NBA Starting 5 (GPP): Friday, January 26th
The Starting 5 Series will provide Grinders a quick look at the day’s top positional plays, as analyzed by one of our daily fantasy sports experts.
Friday, January 26th
Happy Friday, Grinders! Welcome to the Friday edition of the NBA Starting 5 series! Fridays offer us solid slate sizes and large DFS tournaments, so it is a great day to analyze the NBA from a GPP perspective.
Let’s take a look at five of my favorite tournament plays of the day. For reference, I will be using DraftKings pricing throughout the article.
Point Guard: Jrue Holiday, New Orleans Pelicans – $6,900
Let’s get things started with Jrue Holiday this evening. The Pelicans and Rockets should be in store for a high scoring game here, as both teams rank inside the top eight in the NBA in both pace and offensive efficiency. These teams played a 130-123 game in their first meeting this season, and there’s no reason to shy away in the rematch. Holiday led the Pelicans with 37 points in that game, and he has taken double digit shot attempts in every game since the end of November. He’s a key piece on this team, even though he doesn’t get nearly the attention that the two big men do. With Rajon Rondo fading away a bit, Holiday is a steal at an affordable $6,900 price on DraftKings.
Shooting Guard: Eric Gordon, Houston Rockets – $5,000
The fact that James Harden is back is a bit of a worry with Eric Gordon, but that’s part of what makes him such a strong tournament play this evening. Gordon will not attract near the ownership that he did when Harden was out, and his price has also come down a lot in recent weeks. If this was a game taking place two weeks ago, Gordon would have been about 75% owned at this $5,000 DraftKings price.
Therefore, we have to ask — what has changed? The only thing that has changed is that Harden is back. Gordon is still playing around 30 minutes per game off the bench, so his playing time hasn’t decreased all that much. This game has a massive 228 total and a close spread, so any cheap exposure to this game is very appealing in GPPs. Gordon will also likely get more usage as part of the second unit than he did as a starter. Gordon is one of my favorite tournament plays on the board this evening.
Small Forward: Devin Booker, Phoenix Suns – $8,400
The Suns are a frustrating team at times, especially with their rotations in the frontcourt. However, Devin Booker is at least immune to those rotation shenanigans. He is a high volume scorer for a team that lacks scoring punch, so he gets every opportunity to score on a nightly basis. The lines are often hollow at times, but Booker has massive upside when he is on his game. I’m not overly enamored with the pool of small forwards available tonight, so I will happily utilize the multi-position eligibility of Booker and some others on DraftKings to my advantage. He has struggled with his shot over the last few games, so recency bias will have people off him tonight. Use that leverage to your advantage in GPPs, and don’t forget that Booker has logged 14 games of 30+ actual points this year, despite missing a lot of time due to injury. The upside is there, and the Knicks rank in the bottom third of the league in defensive efficiency.
Power Forward: Tristan Thompson, Cleveland Cavaliers – $3,600
At this point, it is pretty clear that the Cavs need to make some changes with their rotations. They are playing awful basketball right now, particularly on the defensive end. There is no reason that a team with that much talent should be 3-10 over their last 13 games. Tyronn Lue has already announced that Thompson will start ahead of Jae Crowder tonight, and Thompson immediately enters the fantasy conversation. At a price of $3,600, he will be the most popular value play tonight.
Even though Thompson will be chalky, I will still happily target him in GPP formats. He is close to the minimum salary on DraftKings, and the minutes should drastically increase. He won’t be a volume shooter or scorer, but he is a solid rebounder and should be a very safe pick at this price. Lock him in as an elite value that will allow you to spend up at other positions.
Center: Rudy Gobert, Utah Jazz – $7,000
The Jazz desperately needed Gobert back in the lineup, as he does so much for this team on the defensive end and on the glass. Utah does not have a ton of strength on the interior outside of Gobert, so he is a welcome presence. His minutes bumped all the way up to 38 in the last game (though it went to overtime), but he should be clear for his normal workload going forward. He logged 15 points eight boards, and four blocks in the last game, and his presence will be needed against the Raptors. The $7,000 price tag is very reasonable, and Gobert always brings healthy GPP upside to the table. Fire him up with confidence in tournament formats.
Good luck tonight, everyone!