FanDuel Daily Fantasy Basketball Helper: Saturday 4/16/22

If you're new to daily fantasy basketball -- maybe you started your DFS journey during the MLB or NFL seasons, or maybe basketball is your sport and this will be your first year giving it a shot -- you're in for a treat. 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 basketball is very reliant on a player's opportunity, so you'll need to make sure that you're up-to-date with key injuries. Our projections update up until tip-off to reflect current news, we have player news updates, and the FanDuel Scout app will send push notifications for pressing updates regarding your players.

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.

Let's break down today's main slate on FanDuel.

Guards

Stephen Curry ($9,200) - In his first appearance since March 16th, Golden State's superstar is on track to play with a probable minutes restriction. In 490.5 minutes with Klay Thompson on the court this season, Curry is averaging 1.10 FanDuel points and a 22.4% usage rate.

Ja Morant ($8,800) - The Memphis Grizzlies are in today's most appealing spot with Saturday's highest implied team and game total. At his second lowest salary point in April, Morant will face off against a Timberwolves' team allowing 46.0 FanDuel points to point guards this season.

Donovan Mitchell ($8,200) - Despite a difficult matchup against a Mavericks' team ranked first in FanDuel points allowed to shooting guards this season, Mitchell stands as numberFire's fourth ranked player at his position with a 39.0 FanDuel point projection. In four previous meetings versus Dallas, "Spida" accounted for 23.8 real-points, 3.5 rebounds, and 5.3 assists.

Fred VanVleet ($7,800) - Toronto's starting point guard will make his return in a difficult spot against a Philly squad ranked second among today's teams in points allowed to his position. In 2462.0 minutes this season, VanVleet is second on Toronto in offensive output, producing 0.53 real-life points and 0.44 field goal attempts.

Jalen Brunson ($7,300) - Even at an elevated salary, Brunson's production sees a 0.22 increase to 1.12 FanDuel points per minute and a 30.7% usage rate in a 587.9 minutes sample size with today's inactives. The Jazz have been a middling matchup against backcourts, allowing 46.9 FanDuel points to point guards and 39.0 to the two position this regular season.

Spencer Dinwiddie ($6,900) - Dinwiddie is also expected to carry the offensive workload with Luka Doncic unable to suit up against a Jazz squad ranked second among today's eight teams in defensive rating. In 258.4 minutes this season when the Mavericks' superstar is sitting out, Dinwiddie ranks first among this team with a 32.2% usage rate and a 1.24 FanDuel point average.

Mike Conley ($6,200) - In preparation for Utah's postseason run, Conley finally saw his minutes average increase to 32 in four contests during April. During this span, the veteran point guard displayed improved form, recording 1.01 FanDuel points and 0.23 assists per minute in a 103.3 sample size.

Gary Trent ($5,600) - Since March 28th, Trent ranks third among the Raptors in usage, averaging 0.42 shot attempts and a 20.4% usage rate in 258.8 minutes.

Dorian Finney-Smith ($4,800) / Reggie Bullock ($3,900) - Both Dallas starters are worth mentioning as potential value plays in today's limited four-game slate. With their top player sidelined, Finney-Smith sees a 0.07 boost to 0.77 FanDuel points in a 395.7 minutes sample size while Bullock's mark moves up 0.06 to 0.66 FanDuel points in 370.1 minutes.

Forwards

Pascal Siakam ($9,800) - In 345.1 minutes with Toronto's starting lineup, Siakam is first among his team with 0.22 rebounds, 0.37 shot attempts, and a 0.98 FanDuel point average.

James Harden ($9,000) - Despite a tough matchup against a Raptors' team ranked sixth among this year's postseason teams in defensive rating, Harden's FanDuel salary has decreased by 11.7%. In 794.7 minutes this season with Philadelphia, Harden is producing 1.22 FanDuel points per minute.

Draymond Green ($6,400) - Golden State's versatile forward currently ranks fifth in value among power forwards and centers despite a low 7.9 real-life point projection. In his last six games, Green has accounted for 1.20 FanDuel points, 0.29 rebounds, and 0.23 assists per minute.

Desmond Bane ($5,900) - In 109.3 minutes with today's expected lineups, Bane is averaging 0.96 FanDuel points and a 19.3% usage rate.

Dillon Brooks ($5,200) - After a 7.1% decrease in his FanDuel salary, the Grizzlies' 26-year old starter currently rates third in value with a 5.79 rating and a 30.1 FanDuel point projection.

Centers

Nikola Jokic ($12,000) - Since his last meeting against Golden State on March 10th, Jokic's FanDuel salary has jumped 5.2% to his highest point this season. "The Joker" has felt little resistance against a tough Warriors' team ranked second among this year's playoff contenders in defensive rating, accounting for 61.5 FanDuel points in 34.0 minutes.

Joel Embiid ($11,300) - Philadelphia's leading scorer stands as numberFire's second ranked player with a 54.0 FanDuel point projection. In a challenging matchup against a Raptors' team allowing 45.1 points in the paint this season, Embiid has recorded 29.0 real-life points on 19.3 shot attempts in his three prior encounters.

Karl-Anthony Towns ($9,400) - At his second highest salary point in April, KAT could go overlooked in a sneaky spot against a Memphis unit ranked second to last among today's slate in FanDuel points allowed to the five position and in the paint this season.

Rudy Gobert ($8,000) - Utah's center has an underrated opportunity against the weakest part of the Mavericks' defense that allows a team-high 53.6 FanDuel points per game to the position. In his three previous encounters, Gobert averaged 37.2 FanDuel points in 33.7 minutes.