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The primary focus of the sports universe will naturally be on MLB’s Opening Day on Thursday night, but the NBA – normally winding down its regular season at this point in a typical year – has a solid seven-game slate that includes some intriguing matchups.
The Hornets-Nets, Warriors-Heat, Hawks-Spurs and Nuggets-Clippers battles all carry plenty of promise, especially for DFS purposes. There could mostly be competitive matchups as well, considering even the Magic, which face the Pelicans, just demonstrated they can upset an elite squad by tripping up the Clippers on Tuesday.
In this article, I will be providing you with my daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for FanDuel on 4/1/21. I’ll be providing multiple player suggestions for players at guard, forward and center on FanDuel, aiming to highlight one option apiece at the high, middle and lower end of the salary scale. You can also check out DraftKings lineup picks and injury news before lineups lock. Good luck, RotoBallers.
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FanDuel DFS Guards
Russell Westbrook, PG – at DET ($11,300)
Westbrook has posted 88.3 and 62.0 FD points in his last two games, a pair of contests Bradley Beal has missed with his hip injury. Beal is questionable for Thursday’s game, but even if he does play, Westbrook’s ceiling is naturally astronomical. He’s rattled off three straight triple-doubles and has scored no less than 50.8 FD points in nine of his last 10 games. The 50.8 came against this same Pistons squad last Saturday, and Detroit checks in allowing 48.5 FD points per game to point guards over the last seven games. The Pistons are also giving up the sixth-most points in the paint per game (49.7), an area of the floor where Westbrook often wreaks havoc on the opposition.
Jamal Murray, PG – at LAC ($7,300)
Murray boasts career highs in multiple categories and enters Thursday’s game with a hot hand, having shot 51.6 percent, including 50.0 percent from downtown, over his last eight contests. The young veteran has also been a markedly more productive player on the road this season, averaging 2.6 more points per game and shooting 7.7 percent higher when traveling compared to his home floor. Murray scored a solid 33.5 FD points against the Clippers during his one previous game against them Christmas Day, and Los Angeles comes into Thursday’s contest allowing 49.9 FD points per game to point guards over the last 15, along with the seventh-highest offensive efficiency (27.8 percent) to the position on the season.
Josh Hart, SG – vs. ORL ($5,300)
Hart has been logging heavy minutes off the bench all season and is averaging 30 FD points across a solid 27.8 minutes over his last eight contests. The four-year veteran has scored that amount of FD points or more on five occasions during that span, and his ability to stuff the stat sheet always makes him a consideration at his current salary. The opposing Magic check in ranked in the bottom half of the league in offensive efficiency allowed to second-unit players (42.3 percent) and have been especially vulnerable to small forwards over the last 15 games, giving up 44.7 FD points per contest to threes during that span. Finally, it’s also worth noting Orlando has given up the eighth-most rebounds per road game (54.7), while Hart has averaged 10.6 boards in his last seven contests.
Also consider: James Harden ($11,500); Terry Rozier ($7,500); Hamidou Diallo ($5,800)
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FanDuel DFS Forwards
Kawhi Leonard, SF- vs. DEN ($9,600)
Paul George will miss Thursday’s game with a foot injury, and Leonard sports a 32.3 percent usage rate and averages 49.3 FD points per 36 minutes with his teammate off the floor this season. Kawhi also posted 50.5 FD points across just 30 minutes in his one prior meeting with the Nuggets this season, and he’s been a more productive player in every category on the stat sheet on his home floor. Denver is also giving up the most assists (5.4), fourth-most made threes (3.3) and third-most blocks (1.0) per game to small forwards over the last 15 contests, and Leonard checks in with a hot hand that’s led to him shooting a blistering 53.0 percent over his first 10 second-half games.
Rui Hachimura, SF – at DET ($6,000)
Speaking of surging players, Hachimura has averaged 32.6 FD points over his last 10 games, a stretch during which he’s averaging 20.2 points, 7.8 rebounds and 1.5 assists across 37.8 minutes. The second-year big is shooting an impressive 52.8 percent, including 40.6 percent from three-point range, during that sample, and Thursday, he faces a Pistons squad surrendering Eastern Conference-high 49.2 percent shooting to power forwards for the season, along with the second-most FD points per game (49.0) to the position over the last 15 contests. Hachimura has also delivered over 5x his current salary on 11 occasions this season, with seven of those instances coming in the last 10 games.
Blake Griffin, PF – vs. CHA ($4,900)
Kevin Durant (hamstring) remains out Thursday, and Griffin is coming off having scored 32.2 FD points against the Rockets on Wednesday night, his best tally yet in Brooklyn. It remains to be seen if the veteran is in the rotation on the second night of a back-to-back set Thursday, and if he isn’t, then teammate Jeff Green ($4,200) becomes a very viable pivot at this salary range. Either player could offer a nice return on investment, considering the Hornets come in allowing the sixth-highest offensive efficiency (26.3 percent) to power forwards, along with the most FD points per game (48.8) to the position on the season.
Also consider: Jimmy Butler ($9,000); Brandon Ingram ($8,000); P.J. Washington ($5,500)
FanDuel DFS Centers
Bam Adebayo– vs. GS ($9,400)
Adebayo just compiled 54.4 FD points across 37 minutes versus the Knicks on Monday night, his third tally over 50 FD points in the last five games. The versatile big man is averaging a well-rounded 22.2 points, 10.4 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 2.2 blocks and 1.0 steal across that span, and he’s just the type of multi-skilled player that can thrive in a matchup against a Warriors team that will bring a significant bump in pace to the normally deliberate Heat. Golden State is also allowing the fourth-most FD points per game (57.0) and the fifth-highest offensive efficiency (34.5 percent) to centers, making Adebayo a very appealing option at his salary if you’re paying up.
Mason Plumlee — vs. WAS ($6,000)
Plumlee tallied 28.1 FD points against the Wizards on Saturday, and he bounced back from a dud against the Raptors on Monday with 27.6 FD points on Wednesday. Plumlee has delivered over 5x his current salary in 24 of 44 games already this season, and Washington has been one of the most vulnerable teams in league to centers all season. The Wizards check in surrendering the fifth-highest offensive efficiency (34.5 percent) and the most FD points per game (58.8) to centers, and they’ve yielded the fourth-most rebounds per contest (55.6) overall. The latter figure is particularly relevant in Plumlee’s case, considering he’s averaging a career-high 9.5 boards per game (9.8 per home contest), and his own Pistons squad shoots a pedestrian 44.0 percent at home, the latter figure offering him plenty of opportunities on the offensive glass.
Cody Zeller – at BKN ($4,600)
Zeller has yet to return to the starting five in the four games since coming back from a shoulder injury, but he did put up 33.6 FD points off the bench across 24 minutes Tuesday against the Wizards. The big man has yet to face the Nets this season, but Brooklyn has been one of the best facilitators of fantasy production for centers throughout the campaign. The Nets are giving up the fifth-most FD points per game (55.9) to fives for the season, along with the fourth-highest offensive efficiency (34.7 percent) to the position. Brooklyn is also surrendering the ninth-most points in the paint per game (49.1), an area of the floor where just under 78.0 percent of Zeller’s points emanate from. Having already delivered over a 5x return on his salary in 12 games this season, Zeller should have a solid chance to accomplish the feat again Thursday.
Also consider: Clint Capela ($8,500); Steven Adams ($5,400); Dwight Howard ($5,100)
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