Cash Plays
Isaiah Thomas ($9,800) – Thomas and the Celtics get the late game matchup tonight against the Lakers in Los Angeles. When the 2 teams squared off in early February, Thomas was able to score 38 points over 38 minutes. The Lakers were able to keep that one close in Boston, losing with a final score of 113-107. If the Lakers can play with the same intensity and keep this one close at home, Thomas will once again log heavy minutes. The Lakers are last in the league over their last 10 games, giving up almost 50 fantasy points to opposing PG’s. Thomas should be able to feast tonight against their weak defense.
Seth Curry ($6,200) – Seth Curry has been the definition of consistent, posting 4 straight games of at least 31 fantasy points. Coincidentally, that’s exactly what you need from him to reach value tonight against the Memphis Grizzlies. Tony Allen is a lockdown defender, but it’s hard for me to fade Curry when he should see 35+ minutes and more usage with Wesley Matthews still ruled out.
TJ Warren ($5,400) – Warren has now posted 5 straight games of at least 25 fantasy points and gets a matchup tonight against an Oklahoma City team that gives up the 9th most points to opposing small forwards. As predicted, Warren’s price went up a bit. This shouldn’t change the fact that he’ll more than likely be a popular cash game pick, though, considering he only needs 25-30 fantasy points to reach value for your lineup.
Dario Saric ($7,300) – Saric had an off day last night against the Heat, posting only 17.2 FP over 28 minutes. This will likely push many fanduel owners to other options at the power forward position. However, Saric’s matchup against the Knicks tonight is too good for me to pass up. New York is giving up the 8th most fantasy points in the league to the PF position over their last 10 games, and Saric is a large part of why. Last Saturday in New York he put up 19 points to go along with 15 rebounds and 5 assists en route to a 40.5 fantasy night. The Knicks give up 108.8 points per game, so this contest should be high scoring and give Saric a good chance to have another great performance at home tonight.
Rudy Gobert ($7500) – Gobert had a down game against Karl-Anthony Towns and the Timberwolves on Wednesday. Prior to that game, however, he had posted 13 straight games of at least 30 fantasy points. He’s in a great position for a bounce-back game tonight against a Brooklyn Nets team that is allowing the 4th most fantasy points to opposing centers this season.
GPP Plays
Elfrid Payton ($5,500) – With another down game from Payton many are likely to look elsewhere at the PG position tonight. He gets a tough matchup against a Miami Heat team that is great at defending the point, adding to his risk. However, when he played the Heat on February 13th he was able to post 32 FP over 31 minutes. If he can come anywhere close to that again tonight he’ll reach value and be well worth his price tag.
Courtney Lee ($5,000) – Lee has posted 2 games of 14 FP and 2 games of 36+ fantasy points over his last 4 games. One of those 14 point games did come against the same 76er team he faces tonight, but he did only see 24 minutes in that game. He’s likely to see closer to 35 minutes tonight and, considering his matchup, I think he can easily hit 25 and reach value for your team while offering considerable upside.
Joe Ingles ($3,700) – Rodney Hood is out once again and Joe Ingles is looking at yet another start. His matchup tonight against Brooklyn doesn’t get any better, as they are last in the league in both points per game and fantasy points per game given up to opposing small forwards. Ingles offers huge cap relief at $3,700 and allows you to reach up for a guy like Westbrook, who shouldn’t be ridiculously owned at his high price.
Nerlens Noel ($5,300) – Noel is getting a start tonight at center as the Mavs switch their rotation around and move Barnes and Dirk to the 3 + 4 positions. As a Maverick, he hasn’t done anything spectacular, but he also hasn’t disappointed considering they haven’t given him too much of a chance yet. Tonight could be his chance, though, against a tough Memphis Grizzlies team. They allow the least fantasy points per game to opposing centers, which adds risk to Noel. He shouldn’t be too owned tonight so look for him as a PF option in your GPP lineups.
Marcin Gortat ($6,300) – People are going to be quick to pass on Gortat tonight since he only put up 22.1 FP last game, which also happened to be against the Raptors. However, he put up 12 points and 8 rebounds in only 18 minutes of work. The Raptors essentially blew the Wizards out, though the final score of 105-96 doesn’t show it. Tonight, I expect the Raptors to come out and compete at a higher level on the road, allowing the Wizards to utilize Gortat more than they did on Wednesday.