Cash Plays
Jerian Grant ($4,000) – My favorite low-priced point guard of the night is Jerian Grant of the Chicago Bulls. Rajon Rondo is out again for the Bulls matchup with the Orlando Magic, a team giving up the 4th most fantasy points to point guards over their last 10 games (54.5). Filling in for Rondo over the last 2 games he’s posted 30+ minutes and 35.1 and 28.1 fantasy points, respectively. He’ll have another shot to succeed tonight as the Bulls look to secure the 8th spot in the East.
J.R. Smith ($3,900) – The Cavs are once again resting what seems like their entire team tonight. LeBron, Kyrie, and Love will all be out, and Tristan Thompson is also likely to sit. I can’t really imagine anyone other than J.R. will really pick up the scoring load, so he’s a great play tonight at under $4k. Cleveland will be going up against a Heat defense that is usually great at containing shooting guards, though they have recently slipped up over their last 5 games, giving up 38.7 fantasy points a game to the position.
Paul George ($9,900) – Paul George has absolutely taken control of the NBA over the last few weeks, posting a minimum of 40.5 and a max of 72.3 fantasy points in his last 5 contests. George and the Pacers are currently in the middle of a playoff push as they hold onto the 7th seed, though it is only by 1 game. These last 2 games are essentially must wins for them, so you can bet PG13 will try and take control to give Indiana the best chance to win. They’ll be facing the 76ers tonight, a team that has given up the 2nd most fantasy points to small forwards over their last 5 games (56.8).
Richaun Holmes ($6,100) – Holmes once again finds himself in our cash game plays for his matchup with the Indiana Pacers. With Dario’s minutes restriction Holmes has really taken control of the 76ers frontcourt, posting 27+ fantasy points in 4 of his last 5 games. The same should be in store tonight as he goes up against an Indiana team that gives up 44.4 fantasy points a game to power forwards. Philadelphia definitely doesn’t have anything to play for, so they’re just giving their young guys a lot of run down the stretch. Holmes has been a big beneficiary of this scheme, making him a safe cash game play as this season winds down.
DeAndre Jordan ($8,200) – The Clippers are still fighting with the Jazz for the 4th seed and home court advantage in the playoffs. Because of this, any Los Angeles player is a great start as Doc Rivers is likely to give them some insane minutes in these crucial games. The Clips will be facing off with a tough Houston Rockets team, so the game should still be highly competitive and the starters should remain in for a majority of the game. Also, Houston is giving up just about the most fantasy points I’ve seen this season to one position over their last 5 games (63.9 to centers.) If that isn’t enough incentive to plug DeAndre into your lineup I don’t know what would be.
GPP Plays
Goran Dragic ($7,900) – With so much value at the point guard position tonight it seems unlikely middle-priced guys like Goran Dragic will have a high own %. This is great news for tournament players as Dragic is priced under $8k and has been seeing a ridiculous amount of minutes as the Heat attempt to hold onto the 8th seed in the East. He should see minutes in the high 30s once again tonight as Miami faces off with the Cleveland Cavaliers. He needs 39 to reach value, and should easily be able to do that against a defense that is giving up 50.1 fantasy points a game to point guards on the season.
Nicolas Batum ($6,600) – I mentioned in a previous article, but Nic Batum is so underpriced, especially after back to back 41+ fantasy points games, He’s reached his $6,600 price tag 4 times in his last 5 games and is in a great position to do the same tonight against the Bucks. Milwaukee, on average, gives up 40.7 fantasy points a game to shooting guards. Batum should have no issues against them tonight and is a great call in tournament play.
Kevin Durant ($9,900) – Oddly enough, guys Jimmy Butler and Paul George are both priced similarly to Durant for Monday’s slate due to their recent production and Durant’s recent injury. Although their price is up there, these guys are still going to be popular plays as they are right in the middle of playing for playoff positioning. This means Durant is likely to get over looked as the Warriors no longer have anything to play for. KD will be seeing good minutes, though, as Golden State attempts to get him some court time before playoffs start. He doesn’t even need 50 to reach value, though he should easily be able to reach that number as the Jazz are already short-handed with no Gordon Hayward. Durant should be a lower owned star and a great start in GPP play.
Aaron Gordon ($6,300) – Despite one 14 fantasy point dud last week, Gordon has been an elite start at the power forward position, posting 31+ fantasy points in 5 of his last 6 contests. Also, in 2 of those games he posted 50+, with one of them being a monster 58.7 FP effort against the Boston Celtics. In this instance, Gordon displayed insane upside, making him a nice call in tournaments in Orlando’s last 2 games. He’ll be facing a Chicago Bulls team he should be able to rough up, considering they’ve given up the 3rd most fantasy points to power forwards in their last 5 games (50.9).
Cody Zeller ($5,000) – I hardly ever roll with Cody Zeller in my lineups, but I like him tonight as he goes up against the Milwaukee Bucks. The Hornets are currently 3 games out of the 8th seed with only 2 games left to play, which, if you need help doing math, means they are out of playoff contention. With nothing left to play for it seems likely the Hornets give the still young Zeller some great court time, with absolutely no pressure to do well. He only needs 25 fantasy points to reach value and will be going up against a Bucks defense that has given up the 11th most FP to centers on the season.