DFS NBA Full Court Press: FanDuel & DraftKings Main Slate - Apr. 20th, 2022

Main Slate Breakdown for NBA DFS 04/20:

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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Brooklyn Nets @ Boston Celtics

Vegas Total: 226.0

Vegas Spread: Bos -3.5

We’ll kick this slate kicked off with the Nets, it sounds like Ben Simmons is nearing a return, but I would assume they keep him out until they go back to Brooklyn, so they’ll be without him here. Kevin Durant had a rough go of it in game 1 but still played 40+ minutes and will do the same here. Kyrie Irving was partially to blame for Durant’s down game, as he went off against his old team. With the price tag between the two being $100 on DraftKings and $300 on FanDuel, I’m just going to find the money to get to Durant, I just think he hits his ceiling on a more consistent basis than Irving. While Simmons is out we should expect to see massive minutes from Bruce Brown as he attempts to glue this defense together and will look like a nice option in all formats even though he struggled in game 1… he did get into foul trouble in this one which may have played a toll on him. We saw Nic Claxton close the game against Cleveland and now he closed game 1 in this series, I’m going to operate under the assumption that he does so again here. He’s around 30 minutes in his last two as Andre Drummond sat on the bench for most of the second half. I don’t see myself paying more salary for Drummond than Claxton at this point. Seth Curry bounced back a bit in game 1 from an awful game against the Celtics, he’ll look like a fine secondary option gain here. Then we can round this team out with Goran Dragic who got his minutes up last time out and essentially killed the minutes for Patty Mills which will take him out of play. From the Celtics, I thought we were going to see a huge battle between Jayson Tatum and Durant in this series and we saw a glimpse of it in game 1, but Tatum was superior. The price tag on Tatum is hard to overlook knowing he’s going to play 40+ minutes in a competitive game. Jaylen Brown had a nice bounce-back game as well, I don’t expect him to have six blocks/steals again in this one but still looks like a solid option. Al Horford had a big game in game 1 as well and is now averaging 33.3 DraftKings points per game in five games against the Nets this season and will look like a good option… not to mention his price went down on DraftKings. Marcus Smart looked great as well and will be a guy I go back to at a nice price tag, but will likely leave Derrick White as a secondary filler piece. Lastly, we should see Daniel Theis start at the five until Robert Williams comes back and will look like a solid mid-range center option if we need one. However, I would expect to see the same closing five as we did in game 1 where White closed over Theis.

5-star play: Kevin Durant, Jayson Tatum

4-star play: Kyrie Irving, Nicolas Claxton, Bruce Brown, Jaylen Brown, Al Horford, Marcus Smart

Deeper Value: Seth Curry, Goran Dragic

GPP Sleeper: Andre Drummond, Goran Dragic, Derrick White, Daniel Theis

Quick shoutout to VIP member “Cenzamatic” on a massive $20k win earlier in the season! Sometimes paying up for double studs works, and Giannis Antetokounmpo and Kevin Durant brought it home for him with the help of some Stanley Johnson and Pistons value. Good work and congrats man!

Philadelphia 76ers @ Toronto Raptors

Vegas Total: 216.0

Vegas Spread: Phi -2.0

Starting with the Sixers, James Harden was a guy that I got a bunch of in the first two games of this series due to the price tag he’s seen to start the playoffs. One game was good and the other… not so much. His price tag has come down even further, especially on DraftKings, I would imagine I get a bunch of him again here. Joel Embiid has been fine in the first two games of the series, but it’s pretty evident the Raptors are making other players beat them as they trap/double Embiid every time he touches the ball. That being said, he’s still a nice high-end option on this slate. Tyrese Maxey has at least 48 DraftKings points in the first two games of this series and has a 22.4% usage rate, I have no issue riding the heater out with him again here. Tobias Harris has been really solid as well with at least 42 DraftKings points in back-to-back games. If they’re going to keep doubling Embiid the shots will be there for these guys and will be solid options in all formats. Outside of those four guys there really isn’t anyone else I have interest in from this team unless you want to ride the Danny Green rollercoaster. From the Raptors, Scottie Barnes comes into this one as doubtful while Gary Trent comes in as questionable with an illness. Keep an eye on the Breaking News Feed for updates surrounding him but considering he started the last game I’m going to operate under the assumption that Trent is playing here. Below is how this team operates with Barnes off of the court this season:

• Fred VanVleet – 25.7% usage rate; 1.16 fpm
• Pascal Siakam – 29% usage rate; 1.31 fpm
• Gary Trent Jr. – 23.5% usage rate; 0.89 fpm
• OG Anunoby – 22% usage rate; 0.91 fpm
• Precious Achiuwa – 16.9% usage rate; 0.87 fpm

These are the main guys I would be interested in with Chris Boucher being contingent on the availability of Gary Trent. VanVleet just couldn’t hit a shot in game 2 but still walked away with a huge fantasy game, he’s definitely a guy that I’m going back to here. These wings will see a boost as well as the Sixers will be without their best perimeter defender in Matisse Thybulle in this one.

5-star play: James Harden, Joel Embiid, Fred VanVleet

4-star play: Tobias Harris, Tyrese Maxey, Pascal Siakam, Gary Trent Jr., OG Anunoby

Deeper Value: Danny Green

GPP Sleeper: Danny Green, Precious Achiuwa, Chris Boucher

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Chicago Bulls @ Milwaukee Bucks

Vegas Total: 225.0

Vegas Spread: Mil -10.0

Starting with the Bulls, Nikola Vucevic was a core play for me and my biggest leverage play on the slate in game 1 and he dropped nearly 60 fantasy points. This matchup sets up really well for him and will be a guy I have no issue going right back to in this one, as he received a price decrease which makes no sense, but okay. DeMar DeRozan has looked good in this matchup this season averaging 43.6 DraftKings points per game in five games against the Bucks, and looks like a nice option at a good price tag.  Zach LaVine would be more of a GPP option due to the volatility he shows, but he’s performed well in this matchup as well this season with 43.4 DraftKings points per game in three games against them this season. Patrick Williams came down to Earth in game one and had just 23 minutes, he’s not a big enough per minute guy for me to have a ton of interest. Ayo Dosunmu and Coby White would be more of GPP options than anything as they’ll play off of the bench but I just don’t think we need them on this slate. I do like Alex Caruso as one of the better value options on the slate. He’s going to need to play all the minutes he can handle, similar to Bruce Brown from the Nets, he’s a huge part of what they’re trying to do defensively. From Milwaukee, Giannis Antetokounmpo will be able to do whatever he wants here… the Bulls just have no answer for him defensively. He’s averaging 55.2 DraftKings points per game in five games against the Bulls this season and is the top spend-up option on the slate. Khris Middleton and Jrue Holiday feel a couple of hundred dollars too cheap considering how many minutes they’ll play going forward and look like nice secondary options. I’m going to keep going underweight on Bobby Portis until his price comes down, his minutes aren’t going to be there to pay off this salary with Brook Lopez back… especially in this series. Portis is one of the worst drop defenders in the league which is where Vucevic will eat him up, even though he had a big game 1, I’ll be underweight on him again here. That being said, Lopez will look like a great option at this price tag. Then we can round this team out with Grayson Allen and Pat Connaughton as value options who can light it up in a hurry.

5-star play: Nikola Vucevic, Giannis Antetokounmpo

4-star play: DeMar DeRozan, Zach LaVine, Alex Caruso, Khris Middleton, Jrue Holiday, Brook Lopez

Deeper Value: Alex Caruso, Pat Connaughton, Grayson Allen

GPP Sleeper: Patrick Williams, Bobby Portis, Grayson Allen, Pat Connaughton

I need to give VIP Member “TTG2436” a massive shoutout for his $100k takedown earlier in the season, congrats man! Our NBA Domination Station lineup optimizer is Powered by DFS Army proprietary projections. The Domination Station will help you create 150 of the highest projected lineups in a matter of minutes. With features that allow you to Like  Love  or Dislike  a player, you can create a fully unique pool of players to generate your lineups from every day. Combine the power of the Domination Station with our VIP Only Articles and the NBA Research Station to really take your game to the next level.

NBA Lock of the Day: Nikola Vucevic (DK – $7.3k; FD – $7.7k)

I was all over Vucevic in game 1 and he crushed with 57 DraftKings points… his price went down on DraftKings for some reason. He’s in play on FanDuel as well due to the matchup, but I’m going right back to the well with him on both sites. The matchup sets up great for his skill-set, as the Bucks continue to play that drop defense against him. He’s going to have open shots all game long. At this point in the day, I would think he makes my core, but check out our VIP Cheat Sheets as we get closer to lock for staff picks on Core plays, 8x locks of the day, and tiers notes as well!

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