FanDuel NBA Breakdown: Thursday, 3/14 – You Can Call Me Al
By Dan Palyo
FanDuel NBA Breakdown: Thursday, 3/14
Welcome back to the Thursday edition of the FanDuel NBA Breakdown! I’m “Thunder Dan” and I love playing and writing about FanDuel NBA DFS. As always, my goal is to help you get your research started for tonight’s NBA DFS slate on FanDuel.
My goal when I created the Breakdown was to make this an all-inclusive article that gives you a place to start your research for FanDuel NBA cash games and GPPs. When making my cash and GPP picks I always take into account salary, Vegas trends, ownership, and match-up and I always do my best to give you a clear rationale for why I believe each player makes a great GPP or cash target.
"The FanDuel NBA Breakdown is a first look article that is intended to be a starting point for your cash game or GPP research for FanDuel NBA DFS."
Last night was one of those nights in DFS that things went sideways pretty quickly. Some disappointing outings from Bobby Portis, Avery Bradley, Allen Crabbe, Dennis Schroeder, and Bam Adebayo left most of my lineups high and dry. It was a strange slate, and I was not surprised that cash lines were low. I was on a nice hot streak before last night but I suppose all good things come to an end. DFS can humble you on a nightly basis, but you have to be willing to pick yourself up, dust yourself off and get back on that horse again tonight.
With only six games on the slate, let’s bypass our first look and jump right into the cash core!
FanDuel NBA Breakdown: Cash Game Core
Welcome to the cash game core section of the Breakdown! I’ve been giving you a GPP core in the past, so instead, I wanted to provide you with a solid trio of players to start building your cash game lineups with tonight. I highly recommend playing cash games on a nightly basis to help build that bankroll.
Jalen Brunson (5900)
With Luka Doncic being banged up and potentially missing tonight’s game against Denver, Brunson should be in line for another big performance. He dropped a career-high 34 actual points against the Spurs on Tuesday and that was with Luka in the lineup. He’s finally emerged as a consistent fantasy performer over his last four games and seems to have locked up major minutes for the Mavs down the stretch.
Cedi Osman (6300)
Osman has been the most reliable Cavalier here late in the season. He’s playing 35 minutes a night and is heavily involved in the Cleveland offense. I used to target him only on nights when Kevin Love was resting, but he’s shown that he has the ability to have good performances with Love in the lineup, too.
Al Horford (6900)
I am rolling with Big Al tonight in a great matchup against the Kings. He posted 47 FD points in only 30 minutes against them last week. And while I know that was in a game without Kyrie Irving, I still think he’s got the potential to exceed value tonight with the Celtics at full strength. This game is without a total right now, but it should be high scoring and Horford should be able to dominate this matchup inside.
FanDuel NBA Breakdown: GPP Plays
For tournament plays, I’m looking for more than just 5x. I’m looking for 6-7x or more and we really want to chase those players with high ceilings, not just floors. We also want to take some risks on players that we think we can get at lower ownership than the chalkier cash game plays.
Marc Gasol (6500)
With Serge Ibaka suspended for tonight’s game with the Lakers, Gasol should draw the start and probably will earn some extra minutes as well. The timeshare situation between Gasol and Ibaka has made it tough to roster either of them that often lately, but if Gasol is going to get 25-30 minutes against the Lakers tonight then I think he could have a solid performance. Game log watchers will avoid him based on recent results, but I think he’s a great play.
Paul George (10000)
I was off PG13 last night so naturally, he bounced back with 50 FD points against the Nets. He’s my favorite pay up at small forward and a full 1000 less than LeBron James. This game against the Pacers should be a hard-fought one and despite a relatively low spread of 222, it opened as only a one-point spread. Oh, and I’m not sure if you remember but Paul George spent the first six years of his career in Indiana so we have the old revenge narrative going tonight, too!
Buddy Hield (6800)
Buddy let just about everyone down last game against the Wizards, which should lower his ownership tonight in a matchup that most will perceive as a tough matchup against the Celtics. However, he nearly hit 40 FD points against the Celtics last week and I like his chances of doing it again tonight.
FanDuel NBA Breakdown: Value Plays
For our purposes here at the Breakdown, we classify players priced at 5000 or less as “value plays.” Identifying value has been crucial this year on FanDuel as the new “drop score” rule has forced us into playing a lot of “stars and scrubs” rosters in both cash and GPP formats.
Jaylen Brown (5000)
Marcus Smart is questionable tonight with an illness which would mean Jaylen Brown would likely move into the lineup for a great matchup with the Kings. He had a dud against the Kings in their last meeting but has been hitting value lately otherwise.
Brandon Knight (4300)
Knight has seen his stock rise lately and has taken over a starting spot for the Cavs playing alongside rookie Colin Sexton. He’s one of a few nice value options at point guard tonight and so is…
D.J. Augustin (4600)
Somewhere my fellow CPR writer Shaun “Franchise Freshie” is smiling because D.J. Augustin is literally his favorite guy to use in DFS and here I am finally recommending him. He’s been solid, but not spectacular in five straight games and is seeing more minutes now that Isaiah Briscoe is out for a while.
Keita Bates-Diop (4200)
Bates-Diop has been a spot starter for the Wolves, who have been dealing with injuries to Teague, Rose, Wiggins, and Deng. Depending on who’s healthy for the Wolves tonight, KBD (I think I just coined that nickname for him) could see extended minutes again and he’s hit 20+ FD points in three straight games.
FanDuel NBA Breakdown: Position Rankings
What some players find really helpful are position rankings. I will rank my favorite players at each position based on their upside and point-per-dollar viability for cash and GPP. Think of this a type of “cheat sheet” but it’s not an exhaustive list of my player pool by any means.
Point Guard
Shooting Guard
- Buddy Hield
- Jaylen Brown (if Smart is out)
- Bogdan Bogdanovic
Small Forward
Power Forward
Center
FanDuel NBA Breakdown: Sample Lineup and Overview
If you’re not familiar with how I wrap up the Breakdown, this is where I give you my thoughts on roster construction and briefly discuss my strategy for how I want to attack the slate.
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I usually like punting one or two spots on FanDuel with this year’s new “drop score” rule. Playing a lineup of all 5-7k players just makes zero sense to me and you’ll find that the guys winning consistently on FanDuel are going “stars and scrubs” pretty frequently.
Today’s sample lineup is a really not a lineup that I will use tonight, but really just a bunch of players that I am considering for my cash game lineup. I’ll likely try to upgrade a few of these players at each position once we get some value that becomes available later in the day with injury news.
Remember, the sample lineup is for illustrative purposes and is not necessarily a “plug-and-play” lineup. This time of year so much can change in the course of 10-12 hours from when you begin to research a slate to when it actually locks. I rarely end up playing this lineup as there are always pivots that need to be made as the slate unfolds during the day!
PG: Darren Collison (7100)
PG: Jalen Brunson (5900)
SG: Jaylen Brown (5000)
SG: Buddy Hield (6800)
SF: Cedi Osman (6300)
SF: Bojan Bogdanovic (6700)
PF: Pascal Siakam (7800)
PF: Aaron Gordon (7300)
C: Al Horford (6900)
dark. Next. NHL DFS - DraftKings Slate Breakdown - Thursday, March 14
I hope you enjoyed my slate breakdown and I appreciate you taking the time to read my article. Be sure to share it with friends and fellow DFS players, leave comments or hit me with other feedback or questions on Twitter. And keep coming back to FantasyCPR for the best free content in the industry! Good luck with your contests