NBA DFS Playoff Primer: Thursday, May 4
The NBA postseason is finally upon us. We no longer have to worry about players resting, late scratches, and teams trying to lose. For the next couple of months, we get meaningful basketball game after meaningful basketball game. We have decided to combine the Core Plays and the Grind Down into one all-encompassing article for the NBA playoffs. We will break down each slate, sift through the game flow trackers of prior meetings between teams, cover the notable matchups, and provide our favorite NBA DFS targets.
The Sixers were predictably able to bounce back with a big performance in Game 2 in order to even up their series against the Sixers. It was a showdown slate that was full of landmines and unfortunately, I landed on too many of them. The Warriors are hoping to do exactly what the Celtics did last night. After losing the first game of the series to the Lakers, they can’t afford to head to Los Angeles with a two-game deficit.
Game 2: Los Angeles Lakers at Golden State Warriors
- Time: 9:00 PM ET
- Series: Lakers 1 – Warriors 0
Previous Matchups
- Game 1: Lakers 117 – Warriors 112
Notable Injuries
None
Los Angeles Lakers Lineup – DraftKings & FanDuel Salaries
| Player | DK | FD | MIN/G | +/- | FP/G | +/- | USG% | +/- | DK/M | +/- | FD/M | +/- | MIN (P) | DK (P) | DK/$ | FD (P) | FD/$ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| D’Angelo Russell | $7,400 | $11,000 | 32.5 | 0.4 | 33.9 | 1.9 | 23% | 3% | 1.04 | 0.04 | 1.00 | 0.12 | 32 | 30.5 | 4.11 | 28.9 | 2.63 | |
| Austin Reaves | $7,200 | $8,500 | 28.8 | 9.7 | 23.4 | -1.6 | 15% | -6% | 0.81 | -0.25 | 0.79 | -0.25 | 38 | 32.3 | 4.49 | 30.9 | 3.64 | |
| LeBron James | $11,000 | $16,000 | 35.5 | 4.6 | 52.6 | -4.8 | 32% | -2% | 1.48 | -0.29 | 1.43 | -0.26 | 39 | 46.7 | 4.24 | 44.8 | 2.80 | |
| Jarred Vanderbilt | $4,800 | $7,500 | 24.1 | 1.7 | 23.5 | 3.0 | 14% | 2% | 0.97 | 0.05 | 0.99 | 0.15 | 26 | 16.0 | 3.34 | 16.6 | 2.21 | |
| Anthony Davis | $11,400 | $17,500 | 34.0 | 9.8 | 51.7 | 23.5 | 28% | -5% | 1.52 | 0.20 | 1.54 | 0.22 | 40 | 51.7 | 4.54 | 52.0 | 2.97 | |
| Dennis Schroder | $4,200 | $7,500 | 30.1 | 1.1 | 24.2 | 3.8 | 18% | 2% | 0.80 | 0.09 | 0.79 | 0.14 | 28 | 17.9 | 4.25 | 17.5 | 2.34 | |
| Rui Hachimura | $3,800 | $8,000 | 23.3 | -12.0 | 19.6 | -11.4 | 19% | -3% | 0.84 | -0.11 | 0.84 | -0.15 | 17 | 13.5 | 3.56 | 13.2 | 1.65 | |
| Troy Brown | $2,200 | $6,500 | 24.5 | -12.3 | 16.6 | -13.1 | 12% | -4% | 0.68 | -0.39 | 0.68 | -0.43 | 12 | 6.9 | 3.11 | 6.8 | 1.04 | |
| Wenyen Gabriel | $2,000 | $6,000 | 15.1 | -10.9 | 13.0 | -10.5 | 14% | 0.86 | -0.27 | 0.89 | -0.30 | 4 | 2.7 | 1.35 | 2.7 | 0.45 | ||
| Malik Beasley | $1,600 | $6,500 | 25.8 | 22.0 | 21% | 0.85 | 0.81 | 4 | 2.6 | 1.61 | 2.4 | 0.36 |
The +/- columns show the difference between season averages and this series.
Golden State Warriors Lineup – DraftKings & FanDuel Salaries
| Player | DK | FD | MIN/G | +/- | FP/G | +/- | USG% | +/- | DK/M | +/- | FD/M | +/- | MIN (P) | DK (P) | DK/$ | FD (P) | FD/$ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stephen Curry | $11,200 | $15,500 | 34.7 | 2.8 | 50.3 | -8.8 | 30% | 1% | 1.45 | -0.34 | 1.36 | -0.37 | 39 | 51.7 | 4.61 | 48.1 | 3.10 | |
| Klay Thompson | $8,200 | $9,500 | 33.0 | 4.5 | 34.2 | 3.6 | 26% | 2% | 1.04 | -0.03 | 0.97 | -0.05 | 37 | 35.3 | 4.31 | 33.5 | 3.52 | |
| Andrew Wiggins | $7,800 | $10,000 | 32.2 | 1.5 | 31.5 | -9.5 | 21% | -1% | 0.98 | -0.32 | 0.98 | -0.37 | 36 | 34.3 | 4.39 | 34.4 | 3.44 | |
| Draymond Green | $7,600 | $13,500 | 31.5 | 2.4 | 30.4 | -0.9 | 13% | -2% | 0.96 | -0.09 | 0.96 | 0.03 | 34 | 36.2 | 4.77 | 37.1 | 2.75 | |
| Kevon Looney | $8,000 | $12,000 | 23.9 | 5.6 | 24.8 | 22.5 | 10% | 6% | 1.04 | 0.56 | 1.07 | 0.47 | 30 | 34.3 | 4.28 | 35.2 | 2.93 | |
| Jordan Poole | $6,000 | $9,000 | 30.0 | -0.1 | 32.5 | 2.5 | 28% | -8% | 1.08 | 0.09 | 1.02 | 0.08 | 28 | 29.2 | 4.86 | 27.9 | 3.09 | |
| Donte DiVincenzo | $3,600 | $7,000 | 26.3 | -14.1 | 23.4 | -12.7 | 15% | -11% | 0.89 | -0.01 | 0.87 | 0.18 | 12 | 12.2 | 3.40 | 11.9 | 1.70 | |
| Gary Payton | $3,200 | $7,000 | 16.7 | -4.6 | 12.9 | -4.2 | 10% | -1% | 0.77 | -0.05 | 0.81 | -0.08 | 14 | 12.3 | 3.86 | 12.9 | 1.84 | |
| Moses Moody | $2,400 | $6,500 | 13.0 | -6.9 | 9.1 | -6.3 | 14% | 0.70 | -0.25 | 0.68 | -0.23 | 10 | 7.6 | 3.18 | 7.4 | 1.14 |
The +/- columns show the difference between season averages and this series.
Game Analysis
The Lakers put together an impressive second half against the Warriors and managed to steal home-court advantage. They were +2000 to win the championship at the start of the playoffs and are now down to +500. All they need to do to make it to the Western Conference Finals is win three games at home. However, they won’t be complacent with one road win and will look to scrape out another one tonight. We should see a little more urgency from the Warriors, as they know they can’t fall behind two games in the series. Tonight’s game features a 6-point spread and a 227-point total.