Daily Fantasy Basketball Game Scripts to Target on 3/30/17
Jusuf Nurkic, C, Portland Trail Blazers
FanDuel Price: $7,500
On the other side of the ball in this up-tempo game, we have the surging Jusuf Nurkic, who has thrived since being acquired by the Blazers, averaging 36 FanDuel points as a starter.
Excluding a 23-point loss to the New Orleans Pelicans in which he was limited to just 22 minutes, Nurkic has eclipsed 30 FanDuel points in 16 of his 18 games as a starter. He's paired that dependable floor with an exciting ceiling, including totals of 40.8, 40.9, 42.6, 51.4, 58.2 and 77 FanDuel points in Portland.
The Blazers' 113.75-point implied team total is nearly six points above their season scoring average and is just one point off Houston. In eight games Nurkic has played in with an over/under of at least 220 with Portland, he has averaged 38.5 FanDuel points, as opposed to 25.0 in all the others.
That's not a huge sample size, but the difference is enough to make it clear that the big man benefits from positive game scripts.
He should also benefit from a matchup against Houston, who has allowed the fifth-most FanDuel points to opposing centers. Despite the efforts of Clint Capela, no team has allowed more points in the post than the Rockets this season. They will be hard-pressed to find an answer for Nurkic, who has scored 0.93 points per possession in the post since joining Portland, which would rank eighth among centers this season.