The Play-In Tournament continues Wednesday with a two-game slate. 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 Wednesday’s NBA action.
Set your DraftKings fantasy basketball lineups here: NBA $300K Play-In Special [$100K to 1st]
Guard
Stud
Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors at Los Angeles Clippers, $8,900
This is a win-or-go home matchup between the Warriors and the Clippers. Golden State has been ramping Curry up as he works his way back from a knee injury. In the regular season finale, he got up to 28 minutes and scored 40.5 FPTS vs. the same Clippers team he will face tonight. Curry also scored 48.5 FPTS vs. Los Angeles in January while logging 33 minutes.
With the season on the line, the former MVP should see more work tonight, likely in the 35-40-minute range with huge upside. This season, Curry is leading Golden State with 1.4 FPTS per minute and a 32% usage rate, and he has topped 50 FPTS in 25% of his games.
Other Options: Tyrese Maxey ($9,500), Darius Garland ($7,700)
Value
De’Anthony Melton, Golden State Warriors at Los Angeles Clippers, $4,400
Melton’s salary has dropped to $4,400 from $5,500 for the regular season finale and he is an excellent bargain at this discounted price. Melton scored at least 29 FPTS in two of his past four and the guard is producing 1.1 FPTS per minute with a 25.6% usage rate this season.
He trails only Curry in plus/minus for the Warriors and Melton should see close to 30 minutes with this being win-or-go home, giving him a strong ceiling relative to his salary.
Other Options: Anthony Black ($4,300), Kris Dunn ($3,700)
Forward
Stud
Paolo Banchero, Orlando Magic at Philadelphia 76ers, $8,700
This is a very reasonable price for Banchero. The forward spent most of the season priced over $9,000 on DraftKings. Franz Wagner is back for the Magic, but he isn’t 100% and Banchero is still the team’s main option. This was on display in Sunday’s regular season finale vs. the Celtics – which was a game the Magic were trying to win – when Banchero erupted for 53.5 FPTS in 37 minutes.
The Duke product is leading Orlando with 1.2 FPTS per minute and a 28.2% usage rate this season, and Banchero torched the 76ers for 53.75 FPTS back in October, which was a game Wagner was active for. While this isn’t win-or-go home for the Magic – a loss will send them to a win-or-go home Play-In matchup vs. the Hornets on Friday – a victory tonight will earn Orlando a playoff berth. Banchero should see huge minutes and is a great spend at this sub $9,000 salary.
Other Options: Kawhi Leonard ($9,200)
Value
Kelly Oubre Jr., Philadelphia 76ers vs. Orlando Magic, $5,500
With Joel Embiid (appendix) out, Oubre Jr. is terrific value. Oubre Jr. With Embiid inactive this season, Oubre Jr. is generating 28 FPTS in 30 minutes per game with a 21% usage rate (24 games). Embiid missed the final three games of the regular season and Oubre Jr. exceeded 30 FPTS in two of these contests.
With Embiid inactive vs. the Magic back on October 27th, Oubre Jr. went nuts for 52 FPTS. While we can’t expect this type of performance, Oubre Jr. should easily outproduce this $5,500 salary, which is a $500 decrease from his last game.
Other Options: John Collins ($5,000), Gui Santos ($4,600)
Center
Stud
Kristaps Porzingis, Golden State Warriors at Los Angeles Clippers, $6,000
Given his long history of injuries and illnesses, the Warriors have been cautious with Porzingis. However, with everything on the line tonight, the big man should see close to 30 minutes, giving him a great chance to beat this salary.
Porzingis is a great fantasy producer in general. He’s been scoring 1.3 FPTS per minute with a 28.8% usage rate since joining Golden State at the trade deadline. The ex-Celtic has logged over 25 minutes seven times in a Warriors uniform and Porzingis is averaging 35.1 FPTS per game on those occasions.
Value
Brook Lopez, Los Angeles Clippers vs. Golden State Warriors, $4,100
Many of the players in action tonight have seen their salaries on DraftKings decrease from their last game and Lopez is one of the most significant. After being priced at $5,300 for the regular season finale, the center only costs $4,100 for tonight’s must-win vs. the Warriors.
Lopez is the top value on the slate and unavoidable at this low price. Since the All-Star break, Lopez is generating 25.8 FPTS in 27 minutes per game with a 17.3% usage rate. In his last 12, Lopez has topped 30 FPTS seven times.
Other Options: Andre Drummond ($4,800)
