NBA contrarian – The Fantasy Sports Coach

DraftKings NBA DFS Must Plays, Stay Aways & The Bargain Bin, March 4th

Very busy night in the association with ten games on the slate. That means there’s plenty of options for you to build your lineup around. Keep reading DraftKings NBA DFS Must Plays, Stay Aways & The Bargain Bin for March 4th below to find out who you should use, who you should stay away from and who you should pick out of the bargain bin.

Must Plays:

Elfrid Payton – PG – ($5,200) vs Phoenix Suns

If anybody absolutely has to be in your lineup tonight, its Elfrid Payton. He has torched the Suns in the past (12 points, 10 assists, 5 steals, 40.8 DK points) and Phoenix hasn’t improved since. Even if Evan Fournier returns to the lineup tonight, the only major source of offence Orlando will have is Payton and Victor Oladipo. Fournier will need a couple games to become an effective DFS option again. At Payton’s low price, picking him is a no-brainer.

Luol Deng – SF – ($6,200) @ Philadelphia 76ers

Even though Luol Deng is listed as a small forward on DraftKings, he’s actually playing power forward for the Heat. Philadelphia can’t guard the power forward position well at all. With Chris Bosh out of the lineup, Deng has scooped up his offensive production. He’s gone eight straight games with 10 or more shot attempts in each contest. Against a bad 76ers squad, he should continue to shoot the ball a ton.

Al Horford – C – ($7,400) @ Los Angeles Lakers

Picking on bad teams is fun. Al Horford should have the paint all to himself tonight against the Lakers. Over the last five games, LA has given up an average of 61.1 DK points to opposing centers. Horford should be able to easily bully his way through Roy Hibbert and snag you some DK points.

Stay Aways:

Damian Lillard – PG – ($9,000) @ Toronto Raptors

There is almost no way that Damian Lillard reaches value tonight against the Raptors. Toronto gives up the third least points per night to point guards at 19.4 and the third lowest field goal percentage at 40.1%. At his lofty price of $9,000, you can find better value on the board instead of Lillard.

Nicolas Batum – SG – ($6,600) vs Indiana Pacers

Nicolas Batum has been incredibly streaky this year. He performs great in favorable matchups and then disappears into mediocrity for the rest. He’s actually playing small forward for the Hornets and that means he’s slated to go head to head against Paul George for most of the night. That’s not favorable at all.

The Bargain Bin:

Matthew Dellavedova – PG – ($3,700) vs Washington Wizards

With Mo Williams sidelined with an injury, Matthew Dellavedova immediately becomes the Cavaliers backup point guard. He’s not afraid to shoot the ball and he’s had some success versus Washington this season. In three games this year, he’s averaged about 20 DK points per contest. At his price, that’s exceeding value.

Anthony Brown – SF – ($3,000) vs Atlanta Hawks

This is a contrarian play, a bargain bin play and a “keep an eye out if Kobe Bryant is going to start” play. When Kobe is out, Anthony Brown takes all of his minutes. The problem is, he hasn’t been able to produce on the offensive side of the ball… yet. Atlanta is a middle of the pack team when it comes to guarding opposing small forwards. If Kobe is out, Brown is a great option in GPP’s.

Thanks for reading! If you have any questions regarding NBA DFS or even your season long leagues, feel free to reach out to me via Twitter (@BESTofMATT)

DraftKings NBA DFS Must Plays, Stay Aways & The Bargain Bin, February 26

Eight games in the association tonight leaves you a ton of options when picking your DraftKings NBA lineup. Continue reading and find out what players you should build your lineup around and what players you should avoid.

Must Plays:

Kyle Lowry – PG – ($8,400) vs Cleveland Cavaliers

There’s no doubt that Kyle Lowry is the heart and soul of the Raptors on and off the court. He always seems to bring his A-game against more difficult opponents. He’s shown twice this year vs the Cavaliers that he always steps up (18-30 FGA/FGM, .455 3P%, averaging 25 points, 8 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 3 steals). At $8,400, Lowry is someone you can reasonably build your lineup around.

Kristaps Porzingis – PF – ($6,500) vs Orlando Magic

This is locked in as not only the best power forward play of the night but also the contrarian play of the night. People will see Porzingis’ name next to dunk-master Aaron Gordon and flock towards him. You should stick with Porzingis. Orlando has a ton of players that love to drive to the net and that means Porzingis might have a block party. In two games played against the Magic earlier this year – Porzingis is averaging five blocks per game. Slide the big Latvian in your GPP lineups and even in some cash ones too.

Tristan Thompson – PF – ($5,400) @ Toronto Raptors

Here’s the thing. The Raptors (Specifically Jonas Valanciunas and Luis Scola) can’t play defence against big men. That bodes well for rebounding machine Tristan Thompson. While Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan throw up shots all game, Thompson will be under the net ready to gobble up all the rebounds.

Stay Aways:

Victor Oladipo – SG – ($7,000) @ New York Knicks

Victor Oladipo is dealing with a bruised thigh but is still good to play. That is terrible for fantasy value. You might peek at his game log and think I’m crazy because he’s put up 40+ DK Points in two of his last four games but look again and look at his minutes. There’s no way Oladipo plays close to 40 minutes on a bruised thigh which severely impacts his value in DFS

Bradley Beal – SG – ($6,400) @ Philadelphia 76ers

This is the classic “trap” pick. Bradley Beal looks like a great option at $6,400 against a bad 76ers squad but dig a little deeper and you’ll see that he’s just over priced. Beal has not looked like himself at all over the last three games, going a combined 18/49 from the field for a FG% of .367. He’s too cold and will be too highly owned based on his matchup. Stay away until Beal figures it out.

The Bargain Bin:

Doug McDermott – SF – ($4,000) @ Atlanta Hawks

With Derrick Rose listed as questionable going into Fridays game, Doug McDermott immediately slides up the offensive priority list. He might not be the starter but I can guarantee you he’s not only better than the 35 year-old Mike Dunleavy but will also shoot the ball a heck of a lot more.

Patrick Patterson – PF – ($3,900) vs Cleveland Cavaliers

Luis Scola will not play a majority of the game because the man cannot play defence. Insert Patrick Patterson. He’s already been averaging more minutes and more points than Scola over the month of February and that won’t change against the high octane offence that Cleveland has.

Thanks for reading! If you have any questions regarding NBA DFS or NBA season long leagues, feel free to reach out to me via Twitter @BESTofMATT