Cash Plays

T.J. McConnell ($5,500) – Sergio Rodriguez will sit out again tonight as the 76ers take on Atlanta at home, a matchup that is expected to be one of the higher-paced games of the night. With Rodriguez out last night, McConnell was able to log 35 minutes of court time and put up 30.4 fantasy points. Any night he’s a sure lock for 30+ minutes I like rolling with McConnell because of his ability to stuff the stat sheet. It also doesn’t hurt that he’ll be going up against one of the worst, if not the worst, defensive starting point guards in the entire league, Dennis Schroder. His awful defensive play shows in the number of fantasy points the Hawks have given up to opposing point guards over their last 10 games (52.6 which is good for 4^th worst in the league during that stretch).

Josh Richardson ($4,600) – Josh Richardson has been a cash game pick of mine frequently over the couple week as Dion Waiters has sat out with a sprained left ankle. Waiters is out again tonight, meaning Richardson will see another 30+ minutes as he eats up a majority of the Heat’s shooting guard minutes. He hasn’t done anything too spectacular over the last few games, but he also hasn’t been bad. He’s put up 20+ fantasy points in each of his last 4 games and draws a good matchup against the Knicks at Madison Square Garden. New York has given up the 11^th most fantasy points to shooting guards this year (41.8), so Richardson is in a great position to at least reach value tonight against them.

Kawhi Leonard ($9,800) – Kawhi’s price went up a bit after his last game, but honestly I couldn’t care less. The Spurs are in the middle of chasing the still Durant-less Warriors for the #1 seed in the Western Conference, and they get a matchup against them tonight at the AT&T Center. The Warriors have scored the most points in the league this year, so it’s reasonable to assume the Spurs will be playing at an increased pace and will have a few extra possessions tonight in order to stay with them. Kawhi is still priced below $10k as well, so he doesn’t even need 50 tonight to reach value. Although, I think he should get at least that much as San Antonio comes out highly motivated in a game that has big playoff implications.

Ersan Ilyasova ($4,800) – Ilyasova had another great game last night filling in for the injured Paul Millsap, putting up 33.9 fantasy points in 33 minutes of action. The Hawks have another great matchup tonight against the Philadelphia 76ers, a team that traded Ilyasova away in mid-February, so we could be in store for a good revenge game. The minutes will definitely be there for him, and he only needs 24 fantasy points to reach value. He should definitely be able to do this against a 76ers team that is giving up 48.5 fantasy points to opposing power forwards in their last 10 games.

Dwight Howard ($7,200) – As bad as the Sixers are against power forwards, they’re even worse against centers. Not only are they last in the league in total fantasy points given up to the position, but over their last 10 games they are giving up a ridiculous amount (60.9) to the position. With Millsap out, Howard has stepped up for Atlanta on both ends of the court. The offense has actually been running through him at times, and it shows in his fantasy production. He’s posted at least 31 fantasy points in each game without Millsap this month, and that streak should continue tonight with his fantastic matchup against an awful 76ers defense.

GPP Plays 

Kemba Walker ($7,800) – There’s a lot of depth at the point guard position tonight, which leads me to believe middle-priced guys like Kemba Walker are likely to get overlooked by many DFS players. Kemba has been playing very well recently, posting 5 straight games of 35+ fantasy points, with one of those performances being 50.3. Kemba has proven he has elite upside considering his price point, and he will be bringing that same upside into a matchup with the Toronto Raptors tonight at the Air Canada Centre.

Rodney Hood ($3,900) – I like Hood for a couple reasons tonight. For one thing, Gordon Hayward is a game time decision. If he in unable to go, Hood will be free to take a few extra shots again tonight. He was able to put up 30.7 fantasy points in 30 minutes of action last game with Hayward out, and I believe he has a good chance to have that same kind of production tonight at just a $3,900 price tag. Luckily, the Jazz have one of the late games, so news on Hayward probably won’t be out before lock time. Either way, don’t be afraid to plug Hood in, as he draws a matchup with a tanking Sacramento team. The Kings have given up the 2^nd most fantasy points to shooting guards on the season (43.9 a game), so Hood is in a great position to do well tonight regardless if Hayward plays or not.

Jae Crowder ($6,100) – A guy that should fly under the radar tonight is Jae Crowder of the Boston Celtics. He’s been playing very well recently, posting 21+ fantasy points in 13 of his last 14 games. He offers a nice safety net for your GPP lineup, while also bringing nice upside on a nightly basis. He gets a good matchup tonight against the Milwaukee Bucks, who have given up the 6^th most fantasy points to small forwards (42.9) all season. He was able to put up 35.2 fantasy points when the 2 teams faced each other earlier in the season, and I think he should be able to hit that same number tonight at TD Garden.

Blake Griffin ($8,600) – Blake Griffin has been really awful lately, posting less than 30 fantasy points in each of his last 4 games. Because of this, he shouldn’t be on anyone’s radar tonight as the Clippers take on the Wizards at the Staples Center. However, Washington is one of the worst teams in the league when it comes to containing opposing power forwards. They allow 46.1 FP a game (on average), which means Griffin is in a great position to put his bad fantasy week behind him. At $8.6k he only needs 43 fantasy points to reach value, but obviously has upside for much more than that.

Nikola Vucevic ($8,100) – Vucevic has been playing very well lately. Luckily, he’s been playing so well that I think his price is a little higher than anyone wants to buy up for. At over $8k he does need 40+ to reach value, which seems a bit intimidating for a guy only averaging 33.64 fantasy points on the season. However, he’s averaging 42.6 over his last 5 games, and he draws a good matchup tonight against the Thunder. Oklahoma City has been giving up 49.6 fantasy points to opposing centers over their last 5 games, which is well above their season average. Vucevic should be able to keep his hot streak going when he faces off with them tonight.