DFS Alerts
Denzel Valentine (ankle) officially out Thursday
Valentine is still recovering from a sprained ankle he sustained during the preseason and will not play in Thursday’s season opener against the Philadelphia 76ers, joining teammate Kris Dunn, who is away from the team dealing with a personal issue, among the Bulls inactives. Cameron Payne will start at point guard in Dunn’s absence and immediately becomes one of the top value options on tonight’s entire three-game main slate. Cristiano Felicio is also on track to be available off the bench, but with Wendell Carter Jr. and Jabari Parker joining the fray in the frontcourt rotation, he’s unlikely to see any meaningful playing time should the Bulls remain healthy. Parker will begin the season as the sixth man for Chicago, as head coach Fred Hoiberg as reiterated throughout the preseason that he prefers Parker in a role where he can be the focal point on the offensive end of the floor. This means that Bobby Portis will start at power forward alongside Carter Jr. and becomes a less appealing tournament target with lower projected usage rate in the starting unit.
As reported by: K.C. Johnson via Twitter
Kris Dunn (personal) out Thursday; Cameron Payne will start
Dunn has been excused from the team to deal with a personal issue and will not play in Thursday’s season opener against the Philadelphia 76ers, joining teammate Denzel Valentine, who continues to recover from a sprained ankle he sustained during the preseason, among the Bulls inactives. Cameron Payne will start at point guard in Dunn’s absence and immediately becomes one of the top value options on tonight’s entire three-game main slate. Cristiano Felicio is also on track to be available off the bench, but with Wendell Carter Jr. and Jabari Parker joining the fray in the frontcourt rotation, he’s unlikely to see any meaningful playing time should the Bulls remain healthy. Parker will begin the season as the sixth man for Chicago, as head coach Fred Hoiberg as reiterated throughout the preseason that he prefers Parker in a role where he can be the focal point on the offensive end of the floor. This means that Bobby Portis will start at power forward alongside Carter Jr. and becomes a less appealing tournament target with lower projected usage rate in the starting unit.
As reported by: K.C. Johnson via Twitter Other tagged players: Cameron Payne Solid GPP Upside Despite Bench Role
Ownership will almost certainly be lower on Parker since he is coming off the bench, as DFS players have a natural aversion toward targeting players who are in bench roles. However, I like Parker’s prospects with the second unit for the Bulls, as he will almost certainly be looked upon to lead the group. All the reports have been positive about him meshing with the team, and I think there’s sneaky double-double potential here on a short slate.
Opportunity Knocks
The Heat are one of the more banged-up squads in the NBA to start the season, so we have some value to be found with them. They are also on the tail end of a back-to-back set, so I question how much they will use Dwyane Wade in this one. Josh Richardson played a team-high 38 minutes and took 21 shot attempts in the season opener, and he should be the go-to option once again this evening. The DFS price tag is reasonable, and the Heat have an implied team total of 104 points. While that is a low mark on this slate, it’s hard to see Richardson completely flopping given that total and his current role with all the early season injuries.
Throw Out the Matchups
This is all about narrative street, and I’m fine with that. It’s LeBron’s first game in the glamorous Los Angeles spotlight. It’s a late-night, nationally televised game on a short slate. There is seemingly no way we don’t see a monster performance from James tonight, and the Lakers will need it if they want to compete with Portland on the road. I’ll side with James as the clear-cut top option of the night, as you know he will be motivated to play well to start his Lakers career.
The Shaqtin A Fool Star is Back!
JaVale McGee tends to make the highlight clips more for his bloopers than his exceptional plays, but we need to put our biases aside now that he is playing for a new team. He appears poised to grab a starting role for the Lakers, and I would expect him to get 20-24 minutes per night as long as he can limit the foolish mistakes. He has always been a solid per-minute fantasy producer when he has been on the court, and there should be some boards and easy buckets available with LeBron taking away a lot of defensive attention. Give McGee a look as a risk/reward GPP value on this three game slate.
Nemanja Bjelica and Yogi Ferrell will start ahead of Marvin Bagley III and Justin Jackson on Wednesday
The Kings are already up to their typical shenanigans and have made a couple of changes to their originally announced starting lineup for Wednesday’s season opener against the Utah Jazz. This alteration will send Marvin Bagley III and Justin Jackson to the bench in favor of Nemanja Bjelica and Yogi Ferrell at power forward and shooting guard, respectively, which does slide Buddy Hield over to small forward. Even though Bagley III and Jackson will begin the game on the bench, this role shouldn’t have much of an impact on their projected minute totals, as Dave Joerger has typically been unafraid to give his whole rotation extended playing time, ultimately limiting the upside of his starting lineup. Given the plethora of young talent sitting on his bench, it appears unlikely for Joerger to change that approach at least in the early going.
As reported by: Eric Woodyard via Twitter Other tagged players: Marvin Bagley, Yogi Ferrell, Justin Jackson Reggie Bullock (flu) and Stanley Johnson (toe) out Wednesday
Johnson was previously questionable to play in Wednesday’s season opener against the Brooklyn Nets after missing Saturday’s practice with a nagging toe injury, and he’s now been joined on the Detroit Pistons’ injury report by Reggie Bullock, who will also be unavailable due to flu-like symptoms. In their absences, Bruce Brown and Luke Kennard will start at the wing positions, while Glenn Robinson and Langston Galloway will assume a larger role off the bench. The Nets also come into this game shorthanded which sets up Blake Griffin and Andre Drummond in an elite matchup against a depleted frontcourt sans DeMarre Carroll and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson this evening. Given the Nets typical high pace of play the last few seasons, this appears to be one the top games to target on both sides for value on tonight’s 11-game slate.
As reported by: Keith Langlois via Twitter Other tagged players: Stanley Johnson Rondae Hollis-Jefferson (hip) out Wednesday
Hollis-Jefferson has been deemed unable to play in Wednesday’s season opener against the Detroit Pistons due to a strained left adductor. The Nets are also without DeMarre Carroll, Allen Crabbe, Shabazz Napier, and Alan Williams, which means they will be without three regular starters from last season. In their place, Jared Dudley will start at power forward, while Caris LeVert and Joe Harris will man the wing positions and likely be the largest beneficiaries in terms of minutes. From a usage standpoint, D’Angelo Russell stands out among the Nets core rotation players, as he recorded a 40.3% usage rate while averaging 1.06 fantasy points per minute in a limited sample size without Hollis-Jefferson, Carroll, and Crabbe off the court last season.
As reported by: Brian Lewis via Twitter Jamal Crawford will be inactive for the Suns on Wednesday
According to Suns head coach Igor Kokoskov, newly signed combo guard Jamal Crawford will not be available for Wednesday’s season opener against the Dallas Mavericks as the organization has yet to make his signing and the release of Davon Reed official. This does free up some minutes in the backcourt for Isaiah Canaan and Ellie Okobo, who both begin the year battling for point guard minutes alongside Devin Booker, though Booker has proven himself more than capable of handling the playmaking duties for Phoenix, so it remains to be seen how truly valuable this role is from the outset with the plethora of wings and forwards already littered throughout the Suns roster. Any excess playing time not absorbed by Canaan, Okobo, and the other core rotation players will likely filter down to Troy Daniels, but he’ll remain firmly off the daily fantasy radar barring any unforeseen injury news.
As reported by: Gina Mizell via Twitter Overlooked Small Forward Moves to One of the Best Offenses in the League
Houston Sharpshooter James Ennis spent last season with two of the slowest-paced teams in the league, Memphis (28th) and Detroit (24th), and now he moves to the Houston Rockets, who ranked second in the league in scoring. Ennis is expected to be in the starting lineup, and while he certainly won’t be the first option on offense, he should be able to get some good defensive matchups. The Rockets have the highest implied point total on the night at 120.0 points, and while I have interest in Ennis across sites tonight, he is particularly intriguing as a minimum-priced (and possibly low-scorer droppable) Small Forward on FanDuel.
Top Rookie Has Unlimited Potential
With so many exciting rookies taking the court for the first time this season, it’s almost easy to overlook the top pick in the draft, DeAndre Ayton, as he makes his debut for Phoenix tonight. Ayton was dominant in the preseason, averaging 18.2 Points, 9.8 Rebounds, and 2 Blocks per game in 27 MPG, and Phoenix is actually favored by one point opening at home against Dallas tonight. Rookies can be inconsistent and unpredictable, but for GPPs I’ll be eyeing the Suns rookie tonight for his upside.
Larry Nance (ankle) and J.R. Smith (elbow) officially out Wednesday
As expected, Nance and Smith will not be available to play in Wednesday’s season opener against the Toronto Raptors due to a sprained right ankle and sore right elbow, respectively. Smith was not expected to have a huge role in the rotation for the Cavaliers with head coach Tyronn Lue focusing on developing a young wing rotation that primarily consists of Rodney Hood, Cedi Osman, Jordan Clarkson, and David Nwaba, while rookie point guard Colin Sexton figures to begin the season as the sixth man off the bench. Lue has already confirmed his starting lineup for tonight’s matchup, and it’ll be Tristan Thompson that draws the start at center alongside Kevin Love in the frontcourt with Osman, Hood, and George Hill rounding out the rest of the starting five. Since LeBron James has now taken his talents to Los Angeles, Love figures to assume the responsibility as the focal point of the Cavaliers offense and recorded a 33.8% usage while averaging 1.38 DraftKings and 1.31 FanDuel points per minutes with James off the court last season.
As reported by: Joe Vardon via Twitter Other tagged players: J.R. Smith Value Play With Upside
It’s always tough when guessing the role for a player on a new team. With that said, the Bucks shot a lot of threes in the preseason, and this could be really good for Lopez. Lopez is an interesting fit for this offense, and he projects to play 25-27 minutes per night. Lopez had a down season with the Lakers last season, but this could be a great spot for him to start the season off right. I think there are too many good center options to play him on one center sites, but on DraftKings and especially FantasyDraft, I like this value.
Right On The Bubble
LeVert is right on the price point I look to for salary relief on DraftKings and FantasyDraft, and he’s one of my favorite plays on this slate. LeVert and Russell will be on my final list today, and if Rondae Hollis-Jefferson gets ruled out, I don’t mind playing them together. Carroll, Crabbe, and Napier have already been ruled out tonight, which leaves Russell, LeVert, and Dinwiddie to play most of the minutes at the guard positions tonight. With Crabbe and Carroll both off the floor and Russell/LeVert on the floor, they both averaged over a fantasy point per minute last season.