FanDuel NBA Daily Picks and Pivots – March 5
Welcome to the Sunday FanDuel NBA edition of Picks and Pivots, a fantasy basketball column focused on helping you find the best core lineup for tonight’s five game slate which kicks off at 5:00PM EST!
As a reminder, the concept behind FanDuel NBA Picks and Pivots is to first identify key building blocks that can be used for any roster construction and then identify pivot points to help differentiate your lineup in hopes of a big payday!
Saturday Night’s slate saw scores trend back towards the season norms with a winning GPP lineup of 366.1 FD points. Over the first 105 slates, the average winning GPP score has been 378.8 which would mean we need 6.3x value from our roster in order to win big!
Over the first 105 slates, the average winning GPP score has been 378.8 which would mean we need 6.3x value from our roster in order to win big!
The Saturday Night Picks and Pivots lineup built around Kemba Walker, Damian Lillard, Nikola Jokic and Jusuf Nurkic delivered us across the cash line in the majority of our contests on the night leaving us with a positive ROI! The late news that LeBron James and Kyrie Irving would sit likely drove even more ownership towards these players as all four of our core plays were 30% or more owned!
Let’s get started on the Sunday Main slate and walk through our ideal roster build in FanDuel NBA!
FanDuel NBA – Top Point Guard Picks
Russell Westbrook ($13,400) As with any slate that Russell Westbrook is on, the question becomes – can we afford to roster him while building a roster around him we feel comfortable with? The price is at astronomical levels but on a five game slate, can we really afford to fade a guy coming off an 84 FanDuel point outing with 64 FD points or more in the last six games?
The meeting with Dallas is not nearly as juicy as it was with Phoenix on Friday night, but one very important details remains – Victor Oladipo continues to be out with injury. With Oladipo out of the lineup, Westbrook is putting up video game numbers with a 50% usage rate and 1.8 fantasy points per minute over the last week.
On a short five game slate like this, I see no reason to fade Westbrook as I believe there is enough value to be had that makes rostering him on FanDuel a no-brainer!
D’Angelo Russell ($6,400) The Lakers/Pelicans game has the second highest combined team total on the main slate and is a game I am looking to stack on this slate. Similar to the Friday night roster construction, the Lakers have some high upside value plays that allow you to lock in Russell Westbrook.
The difference with the Lakers value plays today is that unlike Westbrook, they burned a lot of players Friday night so they may be under-owned on this slate! Russell is locked into major minutes and gets to face off with a Pelicans team ranked 29th in DvP to opposing PG’s on the season.
Russell dropped 32.4 FanDuel points against the Pelicans in their only early season match-up and this is an output he has reached in three of his last five games. At this price point, Russell has a very solid 5x floor with elite GPP upside and is a player I will be looking to roster across the board tonight!
FanDuel NBA – Top Shooting Guard Picks
Seth Curry ($6,300) From a correlation play perspective I want to have some Dallas exposure to pair with my Russell Westbrook play and the clear top choice from the Mavericks in my opinion is Seth Curry. With Deron Williams out-of-town, Curry has stepped up as the clear top play-maker in the Dallas back court and has 32 or more FanDuel points in five straight games.
Curry is a cash game lock at this price and has sneaky GPP upside as although the Thunder are ranked 6th in DvP on the season versus opposing SG’s, that is based off Victor Oladipo being in the lineup. Alex Abrines has one of the worst individual defensive ratings of any SG’s on the slate so this is a spot where Curry has elite upside and makes for a great mid-range play at SG.
Alec Burks ($3,500) If you are looking for a punt play, the Utah Jazz guard, Alec Burks, is one of the safest plays you can get for minimum price on FanDuel. With Rodney Hood out, Burks has played 25 minutes a game over the last two contests and has hit 5x value in each of his last three games.
If you are looking for a pivot play, I have no issue going back to Alex Abrines ($3,500) who continues to log major minutes for OKC with Oladipo on the sidelines. After a let down against Portland due to foul trouble, Abrines returned last game and played 33 minutes while logging 15.2 FanDuel points. If you are entering multiple lineups with the same core, I would look to utilize Burks and Abrines interchangeably as your SG punt play!
FanDuel NBA – Top Small Forward Picks
T.J. Warren ($5,500) Ever since PJ Tucker was traded away, Warren has been one of the steadiest value at SF for the Suns as he has double-digit shot attempts in four of his last five games and has 30+ FanDuel points in three of his last five games.
The Celtics/Suns game has the highest combined team total on the slate so we will want to pick our exposure here and I would expect players like Eric Bledsoe/Isaiah Thomas and even Alan Williams to be the chalk plays here so we can get our exposure with some of the fringe guys at much lower ownership!
Brandon Ingram ($3,600) It seems that whenever you need a value SF, Ingram is the default option as few players at this price point are given the amount of court time that he gets. Ingram has played 35+ minutes in three of his last four games and has exceeded 6x value in two of those four.
Ingram was a popular play on Friday night and let people down with a 7 FanDuel point dud so I expect his ownership percentage to be a fraction of what it was on Friday, allowing us to target an elite GPP punt play and fit in a few of the games biggest stars within this roster build!
FanDuel NBA – Top Power Forward and Center Picks
Aaron Gordon ($5,200) The Magic and Wizards play the lone 5PM EST game and Gordon is perhaps the best point per dollar exposure in this spot as he gets the most exploitable match-up against a Washington team that is ranked dead last in the NBA in DvP to opposing PF’s.
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Gordon has returned to his natural PF spot and we saw the kind of upside he possesses in his last game where he dropped 21 points, 10 rebounds and 34.5 FanDuel points against the Magic, Gordon is an elite value at power forward on this slate with 7x-8x upside at this price point!
Enes Kanter ($5,700) The Power Forward position on FanDuel is interesting as you can opt to pay up for Anthony Davis if you choose however the $5-$6k range is loaded with solid options and this will likely be the spot in which I land across my roster builds.
Kanter has taken on the clear second fiddle role in OKC with Victor Oladipo out, as he has a 28% usage rate while putting up over a fantasy point per minute during the last week. Kanter was a mild let down in his last game but had 30+ FanDuel points in his three prior games while playing minutes in the mid 20’s.
DeMarcus Cousins ($10,300) Similar to my Friday Night roster build, I love the fact I can afford Russell Westbrook AND Boogie Cousins in my roster build without having to sacrifice upside across the rest of my lineup.
Cousins and the Pelicans get an elite match-up against the Lakers, a team he has put up 61 and 67 FanDuel points against this season. On Friday Night, Cousins was less than 9% owned in GPP play and if we see similar projections today, he makes for an elite tournament target!
Best of luck in your FanDuel NBA contests today and stay tuned to Fantasy CPR on Twitter all day for late breaking lineup news and roster updates!