FanDuel Single-Game Daily Fantasy Basketball Helper: Grizzlies at Warriors (5/21/21)

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 for tonight's matchup between the Memphis Grizzlies and Golden State Warriors, which locks at 9:00 PM Eastern.

All injury updates are via the NBA's official injury report or numberFire's player news.

MVP Considerations

Stephen Curry ($15,000) - Let's face it, Curry's going to be in one of your top two spots -- there's no need to get cute about it. Over his 24 games, Steph has racked up at least 47 FanDuel points 19 times, and that includes eclipsed 52 on 11 different occasions. Against Memphis on Sunday, the two-time MVP pegged them for 46 real-life points, 7 rebounds, 9 assists, and 66.9 fantasy points. That'll play.

Jonas Valanciunas ($14,500) - It's possible that rostering Valanciunas in the MVP spot will be ever-so-slightly contrarian, but it won't much of a differentiator. The big man has eclipsed 45 FanDuel points in six straight games, including outputs of 51.2, 51.7, 57.7, and 61.1 in four of his last five. Golden State finished the season 20th against opposing centers, according to numberFire's DvP tool.

Draymond Green ($13,000) - Rostering Draymond in one of the top two spots would certainly differentiate your lineups more. Though his floor is quite a bit lower than Curry and Valanciunas, he does have an appealing ceiling. Over his last eight games, he's produced outputs of 43.1, 44.5, 49.5, and 59.1 FanDuel points. That 43.1-fantasy-point performance came against the Grizzlies five days ago.

Ja Morant ($12,500) - Morant might be a less popular play in the multiplier spots, but he could be worthy of inclusion in large tournaments purely based on upside. The 21-year-old has only topped 35.2 FanDuel points 6 times in his last 17 contests, though those six saw him total 43.2, 43.4, 44.1, 61.5, 61.8, and 71.6 -- the slate-winning ceiling is clearly there.

Other option: Dillon Brooks ($12,000)

Utility Considerations

Jaren Jackson Jr. ($10,500) - Though it didn't result in a huge fantasy output, Jackson saw his second-highest minutes total on Wednesday (30.8) after reaching his highest against the Warriors on Sunday (31.5). He should be in that range again, which should put him in a position to return excellent production for his salary range. Jackson Jr. has recorded at least 34 fantasy points in four of his last six games.

Jordan Poole ($7,500) - Poole likely offers the best combination of floor and ceiling of any player salaried below $8,000. The 21-year-old has trumped in five of his last seven and managed 23.1 in 24.9 minutes against the Grizzlies on Sunday. He's our algorithm's top-projected value among all those with a salary below $13,000.

Other options: Kent Bazemore ($10,000), Kevon Looney ($8,500), Grayson Allen ($6,000)