Starting 5 - DvP: Sunday, April 5th
The Starting 5 Series will provide Grinders with a quick look at the day’s top positional plays, analyzed through the lens of our Daily Research Tools.
Today we’ll use DvP statistics to see if we can uncover some solid secondary Easter Eggs for Sunday’s five-game evening slate.
POINT GUARD – Langston Galloway and Shane Larkin – New York Knicks vs Philadelphia
Last three weeks
This is a gimme with both backcourts banged up, and we are looking at some tertiary players that would be hard pressed to find minutes on most teams. Fortunately, “Minutes equal money.” ~ A.Zeidenfeld and we have two players here that should see a ton of court time as the Knicks have really only been playing nine players in their recent games.
As an added bump, the 76ers have been less than impressive against opposing point guards, allowing the seventh-most fantasy points to the position this season and the sixth-most over the last three weeks. Run either or both of these players out in your lineups today and enjoy!
SHOOTING GUARD – J.J. Redick – Los Angeles Clippers at Los Angeles Lakers
Last three weeks
Even though the Clippers are the visiting team, they should be very familiar with the shooting environment in today’s matchup with their cross-town rivals (hint: both teams play their games in the Staples Center). The Lakers are allowing the fifth-most fantasy points to opposing shooting guards on the season and have been in the bottom three over their last eleven games.
J.J. Redick has been excellent with three 30+ fantasy point games in his last four outings. Jamal Crawford will likely be out of this again for this contest and with the Clippers still fighting for the honor of hosting a first round playoff series, I expect them to be going all out to ensure they chalk up a dub today.
SMALL FORWARD – Wesley Johnson – Los Angeles Lakers vs Los Angeles Clippers
Full season
Once again the Clippers have struggled with wings allowing the second most fantasy points to opposing small forwards this season. This bodes well for Wesley Johnson who is an absolute steal at $4,500 on FanDuel and a solid discount option at $5,000 on DraftKings. With Wayne Ellington out for the rest of the season, Johnson is one of the few remaining Lakers that can consistently score. He should once again be able to get 30ish fantasy points and he is an excellent play in all formats today.
POWER FORWARD – Boris Diaw – San Antonio Spurs vs Golden State Warriors
Last three weeks
On the season, the Warriors have been just middle of the road against opposing power forwards and as they have been limiting the minutes of Draymond Green and Andrew Bogut in preparation for the stretch run, they have allowed the second-most points to the position over their last nine games.
Diaw is a sneaky option as he is so often overlooked. He almost always plays 23-26 minutes per game regardless of the score, however, when the main offensive cogs are on the bench, he becomes much more productive and involved in the offense. He should once again be good for 20-25 fantasy points today and that is good for 5x-6x value on most daily fantasy sites, making him a nice differentiation play.
CENTER – Furkan Aldemir – Philadelphia 76ers at New York Knicks
Last three weeks
Yes, I know he is a power forward on most sites, however, he is starting at center for the 76ers who are likely to be without Nerlens Noel and Thomas Robinson, so give me and Furkan a break! On the season, the Knicks are a bottom-ten team against centers and over their last ten games they are allowing the sixth-most points to opposing pivot men. Aldemir is a nice pivot if you are looking to go cheap at power forward today with a player who will be manning the pivot for his team.