Main Slate Breakdown for NBA DFS 11/17:
Nov 15, 2022; Portland, Oregon, USA; Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard (0) shoots the ball over San Antonio Spurs forward Keita Bates-Diop (31) in the second half at Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Jaime Valdez-USA TODAY Sports
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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San Antonio Spurs @ Sacramento Kings
Vegas Total: 237.0
Vegas Spread: Sac -7.0
We’ll kick off this short, weird, slate with the Spurs, Tre Jones returned from illness last time out and didn’t look all that great… but didn’t end up killing you with 25.5 DraftKings points. The price tag has come up on him but this game has a massive total and neither team plays any defense, so I’ll have interest yet again here. Keldon Johnson leads the team with a 28% usage rate and 1.13 fantasy points per minute on the season and bounced back nicely last time out. Jakob Poeltl ended up saving my night last time they were on the slate, he was less than 2% owned and dropped a huge double-double against the Blazers. I like the matchup again in this one and will be a guy I go right back to the well with. Devin Vassell has been extremely consistent this season but is priced right about where he should be, so he won’t be a priority for me, but you could do much worse in this price range if you fall there. Then we can round the team out with Jeremy Sochan who has been seeing much better minutes as of late and is a Draymond Green-ish player, he provides some nice value here. From the Kings, De’Aaron Fox had a rough go of it last time out but was mostly due to seeing just 24 minutes as they beat up on the Nets beating them by 32 points. I have no issue going right back to him in this one, we love attacking the Spurs with opposing point guards. Domantas Sabonis has been extremely consistent as well and we’ve seen the upside he can provide, he’s going to look great again. Keegan Murray left their last game early with a back injury and comes into this one as questionable, so keep an eye on the Breaking News Feed for updates. If he were to miss I would expect to see guys like Malik Monk and Harrison Barnes get more consistent run. Kevin Huerter has been volatile all season and can be scoring-dependent, making him more of a tournament guy.
5-star play: Keldon Johnson, De’Aaron Fox, Domantas Sabonis
4-star play: Tre Jones, Devin Vassell, Jakob Poeltl, Jeremy Sochan, Keegan Murray, Harrison Barnes
Deeper Value: None
GPP Sleeper: Jeremy Sochan, Keegan Murray, Malik Monk, Kevin Huerter
Quick shoutout to VIP member “Cenzamatic” on a massive $20k win last 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!
Brooklyn Nets @ Portland Trail Blazers
Vegas Total: 221.0
Vegas Spread: Por -2.0
Starting with the Nets, they’ll continue to be without Kyrie Irving as he serves his suspension. Seth Curry was a guy I was high on last slate while most people went the direction of Joe Harris at a similar price tag. Both guys weren’t all that great, but at least Curry didn’t kill you… they both lost substantial run due to the blowout as well that I touched on with the Kings above. I have no issue going right back to Curry in this one and would prefer him over Harris again here. Ben Simmons is unplayable as long as he continues to come off of the bench at this price tag, the minutes just aren’t there right now. Kevin Durant has a 32.6% usage rate and 1.47 fantasy points per minute with Kyrie out this season and is an elite option in all formats in a nice matchup with the Blazers. Nic Claxton is another guy that struggled last time out and has actually been held under 15 FanDuel points in back-to-back games. On a three-game slate, I have no problem going back to him, he’s been productive this season. Then Royce O’Neale will always be a last piece in type of play, but no issue if you land on him. From the Blazers, Jusuf Nurkic and Justise Winslow come in as questionable so we’ll need to watch the Breaking News Feed for updates surrounding his status. Nurkic returned last time out but only played 15 minutes, so if he does play I’m not particularly thrilled about his potential playing time. Damian Lillard has been solid as of late and we know he’s going to play all the minutes he can handle in a great matchup against this Nets team that is playing absolutely zero defense. Anfernee Simons has been pretty consistent as of late as well with at least 31 FanDuel points in three of his last four games and is a fine option again in this one. Jerami Grant has been in great form playing all the minutes he can handle, he has at least 44 DraftKings points in three straight games. Then Drew Eubanks will look like a solid value option again here if Nurkic is forced to miss.
5-star play: Kevin Durant, Damian Lillard, Jerami Grant
4-star play: Seth Curry, Nic Claxton, Royce O’Neale, Anfernee Simons, Josh Hart
Deeper Value: Shaedon Sharpe
GPP Sleeper: Seth Curry, Joe Harris, Justise Winslow
Detroit Pistons @ Los Angeles Clippers
Vegas Total: 216.5
Vegas Spread: Lac -9.0
We’ll round out the slate starting with the Pistons, Cade Cunningham and Isaiah Stewart will continue to be out for them in this one. Stewart left the last game early and is going to miss a few weeks, I would imagine we see Marvin Bagley slide into the starting lineup in his place. Bagley played 29 minutes last game so I would think he’s a full go in this one and looks like a great option in all formats. Jalen Duren would be an interesting value play off of the bench as well. Killian Hayes should continue to start for Cade as well and has looked good over his last few games with at least 33 DraftKings points in two of his last three. Jaden Ivey is a guy I like going right back to as well, he has a 31.1% usage rate and 1.10 fantasy points per minute with Cade off of the court this season. Saddiq Bey moved back to the bench last time out, so I should adjust what I mentioned above… I would think Bagley sticks in the starting lineup as he did last time out and Bey returns to the starting lineup, so just a small change there. Bey is always a volatile player but I wouldn’t have an issue with him on a short slate. Then we can round the team out with Bojan Bogdanovic who has at least 30 DraftKings points in three straight games. From the Clippers, Paul George has been fine as of late but not relative to his current price tag. That said, I do like the matchup against the Pistons here… but I’m not sure it’s enough for me to want to get to him. He does come in as questionable, so be sure to keep an eye on that as we get closer to lock. Ivica Zubac is a solid option here, I like chasing upside on short slates like this, he can be volatile but we know the ceiling is there. Marcus Morris bounced back last time out and should continue to see all the minutes he can handle and will be a solid secondary option in this one. Then Reggie Jackson and Norman Powell are GPP options only due to how all over the place they have been this season, especially with John Wall back in this one. Speaking of Wall, he has at least 28 DraftKings points in four of his last five and is a guy I think we can get to as a secondary option.
5-star play: Jaden Ivey, Marvin Bagley
4-star play: Killian Hayes, Saddiq Bey, Bojan Bogdanovic, Paul George, John Wall, Ivica Zubac, Marcus Morris
Deeper Value: Jalen Duren
GPP Sleeper: Jalen Duren, Saddiq Bey, Reggie Jackson, Ivica Zubac
NBA Lock of the Day: Jerami Grant (DK – $7.6k; FD – $8.4k)
I’m going to go point-chasing with this one. Jerami Grant has been in elite form as of late with at least 44 DraftKings/41 FanDuel points in three straight games. He now gets one of the best matchups in the league against this Brooklyn frontcourt and team that isn’t playing any sort of defense… they just gave up 153 points to the Kings. We know he’s going to play all the minutes he can handle as well. 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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