FanDuel NBA Daily Picks and Pivots – Playoff Edition
Welcome to the Saturday Playoff Edition FanDuel NBA Picks and Pivots, a fantasy basketball column focused on helping you find the best core lineup for today’s four game slate which kicks off at 3:00PM 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!
During the regular season the average winning GPP score has been 379.0 which would mean we need 6.3x value from our roster in order to win big!
During the regular season the average winning GPP score has been 379.0 which would mean we need 6.3x value from our roster in order to win big!
After taking a few weeks off from the NBA season, Picks and Pivots is ready to go for the first day of the NBA playoffs! We are finally at a point where we do not have to worry about players resting and can actually fire up our DFS rosters with a clear focus on the superstar players!
Saturday’s slate has four games to focus on with the Cavaliers/Pacers, Bucks/Raptors, Spurs/Grizzlies and Jazz/Clippers. In my mind the best game to target from a DFS perspective is the Cavaliers and Pacers as the game has by far the highest projected total (213) which is over 13 points higher than the next closest game on the slate.
FanDuel NBA – Top Guard Picks
PG: Kyrie Irving ($9,000) and Jeff Teague ($7,000): As I mentioned in the open, the Cavaliers/Pacers game has a 213 projected game total which is by far the highest on this four game slate, nearly 13 points higher than the next closest game – Toronto versus Milwaukee.
I am looking to this game as the core for my FanDuel NBA roster build and will start with the two point guards in this game. Looking back at the last three meetings between these two teams, Kyrie Irving has put up 37, 40.5 and 40.5 FanDuel points while Jeff Teague has put up 49, 39 and 37.
At these price points if you can get 40 FanDuel points from each of these point guards you are locking in a solid 5x value and with our other options on the board being in slow-paced/low-scoring games I think it makes sense to pay up here for the two PG’s in the marquee playoff game on Sunday!
SG: Rodney Hood ($4,000) and J.R. Smith ($3,700) If you have followed me throughout the season you will know I typically look to punt the shooting guard position in my roster build and with some big time stars at the PG and SF spots, I am looking to build my roster construction with SG value plays.
Smith is a completely volatile DFS asset best suited for GPP play but we saw down the stretch that J.R. was routinely getting 30+ minutes a night for the Cavaliers as they ramped up for the playoffs. With 30 minutes of court time I think Smith is a lock to get 5x value which would be 18.5 FanDuel points at this price point – a mark he has met in 5 of his last 8 games!
Hood is one of the few players I will look to roster outside of the Cleveland/Pacers game as he gets a decent match-up with the Clippers on Sunday. Hood is a very similar player to Smith in the fact that he should see 30 minutes of court time and at this price point has legit 6-7x upside. With George Hill matched up against the defense of Chris Paul, I expect Hood to have to carry more of the offensive load.
If you are looking for a pivot play at SG, Monta Ellis ($4,000) sits at the same price point and considering the Cavaliers rank dead last in DvP to SG’s on the season, this could be a sneaky spot to fire up Monta as part of a game stack!
FanDuel NBA – Top Forward and Center Picks
SF: LeBron James ($11,000) and Paul George ($10,000) Similar to our approach at PG, I am locking in the two stud SF’s for the Cavaliers/Pacers as part of my core on this four game slate.
The previous match-ups between these two have been DFS gold mines as George gas registered 44, 45 and 72 FanDuel points while King James has dropped 41, 45 and 79 in an overtime thriller just a few weeks ago!
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The Cavaliers and Pacers rank 25th and 27th respectively in DvP to opposing SF’s on the season so this is a spot we can attack both teams and I think allocating the salary on this short slate to lock in these two studs will carry you well across the cash line in all formats!
PF/C: LaMarcus Aldridge ($6,300), JaMychael Green ($3,500) and Pau Gasol ($5,200) The Spurs/Grizzlies game will likely be a low scoring slug fest but with only four games on the slate we need to find ways to build off our core Cavs/Pacers stack.
During the regular season I almost never roster Spurs players but with the playoffs here I think now is the time to ride them when we know Coach Popovich will be more inclined to ride his veterans for legit minutes.
Aldridge is by far my favorite PF on this slate and the price seems way too low considering his upside. The Spurs faced the Grizzlies twice in the final month of the season and Aldridge averaged 22 points, 8 rebounds and 38 FanDuel points which would exceed 6x value at this price point!
Gasol gets a match-up with his brother and we only need to look back at the last meeting when Pau dropped 12 points, 11 rebounds and 30 FanDuel points against the Grizzlies to see what he is capable of when he gets legit minutes!
Green is never a sexy DFS play but with how weak PF is, I think he makes for one of the best punt plays on the board as he is guaranteed to play 20+ minutes for Memphis and only needs 17 FD points to hit value. In the previous two match-ups with the Spurs he has averaged 18 FD points so he feels like a safe way to play the punt game while spending up elsewhere on your roster!
Next: FanDuel MLB Picks and Pivots
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