This article aims to highlight some of the best NBA DFS Plays at every position for your cash game lineups. Keep in mind that the following player write-ups were constructed earlier in the day, and sometimes injury/rest situations can alter the fantasy landscape. Monitoring our NBA News & Headlines Feed throughout the day will keep you in the loop while giving you the subsequent DFS consequences of each information piece.
We’ll take a look at Tuesday’s 9-game Main slate starting at 7:00 ET.
Editor’s Note: Dominate daily with our premium DFS Tools that are packed with our lineup optimizer, a salary tracker, projections and much more. And don't forget to use promo code WELCOME10 to get 10% off. Click here to learn more!
POINT GUARD
Jamaal Murray – Denver (vs. Portland) - DK: $8,500 / FD: $8,300 / Yahoo: $33
Man, there are just too many point guards worth a roster spot tonight. Rather than decide between the stars (who I’d rank Doncic, Lillard, Irving, Curry, Young if price were no object), I’m offering a middle-of-the-road option, who is, to be honest, still more expensive than I can probably afford with my preferred builds tonight (see the Lee blurb below). Murray is a bargain relative to the players above, but has posted over 60 fantasy points in two of his last three games. It so happens that those were both quality matchups, but tonight’s bout with Portland is just as good (better than Cleveland by far). The Trail Blazers allow the third-most fantasy points to PGs, while ranking 29th in defensive efficiency. Murray is playing fantastic ball right now, and seems a lock for around 45 fantasy points at least in a high scoring, fantasy-friendly game.
Also Consider: Kyrie Irving, Luka Doncic, Stephen Curry, Damian Lillard, Trae Young
Bargain options: Saben Lee, Darius Garland
SHOOTING GUARD
James Harden – Brooklyn (vs. Sacramento) - DK: $10,700 (PG) / FD: $11,000 / Yahoo: $52
As much as I love their young guards, the Kings are a disaster on defense. Watch Tyrese Haliburton (whom I love tonight) lament how many sweet NBA TopShot moments are against the Kings (from Josh Hart’s Twitch stream). Sacramento ranks 30th in defensive efficiency and allows the most overall fantasy points to opponents. Meanwhile, Harden is the league’s second-highest ranked player in usage rate (35.1 percent) and 14th most efficient player. Without Kevin Durant, this team runs through him and Irving. If you’re carefully deciding how to spend on the plethora of stars tonight, Harden is one I do not want to skip over. He put up 73 fantasy points the first time these teams met, has over 60 in four of his last five games, and Vegas has a 242-point total on the game.
Also Consider: Bradley Beal, Fred VanVleet, Paul George
Bargain options: Tyrese Haliburton, Buddy Hield, Josh Jackson, Bruce Brown
SMALL FORWARD
RJ Barrett – NY Knicks (vs. Golden State) - DK: $5,500 / FD: $5,500 / Yahoo: $20
The Knicks get a pretty massive pace bump from the Warriors, who play at the league’s second-fastest rate. Both teams have been effective in limiting opponent scoring, ranking in the Top 5 in defensive efficiency, thus the lower point total on this game (215.5) relative to others. Still, there are some fantasy nuggets to be had, and I think Barrett is the best of them. Curry and the Warriors haven’t let opposing point guards have their way, but forwards and versatile wings have been plenty successful. Barrett’s low salary, combined with his recent high level of play have me locking him in. He previously put up 38 fantasy points against the Warriors, and despite some truly bad games, still averages over 30 fantasy points per game this season.
Also Consider: Kawhi Leonard
Bargain options: Derrick Jones, Saddiq Bey
POWER FORWARD
Rui Hachimura – Washington (at LA Clippers) - DK: $6,000 / FD: $6,000 (SF) / Yahoo: $19
This position is the reason I’m probably not playing much, if at all on FanDuel tonight. It’s just impossible to build something I like with the compromises that paying up at PF entails. Nothing against the expensive options like Randle or Giannis, I’d just rather have Harden and a top center tonight. The solution on DK and Yahoo that I’m settling on is Hachimura. Washington is on a back-to-back with LA teams, and tonight’s matchup gets only slightly easier than last night’s given that Paul George and Kawhi Leonard are back. Still the Wizards took the Lakers to overtime last night (their fourth consecutive win), so anything is possible. Vegas does have a high point total on this game, though all the numbers are in favor of LA, of course. Hachimura has played a big role in this win streak, posting 25-35 fantasy points every night with a well-rounded stat sheet.
Also Consider: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Julius Randle, Tobias Harris, John Collins, Derrick Jones Jr.
CENTER
Joel Embiid – Philadelphia (at Toronto) - DK: $10,600 / FD: $10,800 / Yahoo: $51
Between the top three centers, your decision will likely come down to personal preference and salary available. Vucevic has been outstanding lately, but the game with Detroit is the lowest point total of the night with two average defensive and offensive teams that play at below average pace. Jokic is always an option and is usually worth it, especially on smaller slates with fewer stars to spend on. He’s a possibility for sure, but I’m mainly choosing the less expensive Embiid, who is also in what should be a high scoring and more competitive game with Toronto. The Raptors lack a true center who can match Embiid under the rim, and Embiid has made them pay, averaging almost 60 fantasy points per game in two meetings this season.
Also Consider: Nikola Jokic, Nikola Vucevic
ADDITIONAL NOTES
Bruce Brown (G/F – BKN) is a cheaper path to some Nets exposure. As noted, this game is the highlight of the night as far as offense goes. With its fast pace and high point total, players from both teams are a priority. Brown is under $5K on FD and DK, and an especially good value on Yahoo at $11. He’s variable in the amount of minutes he plays, but should be penciled in for at least 20 fantasy points tonight.
Saben Lee (PG – DET) costs only $3200 (DK), $12 (Yahoo) and $5000 (FD), but he played more minutes and did more with them than Dennis Smith Jr. in the first Pistons game without Delon Wright—which was also vs. the Magic. I’m scrounging for value on this slate, and Lee fits the bill, especially on the first two sites mentioned, where I am concentrating my action tonight.
Derrick Jones, Jr. (F – POR) can be used to fill a tricky PF position (unless you spend up there) on DraftKings, which is nice. He’s still viable at SF or F on FanDuel and Yahoo thanks to a sweet matchup with the Denver wings, who rank as a plus matchup for opposing forwards. This game also carries a total of 231 points, with neither team ranking better than 22nd in defensive efficiency. Even in a blowout loss to Phoenix last night, Jones completed his fourth consecutive game with at least 23 fantasy points, and was used for only 22 minutes in the process.