CBB Daily Plays: Wednesday, February 18th
Welcome back to another edition of the College Basketball daily plays column. Hopefully we can keep the momentum rolling after what was a very solid night last night. A lot of popular, high-priced plays flopped last night. Luckily, I recommended Jerian Grant over Jordan Mickey, and anyone who followed that footprint got a nice 35-point boost at a $1,000 savings.
Onward, we must move on to a glorious Wednesday with big tournaments across the industry. FanDuel is offering a big “Before the Madness” tournament tonight, so get your entries in! As of the time I am writing this, the tournament is already almost full.
Here’s a look at some players I like this evening:
GUARDS
Kris Dunn ($10,500) – If you fade Kris Dunn tonight, you do so at your own risk. He has massive usage and massive upside, and he’s on the court for virtually the whole game. By the way, these teams played on January 29th. Dunn’s line, you ask? 27 points, 13 rebounds, 11 assists, 3, steals, 1 block, 63 FanDuel points. He’s that good. DePaul has one of the worst defenses in the country. You can make an argument to fade Dunn in a GPP, but I wouldn’t do it if I only had one entry. You can’t fade him in cash games.
Tyus Jones ($7,600) – Jones has matured in several ways throughout the year, and he has become a nice floor leader for Duke. This should be a fun rivalry game between Duke and UNC, and it’s nice that both teams like to get out and run. Jones should thrive in the open court in this game, and it wouldn’t surprise me to see him hit 40 fantasy points in this one. He’s nicely priced in the mid-range on FanDuel, and he should be a very safe pick this evening.
Gerry Blakes ($5,800) – The injury to Bo Barnes has forced Arizona State to go with a very thin rotation for the time being. Blakes will basically be asked to play the whole game, especially if Barnes is forced to sit out again tonight (he is currently listed as a game-time decision). Blakes has picked up his play over the last few games, and he drew rave reviews from Herb Sendek after his performance against Washington on Sunday. While his price has come up to $5,800, he is still a solid play against an up-tempo UCLA squad.
Jalil Abdul-Bassitt ($5,100) – The Oregon senior is slowly acclimating to his rise into the starting lineup, and it culminated with a big performance the last time out as he put up 24 points against UCLA. His price still sits at a very affordable $5,100 on FanDuel, so take advantage of the discount while he is still available. He might not be very highly owned because people don’t know much about him, but he should be a very nice value option this evening.
FORWARDS
Frank Kaminsky ($10,300) – It’s hard to fit both Kaminsky and Dunn into a lineup tonight, but it can be done if you load up on value plays. I will generally be gravitating towards Dunn as my play, but that doesn’t mean Kaminsky is a bad option. He is extremely consistent and should be a lock for his usual 35-40+ fantasy points against an over-matched Penn State team. Again, he’s a solid option, but I don’t think you can put him above Dunn tonight.
Justise Winslow ($7,400) – Pegging the Duke performances tonight might be the key that wins you a big tournament. They will score points against UNC, but it’s just a matter of figuring out where they will come from. In my opinion, the Tar Heels will throw all of their big bodies and post defenders at Okafor in an attempt to slow him down. This should open up plenty of easy looks for Winslow, and Winslow has shown that he is capable of monster performances. He’s a great tournament option tonight at a $7,400 price tag.
Jameel McKay ($6,800) – McKay has entered the starting lineup for Iowa State and has shown no signs of turning back. He’s basically replacing Georges Niang as Iowa State’s go-to frontcourt player, and he remains $800 cheaper than Niang on FanDuel. This is a decent matchup against Oklahoma State in what should be another high scoring game, and I would expect McKay to be relatively highly owned on this slate. The price tag is a good bit below other mid-to-top tier forwards, and I think McKay is still a little too cheap for his recent production.
Tyler Harris or Ben Bentil ($5,300) – This is a tricky spot. Someone else from Providence has to produce alongside Kris Dunn tonight, but who will it be? Bentil entered the starting lineup a few weeks back, but he has struggled mightily over the last two contests. That has opened up more minutes for Harris, who is now coming off the bench after starting for the first half of the season. One of these two guys will have a nice night, but it’s hard to tell who is the better option. If we can get confirmation that Harris happens to be starting again, I like him a lot better in a great matchup against DePaul’s woeful defense.