The NBA regular season concludes Sunday. DraftKings’ main NBA DFS slate starts at 6:00 PM EST and features the first seven games of the night. DraftKings continues to offer huge contests for DFS players, and below, I break down some of my favorite NBA DFS options at each position for Sunday’s NBA action.
Set your DraftKings fantasy basketball lineups here: NBA $80K Fadeaway [$20K to 1st]
Guard
Stud
LaMelo Ball, Charlotte Hornets at New York Knicks, $8,800
The Hornets can clinch the No. 9 seed in the Eastern Conference with a win Sunday, giving them home court for Tuesday’s Play-In Tournament matchup vs. the Heat. On the other side, the Knicks are locked into the No. 3 seed and have nothing at stake. Four of New York’s five starters have already been ruled out and this should be a friendly matchup for Ball.
As Charlotte fights to improve its seed, Ball has been excellent, scoring over 50 FPTS in three straight and all of these matchups came against top-eight ranked defenses. Ball is scoring 1.4 FPTS per minute with a 31% usage rate this season and he went off for 60 FPTS in his one other visit to Madison Square Garden. Ball should have another big outing at the famous arena Sunday and is one of the best spends on the slate.
Other Options: Tyrese Maxey ($9,700), Nickeil Alexander-Walker ($7,300)
Value
Craig Porter Jr., Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Washington Wizards, $3,800
Locked into the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference, the Cavaliers will be resting nearly their entire playoff rotation Sunday vs. the Wizards. Porter Jr. should start at point guard and destroy his cheap salary vs. the Wizards, who rank fifth in pace and dead last in defensive rating this season.
Despite all their key players being out, Cleveland’s 122.5-point implied team total on DraftKings Sportsbook is the highest on the slate, which is a testament to how strong of a matchup this is. For last year’s regular-season finale, Porter Jr. also got a spot start with the Cavaliers resting players and he scored 36 FPTS in 42 minutes vs. the Pacers.
Other Options: Jose Alvarado ($3,900), Hugo Gonzalez ($3,700), Tyrese Proctor ($3,500)
Forward
Stud
Ousmane Dieng, Milwaukee Bucks at Philadelphia 76ers, $7,400
Dieng is on the heels of a 37 FPTS performance vs. the Nets. The forward started, logged 37 minutes and saw a 21.9% usage rate with the Bucks understaffed for this tilt. Milwaukee will be even more depleted tonight, as Myles Turner (ankle) and Kyle Kuzma (Achilles) will be joining the Bucks’ lengthy inactive list.
Dieng should approach 40 minutes again and see an even larger usage rate. The 76ers are motivated to win, but they still rank 17th in defensive rating for the season and Dieng has a strong chance of exceeding 40 FPTS.
Other Options: Jalen Johnson ($10,500, if active), Brandon Miller ($7,200)
Value
Ron Harper Jr., Boston Celtics vs. Orlando Magic, $3,400
The Celtics’ top seven players have either been ruled out or listed as doubtful, as the team is locked into the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference. Boston should only have eight healthy players and this is a perfect opportunity for Harper Jr. to flourish. The Celtics just inked the 25-year-old to a two-year deal last week and Harper Jr. should start at point guard tonight.
In the 57 minutes Harper Jr. has played with Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Derrick White and Payton Pritchard off the floor this season, Harper Jr. is scoring 0.9 FPTS per minute with a 21% usage rate. He should see 35-40 minutes tonight and Harper Jr. has the potential to surpass 10-times value, regardless that the Magic are playing to win this game.
Other Options: Jaylon Tyson ($4,100), Nae’Qwan Tomlin ($3,700), Jordan Clarkson ($3,400), Mohamed Diawara ($3,000)
Center
Stud
Bam Adebayo, Miami Heat vs. Atlanta Hawks, $9,200
The Heat can steal the No. 9 seed from the Hornets if Miami wins and Charlotte loses tonight. These games are being played simultaneously, so the Heat should be going all out for a win and Adebayo is one of the top targets on the slate. The center has topped 50 FPTS in four of his last six and this season, Adebayo is leading Miami with 1.3 FPTS while handling a 25.8% usage rate.
The Hawks are likely to finish as the No. 5 seed in the Eastern Conference, so they have many key players listed as questionable. This should be a strong matchup for Adebayo and he has 50 FPTS upside, particularly if Norman Powell (questionable, groin) sits.
Value
Luka Garza, Boston Celtics vs. Orlando Magic, $4,200
Garza should flourish for the skeleton staff Celtics and is a must-play. The veteran has had some great moments for Boston this season, but with Nikola Vucevic healthy again, Garza likely won’t be a part of the Celtics’ playoff rotation barring an injury. Boston’s coaching staff should let Garza run loose tonight as the team’s starting center.
The hard-working big man should see around 30 minutes and have a great fantasy performance. In the 43 minutes Garza has played with Tatum, Brown, White and Pritchard off the floor this season, Garza is amassing 1.2 FPTS per minute with a 23% usage rate. The last time he started was on March 30th vs. the Hawks and Garza finished with 35.75 FPTS in 28 minutes. With the Celtics much more shorthanded tonight, Garza brings even better upside.
Other Options: Larry Nance Jr. ($3,200), Amari Williams ($3,000), Olivier Sarr ($3,000)
