love the price on Jimmy Butler on DraftKings, he’s more expensive on FanDuel but it’s due to the position scarcity on FanDuel, so I’m okay paying the premium on him. Bam Adebayo has at least 40 FanDuel points in four of his last five games and gets a nice matchup here. With Tyler Herro out, I think you can make a case for Goran Dragic and Kendrick Nunn in GPPs, while Duncan Robinson is always in play for tournaments due to how hot he can get from three-point range.

5-star play: Luka Doncic, Jimmy Butler

4-star play: Bam Adebayo, Goran Dragic

Deeper Value: None

GPP Sleeper: Dorian Finney-Smith, Jalen Brunson, Tim Hardaway, Josh Richardson, Kendrick Nunn, Duncan Robinson

Golden State Warriors @ New Orleans Pelicans

Vegas Total: N/A

Vegas Spread: N/A

We saw this game last night, so we have something to work off of here. Starting with the Warriors, Kelly Oubre is ruled out,  let’s run some numbers with Oubre off the court this season:

• Stephen Curry – 35.5% usage rate; 1.58 fpm
• Andrew Wiggins – 22.3% usage rate; 0.87 fpm
• Draymond Green – 13.2% usage rate; 1.07 fpm
• Kent Bazemore – 18.2% usage rate; 0.87 fpm
• Jordan Poole – 27.7% usage rate; 1.1 fpm

Curry and Green both went over the 60 point threshold on DraftKings last night and are guys you can go right back to in this one. As a whole I think you can target the Warriors a decent amount, we don’t have an implied total on this game yet but I would expect it to be pretty large with how fast both of these teams play. From the Pelicans, Zion Williamson was fine last night but it’s a fast-paced matchup against a pretty average frontcourt, I have no issue going right back to him. Brandon Ingram is in the same boat in a way, I can never get him right, so not a guy I get to all that often but I’m fine with him for tournaments. Lonzo Ball came down to Earth last night but he just shot poorly, I’m more than willing to go back to him here.  Lastly, Eric Bledsoe and Steven Adams are fine secondary filler options if you happen to land on them. Not really guys that I’m looking to prioritize though. It’s worth noting that Steven Adams comes into this one as questionable as well, so we can go right to Willy Hernangomez if he ends up sitting.

5-star play: Stephen Curry

4-star play: Andrew Wiggins, Draymond Green, Zion Williamson, Lonzo Ball

Deeper Value: None

GPP Sleeper: Kent Bazemore, Jordan Poole, Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball, Eric Bledsoe

Sacramento Kings @ Oklahoma City Thunder

Vegas Total: N/A

Vegas Spread: N/A

Starting with the Kings, it looks like De’Aaron Fox, Tyrese Haliburton, and Harrison Barnes will all be out here, so let’s run some numbers with these guys off the court:

• Delon Wright – 25.2% usage rate; 1.24 fpm
• Terence Davis – 19.9% usage rate; 0.88 fpm
• Buddy Hield – 28.3% usage rate; 1.13 fpm

These would be my three favorite options on the Kings, but you can obviously get to some of these other guys like Richaun Holmes, Marvin Bagley, and Moe Harkless. From the Thunder, Lu Dort is pretty locked into around 35 minutes right now and gets an elite matchup with the Kings. He’s much cheaper on FanDuel and gives you a really nice SF option. Darius Bazley has been pretty solid as of late but we know that volatility is somewhere in there, so more of a GPP guy for me. The same can be said for Moses Brown, he’s pretty much fallen off since he signed that multi-year contract. Then guys like Aleksej Pokusevski, Theo Maledon, and Isaiah Roby are solid GPP options due to the matchup with a really bad Kings defense, but not guys that I’ll be prioritizing.

5-star play: Delon Wright, Lu Dort

4-star play: Terence Davis, Buddy Hield, Richaun Holmes

Deeper Value: None

GPP Sleeper: Marvin Bagley, Moe Harkless, Darius Bazley, Moses Brown, Aleksej Pokusevski, Theo Maledon, Isaiah Roby

Toronto Raptors @ Los Angeles Clippers

Vegas Total: 215

Vegas Spread: Den -4.0

We’ll round this slate out starting with the Raptors, it sounds like OG Anunoby and Gary Trent Jr. are doubtful while we’ll need some news on Fred VanVleet as he comes in as questionable. I’ll operate under the assumption that he’s good to go for the sake of this article. Pascal Siakam, Fred VanVleet, and Kyle Lowry would be the main guys you want for obvious reasons. As long as they’re in that starting lineup their minutes are pretty locked in at 30+, so guys that I’m more than willing to get to here. Khem Birch is another guy I’m good with getting to due to the minutes he’s going to see, this team wants to see what they have in him before the end of the season. From the Clippers, Paul George has been a bit volatile as of late but the minutes are still here on him, I’m more than okay going right back to him. Kawhi Leonard returned last time out to play 30 minutes so it doesn’t look like he’ll be limited at all in a revenge game against his old squad. He does worry me this late in the season, so I may leave him for GPPs only. Then you can round this team out with guys like Reggie Jackson and Marcus Morris who are in that same GPP boat, you can probably throw a guy like Ivica Zubac in that category as well.

5-star play: None

4-star play: Paul George, Pascal Siakam, Fred VanVleet, Kyle Lowry

Deeper Value: None

GPP Sleeper: Kawhi Leonard, Khem Birch, Reggie Jackson, Marcus Morris

NBA Lock of the Day: Cheat Sheets/Core 4

We’re at that point in the NBA season where finding a lock of the day happens much closer to lock rather than earlier in the morning due to how fluid the injury reports are, so I’ll keep the lock of the day for our VIP members. Come get signed up and take a look at our Core plays on our Cheat Sheets/Coaches Notes for tonight, maybe take a gander at the DraftKings tiers notes while you’re in there as well! These notes include Core plays, player ranks, and tiers notes, so come check them out! Tweet me (@MadnessDFS) your lock predictions and if your player gets over 5x tonight I’ll give you a shoutout on Twitter, let’s have some fun with this!

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Editor’s Note – However, if you are more interested in simply betting the games, NBA is full of crazy action.  And, our dynamic modeling over at SportsBetArmy adjusts in real time to help identify Vegas inaccuracies you can exploit.  Follow Ryan, Anthony, and Statsational for models and coaching advice that help you build any bankroll for any sport…