February 23, 2018

Kevin Luchansky highlights the top FanDuel NBA DFS lineup picks for 2/23/18, and a couple of sleepers to consider while building daily rosters.

Well, now that the way-too-long All-Star break is over, we can get back to business. Technically, basketball returned yesterday, but that six game slate was pretty damn weak. Luckily for tonight, we have a really full menu. Eleven games with a lot of east coast flavor - which is great for this non late-swap world we live in as we should hear most of the rest/injury news before lock. That said, I hope there aren't many rest situations considering the long break.

There are some ridiculously attractive games from a Vegas perspectives. If you like points, tonight is the night for you. While there are pretty high numbers across the board, three games stand above the rest of the group - Clippers at Suns and Mavericks at Lakers both feature over marks of 224, and the belle of the ball is Minnesota at Houston (226). There are five teams in particular that receive a pretty substantial "team boost" in that they're projected for 5+ points above their season average - Mavericks, Clippers, Lakers, Suns and Heat. The Heat stand out in this group as the anomaly, and they should be targeted for value and upside.

Below you will find our daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for FanDuel on 2/23/18. These DFS lineup picks can vary from higher-priced players and elite options, to lower-priced players and value picks on FanDuel. You can also read more DFS lineup picks for DraftKings and other sports too.

FanDuel DFS Guards

Lonzo Ball - PG, vs DAL ($6,500)

This is a nice matchup to ease back into Association play! So long as Lonzo isn't on a minutes restriction tonight (and we currently have no reason to believe he will be) he's an excellent point-per-minute value. He also happens to find himself in a game with great game context - the line is currently 213, with just a three point spread, and Dallas has been really poor defensively this season. Lonzo has averaged a point per minute on FanDuel this season and he's projected for 35ish minutes and will face a poor Maverick defensive backcourt that also happens to be undersized. It's a matchup mismatch he can exploit, and I like his ceiling even more because of it.

Also Consider: Chris Paul - PG, vs MIN ($8,900)

Dwyane Wade - SG, at NOP ($4,500)

Shooting guard looks like a loaded position tonight, but I'll wait until we have a few more projections before deciding who to spend up on. We do have a line for this matchup in New Orleans, though, and it screams value for the Miami side. The Pelicans are not only a bottom third defensive team by just about every metric, they also happen to play at a fast pace (3rd fastest in the NBA) which means a lot of possessions and potentially easy looks. Wade's minute projections aren't fantastic, but the Usage rate has been staying above 20% and this is a soft matchup.

Also Consider: Gary Harris - SG, vs SAS ($6,000)

FanDuel DFS Forwards

Jimmy Butler - SF, at HOU ($9,200)

Can you blame the guy for sitting out the All-Star game? I feel pretty awful for Jimmy Butler's knees with all the minutes he logs, but his fantastic game is excellent for DFS and this matchup is nearly as good as it gets. Maybe it's a feeling of guilt, seeing as I roster him so often but Coach Thibodeau is the real one to blame here. At the moment, this game is projected for one of the highest scores of the night 225, and if it's going to get to or above that ceiling it will more than likely be because Mr. Butler excelled. He could see 38-40 minutes in what should be a fast paced, offensive shootout. Houston is capable of solid defense, but their pace delivers a lot of possessions for the opposition and they don't have a stopper built to slow down a wing player like Butler. So far this season, Butler has averaged 1.12 FanDuel points per minute and a 26% Usage rate.

Also Consider: Josh Richardson - SF, at NOP ($5,500)

Tobias Harris - PF, at PHX ($7,000)

It's hard to imagine a player going up against the Suns and being under-owned, but that could be the case tonight with Tobias Harris. It's a crowded slate and the power forward position, for once, is bearing many fruits - Blake Griffin, LaMarcus Aldridge, Nikola Mirotic at the top and there are quite a few value plays worth your consideration. I do love Harris' ceiling in tournaments here. He's a guy that steadily plays over 30 minutes and isn't afraid to hunt for his shot off the dribble or spot up. Since joining the Clippers, Harris has averaged a pretty impressive 0.9 FanDuel points per minute, and a matchup against a team that has averaged more than three points above salary implied total for opponents is the recipe to potentially hit six or seven times his price value tonight.

Also Consider: Derrick Favors - PF, vs POR ($6,100)

FanDuel DFS Centers

 Andre Drummond - C, vs BOS ($9,700)

A Drummond that is $1,300 cheaper than he was on February 11th in a solid matchup is a good thing - and a very nice value. Drummond always carries enormous upside, and playing alongside Blake Griffin has benefitted him quite a bit. For the season, he had been averaging an already impressive 1.38 FanDuel points per minute and that number (in the past month) has risen to 1.54. The value puts him in cash play consideration, but I'd prefer a softer matchup on such a large slate. As for tournaments, though, I am all in.

Also Consider: Rudy Gobert - C, vs POR ($7,700)

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