Cash Plays
Damian Lillard ($8,800) – With Russell Westbrook’s price tag still over $13,000 for his matchup tonight against the Spurs I believe many will look for another high-priced option at point guard. Though Bledsoe and Kyrie are both priced above him, Lillard’s matchup against the 76ers is hard to resist. Philadelphia has given up 52.9 FP to point guards over their last 10 games and Lillard is in a great position to reach that average tonight in Portland.
Devin Booker ($6,400) – The shooting guard position is rather limited tonight and I expect Booker to be heavily owned given his matchup with the Lakers. The Suns and Lakers both play awful defense, which can be seen by the fact that they both give up 111 points per game to their opposition. This game is projected to be very high scoring because of this and the fast-paced action should bode well for the 20-year-old shooting guard. He should easily flirt with 30+ fantasy points and reach value at home tonight.
Brandon Ingram ($4,000) – Ingram is proving to be more consistent over his last 6 games, averaging between 19.5 and 24.2 fantasy points in 5 of them. For his price point, that is great production, and he should be able to keep the ball rolling tonight against a Phoenix Suns team that is giving up the 2nd most points in the league. Ingram will probably see 35+ minutes again tonight, giving him ample opportunities to grab fantasy points for your team.
Dario Saric ($7,400) – There are actually some good options tonight at the PF position, but one of my cash game picks is more than likely going to be Saric if I can fit him in. The Portland Trail Blazers have allowed the 3rd most fantasy points to opposing power forwards all year and Dario should be able to easily reach his $7,400 price tag against them. Saric has put up at least 33 FP in 10 of his last 11 games and should be a popular pick tonight because of the small slate and his recent production.
Jusuf Nurkic ($6,500) – Nurkic is likely to be highly owned yet again given the fact that the Blazers will be matching up with a 76ers team that has given up the most fantasy points per game to opposing centers. What makes this matchup even more tantalizing, however, is that Philadelphia has given up close to 60 FP a game a game to the center position over their last 5 games, which is 6 more points than the next closest team. Nurkic’s price came down a little after his last game (which was still 30.6 FP), and he should have a very high own % as the center with the most upside tonight. Lock him in and watch him take control.
GPP Plays
Reggie Jackson ($5,200) – I saw Reggie Jackson completely take control of the game against the Chicago Bulls on Monday, putting up 26 points and 6 assists to go toward a 36.4 fantasy point night. With inconsistency from KCP and Marcus Morris, I think it could be up to Reggie Jackson to try and help keep the Pistons in the game yet again. The Cavs actually give up 50.4 fantasy points per game to opposing point guards so Reggie has all the pieces to put together a good stat line tonight, it’s just about whether or not he can get the job done.
J.J. Reddick ($4,100) – With all the injuries to the Clippers this year we were able to witness Reddick step up when Los Angeles needed him. With everyone back and healthy now, a good fantasy performance from him completely rides on whether or not he gets enough shots in a game. He doesn’t score fantasy points in a lot of other ways so he’s really a GPP play most of the time. That is the case once again tonight as he goes up against the Memphis Grizzlies. The Grizzlies are giving up the 4th most fantasy points to shooting guards over their last 4 games so Reddick is in a great position to produce tonight in Memphis.
Justin Anderson ($3,900) – I watched this kid play a little bit last week and was truly impressed by what he could do on the court. He was a very physical player and really had a nose for the ball. Given a choice out of the 76ers forwards, most are going to turn to Dario Saric tonight, but I wouldn’t keep Anderson out of mind. He’s been fitting in nicely with his new team, putting up 29 fantasy points twice in his last 3 games. He gets to matchup tonight against a Portland team that is awful at guarding the forward positions. At his price point I think he carries significant upside and is definitely a guy I’m looking to get into my GPP lineups.
Tobias Harris ($5,400) – Harris has strung together 4 straight games of at least 27 fantasy points, which, by coincidence, is exactly what he needs to reach 5x value tonight. He’ll be squaring off with a Cleveland team that is generally great at defending the power forward position, but have struggled as of late, giving up the 3rd most fantasy points to the position over their last 5 games with no Kevin Love. I see Harris keeping his streak of good games going tonight when the Cavs come into town.
Tristan Thompson ($5,800) – Thompson has cooled down since the all-star break after a phenomenal start to the month of February, a time in which he was putting up 30 FP regularly. Tonight he’ll face off with a Detroit Pistons team that is good at defending the center position. However, Thompson is a very physical center that prefers boards over points. With a matchup against Andre Drummond he is likely to be around the rim tonight, much like he was in their first two meeting when he averaged 12 rebounds against them. With his price now under 6k I think it’s safe to roll with Thompson and hope he brings the same upside we saw from him in early February.