One of the keys to finding success in daily fantasy basketball is uncovering potential value plays. If you're looking to roster a stud player or two, you need to consider squeezing in one of these lower-priced options into your lineup.
Let's take a look at five players who can help fill in the gaps in your lineup tonight.
Rajon Rondo, PG, Chicago Bulls
FanDuel Price: $5,900
Projected FanDuel Points: 29.8
No, Rajon Rondo isn't super cheap, but he is looking like a fantastic value play. At his projected output, he would score 5.05 FanDuel points per $1,000 in salary. That's pretty much the threshold you're looking for in cash games. Rondo's Chicago Bulls are narrow 2-point home underdogs to the Cleveland Cavaliers. The 211 over/under gives the Bulls an implied total of 104.5, which is useful enough for Rondo tonight.
Kyrie Irving is 73rd in ESPN's Defensive Real Plus/Minus, and the Cavs are the 3rd-best matchup for opposing fantasy point guards among the 18 teams in action tonight.
Lou Williams, SG, Los Angeles Lakers
FanDuel Price: $5,200
Projected FanDuel Points: 25.8
The Los Angeles Lakers are hurting. D'Angelo Russell is out until mid-December, and Nick Young will miss two to four weeks. That opens up plenty of value for them, though. We're projecting Williams for just shy of 5 points per $1,000 despite his team being a 10-point underdog to the Toronto Raptors, primarily because of his projected 27.5 minutes.
Brandon Ingram, SF, Los Angeles Lakers
FanDuel Price: $4,000
Projected FanDuel Points: 21.8
Alongside Williams (and Jordan Clarkson), you can look to Brandon Ingram for salary relief. He's easily our top value play at small forward on FanDuel and is projected for more than 33 minutes. Ingram played 41 minutes against the Bulls in his last game and managed just 21.1 FanDuel points, but at $4,000, you have to like his opportunity and recent minutes: 41, 29, 28, 38, and 34.
Mike Muscala, PF, Atlanta Hawks
FanDuel Price: $3,700
Projected FanDuel Points: 22.8
You'll have to keep an eye out for the news on Paul Millsap, but if Millsap sits, Mike Muscala will vault to one of the best value plays on the slate at just $3,700. We project him for 22.8 FanDuel points, assuming Millsap can't play, and that's 6.17 per $1,000 in salary. Muscala started Wednesday for Millsap and posted just 7.1 FanDuel points but was on the floor for 29 minutes. That workload is hard to ignore when he frees up as much cap space as he does tonight.
Jusuf Nurkic, C, Denver Nuggets
FanDuel Price: $4,400
Projected FanDuel Points: 20.5
Jusuf Nurkic and the Denver Nuggets get to host the Houston Rockets after the Rockets played a double-overtime game last night in Oakland against the Golden State Warriors. Denver is favored by 4.5 points and has as implied team total of 111 points, second-highest of the night. Nurkic makes for a solid play in this uptempo game regardless, but if Nikola Jokic, who is questionable with a wrist injury, were to miss, then Nurkic would get an extra bump.