DFS NBA Full Court Press: FanDuel & DraftKings Main Slate - Oct. 23rd, 2021

Main Slate Breakdown for NBA DFS 10/23:

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 Mike 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!

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Atlanta Hawks @ Cleveland Cavaliers

Vegas Total: NA

Vegas Spread: NA

This is an island game, so if you’re looking to get some action on this one you’ll have to get into some showdown contests, but we’ll break it down for you right here! Starting with the Hawks, it sounds like Danilo Gallinari is going to be questionable heading into this one. If he’s forced to miss we’d likely see more shots/opportunities for wing guys like De’Andre Hunter and Cam Reddish and more minutes for Jalen Johnson and Solomon Hill. Johnson and Hill would be punt values on the showdown slate only, they’re not all that exciting in my eyes. Clint Capela had his minutes monitored and ended around 21 minutes in the opener which led to more minutes for Gorgui Dieng, if that’s the case again here I have no issue with a little Gorgui lovin’. Just know he needs to be super-efficient, as he saw just 14.5 minutes in the opener, but we know what he’s capable of from a point per minute standpoint. Trae Young started the opener with more turnovers than fantasy points in the first quarter but was able to turn it around and get to 40+ fantasy points, he’s probably the best raw option on the slate. John Collins also looked really good in the opener, he’s a guy that I’m really high on this season after seeing what he made work in the playoffs. Then you can round this team out with those wing players in Hunter, Reddish, Kevin Huerter, and Bogdan Bogdanovic. For the price tag, Hunter would be my favorite followed closely by Bogdanovic, it’s kind of crazy how deep this Hawks team is. From the Cavs, we’ll need to keep an eye on the status of Darius Garland as well, he missed yesterday’s game with a sprained ankle, so keep an eye on the Breaking News Feed if he’s out it would open up a bunch of ball-handling responsibilities in the backcourt. I’m going to operate under the assumption that he’s in here, he and Collin Sexton will run the backcourt in a nice matchup against the Hawks. Sexton had a nice bounce-back game last night and is a guy I’m willing to get back to on this showdown slate. Jarrett Allen came back down to Earth last night as he didn’t get the blocks and steals he had on opening night. It does look like the Cavs want to keep him in the 27-30 minute range as well since they have so many big men. Evan Mobley seems pretty locked into this rotation right away for the Cavs, he’s had at least 32 minutes in both games this season and has been producing nicely, I like him a lot here. Ricky Rubio has been a nice surprise for the Cavs, he’s had at least 36 DraftKings points in the first two games, granted Garland was out for one of them but he’s performing nicely. Lastly, Lauri Markkanen and Kevin Love are more of GPP type plays for me with Markkanen being closer to the cash game fringe.

5-star play: Trae Young, John Collins, Evan Mobley

4-star play: Bogdan Bogdanovic, De’Andre Hunter, Collin Sexton, Darius Garland, Jarrett Allen

Deeper Value: Lauri Markkanen, De’Andre Hunter, Gorgui Dieng, Solomon Hill

GPP Sleeper: Ricky Rubio, Lauri Markkanen, Kevin Love

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Miami Heat @ Indiana Pacers

Vegas Total: 222.5

Vegas Spread: Mia -3.0

Onto the main slate where we’ll start with the Miami Heat. The Miami starters lost a full rotation in the fourth quarter due to a blowout against the Bucks in game one, but Jimmy Butler played really well in 29 minutes. The Pacers have proven they’re going to continue playing fast, so I like going right back to Butler here. Speaking of guys that played well, Tyler Herro carried over his preseason performance into night one where he dropped 43 DraftKings points in 24 minutes. He’s probably my favorite point-per-dollar play on the Heat in hopes that he can keep it going here. We’ve seen opposing guards tear up this Pacers team with LaMelo Ball and Spencer Dinwiddie both going for 50+ fantasy points in both the Pacers games this season. This leads me to Kyle Lowry, we’ll need to keep an eye on the Breaking News Feed regarding his status as he’s currently listed as questionable with an ankle sprain. If he plays he’s more of a GPP guy for me just because that ankle does worry me slightly, but again a great matchup. Bam Adebayo looked good in 23 minutes in the opener as well… spoiler alert, everyone looked good for the Heat in the opener against the shorthanded Bucks. I have no issue going right back to Adebayo in this one. Then you can round this team out with Duncan Robinson as a GPP dart. From the Pacers, I won’t bury the lead, Chris Duarte is going to be one of the highest owned players on the slate on DraftKings, but for good reason. If we take a look at the Domination Station below, we have Duarte projected to outperform his DraftKings price tag by nearly 7x. His price came up to the $6k range yesterday and dropped back down for seemingly no reason.

Malcolm Brogdon, Domantas Sabonis, and Myles Turner all went over 50 DraftKings points in an overtime game against the Wizards last night. I mention it in pretty much all my articles, but we know Turner has this upside due to his blocking and shooting ability. Brogdon and Sabonis are the familiar faces in that production area, however, this is a tough matchup against a really good Miami defense. If people are going to chase those games from last night, I have no issue coming in under the field and getting some leverage elsewhere.

5-star play: Tyler Herro, Jimmy Butler, Chris Duarte

4-star play: Bam Adebayo, Domantas Sabonis, Malcolm Brogdon

Deeper Value: Chris Duarte

GPP Sleeper: Myles Turner, Duncan Robinson, Kyle Lowry

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Dallas Mavericks @ Toronto Raptors

Vegas Total: 216.5

Vegas Spread: Dal -4.0

Starting with the Mavs, it’s really just Luka Doncic in this one for me. It’s hard to like the implied total for this game all that much but we know the upside that comes with Doncic. He was pretty average for his standards in game one, but a guy I’m willing to go back to against a young Raptors team. If people are going to continue playing Kristaps Porzingis, let them. When’s the last time this guy put up a nice game? If his price was cheaper I would think about it, but I’m just not convinced he’s all that good right now. That being said, it’s a nice matchup against a weak frontcourt with Siakam still out for the Raptors. I’ll get some exposure in GPP but I wouldn’t touch the guy in cash games. Lastly, you can make a case for Jalen Brunson as a value option, but honestly, you’ll probably be able to find better value guys on this slate with guys like Duarte and guys I’ll touch on later in the slate. From the Raptors, what’s Scottie Barnes gotta do to get a price increase? DraftKings really needs to get their pricing together. He’s averaging 34.6 DraftKings points this season and is at $4k… yet another value piece. OG Anunoby came down to Earth a bit last night but has been the model of consistency since the second half of last season, I have no issue with going to him against a team that struggled against wings last year. Fred VanVleet was able to bounce back last night and is another solid option on the Raptors as well.

5-star play: Luka Doncic, Scottie Barnes (DraftKings)

4-star play: OG Anunoby, Fred VanVleet

Deeper Value: Scottie Barnes

GPP Sleeper: Kristaps Porzingis, Jalen Brunson

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Detroit Pistons @ Chicago Bulls

Vegas Total: 213.5

Vegas Spread: Chi -8.5

We already get a rematch of the opening game for these two teams, we’ll get started with the Pistons. Jerami Grant led the team with a 29% usage rate last season and will likely continue at least until Cunningham is available. He dropped 39.5 DraftKings points in the Bulls in the opener and a guy I’m good with getting exposure to. Isaiah Stewart only played 26 minutes in the opener but I do think there’s some meat on the bone at that price tag. Saddiq Bey was the other guy that looked good in the opener, he’s going to be a staple of this Pistons team this season, but I don’t know how much I love the price tag on him. From the Bulls, I wanted to take that few games as a study point to see how this team is going to operate since they added Lonzo Ball and DeMar DeRozan. I had thought Zach LaVine would take the biggest hit but he’s dropped at least 49 DraftKings points in the first two games. His price tag came back up, but a guy I’m still good with getting to in GPPs at the very least. Nikola Vucevic was a guy I was pretty high on due to his price tag last night, but it came back again, I’m just not sure what’s going on with this DraftKings price algorithm. DeMar DeRozan and Lonzo Ball are similar plays to me at a similar price tag, they’re both secondary cash options, I don’t think they have the same ceiling on the Bulls as they did with their teams last season. Lastly, Alex Caruso has played good minutes in the first two games and is a fine value option, but again, value isn’t hard to find on this slate.

5-star play: None

4-star play: Jerami Grant, Isaiah Stewart, Zach LaVine, Nikola Vucevic

Deeper Value: Alex Caruso

GPP Sleeper: Saddiq Bey, DeMar DeRozan, Lonzo Ball

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New Orleans Pelicans @ Minnesota Timberwolves

Vegas Total: 228.5

Vegas Spread: Min -7.0

Starting with the Pelicans, they added Jonas Valanciunas and Devonte’ Graham over the offseason and should stand to benefit right away with Zion Williamson out for the start of the season. I love targeting guys against this Wolves team, as they don’t play a lick of defense. I don’t think people realize how much of a defensive liability Karl-Anthony Towns is on defense, but Jonas Valanciunas looks like an awesome play in this one. Graham has looked good to start the season as well and should benefit if Josh Hart is forced to miss again, but his minutes are pretty locked in regardless. With Zion off the court last season, Brandon Ingram was the guy you wanted with a 31.7% usage rate and 1.25 fantasy points per minute, so no issue with him in this spot, he’s been great to start the season. Nickeil Alexander-Walker has looked great to start the season with at least 35 FanDuel points in each game and looks like a great play in this one as well, the guy chucks when he’s out there. From the Wolves, Karl-Anthony Towns was a guy I was all over in the opener against the Rockets. His price came up a little bit but still a guy I’m willing to get to in GPPs at the very least. D’Angelo Russell was nearly impossible to get right as we got toward the back-end of the season last year but seems like he finally may be healthy and looked solid against the Rockets (not sure that’s all that difficult, but hey). I’m good with him in GPPs simply because he’s proven to be volatile in his career. A price tag I do like is Anthony Edwards at $7.3k on DraftKings and $7.7k on FanDuel. He picked up right where he left off last season as one of the best young scorers in the league. The last guy I would have any sort of interest in on the Wolves is Malik Beasley, but I think I might just need to see it from him first with Russell and Edwards in the backcourt with him… the price tag is intriguing though. You can make a case for Jaden McDaniels as a GPP value guy if you’re multi-entering, but not a guy I’m getting too crazy on.

5-star play: Jonas Valanciunas, Brandon Ingram

4-star play: Devonte’ Graham, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Karl-Anthony Towns, Anthony Edwards

Deeper Value: Jaden McDaniels

GPP Sleeper: D’Angelo Russell, Malik Beasley

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Phoenix Suns @ Portland Trailblazers

Vegas Total: 231.5

Vegas Spread: Por -2.5

Starting with the Suns, this is a big pace-up game for them, so I’ll probably get more of them than I generally do. They spread the ball around so much that it makes it hard to really love any particular piece. That being said, this is a game environment where we can see a guy like Devin Booker taking over, but I just don’t love the price tag. Much like the Jazz, the Suns are always priced right where they should be so none of these guys are going to look great from a point per dollar perspective. Chris Paul, DeAndre Ayton, and Mikal Bridges are all fine options but with the value on the slate, I’m not sure how much I’ll fall on them here. From the Blazers, Damian Lillard pretty easily led the team last year with a 31.1% usage rate and 1.34 fantasy points per minute, but it’s a tough matchup for him against this Suns defense.  Jusuf Nurkic is a guy I do like here at this price tag. Ayton improved a lot on defense last year, but Nurkic is a great per minute guy and showed this on opening night with 40+ fantasy points. I do think you can get to guys like Norman Powell and Robert Covington as mid-range guys, we may not see the 35+ minutes out of Covington against this season with Larry Nance now on the team, but that’s what he’s done his whole career so I wouldn’t put it past him.

5-star play: Jusuf Nurkic

4-star play: Devin Booker, Chris Paul, Mikal Bridges, Damian Lillard

Deeper Value: None

GPP Sleeper: CJ McCollum, DeAndre Ayton

I wanted to give a quick shoutout to staff member – wwegner on nailing opening night, great start to the season! He locked in Bjelica, Nwora, and Poole to the tune of $2k+!

Memphis Grizzlies @ Los Angeles Clippers

Vegas Total: 226.5

Vegas Spread: Lac -3.5

Starting with the Grizzlies, we have more evidence of DraftKings completely whiffing on some price tags. De’Anthony Melton and Desmond Bane are priced under $4k and should both start and produced nicely on opening night with over 30 fantasy points, they’re elite value plays on this slate. Jaren Jackson was a guy I was heavy on on opening night as well, I have no issue getting back to him in the mid-range here as well. Steven Adams has a nice matchup against a Clippers team that will struggle against big men this season as well and a nice value center option if you need one. Then you can round this team out with Ja Morant who is pretty matchup-proof at this point, but probably more of a GPP guy due to the price tag. From the Clippers, Paul George opened up the season looking great with 55+ fantasy points and should continue to thrive with Kawhi Leonard out. With Kawhi off the court last season George had a 35.1% usage rate and 1.32 fantasy points per minute. Eric Bledsoe looked pretty good in his debut as well, he’s always a guy that can produce when given the opportunity, but he’s no stranger to busting as well, so I’ll leave him for GPPs for now. I do like Terance Mann and Marcus Morris in the mid-range however, they’re guys that can score in bunches and the Clippers will be looking to them for scoring with Kawhi out for the foreseeable future. I especially like Mann’s price tag on FanDuel where he’s just $4.4k, one of the better value plays on the slate, the same can be said for Ivica Zubac.

5-star play: De’Anthony Melton (DraftKings), Desmond Bane (DraftKings), Terance Mann (FanDuel), Paul George

4-star play: Ja Morant, Jaren Jackson, Ivica Zubac, Eric Bledsoe, Marcus Morris, Steven Adams

Deeper Value: De’Anthony Melton, Desmond Bane, Terance Mann, Ivica Zubac

GPP Sleeper: Ja Morant, Eric Bledsoe

NBA Lock of the Day: (See the NBA Cheatsheets for My CORE PLAYS!)

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