Daily Fantasy NBA Playoff Picks for FanDuel and DraftKings - Round 2 5/8/18

Tuesday could be the end of the Western Conference Semifinals as both the Rockets and Warriors go in with 3-1 series leads. The lineup decisions are getting awfully close for these two-game slates because each team's rotations don't leave much wiggle room. But it should be a fun night of basketball regardless.

Now’s your chance to get DFSR PRO, which will give you access to our NBA and MLB optimizer and our new player lab! Get started for free by clicking the button below.

First time with NBA or MLB? Be sure to read our free MLB Ebooks on building lineups, general strategy and more. We've got you completely covered.

Utah Jazz at Houston Rockets

Rockets lead series 3-1
The series shifts back to Houston with the Rockets in a commanding lead and looking to end things here. After a moderate blip in Game 2 when the Jazz were able to steal one, Houston came back and put in work in Games 3 and 4. They’ve looked strong on defense and have settled into a rather set playoff rotation for this series. They haven’t really had to extend crazy minutes for guys like James Harden (FD 12300 DK 10400) and Chris Paul (FD 9000 DK 7600) so far (neither’s played more than 37 minutes in a game against the Jazz) though that’s something of an issue from a fantasy perspective. Namely, neither is hitting value at their current prices. It was already going to be a stretch considering how good the Jazz are on defense, but combine it with seeing less than projected floor time and you have a real DFS problem. It’s tough advocating playing either again on this slate considering just how juicy the second game of the night should be.

Even Clint Capela has seen enough of a price bump that we aren’t getting a ton of value on him. He’s been outstanding in the series against Gobert, but now paying top dollar on the production is getting close to the breaking point. The case for him is that there are very limited center options on the two-game slate. You basically have to play either him, Gobert or Anthony Davis at the max.

Consider filling out your lineups with P.J. Tucker (FD 4400 DK 3900) and/or Trevor Ariza (FD 4400 DK 4000) who are still seeing enough minutes to justify their current price points.

Like I said on Sunday, I’m just not seeing the DFS value from the Jazz side of things. The one guy I could see rostering in cash games would be Rudy Gobert (FD 7800 DK 6400) mostly because he’s cheaper than the two centers I mentioned above. I get that he hasn’t been all that effective against Capela or the Rockets’ scheme, but getting his (hopefully) mid 30’s minutes on the cheaper side could produce fine dividends.

After him, Jae Crowder (FD 5000 DK 5100) is intriguing if he sticks in the starting lineup again over Derrick Favors. Crowder shot horrible from the field in Game 4 (1-11) but that feels a little like an outlier if he saw the same kind of minutes again.

Joe Ingles (FD 6300 DK 5600) played a ton of minutes, but he just isn’t made for DFS overachievement (as good as he is at real-life basketball).

New Orleans Pelicans at Golden State Warriors

Warriors lead series 3-1

It was cute when the Pelicans won Game 3 by 19 points and for just a moment it seemed like the Warriors might have to “work” for it. Nope. Game 4 went right back to business as usual and Golden State took home a rather easy 26 point win.

Kevin Durant (FD 10800 DK 9500) hasn’t lost much (if anything) in the way of usage with Stephen Curry back in the mix. The former went 15-27 from the field in Game 3, putting up 38 points, nine rebounds and five assists in *only* 36 minutes. He remains underpriced for this slate and should slot into cash games on both sites.

Andre Iguodala (FD 4900 DK 4600) is still one of the better cheap plays around as long as he’s in the starting lineup. Even at around 30 minutes, he’s chipping in enough across the box score to justify paying his mid $4K salaries. He did a little of everything in Game 3 and finished with 35.4 FanDuel points thanks to the steals and blocks.

Finally, Stephen Curry (FD 9500 DK 8300) is a much better DraftKings play on this slate though I’m a little concerned with the blowout. Of the core four Warriors’ guys, his minutes were the first to go in Game 3. That makes sense considering he’s still coming back from an extended injury absence. There’s simply no reason to push him here even if the game stays close throughout.

Meanwhile, to a man, the Pelicans are the best dollar-for-dollar team deals on this slate. Even in the blowout on Sunday, we saw Jrue Holiday (FD 8800 DK 7400) and Anthony Davis (FD 12800 DK 10900) each play 40 minutes. They performed at the low end of their production on these kinds of minutes and I think both are close to lock cash game plays on Tuesday. It gets tough fitting the three of Durant, Jrue and Davis on each site and if prioritizing, I'd want to stack Davis and KD. It's close though.

Additionally, Rajon Rondo (FD 8000 DK 7900) is still a solid value considering his minutes are locked in and he's been an assist machine for the series. He's averaging 12.5 dimes in the last four games.

GRAB A FREE TRIAL OF OUR PROJECTION SYSTEM, AND CHECK OUT DFSR PRO!