Welcome to the unofficial halfway point of the NBA’s regular season. Well, halfway-ish.
This is all a way of saying that at some point this week, most teams will indeed play their 41st regular season contest of 2024-25. Time is flying past us, right?
To celebrate this (not real) occasion, I’ve provided you all with three value options for tonight’s six-game slate. Let’s dive in and save some salary.
Set your DraftKings fantasy basketball lineups here: NBA $300K Fadeaway [$100K to 1st]
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PF/C Naz Reid, Minnesota Timberwolves at Washington Wizards, $4,700
Reid is the reigning Sixth Man of the Year, but despite his numbers being very similar to last season, there doesn’t seem to be as much buzz about the forward’s play in 2024-25. Maybe there should be with the way he’s been playing the last two weeks. Going back to December 31, Reid is averaging 16.3 points, 6.3 rebounds and 30.9 FPTS per game. It’s a span of time where the big man has exceeded 30 FPTS in five of seven contests. I’d expect his exemplary results to continue on Monday in a matchup with the lowly Wizards. Washington combines the league’s worst defensive rating (118.6) with it’s fourth-highest pace (103.0) — essentially making it the best single opponent a fantasy asset can draw. As such, the whole Timberwolves roster is going to be popular this evening. Reid deserves to be a part of those stacks.
SG/SF Buddy Hield, Golden State Warriors at Toronto Raptors, $4,600
Hield is on the heels of being the Warriors’ No. 1 option in a loss to the Pacers. He finished Friday’s contest leading Golden State in both points (17) and field goal attempts (19), as the Warriors were taking the court without the likes of Steph Curry ($8,800), Andrew Wiggins ($6,000) and Draymond Green ($5,700; back). However, Curry and Wiggins will be back against the Raptors. Green is currently questionable for Monday, yet he is expected to play, per Steve Kerr. If that is indeed the case, Hield will likely return to a reserve role, but that doesn’t mean the former lottery pick doesn’t still possess a tantalizing DFS ceiling. In his last game off the bench, Hield registered 31.5 FPTS in a loss to the Heat on January 7. It was the first of three straight 30 FPTS performances for the veteran wing. Considering Toronto surrenders the fourth-most opponent three-pointers per contest (14.3), I’m anticipating another solid showing for Hield.
PF/C Nikola Jovic, Miami Heat at Los Angeles Clippers, $4,900
Jovic isn’t exactly the most consistent DFS asset, but the upside is easy to see. In the team’s last 11 games, Jovic is one of five Miami players to log at least 300 minutes. It’s a span of time where Jovic has registered 30 FPTS five times, including a season-best 44.0 FPTS in the Heat’s most recent game on January 11 against the Trail Blazers. It’s also a span where the third-year forward is producing 1.01 FPTS per minute logged. Versus Portland, Jovic scored 21 points, grabbed eight rebounds and dished out five assists. If he can manage anything close to that level of performance against the Clippers, prospective owners will be very happy.
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All views expressed are my own. I am an employee of DraftKings and am ineligible to play in public DFS or DKSB contests.
