FanDuel Economics: NBA Friday, April 1st Picks
Welcome to FanDuel Economics! This is the NBA Friday, April 1st Picks edition. FanDuel Economics is a daily fantasy column focused on FanDuel player salaries and FanDuel points-per-game (PPG) trends. The purpose of this column is to evaluate player salary and PPG averages over a seven day period to provide daily fantasy sports players with a vital tool in their lineup tool belt. Finding the best value options often leads to a big pay day!
The NBA isn’t ‘foolin’ around on Friday night with a strong slate of 10 games, including a very interesting Cleveland v. Atlanta match-up. We continue to see expensive but valuable players taken out of our lineups option list for resting. So, continue to monitor lineups as we approach tip-off. However, there is a growing list of low-salary / high-value players revealing themselves each day. Let’s take a look at some of our best options for tonight:
Point Guard (PG)
I previously reviewed Ish Smith and Jose Barea ($6,800 & $5,300) and they’re both back again tonight as outstanding value picks for your PG lineups. Definitely consider using one or both if possible. They will save you a lot of salary for 30-40 points.
Marcus Smart is beginning to climb up the Top25 PPG board. Over the last week, Smart is averaging 25.3 PPG and his salary tonight is only $4,300. As a comparison point, we’ve recently talked about D.J. Augustin as a great value option but Smart is taking over as a better option. Last night, Augustin was at 25.5 PPG with a salary of $4,900. But even better for tonight, Marcus will allow you to get 25 points on a $4,300 and giving you back more salary to use on a more expensive option like Irving, Curry, or Wall.
Shooting Guard (SG)
Over the last week, Norman Powell has emerged as another great SG value pick averaging 23.4 PPG, landing him in the top 20 among all SG’s. Powell’s minutes have climbed quickly after proving himself valuable in a starting role with DeMarre Carroll out (again) for the Raptors. Powell only costs you $3,900 tonight, which is a great value for a top 20 PPG shooting guard. Consider Powell to pair DeMar DeRozan or Klay Thompson.
I added Dwyane Wade into a few lineups on Wednesday night and he rewarded me in a big way. Wade is clearly a well-known name and more expensive than most SG options. However, Dwyane is averaging 40 PPG over the last week and at $7,700 he’s cheaper than Thompson or DeRozan who are averaging 5 PPG less at 35. Spending $7,700 on 40 points is always a bargain!
Small Forward (SF)
Because of his inconsistency, I typically try to avoid Harrison Barnes. However, I’ve also learned to pay attention to trends. Trends are your friend! Barnes has averaged 24.2 PPG over the last week. On a $4,600 salary tonight, that’s very hard to ignore. Barnes is an unlikely candidate to take a night off tonight (but it’s still worth keeping an eye on the GSW’s lineup). Also, Barnes is the cheapest option of the top 20 PPG small forwards tonight. Landing around 25 points on a $4,600 is a valuable option and allows you to pay for a LeBron James or Nikolas Batum.
Justin Anderson is another young player, a rookie, who’s getting a chance to start toward the end of the season due to team injuries. Anderson is taking advantage of his opportunity by racking up both offensive and defensive points and he’s quickly becoming an attractive FanDuel play at SF. Over the last week averaged Justin 21.6 PPG. On a very low $3,800 salary tonight, he gets you over 20 points while being able to use a bucket of money on another more expensive player like LeBron James who can pull in 50 points. So, if you combined LBJ and Anderson’s average PPG and salary tonight, you’re paying $6,950 for 70 points. This is a very attractive pairing option.
Power Forward (PF)
I’m avoiding Thomas Robinson until we see his trend line. However, let’s go back to John Henson after FanDuel Economics talked about John for Wednesday’s match-ups. If you didn’t take Henson on Wednesday, I recommend trying tonight, after failing on Wednesday. He is averaging 33 PPG and dropped 28 points on Wednesday’s $4,300 salary. That’s a fantastic bargain! Tonight Henson’s salary is $4,400 ($100 increase) and considering you’re paying $6,000+ for anyone averaging over 30 points a game at the PF position in the past week, he’s a fantastic pick for tonight. Play him!
I was skeptical of Andrew Nicholson but we can’t avoid his trend. He had been racking up ‘garbage time’ points, but now it seems to be consistent. It’s also possible the Magic start tanking, with their season essentially over (the Harris trade made that obvious). So, Nicholson may continue to get opportunities. Andrew is averaging 26.2 PPG over the last week, which is surprising. Also, Nicholson’s salary is only $4,200 tonight. So aside from Henson, Nicholson is you’re next best value pick at the PF position tonight.
Center (C)
Speaking of the Magic tanking, Dewayne Dedmon has also been getting more playing time and his value is rapidly increasing. Dewayne averaged 25.7 PPG over the last week, putting him 16th, just outside of the top 15 Center’s, and his salary is only $4,000 tonight. Dedmon is the cheapest and most valuable option of the top 15 tonight. Getting 26 points and saving $2,000 for someone else is always a great option at Center.
If you’re looking for some other pick options or to pivot from some of my value options, take a look at my good friend Brian Tulloch‘s column NBA Picks and Pivots – FanDuel Picks April 1 or follow him at @2lockSports.
Next: FanDuel Picks and Pivots; April 1
I wish you all well tonight FanDuelers! Spend smartly and enjoy the return on your savings!