The NBA has a solid slate of six games on the slate on tap for Saturday night, with a few very interesting matchups. The four 8:00 p.m. matchups are especially juicy with the Mavs visiting the red-hot Bulls, the Pacers tangling with the Thunder, and the Grizzlies playing their first game since shocking the NBA world by firing coach Taylor Jenkins. While there are strong options to consider for your NBS DFS lineups across the slate, the three options highlighted in this post make good options to consider if you are stacking multiple players from the same team.
Of the 12 teams in action, only the Nets are playing for the second day in a row and the Spurs and Sixers are the only teams that have to play again on Sunday. Be sure to check back on the daily injury report before tip-off and adjust your lineup if needed.
The NBA DFS main slate includes a variety of contests and pay-out structures on DraftKings, headlined by the NBA $150K Fadeaway [$50K to 1st].
Chicago Bulls vs. Dallas Mavericks
The Bulls have won nine of their last 11 games as they host the Mavericks on Saturday night. In those 11 contests, no team in the NBA has scored more points than the Bulls, who are averaging 122.2 points per game while leading the NBA in pace. They’ll take on the Mavericks, who do expect to have Anthony Davis ($9,800; adductor, probable) but could still be shorthanded with multiple other injuries.
Core Plays: The Bulls’ surge has been led by the dynamic duo of Josh Giddey ($9,200) and Coby White ($8,100). White has 43+ fantasy points in four straight games and has averaged 44.1 fantasy points per game in March. Giddey missed a few games with an injury but has been even more productive when available, producing 57.7 fantasy points per game this month.
Value Options: Since joining the team at the trade deadline, Kevin Huerter ($5,900) has been a regular contributor and had 39.5 fantasy points in 40 minutes on Thursday. As cheap plays, Patrick Williams ($3,800) and Dalen Terry ($3,400) have been involved enough off the bench to be bargain picks to round out the stack.
Miami Heat at Philadelphia 76ers
The Heat and Sixers meet in one of the less-interesting games on the slate, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t a chance for great fantasy value. The Heat didn’t take Duncan Robinson (back) or Andrew Wiggins (hamstring) on their road trip, ruling both out for Saturday’s game in Philly. Their absence and the soft matchup against the injury-depleted Sixers make the rest of the Heat one of the best NBA DFS stacks on the board.
Core Plays: Tyler Herro ($8,300) and Bam Adebayo ($8,400) will have to carry most of the work on offense. In his seven games since the All-Star break without Wiggins, Adebayo has averaged 49.1 fantasy points with his usage rate increasing by almost four full percentage points. He had a double-double and 37 fantasy points against the Hawks on Thursday and should outpace that production on Saturday.
Value Options: Davion Mitchell ($4,300) has been very involved since arriving in Miami at the trade deadline. He scored exactly 12 points in five straight games before increasing his output to 16 points on Thursday. He had 31.5 fantasy points in that game against the Hawks and over 29 fantasy points in each of his last three games. Without Robinson and Wiggins, his opportunities should only increase on Saturday. Haywood Highsmith ($3,400) and Kyle Anderson ($3,100) should also have no trouble getting minutes and usage and Jaime Jaquez Jr. ($3,300) should also re-enter a more significant role after playing very limited minutes lately.
Brooklyn Nets at Washington Wizards
The Wizards gave up 162 points on Thursday to the Pacers… 162! They have allowed an NBA-high 121.0 points per game this season and 124.5 points per game over their last 10. The Nets should be able to score in their trip to D.C. even though they’ll be missing some key players on the second night of their back-to-back. The team listed D’Angelo Russell (ankle), Day’Ron Sharpe (knee) and Nicolas Claxton (rest) as out while Noah Clowney ($4,400; illness) is questionable.
Core Plays: Without Russell and Claxton, Cameron Johnson ($7,100), Keon Johnson ($5,400) and Trendon Watford ($5,300) will have to pick up most of the slack, and they all have high ceilings given the soft matchup. Cam Johnson only played 20 minutes in Friday’s blowout loss but had 41.25 fantasy points earlier this week against the Pacers. Keon Johnson has posted over 21 fantasy points in three of his last four games and six of his last eight. He also has averaged 26.8 fantasy points per game in his eight games without Russell since the All-Star break. In the one game that Claxton rested since the break, Sharpe went off for 62.75 fantasy points, but with both out, Watford will likely absorb that usage.
Value Options: If Clowney plays through his illness, he could also help in the frontcourt and be a good value option. If he’s out, Tosan Evbuomwan ($3,000) will have to step up as one of the only other big options left for Brooklyn. Tyrese Martin ($4,100) and Jaylen Wilson ($3,400) should get enough work on the wings to be good value plays as well with so many players missing for the Nets on Saturday.
