DFS Alerts
Starting Center For Cheap
I realize Alex Len isn’t a comfortable player to roster, but he continues to start with Dewayne Dedmon out, Omari Spellman questionable and Alex Poythress probable but dealing with a quad contusion. Len still hasn’t scored more than nine points in a game this season, but he’s averaging 23.5 minutes per game and he’s had to deal with Marc Gasol and Enes Kanter in his first two games. He now gets to face Tristan Thompson and a questionable Larry Nance / Ante Zizic, which should be his easiest matchup to date. If you can tolerate some risk, hold your breath and click Len’s name. He offers salary savings to help you pay up elsewhere.
Potential For Increased Opportunities
Will Barton left Saturday’s game early and is looking at a lengthy absence. Torrey Craig may draw the start in Barton’s place, but I’d rather roster Trey Lyles for DFS purposes. Lyles played 17 minutes last night but struggled, shooting 0-for-4 with six turnovers. Despite the off game, Lyles was a preseason darling and was pressing for more playing time as he impressed the coaching staff. Lyles may continue seeing minutes in the low-to-mid 20s, but he’s my preferred option over Craig.
Solid Value
Will Barton left last night’s game on a stretcher, and it’s difficult to envision him returning the very next night for the tail end of a back-to-back set. That means we are likely looking at about 36 minutes of guaranteed playing time for Harris, and the Nuggets should be absolutely pumped up for a home game against the Warriors. Harris doesn’t have the most extreme usage and doesn’t excel in any one aspect of the game. However, he’s consistent, the minutes will be there, this should be a close, high-scoring game, and, most importantly, Harris is very affordable on all the sites. It’s early, but we have seen Harris average around 30 fantasy points over the first two games, and that’s a nice baseline to expect, especially with Barton likely out.
A Fine Top-End Play
It’s very early in the season, but targeting players against Sacramento looks like it will definitely be a thing this year. They are playing at a much faster pace (behind only LAL and ATL right now), and their defensive efficiency ranks second worst in the league. We can almost certainly fire up OKC players tonight, especially if Westbrook remains out. That’s where the wrench in the plans comes in. For now, let’s assume that Westbrook doesn’t return tonight. The Thunder are being ridiculously coy about the situation, so we are dealing with limited news at this point. Paul George hasn’t been hot from the field over the first two games, but he has taken FIFTY shots over the first two contests. He’s playing heavy minutes, and he’s going to need to do the heavy lifting offensively until Westbrook returns. One of these nights, the shots are going to fall, and you’re going to see a 50+ fantasy point performance. Tonight could be that night. If Westbrook returns, I’ll pivot this pick to Tobias Harris.
LOVE This Play Today
Kevin Love is going to be a huge part of the Cleveland offense this year. He may not be the same elite level player that he was three or four years ago, but he is still going to be a major part of this 2018-2019 team. He has a 28% usage rate through two games, and he is coming off a monster 25/19/7 performance in the previous game. Throw in the fact that Atlanta is going to play at a break-neck pace this year, and you have a fantastic play in all formats. Cleveland has an implied team total of 119 points in this game, and they are eight point home favorites. This might be one of the only times we can say either of those things all season. Love’s price tag isn’t outrageous on any site, and he can certainly be the foundation of a cash game build.
All Eyes on Me
De’Aaron Fox came into the league as an electric young guard and hopes were high in Sacramento. For all intents and purposes he confirmed the hype, even in limited minutes last year. Well, it looks like those days are long gone, and while I usually would not put my faith in any Sacramento Kings, Fox is a guy that I really trust here. His minutes to begin the season have been very safe, even in blowouts. This year he is averaging 32 minutes a game, a 26.4% usage rate, 6.5 assists, and 5.5 rebounds. It looks like Fox has been unleashed and he will continue to do work this season.
The Ultimate Sidekick
Every Batman needs a Robin, and Cedi Osman has been just that to begin the season. He has been the perfect compliment to Kevin Love and we have seen Coach Lue put total confidence in him. He checks all the boxes for what we are looking for. He is averaging 34 minutes, 1.19 fpts per minute, and has a 22.5% usage rate. Additionally he has been extremely efficient from the field. While I understand that he may not be as efficient from game to game, his tick marks across the other categories will make up for this in the long term. He is still priced too low across the industry so buy low now while you can.
Dilly Dilly
While everyone has looked at Trae Young as the new leader of the Atlanta Hawks, it has been Taurean Prince who has seized the opportunity. Prince is averaging 1.45 fpts per minute and is also sporting a 32.3% usage rate. While the price has increased across the industry I still don’t think it’s quite high enough just yet. There’s a newly crowned Prince (see what we did there) in Atlanta and I don’t see him being dethroned any time soon. For the foreseeable future he looks like the leader of this team and I am buying in.
Josh Okogie will start in place of Jimmy Butler (rest) on Saturday
Butler will be rested on the second night of a back-to-back set and won’t play in Saturday’s matchup against the Dallas Mavericks after sitting out the entire preseason due to his ongoing trade demands. With Butler out during the preseason, Derrick Rose started alongside Jeff Teague in the backcourt, but head coach Tom Thibodeau has opted to start Josh Okogie at the shooting guard spot in what will be his NBA debut. Thibodeau reiterated earlier in the week that Okogie wouldn’t be a part of the rotation, so it’ll be interesting to see how much burn the rookie actually gets in this contest. Either way, the off-guard minutes will likely be filled by committee and it’d be foolish to think Okogie would step directly into starters minutes out of the gate. The sample size is minuscule only two games into the season, but Andrew Wiggins has been the clear indirect beneficiary with Butler off the court, recording a 34.4% usage rate and averaging a likely unsustainable 1.63 fantasy points per minute thus far.
As reported by: Timberwolves PR via Twitter
Deandre Ayton (ankle) will play Saturday
Ayton has officially been upgraded from probable to available to play in tonight’s matchup against the Denver Nuggets with a sprained right ankle. Earlier, head coach Igor Kokoskov wouldn’t commit to Ayton playing, but he did disclose to media members that he was optimistic and said that Ayton looked good during shootaround. There’s been no report of a potential minute restriction, so Ayton can be fired up with confidence since the Suns allowed him to suit up this evening. Ayton only recorded a 16.9% usage rate in Wednesday’s season opener but still averaged 1.19 DraftKings and 1.23 FanDuel points per minute, which means there’s still plenty of upside at his price tag if he manages to be more involved in the Suns’ offensive game plan.
As reported by: Gina Mizell via Twitter Raptors will start Lowry, Green, Powell, Anunoby, and Valanciunas on Saturday
Kawhi Leonard will be rested on the second night of a back-to-back set and won’t play in Saturday’s matchup with the Washington Wizards, and he’ll join Delon Wright, who will miss his third straight, among the Raptors’ inactives. In his absence, both OG Anunoby and Norman Powell will start at the forward positions alongside Jonas Valanciunas in the frontcourt. Additionally, with Wright still sidelined, Fred VanVleet should continue seeing some extra playing time off the bench and has averaged 26 minutes through the Raptors first two games. His minute ceiling in this spot could be even higher given the plethora of guards and forwards the Wizards are able to deploy on a nightly basis, increasing the chances that this game goes small for extended stretches sans Leonard in the Toronto frontcourt.
As reported by: Blake Murphy via Twitter Other tagged players: OG Anunoby, Jonas Valanciunas Dwight Howard (piriformis) remains out Saturday
Howard continues to deal with a piriformis ailment and has officially been ruled out for Saturday’s matchup against the Toronto Raptors despite being listed as questionable for the second consecutive game. The team still believes he needs more practice time before being cleared to play, and head coach Scott Brooks declined to say whether Howard would make his Wizards debut, even though he has been a full participant in four straight practices. In his absence, Ian Mahinmi will almost assuredly draw the start at center alongside Markieff Morris in the frontcourt, while Jason Smith would remain in reserve center role. However, head coach Scott Brooks had been experimenting with small ball lineups more often during the preseason, so it would not be shocking if Jeff Green sees significant burn at the five in these lineup configurations, which makes him, Otto Porter, and Kelly Oubre more intriguing options if Washington is able to keep Jonas Valanciunas off the floor for extended periods.
As reported by: Candace Buckner via Twitter Domantas Sabonis (knee) and TJ Leaf (ankle) out Saturday
Sabonis has officially been downgraded from questionable to out for Saturday’s matchup with the Brooklyn Nets due to a bruised right knee and will join TJ Leaf, who is missing his third consecutive game with a sprained left ankle, among the Pacers inactives. The Pacers are suddenly extremely depleted in the frontcourt, and Kyle O’Quinn will likely be thrust into the primary backup big man role off the bench. However, it remains to be seen if that actually turns into anything other than just spelling Myles Turner when he’s off the court. The matchup with Brooklyn should make it easy for head coach Nate McMillan to utilize more small-ball lineup combinations, which would benefit Doug McDermott, Tyreke Evans, and possibly even Cory Joseph, assuming Turner and Thaddeus Young play somewhere near their usual minute allotment. If necessary, Alize Johnson is a candidate to absorb some of the backup power forward minutes as well.
As reported by: the Indiana Pacers via Twitter Other tagged players: TJ Leaf Take Advantage of Kris Dunn Being Ruled Out
Reggie Jackson played 35 minutes in the opener and had a 27% usage rate along with 20 shots, 9 of which were from three. Tonight he gets a great pace-up spot against the poor defending Bulls team without their best defender in Kris Dunn. The Bulls finished 28th in defensive rating last season and showed no signs of improvement in their first game. They are looking to push the pace and Jackson should excel in this matchup with fast pace, poor defense of the Bulls, and their inability to defend the three. He’s too cheap for this matchup on all sites, especially DK.
Jimmy Butler (rest) out Saturday
Butler will be rested on the second night of a back-to-back set and won’t play in Saturday’s matchup against the Dallas Mavericks after sitting out the entire preseason due to his ongoing trade demands. With Butler out during the preseason, Derrick Rose started alongside Jeff Teague and likely will do so once again, while Tyus Jones would step into a combo guard role as the backup point guard and shooting guard. Josh Okogie could make his debut with Butler unavailable, but head coach Tom Thibodeau already reiterated earlier in the week that he won’t be part of the rotation, so Thibodeau is more likely to shrink his rotation to eight players, even on a back-to-back, than give the rookie extended run off the bench. The sample size is minuscule only two games into the season, but Andrew Wiggins has been the clear indirect beneficiary with Butler off the court, recording a 34.4% usage rate and averaging a likely unsustainable 1.63 fantasy points per minute thus far.
As reported by: Timberwolves PR via Twitter