FanDuel Daily Fantasy Basketball Helper: Wednesday 2/24/21

The NBA scene changes on a week-to-week, day-to-day, and -- depending on injury news -- even a minute-to-minute basis, making every slate a unique one that requires an ever-changing approach.

With so much changing so quickly, we're here with plenty of tools to help you out. We have daily projections, a matchup heat map, a lineup optimizer, and a bunch of other great resources to help give you an edge.

Daily fantasy NBA is very reliant on opportunity, so you'll need to make sure that you're up-to-date with key injuries and COVID-19 situations. Our projections update up until tip-off to reflect current news and we also have player news updates.

We'll also be coming at you with this primer every day, breaking down a few of the day's top plays at each position.

Please note: When I'm referencing a player's value figure, it is the number of fantasy points scored for every $1,000 in salary. Typically, a value figure of 5.0 (meaning, 5.0 FanDuel points for every $1,000 in salary) is the minimum baseline we'll be targeting.

Let's take a look at who you should target on tonight's nine-game slate, which locks at 7:30 PM Eastern.

Slate Overview

Via Brandon Gdula's matchup sheet, this table shows each team's spread and implied total (plus the over/under for their game). It also includes opponent-adjusted offensive rating and the adjusted defensive rating for each team's opponent, including league-wide ranks for each.

Teams are sorted by implied team total.

Point Guard

Stud

Dejounte Murray ($7,500): In my studs to target column, I outlined Murray as one of the best targets on tonight's slate for a number of reasons. First, the San Antonio Spurs will be taking the court tonight for the first time in 11 days, and they'll be without DeMar DeRozan, Keldon Johnson, Devin Vassell, Derrick White, Rudy Gay, and Quinndary Weatherspoon at the very least.Second, Murray's matchup is quite tasty -- the Oklahoma City Thunder have allowed the sixth-most fantasy points over their last 15 games, according to FantasyPros. Finally, Murray's showcased plenty of upside this season -- he has 13 outputs with more than 38 FanDuel points this season, including outputs of 55.4 and 65.0 in two of his last four.

Other Studs to Consider:
Trae Young ($9,600): Young hasn't been rostered in more than 10.2% of FanDuel lineups in any of his last five games, which makes him a great tournament play. He has put up at least 52.4 fantasy points in four straight, and he's totaled fewer than 48.4 just 4 times in his last 18 games.
Stephen Curry ($10,000): With at least 51.4 fantasy points in 7 of his last 11 games, Curry's floor and ceiling seem to be trending up. Indiana is ninth-worst against the position over their last seven.
Malcolm Brogdon ($8,100): Brogdon's recorded 41.2, 49.5, and 54.3 FanDuel points in his last three. The Warriors do rank second against point guards, though.

Value Play

Patty Mills ($3,800): Get used to seeing San Antonio players in this column, because nearly every one of them is a value proposition tonight. Mills gets the same friendly matchup as Murray, and he comes in just $300 more than the minimum. The veteran has eclipsed 20 FanDuel points 11 times already in 2020-21.

Other Mid-Range and Value Options:
Mike Conley ($5,600): Conley looks to be getting to full strength as he upped his production to 31.9 FanDuel points in his second game back on Monday. The Lakers have ceded the fifth-most fantasy points to the position throughout their last seven contests.
Darius Garland ($5,900): After racking up 32.4 fantasy points last night, Garland has now gone past 30 in five of his last nine games. The matchup against Houston is far from intimidating.
Saben Lee ($5,000): Lee has dropped 32.3 and 33.6 FanDuel points in his last two, and he faces a Pelicans defense that's fourth-worst against point guards.

Shooting Guard

Stud

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander ($7,500): With a projection of 39.3 FanDuel points, SGA is numberFire's fifth-best point-per-dollar play at shooting guard tonight. In fact, of all the players at the position with a salary above $5,800, Gilgeous-Alexander is the only one predicted to bring home a value figure of 5.0 or better. The 22-year-old has put up 39.9 and 49.3 FanDuel points in his last two outings, and he has managed at least 38.7 fantasy points in 14 of his 25 efforts this season -- he only needs 37.5 for 5X (or 5.0 fantasy points for every $1,000 in salary). San Antonio ranks ninth-worst against shooting guards in their last seven games, and as I've repeatedly mentioned, they'll be without a number of regulars tonight.

Other Studs to Consider:
Zach LaVine ($9,800): LaVine is our model's top-projected scorer at the position and third-highest on the entire slate. The Timberwolves have been relatively tough on shooting guards this campaign.
Devin Booker ($7,700): The 24-year-old has surpassed 40 fantasy points in five of his last nine. The matchup against Charlotte is neutral.
Fred VanVleet ($8,200): FVV has at least 42 FanDuel points in exactly half of his games this season, including 48.5-plus in 6 of his last 12. However, Kyle Lowry looks ready to return tonight.

Value Play

Lonnie Walker ($3,500): Yeah, that's right -- another San Antonio play. I told you to get used to it, didn't I? Walker is our model's top-projected value on the entire slate and considering that he's at the minimum salary, this isn't far-fetched. Walker's already had 20.6 or more fantasy points on 10 different occasions this season, and an output of 20.6 would get him pretty damn close to 6X. numberFire's algorithm has him projected for 21 against the Thunder.

Other Mid-Range and Value Options:
Collin Sexton ($6,900): The youngster draws a mouth-watering matchup against a Rockets team that ranks 28th versus the position.
Josh Jackson ($5,100): Jackson is our model's second-best point-per-dollar play at shooting guard. He's amassed 30.4 and 31.0 fantasy points in his last two.
Svi Mykhailiuk ($3,500): Mykhailiuk has had outings of 20.1, 25.7, and 29.9 fantasy points in three of his last eight games. He should see a decent number of minutes in a good matchup.

Small Forward

Stud

LeBron James ($10,400): I mean...who else did you think I was going to put here? I outlined LeBron as a target in my studs piece, and our model very much agrees, as it has James projected as the highest scorer on tonight's slate. The King has dropped at least 43.7 fantasy points in all but 2 of his last 17 games, and that includes eight performances with more than 51. In February alone, the Utah Jazz have surrendered 47.5 FanDuel points to Gordon Hayward, 45.8 to Jerami Grant, 57.0 FanDuel points to Tobias Harris, and 65.0 to Giannis Antetokounmpo. In other words, we don't need to sweat the matchup too much.

Other Studs to Consider:
Jimmy Butler ($9,200): Jimmy Buckets has garnered at least 41.5 fantasy points in 13 of his last 15, including 47.1-plus in nine of those contests. That said, Toronto has been a top-10 defense against small forwards this season.
Jaylen Brown ($8,400): After not reaching 40 fantasy points in 10 straight games, Brown has dropped 42.7 and 47.9 in his last two. He should see added usage with Kemba Walker out tonight.
Brandon Ingram ($8,000): The 23-year-old has eclipsed 40 FanDuel points in 7 of his last 11 games. Detroit has been middle-of-the-road against the position lately.

Value Play

Garrett Temple ($4,600): In his last seven games, Temple has averaged 33 minutes per game, which has resulted in four outings of more than 26 FanDuel points during that stretch. Tonight, Temple faces a Wolves defense that's been third-most-generous to the position over their last seven contests. The fact that this game has the second-highest projected total on the slate certainly doesn't hurt Temple's outlook.

Other Mid-Range and Value Options:
Josh Hart ($4,700): Hart is our model's top-projected value at the position, and if if you're desperate for upside, he's likely a better play than Temple. In his last eight games, Hart has produced outputs of 26.3, 38.8, 41.0, and 51.9 FanDuel points, among others.
Justin Holiday ($4,900): Holiday has quietly been on a bit of a hot streak lately -- he's had outings of 28.5, 28.5, 28.8, 35.1, and 41.2 fantasy points in his last eight games. The Warriors are sixth-worst against small forwards in their last seven contests.
David Nwaba ($5,100) and Danuel House Jr. ($4,500): The Rockets are already down Christian Wood and DeMarcus Cousins, and now Victor Oladipo and Eric Gordon are questionable as well. Nwaba has averaged 30.8 minutes and 37 FanDuel points in his last three games. Meanwhile, House has topped 28 in three of his last six. Both are in play if Oladipo and Gordon can't suit up.

Power Forward

Stud

Zion Williamson ($8,500): Zion draws a Pistons team that ranks dead last against power forwards in 2020-21. The 20-year-old has bested 45 FanDuel points in 7 of his last 11 games, including five of his last six. Working in Zion's favor is the fact that the Pelicans have a healthy implied total of 116.0 tonight, which is third-best on the slate.

Other Studs to Consider:
Jayson Tatum ($9,400): With Kemba and Marcus Smart off the court this season, Tatum leads the Celtics with a 36.2% usage rate and a 1.44 FanDuel-point-per-minute average. Tatum has already faced Atlanta twice in the last week, and in those matchups, he pegged them for 49.6 and 54.2 FanDuel points.
Domantas Sabonis ($9,900) - With a projection of 46.9, Sabonis is numberFire's top-projected scorer at power forward. In his last four games, he's exploded for 51.5, 61.6, and 80.4 FanDuel points. Golden State ranks 21st against the position this season.
Bam Adebayo ($8,900): Bam's only topped 44 FanDuel points once in his last eight outings, but he faces a Toronto interior that's been third-worst against the position throughout their last 15 games.

Value Play

Jae Crowder ($4,600): On the season, the Hornets rank in the bottom-three in real-life points, assists, and blocks given up to the power forward position -- enter Crowder. Though he's dudded in the last two, the veteran did trump 30 fantasy points in four of his previous five games before that.

Other Mid-Range and Value Options:
PJ Washington ($5,600): Washington is our model's second-best projected value at the position. The tough Phoenix interior has shown cracks lately, coming in ninth-worst against power forwards over their last seven games.
LaMarcus Aldridge ($5,600): Aldridge is returning to the lineup just in time to aid a Spurs team that's extremely shorthanded. Luckily, he'll be dancing with an OKC team that's allowed the most fantasy points to power forwards over their last 15 games.
Patrick Williams ($4,800): In his last four games, Williams has had performances of 25.7, 28.9, and 30.0 FanDuel points -- that makes it 6 times in his last 10 outings that he's surpassed 25.

Center

Karl-Anthony Towns ($9,700): As I mentioned in the studs piece, I rarely recommend a center as a must-target given the supply at the position and the fact that we only have to roster one -- that's not the case today. KAT has topped 52 fantasy points in three of his last four, and he'll square off against a Chicago frontcourt that ranks 26th against centers this season. Towns is our model's second-highest projected scorer on tonight's nine-gamer.

Other Stud to Consider:
Jarrett Allen ($7,600): Allen's been red-hot lately, and he'll be facing a Rockets unit that has no true center with Boogie out. In his last four games, Allen has dropped 39.3, 43.0, 47.8, and 55.4 FanDuel points. That'll play. Allen is our model's top-projected point-per-dollar play at center tonight.

Value Play

Wendell Carter Jr. ($5,400): Any time you have a center facing Minnesota, they should automatically be in consideration. Carter Jr. is fresh off a 47.1-FanDuel-point performance on Monday, and he has similar upside tonight. This matchup is simply too good to completely ignore.

Other Mid-Range and Value Options:
Kelly Olynyk ($4,400): After Allen, our model's next-best point-per-dollar play is Olynyk, who is projected to put up 24.6 FanDuel points. Olynyk is going up against a Raptors team that's allowing the fifth-most fantasy points to centers over their last 15 contests.
Justin Patton ($3,500): If you're only left with scraps to spend at center, Patton is an intriguing option. Without Boogie in the lineup on Monday, he posted 20.2 FanDuel points in 21.5 minutes. The Cavs have ceded the most fantasy points to the opposition's centers since they benched Andre Drummond.