The Pelicans are finishing a set of back-to-back games in Minnesota against the Timberwolves on Friday night. They won on Wednesday, 119-115 behind a big game from Zion Williamson. New Orleans, however, ruled him out for Friday’s game due to injury: a lower back contusion. Without Zion, CJ McCollum ($7,100) will have to carry more of the offense while in the frontcourt both Karlo Matkovic ($4,600) and Yves Missi ($4,400) will be strong value plays to consider for NBA DFS contests.
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C Yves Missi, New Orleans Pelicans at San Antonio Spurs, $4,400
While Matkovic has stepped up in the last few games that Zion has missed, Missi has been more reliable lately and makes a lot of sense against the Timberwolves, who usually play big with Rudy Gobert ($6,100), Julis Randle ($7,600) and Naz Reid ($5,700). Matkovic does bring the added flexibility to move to power forward, but if you are able to use a center spot, Missi is a less risky play and comes a little cheaper.
Missi has scored double-digit points in five of his last six games, falling just one point short against the Clippers. He also had at least seven rebounds in each of his last four games, including a double-double that resulted in 30 fantasy points against the Pistons last Saturday.
In his 13 games since the All-Star break, the rookie from Belgium has averaged 10.4 points, 8.0 rebounds and 25.1 fantasy points per game. In the two games he played without Zion during that stretch, he averaged 28.25 fantasy points. With Zion off the floor, Missi’s usage rage has increased by 1.7 percentage points since the All-Star break and his production has increased to 1.0 fantasy point per minute.
Even with Zion, Missi had 13 points and 30.75 fantasy points against the Timberwolves on Wednesday, so with a little extra usage, he should be ready to return elite value Friday.
