In daily fantasy basketball, finding players you want to roster is a lot easier than finding players to avoid.
You can find a ton of great information and research on guys you might want to include in your DFS NBA lineups, but what about guys you may want to lessen your exposure to, or even fade altogether?
Avoiding players whose matchups or situations aren't as great as they seem can often be just as important as finding the best targets. After all, it takes only one player to sink a lineup. Searching for the landmines could mean the difference between winning and losing your contests. Which players should we avoid tonight?
Jahlil Okafor, C, New Orleans Pelicans.
FanDuel Price: $7,400
When Jahlil Okafor first replaced Anthony Davis in the New Orleans Pelicans lineup, he was a beast in fantasy posting four 40-plus FanDuel point performances in his first five stats. Over the last week, though, Okafor has come back to Earth, dropping 26.6 or fewer FanDuel points in two of four games including a disappointing 19.0 FanDuel points in his last game out.
The big man is averaging 14.5 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks in 28.4 minutes for 31.1 FanDuel points since January 30. His minutes have shrunk with the return of Julius Randle and may become virtually non-existent if the Pels are true to their word and have Davis active, possibly as soon as Friday. Even if Okafor plays against the Minnesota Timberwolves, he is in for a difficult matchup.
The T-Wolves have allowed the third fewest rebounds per game over their last 10 contests and have limited opposing centers to just 1.08 FanDuel points per minute, the eighth-lowest rate in the league this season. A tough matchup plus uncertainty in minutes make Okafor a strong avoid on Friday night.
Willie Cauley-Stein, C, Sacramento Kings
FanDuel Price: $5,400
Willie Cauley-Stein was a fantasy darling to start the season, routinely dropping 40-plus FanDuel point nights. Over the last couple of weeks though, the Sacramento Kings big man has fallen on hard times in fantasy, collecting 22.2 or fewer FanDuel points in six of his previous nine games.
Over his last four contests, WCS has seen his playing time cut, due to the rise of Marvin Bagley III. The rookie forward has averaged 29.8 minutes per game while Cauley-Stein has played 25.2 per game with two games of fewer than 22 minutes. The reduced playing time has left WCS to average just 10.0 points and 6.0 rebounds per game. He has recorded only one block in his last nine games, putting even more pressure on his rebounding ability. Facing one of the better rebounding teams in the league, the Miami Heat, WCS, is in for another long night.
The Heat rank fourth in the NBA with a 52.1% rebound percentage over their last 10 games. They have limited opponents to just 40.8 boards per game in the stretch, the second-lowest average in the league. Thanks to Hassan Whiteside and his association leading 25.7% rebound percentage, opposing centers have posted the third-fewest FanDuel points per minute against Miami this season.
Kevin Knox, SF, New York Knicks
FanDuel Price: $5,000
The New York Knicks are playing some of the worst basketball in the NBA right now. Losers of 14 straight, the Knicks have failed to score 100 points in seven of those contests. Their last time out the posted just 92 points on 40.0% shooting from the field and 27.3% from three against the Detroit Pistons. In that game, Kevin Knox went 4-for-12 from the floor for just 11 points. He ended up with only 19.4 FanDuel points, his second straight game with 20.4 FanDuel points or fewer and the sixth time in the last 10 games.
Unfortunately for the Knicks and Knox, they face the Pistons once again on Friday, albeit at home. Vegas expects more of the same from New York a the Knicks are the only team with a sub-100 implied point total tonight. The lack of points makes Knox undesirable in fantasy, especially with the Pistons tough defense on forwards this season.
Detroit holds power forwards to the 10th-fewest FanDuel points per minute while small forwards have it even worse, posting just 0.77 FanDuel points per minute, the lowest rate in the league.
Dale Redman is not a FanDuel employee. The views expressed in his articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.