NBA Daily Fantasy Helper: Friday 12/4/15
If you've never played daily fantasy basketball before, it's time to start. Unlike traditional leagues, you're able to select the players you want on that specific day only, giving you a different squad to root for each and every NBA night.
Today's lineups can be found here. The information below is to help you understand why particular players are being picked, because we don't want you going into the night completely blind. We want to help you. Keep in mind, however, that things often change up until tip-off, so make sure you're refreshing the optimal lineups as close to the start of games as possible.
Let's get to it.
The Best of the Best
LeBron James - Although he has not seen nearly as much fanfare as he has in the past -- mostly due to the dominance of Stephen Curry and the Warriors -- King James has been just as dominant as ever to open the 2015-16 season. He's averaging 25.6 points, 7.8 rebounds, 6.4 assists and 1.3 steals in 36.5 minutes per game. He has accumulated a 32.3% Usage Rate and currently ranks ninth in our player power rankings with an impressive 11.8 nERD. Tonight, the four-time MVP draws a dream matchup against a Pelicans' defense which ranks dead last in the NBA in both opposing points per game (109.1) and Defensive Rating (111.1). James is our top overall projected small forward on the board tonight by a wide margin.
James Harden - While the Rockets have not been particularly good as a team this season, Harden has still managed to produce at an extremely high level. He's scoring 29.5 points to go along with 6.7 rebounds, 6.6 assists and 1.9 steals in a league-leading 39.5 minutes per game. The Beard currently ranks third in the league in Usage Rate at 33.3% and not only leads Houston in scoring, but also in Assist Percentage at 32.3%. With Dwight Howard already ruled out for tonight's game, Harden will be forced to take on an even larger role than usual and could push for 40 minutes in what Vegas expects to be the highest scoring game on tonight's slate.
Top Mid-Range Values
Clint Capela - As I just mentioned, Howard will not be available for tonight's game against Dallas. With Houston's star big man out of the lineup, Capela will slide into the starting lineup once again tonight. The Rockets' sophomore center has been very impressive when on the floor this season, posing 15.9 points, 12.5 boards, 2.5 blocks and 1.8 steals on a per-36 minute basis and should push more minutes in the 30s tonight. He draws a great matchup against a Mavericks' frontcourt that has given up the ninth most fantasy points per game to opposing centers over their last nine outings and should have little trouble reaching value at just $4,700 on FanDuel and $5,800 on DraftKings.
Brandon Knight - Knight comes into tonight's matchup with the Wizards scorching hot, averaging 24.2 points, 6.7 assists, 5 rebounds and 1.7 steals per game over his last ten outings, playing at least 35 minutes in each of those 10 games. He also ranks second on the team in Usage Rate (26.7%), Assist Percentage (25.1%) and scoring (21.8 points per game), all behind his fellow backcourt mate Eric Bledsoe. Knight gets a great matchup against a Washington team that has given up the sixth most fantasy points per game against opposing shooting guards and will be incredibly short-handed tonight with Marcin Gortat, Kris Humphries and Drew Gooden all expected to miss tonight's game. Look for Knight to stay hot in what should be a fast-paced, shootout in Washington.
Basement Ballers
Jared Dudley - With Gortat, Humphries and Gooden all out tonight, Dudley will be forced to play huge minutes for the banged-up Wizards tonight. The journeyman forward will likely see minutes at both power forward and center tonight with fellow veteran Ryan Hollins expected to see plenty of action tonight as well. Although Dudley has not done much with his previous three starts this season, but he is averaging 10.7 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists on a per-36 minute basis and should not only see close to that amount of playing time but could see a much higher Usage Rate as well considering just how banged-up the Wizards are. Dudley provides excellent value at just $3,600 on FanDuel and $3,800 on DraftKings.
Alex Len - Much like Dudley, Len gets a significant boost due to injured teammates tonight. Tyson Chandler has already been ruled out for tonight and Markieff Morris is questionable to suit up. Len will draw the start at Center for the Suns tonight and should be in a great position for another big game. Hollins has earned a terrible 109 career Defensive Rating -- including a horrific 114 Defensive Rating in the 11 minute he's played this season -- and will have trouble slowing down the talented Suns' big man and Dudley is simply too undersized to contend with the seven-footer. Len should see plenty of action in a great matchup and costs less than $4,000 on both FanDuel and DraftKings. He is dollar for dollar my favorite player on the board tonight.
