NBA DFS returns for us Monday night with a 7-game slate. The Coach is here with his starting five and authentic insight from ‘inside the ropes.’ The NBA’s fantasy landscape changes daily with nightly examples of last-minute injury designation and load management. For reference, we continue to see the FanDuel’s main slate pay line in the low 300 point range. We will continue to operate and expect the same pay out number to continue.
Our starting lineup is designed to provide core players with which to construct your DFS lineups. We strive for players who have the potential to be less owned and will give us a lineup different from the masses. Your obvious must-start studs or options are not always mentioned; we try to offer balanced DFS salary options. The fantasy point-per-game averages referenced are those across FanDuel scoring. Who gets the green light from the Coach tonight?
DFS Starting Guards
Malik Monk ($7.7k DraftKings and $7.9k Fanduel)
With Trae Young the obvious chalk and Ja Morant questionable, we will plug in Malik Monk as our starting point guard tonight. Monk has the green light facing the Mavericks who rank just 21st in fantasy points allowed to guards. Monk is averaging 33.75 points per game and enters as a top-15 fantasy shooting guard but is eligible to slot in at the point. The Kings-Mavs boast the slate’s second highest implied game total and a competitive one point spread. Monk’s stats have been down a bit lately, so that we hope will keep his ownership suppressed. Additional note: Tyrese Maxey is a good option tonight, coming off a disappointing five-point effort on Saturday night.
Dyson Daniels ($6.8k DraftKings and $7.8k Fanduel)
We need to have exposure to the Hawks-Grizzlies game that boasts a slate high 253 implied game total. Daniels DFS’s price tag is very reasonable and provides a nice pivot off Trae Young. In addition, Daniels comes with positional flexibility by qualifying at either guard spot. He is averaging 33.8 minutes and 39.84 fantasy points per game over his last five contests. We can green light Daniels, who has reached 45 or more points in his last three of his last six starts.
Substitution Options: Tyler Herro, Ja Morant (GTD), Luke Kennard, Tyrese Maxey
DFS Starting Forwards
Kelly Oubre ($6.3k DraftKings and $6.7k Fanduel)
The Sixers had a nice win on Saturday night versus Golden State and won two of three. Kelly Oubre has been a key part of that and seeing terrific usage since Joel Embiid was shelved for the rest of the season. Oubre has averaged 41 minutes and 36.7 fantasy points in his last two games. The Sixers-Blazers are forecasted to be in a competitive game environment and boast a nice 228 implied game total. Oubre is green lighted facing the Sixers who allow the fifth most points to forwards. He provides us major flexibility being eligible for both shooting guard and small forward.
John Collins ($6.6k DraftKings and $7.3k Fanduel)
DFS Starting Center
Jalen Duren ($6.9k DraftKings and $8.1k Fanduel)
This guy has been a staple in our starting five and still not an outrageous price tag. It was Duren or Jaren Jackson tonight and if we can fit both into our DFS builds, we will! Duren is now the overall C9 at 31.29 fantasy points per game. In his last seven starts, he has three games north of 50 points, six double-doubles, and pulling down 11.8 boards a game. The Jazz, who could be down both John Collins and Walker Kessler, rank just 22nd in points allowed to the center position. There is plenty to like about Duren tonight, green light all the way!
Substitution Options: Jaren Jackson, Bam Adebayo, Santi Aldama, Onyeka Okongwu
DFS Tournament Stacks
Ja Morant-Santi Aldama-Jaren Jackson/ Cade Cunningham-Ausar Thompson-Jalen Duren/Malik Monk-Zach LaVine-DeMar DeRozan/ Trae Young-Dyson Daniels-Oneyeka Okongwu
Final Thoughts
It is not possible to mention every player, but our substitution options provide our followers with additional green light options and flexibility within your DFS builds. We strive for a balance of studs and value plays who might also be potentially lower-owned. Pay attention to implied game totals and try to get pieces of those games within your lineup construction.
The top DFS builds will consist of the right balance between studs and value players that pay at least 5x their DFS salaries. Good luck with your roster builds, and please like and follow us on social media. Please always double-check our recommendations and your roster builds once inactive are announced.
