Philadelphia 76ers guard James Harden (1) handles the ball during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, Friday, Feb. 25, 2022, in Minneapolis. Philadelphia won 133-102. (AP Photo/Stacy Bengs)
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Talk about a perfect situation for the NBA on Thursday night. Sure, there are only two games which is tough for DFS but we get the game of the year so far with the Nets visiting the 76ers. I think Doug said it best in his tweet yesterday:
Following that game, we then get a key matchup between two of the best Western Conference teams in the Nuggets and Warriors. Despite the challenging situation for DFS, let's dig in and have a look at a few plays we should be focusing on tonight.
Opponent - BKN
Proj Pts FD - 49.49 DK - 54.33
All signs point to a monster night for Harden who is facing the Nets for the first time since being traded at the deadline. Since joining the 76ers, he has been fantastic averaging 24.6 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 12.4 assists per game which comes out to an elite fantasy average of 56.8 DK/53.1 FD points per game. The best part here is that the small slate has also dropped his DraftKings salary to its lowest price since mid-November. Harden is my favorite guard and overall favorite play on this slate.
Opponent - PHI
Proj Pts FD - 42.09 DK - 45.54
The system has made it clear it does not like the price here for Kyrie as we are normally looking for double-double potential and triple-double upside from our $10K+ plays. While Kyrie lacks that upside to an extent, he has made up for it with usage averaging 21 shots per game since the start of February(9 games) and has dropped 48 or more DraftKings points in five of his last six games. Neither of these guards plays much defense and this could turn into a slugfest in a hurry so I absolutely love stacking them together tonight.
Opponent - GS
Proj Pts FD - 26.54 DK - 29.14
The Nuggets are the only team of the four playing on a back-to-back tonight so I am generally avoiding the big pay ups and looking for value. Enter Monte Morris who has been a solid PTS/$ contributor all season with Jamal Murray on the shelf and adding to that value is the added injury situations for guards Will Barton and Bones Hyland who both sat out last night. Morris has also bounced back nicely after a couple of duds against the Thunder and Blazers and has topped 26 DK points in four straight and 35 DK points in five straight. The news on Barton/Hyland is important but I will have exposure in all formats either way.
Opponent - PHI
Proj Pts FD - 24.8 DK - 25.84
With all the talk of Kyrie and Durant leading the way for the Nets since the Harden trade, Bruce Brown has quietly provided tremendous value, both in real life and for fantasy. He stepped into a regular starting role back on February 12th and since then, in 11 games, has averaged 9.6 shots, 13.9 points, 6 rebounds, and 31 DK/32.2 FD points per game. He is somewhat priced out on FanDuel but on DraftKings, he is one of my top values on this slate.
As you can tell I have focused almost all of this article on the nets/76ers game and mostly looking for value within the late game. With that said, Nikola Jokic is practically matchup proof and provides one of the most consistent floors and highest ceilings of any player in the league. The decision will come down to which two payups you are stacking and Jokic is most definitely in the conversation with Harden, Kyrie, Curry, and Embiid. With that said, let's look at some value at the PF/C position.
Opponent - DEN
Proj Pts FD - 31.02 DK - 32.84
Opponent - DEN
Proj Pts FD - 23.49 DK - 23.83
I am grouping these two together as they are my favorite plays for Warriors from a PTS/$ perspective and it comes down to needing the saving for payups elsewhere. Wiggins is more of a GPP play for me tonight as, unlike almost all other plays on this small slate, his price has actually spiked on DraftKings. He can be very reliant on shooting at times which makes his fantasy returns inconsistent but the good news is that has tightened up lately as he has provided five or more rebounds in four straight and four or more assists in three of those games for 32+ DK points in each.
If you are not paying gup for Jokic at center tonight, I love paying right down for the cheapest option in Looney. I hate the matchup as Jokic is an elite defender but we need value somewhere and Looney is not only cheap on both sites(especially DK) but he has provided 20 or more DK points in nine of his last 10 including 35 and 30 against this Nuggets team. I will have a ton of exposure in all formats.
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