The Basketball Junkie: Tim Hardaway Jr.

Tuesday, March 25, 2014

Daily Fantasy Basketball: FanDuel Values for March 25th

If you play daily fantasy sports (and who doesn't these days?!), you know that one of the keys to success is uncovering undervalued players to allow you to load up on studs elsewhere.

In case you've never played daily fantasy basketball, every player has a salary and your roster cannot exceed the game's salary-cap maximum.

For FanDuel leagues, rosters consist of nine players and the salary cap is $60,000, which averages to roughly $6,667 per player. To give you an idea of the range for Tuesday's games, Thunder SF Kevin Durant ($12,000) has the contest's highest salary while many are tied for the lowest at the game-minimum salary ($3,500).

There are a number of benefits compared to traditional full-season re-draft leagues, such as:

you don't have to worry about being saddled by players sidelined by injury;
having a late pick doesn't rule out owning studs like Kevin Durant or LeBron James;
you get the instant gratification of winning your league(s) that night.

And you know that enthusiasm you have after drafting your fantasy team(s)? Well, you get to experience that feeling on a nightly basis with daily fantasy basketball.

OK, with the preliminary stuff out of the way, here are some value plays to consider for Tuesday (March 25th) FanDuel leagues:

PG - Raymond Felton, New York Knicks (at LAL), $5,800: Felton has been inconsistent this season and his last three games (30.2, 18.6 and 38.2 fantasy points, respectively) illustrate that. With a favorable matchup against the Lakers, who have allowed the second-most fantasy points to opposing point guards, perhaps Felton scores 30-something fantasy points again.

PG - Reggie Jackson, Oklahoma City Thunder (at DAL), $5,600: With double-doubles and 40-plus fantasy points in back-to-back games, Jackson is unlikely to repeat those numbers with Russell Westbrook likely to play tonight. That said, he has at least 24.5 fantasy points in four consecutive games. During that four-game stretch, Jackson has averaged 16.25 points, 6.0 rebounds, 5.75 assists and 1.25 steals per game. If for some reason Westbrook sits tonight, which is not expected, Jackson becomes a must-start.

PG - Greivis Vasquez, Toronto Raptors (at CLE), $4,500: Teammate Kyle Lowry ($9,100) is the most expensive point guard for tonight's games and is generally worth it with 40-plus fantasy points in seven of his past nine games. That said, Vasquez has been productive recently as well and at half of the cost. Vasquez has scored at least 21.9 fantasy points in each of his past three games.

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SG - Devin Harris, Dallas Mavericks (vs. OKC), $4,600: Harris has scored a minimum of 20 fantasy points in four of his past five games. During that five-game span, Harris has averaged 10.2 points, 5.0 assists, 4.0 rebounds and 1.0 steal per game. This season, the Thunder have allowed the 10th-most fantasy points to opposing shooting guards.

SG - Tim Hardaway, Jr., New York Knicks (at LAL), $3,700: Even though Hardaway has scored less than 15 fantasy points in three consecutive games, he has the potential to get hot and the Lakers may enhance the likelihood of that happening. In his previous three games, Hardaway scored 20-plus points per game.

SF - J.R. Smith, New York Knicks (at LAL), $5,400: Against the Cavs on Sunday, Smith played 38 minutes and scored 18 points with four assists and three rebounds. If he gets close to 40 minutes again tonight against the Lakers, Smith could be in store for a huge game.

SF - Caron Butler, Oklahoma City Thunder (at DAL), $4,300: After scoring just four points against the Raptors, Butler scored 23 points against the Nuggets last night. That said, he has now scored at least 21 fantasy points in three consecutive games.

PF - Amar'e Stoudemire, New York Knicks (at LAL), $5,400: Stoudemire scored 20.7 fantasy points against the Cavs on Sunday and that was a six-game low. Averaging 29.55 fantasy points per game during that span, Stoudemire is averaging 18.33 points and 7.33 rebounds per game over that stretch. With the Lakers allowing the most fantasy points to opposing power forwards, an all-Knicks combo with Amar'e and Carmelo Anthony wouldn't be a bad idea.

PF - Jordan Hill, Los Angeles Lakers (vs. NYK), $5,000: Even though the Knicks allow the fewest fantasy points to opposing power forwards, Hill is still worthy of a start on Tuesday night. In his two games since an extended absence, Hill has scored 31.8 and 45.6 fantasy points, respectively. In those two games, he is averaging 18.5 points, 13.5 rebounds and 2.5 blocks. Plus, Pau Gasol (vertigo) is "doubtful" to play tonight.

C - Tyson Chandler, New York Knicks (at LAL), $6,700: Can you start too many players against the Lakers? That's a question you won't hear any fantasy owners asking. With a favorable matchup, Chandler should bounce back after a subpar performance (four points and six boards) on Sunday. In his previous two games, Chandler averaged 12.0 points, 12.0 rebounds and a block per game.

C - Kyle O'Quinn, Orlando Magic (vs. POR), $4,900: With O'Quinn, you know what to expect: 20-something fantasy points at a reasonable price. In his past 10 games, he has played more than 25 minutes only twice, but he has at least 19.9 fantasy points in all of those games. During that stretch, he is averaging 8.7 points, 7.2 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per game.

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Saturday, March 15, 2014

Daily Fantasy Basketball: FanDuel Values for March 15th

If you play daily fantasy sports (and who doesn't these days?!), you know that one of the keys to success is uncovering undervalued players to allow you to load up on studs elsewhere.

In case you've never played daily fantasy basketball, every player has a salary and your roster cannot exceed the game's salary-cap maximum.

For FanDuel leagues, rosters consist of nine players and the salary cap is $60,000, which averages to roughly $6,667 per player. To give you an idea of the range for Saturday's games, Knicks PF Carmelo Anthony ($10,300) has the contest's highest salary while many are tied for the lowest at the game-minimum salary ($3,500).

There are a number of benefits compared to traditional full-season re-draft leagues, such as:

you don't have to worry about being saddled by players sidelined by injury;
having a late pick doesn't rule out owning studs like Kevin Durant or LeBron James;
you get the instant gratification of winning your league(s) that night.

And you know that enthusiasm you have after drafting your fantasy team(s)? Well, you get to experience that feeling on a nightly basis with daily fantasy basketball.

OK, with the preliminary stuff out of the way, here are some value plays to consider for Saturday (March 15th) FanDuel leagues:

PG - Mike Conley, Memphis Grizzlies (at PHI), $6,600: With the Sixers allowing the most points this season to opposing point guards, Conley is a must-start tonight. Even Nick Calathes ($4,300), who has scored 20-plus fantasy points in three consecutive games, is worth consideration. Even though Calathes has played only 15-19 minutes per game in his past five, it's possible this turns into a blowout giving him even more minutes. Over his past five games, Conley has averaged 15.0 points, 4.4 assists, 4.2 rebounds and 1.6 steals per game.

PG - D.J. Augustin, Chicago Bulls (vs. SAC), $5,800: Augustin has 23.6-plus fantasy points in six of his past seven games and in each of his past three. During that seven-game stretch, Augustin has averaged 19.71 points and 3.86 assists per game.

PG - George Hill, Indiana Pacers (at DET), $4,800: Hill scored 35.7 fantasy points against the Sixers last night with 14 points, nine assists, six boards and two steals. He now has 24.6 or more fantasy points in three consecutive games and he gets another favorable matchup on Saturday. The Pistons have allowed the sixth-most fantasy points to opposing point guards this season.

PG - Shaun Livingston, Brooklyn Nets (at WAS), $4,300: Despite a tough matchup, Livingston posted 31.4 fantasy points in 38 minutes against the Heat on Wednesday. He now has three consecutive games with at least 21 fantasy points. Doing a bit of everything, Livingston has averaged 10.25 points, 3.25 rebounds, 3.13 assists and 2.25 steals per game over his past eight.

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SG - Jimmy Butler, Chicago Bulls (vs. SAC), $6,600: With only Lance Stephenson more expensive on Saturday, perhaps Butler can't be classified as "cheap," but he's certainly worth starting today. Butler is averging 16.67 points, 6.33 rebounds, 2.33 assists and 2.0 steals per game over his past three and he gets a top-three matchup against the Kings on Saturday.

SG - Kyle Korver, Atlanta Hawks (vs. DEN), $5,000: Korver has scored 30-plus fantasy points in two of his past three games and he gets favorable matchup on Saturday. The Nuggets have allowed the eighth-most fantasy points to opposing shooting guards this season.

SG - Tim Hardaway, Jr., New York Knicks (vs. MIL), $3,900: While he doesn't do much other than score and he does that inconsistently, Hardaway has scored 28 and 22 points in his past two games, respectively. With an average of 27.5 fantasy points over his past two games, he's a bargain at $3,900 if he can deliver roughly that many points again on Saturday.

SF - J.R. Smith, New York Knicks (vs. MIL), $5,800: Smith has scored more than 20 fantasy points in six consecutive games and he has averaged 27.55 per contest during that stretch. Over those seven games, he has averaged 16.5 points, 3.17 assists and 3.17 rebounds per game. The Bucks have allowed the sixth-most fantasy points to opposing small forwards this season.

SF - DeMarre Carroll, Atlanta Hawks (vs. DEN), $5,800: Carroll has scored 20-plus fantasy points in four consecutive games and in eight of his past nine. Over that nine-game span, he has averaged 14.89 points, 5.33 boards and 1.11 steals per game. The Nuggets have allowed the seventh-most fantasy points to opposing small forwards.

SF - Mike Dunleavy, Chicago Bulls (vs. SAC), $5,000: Ending a four-game rough patch, Dunleavy scored 21 points and added seven rebounds, two assists and a steal in 37 minutes on Thursday. The Kings have allowed the fifth-most fantasy points to opposing small forwards.

PF - Kenneth Faried, Denver Nuggets (at ATL), $7,000: Not necessarily cheap as the fifth-most expensive power forward, Faried really produced this month, though. In eight games in March, he has scored 29.6 fantasy points in all but one game and averaged 37.53 fantasy points per game. Not only is he averaging 21.5 points, 10.13 boards and 1.13 steals per game, but he has a top-10 matchup against the Hawks as well.

PF - Zach Randolph, Memphis Grizzlies (at PHI), $6,900: On March 1st, Randolph had 23 points and 14 rebounds against the Cavs, but he has not had any 20/10 games since then. (He does have three other double-doubles this month, though.) In the City of Brotherly Love, however, there is an excellent chance that his 20/10 drought ends.

C - Marc Gasol, Memphis Grizzlies (at PHI), $7,300: Over his past 10 games, Gasol has a minimum of 28.1 fantasy points, which he scored last night against the Raptors. During that 10-game stretch, however, Gasol is averaging 34.64 fantasy points, which exceeds his season average (30.2 FPPG). Of course, you know the drill by now: start your centers against the Sixers. Only the Lakers, who are off tonight, allow more fantasy points to opposing centers.

C - Pero Antic, Atlanta Hawks (vs. DEN), $4,200: After back-to-back games with at least 22 fantasy points, Antic had a quiet outing (eight points, seven rebounds) despite a favorable matchup against the Bucks on Thursday. Fortunately for Antic, he gets an excellent opportunity to bounce back as the Nuggets have allowed the fourth-most fantasy points to opposing centers.

C - Cole Aldrich, New York Knicks (vs. MIL), $3,900: If Tyson Chandler (personal reasons) does not return from his two-game absence, Aldrich could possibly replicate his outstanding performance (12 points, 10 rebounds, three blocks) from Wednesday. This season, the Bucks have allowed the third-most fantasy points to opposing centers. The good news is this is the only game before 7 p.m. so you will know beforehand whether or not Chandler will return.

FanDuel's Daily Fantasy Basketball Championship: $1.2 million in cash prizes