RADIO
A seven-game NBA slate is a nice way to start this first full week of March. March is a pretty damn good basketball month from what I remember, so let's kick this one off appropriately with a fatter DFS bankroll than what we started the month with.
Of these seven games, we've got four with projected point totals above a benchmark that I use to decipher good from great - 215. The Celtics at Bulls (217), Suns at Heat (217), Blakzers at Lakers (224) and Pistons at Cavs (220) are all games you can target for game stacks. Some are a little more potent with value than others. I'll update this section when some of that value shakes out - normally it happens after we start hearing from beat reporters as to who will sit and who will suit up.
Below you will find our daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for FanDuel on 3/5/18. 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..
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FanDuel DFS Guards
Damian Lillard - PG, at LAL ($9,400)
Damian Lillard at a discount (from last week's pricing) and in an excellent game environment? Sign me up in cash and in tournaments. Lillard has seen his price fluctuate quite a bit over the past two weeks, but Dame has been able to cash in seven of his last 10 games - by an impressive margin of more than five FanDuel points per night. This evening, he's running point in the game with the highest point total projection of the night and it comes with just a two point spread (Portland favored). Throughout the season, he's posted an impressive 24.4 PER while maintaining a Usage rate percentage over 30%. The opportunity for him is quite high this evening, especially when you consider how many extra possessions the Trail Blazers will have in a pace-up matchup and how poor the Lakers defend the position.
Marcus Smart - SG, vs CHI ($4,800)
Since returning almost two weeks ago (playing four games in that stretch) to the Celtics lineup, Smart has been a valuable fantasy asset, reaching value each and every time. With the rumor being that Kyrie Irving could miss the game tonight, coupled with the fact that Smart should see 30+ minutes (and has seen no less than 21 since returning), I find him to be an excellent point-per-dollar play tonight with some upside, too. In this small sample size of his return, he is scoring nearly one FanDuel point (0.96) per minute, and you don't have to be a mathmetician to realize that that rate coupled with a minutes increase tonight should lead to plus value. Normally, Kyrie being sidelined is scary for making this offense run smoothly, but the fact they're playing tanking Chicago eases my concerns quite a bit.
Other FanDuel DFS Guards to Consider: Devin Booker - SG, at MIA ($8,200); Victor Oladipo - SG, vs MIL ($9,500)
FanDuel DFS Forwards
Reggie Bullock - SF, at CLE ($4,900)
I love Bullock for the cash savings and consistent floor that he offers this evening (and many nights, for that matter). The small forward has really improved his performance of late, crushing value in three straight and in seven of his last 10. In his last three, his lowest output was +6 over his price implied total, and he performed well in all three of these despite varying minute totals (25, 40, 33) in each. For the month, he's improved his FanDuel point per minute mark to 0.71, and in this game environment that should lead to high scoring totals, I like his ceiling to extend a little higher than it normally does. Most importantly, he has a floor you can trust and opens up a lot of cash for you to spend up with.
Larry Nance - PF, vs DET ($5,800)
Mr. Nance is probably going to be uber-chalk tonight, but for good reason. That chalk may warrant a risky fade in tournaments, but in cash I really see the appeal in using Nance. He has been playing well since he threw on his father's #22 jersey, and with Jeff Green and Tristan Thompson sidelined, he should see even more minutes. Cleveland already had a thin front court, and now they'll really need Nance's hops around the basket going up against the length of Detroit's front court. Speaking of playing well in Cleveland, his point per minute mark is all the way up to 1.26 (from 1.09). Seeing as he should get an extra 5-10 minutes tonight and the fact that he wasn't priced up (injury news came out after prices were set), I'm a big fan of his floor and value tonight.
Other FanDuel DFS Forwards to Consider: LeBron James - SF, vs DET ($12,500); T.J. Warren - SF, at MIA ($6,700)
FanDuel DFS Centers
Jusuf Nurkic - C, at LAL ($6,300)
There are a few safer floor players at the position today for cash games, but my interest in Nurkic is peaking thanks to the bargain price and pretty good matchup. At the very least, this is a game with a great environment for producing plus value, and I like the idea of pairing him with Damian Lillard as their success is somewhat correlated. Nurkic has met or surpassed his price implied total in five of his last 10, but the price has crept downwards from a peak of $7,400 in this stretch. His Usage rate figures in the last two games were both above 30% - so we know the involvement in this offense is still strong. The concern here is the minutes, which have been fluctuating quite a bit, and for that reason he is solely a tournament option this evening.
Other FanDuel DFS Forwards to Consider: Myles Turner - C, vs MIL ($6,500)
