We have seven games to break down today and some juicy plays to target. Our initial strategy for today will be to target teams with a few injuries, as that is where the best value is found. Our favorite target for tonight is the Detroit Pistons, who just announced their primary ball handler, Delon Wright, will be out a few weeks. We will be playing stars and scrubs again tonight. As the two NBA DFS superpowers, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Nikola Jokic will take the floor.
Here’s a studs and duds lineup For DFS Basketball 2/21/21 (using DraftKings Values)
| Point Guard | D. Smith Jr. | $7,700 | |
| Shooting Guard | $3,400 | ||
| Small Forward | $7,600 | ||
| Power Forward | Z. Nnaji | $3,400 | |
| Center | N. Jokic | $10,800 | |
| Guard | $4,500 | ||
| Forward | G. Antetokounmpo | $11,000 | |
| Utility | $5,500 |
Delon Wright has been listed out for the next few weeks. Dennis Smith Jr. is likely to get the start at point guard but should play solid minutes regardless. Smith scored 23.5 FPTS in 23 minutes last game and will have a much bigger role today. Smith is priced at $4,000, which probably makes him the best play on the slate. Smith could play well over 30 minutes and break the slate today.
The Nuggets have been gutted for a little while now and things get even worse tonight. JaMychal Green is added to the list of sidelined Nuggets tonight and there is a huge gap at the four. Zeke Nnaji has been a pretty terrible DFS Producer, however he should play a ton of minutes tonight and maybe even get the start. Nnaji is only $3,200 and he should play solid minutes tonight. Even with his subpar per minute production, Nnaji should crush his price point tonight.
$10,800 may seem expensive, but Nikola Jokic is probably the most underpriced player on the slate. Jokic is averaging a hair shy of 60 FPTS per game, which means his proper price point is around $1200 more. Jokic has a great matchup against the Hawks tonight, as Jokic has dominated pace-up matchups all season. Jokic is still the top fantasy producer this season and we will not have too much trouble paying up for him. The Nuggets are missing multiple key frontcourt players and it would be fair to expect Jokic to do a little extra tonight.
The only player in NBA DFS who constantly competes with Nikola Jokic’s production is Giannis Antetokounmpo. Antetokounmpo is a little pricier at $11,000, but he has an even better matchup. The bucks are playing the Sacramento Kings tonight, who we know allow more points than anyone else in the league. Antetokounmpo has seen a solid boost in his production without Jrue Holiday, who will remain sidelined tonight. Playing Antetokounmpo and Jokic in the same lineup is always fun and we are hoping not everyone finds the value to do it tonight.
Now what do you get if you sign up now?
• A midrange play with superstar upside
• More value options to pay up for our stars
• A contrarian guard play with a great opportunity
Wayne Ellington – SG ($3,400 DK) We expect Ellington to get a solid boost without Wright tonight, both in minutes and usage. Ellington played 28 minutes and scored 21.3 FPTS last game. Earlier in the season, we saw Ellington become a solid fantasy producer when Detroit was undermanned. Ellington is a core play for us tonight, especially for tournaments. That is because Ellington has huge upside of his own, while allowing us to pay up for superstars.
Jerami Grant – SF ($7,600 DK) Without Delon Wright, the only real creator for the pistons will be Grant. Grant is averaging 38.9 FPTS on the season and should take on a huge role tonight. Grant has had some poor shooting games recently which has caused his price to go down. Tonight, Grant might have the highest usage on the slate and therefore some great upside for DFS.
Theo Maledon – G ($4,500 DK) Maledon has showed some poor production recently, but it was not due to a lack of opportunity. Maledon has been starting for the Thunder and averaging over 30 minutes since he got back from injury. Maledon has been averaging 20 FPTS on terrible shooting over the last ten days. If Maledon puts out a decent shooting night, he will crush value here.
Cedi Osman – Util ($5,500 DK) Osman has seen his price rise and is not the cheap budget play he was a few slates ago. However, Osman has proven to have a huge role for Cleveland and is still too cheap. Osman should start again tonight and is one of the higher usage players for the Cavs. Osman has dual position eligibility and will fit easily in a lot of lineups.
Alternative Moves…
Fred VanVleet – G ($8,200 DK) Kyle Lowry is doubtful for tonight’s game against the 76ers. VanVleet receives a huge usage boost without Lowry and is always in our player pool. VanVleet has shown massive upside and emerged as the number one option for the raptors this season. VanVleet can have a great game here, but he does have a tough matchup with Ben Simmons.
Good luck tonight, make sure to check what news breaks as always.
Go win your lineup and tell us how you did. Twitter (@FantasyDFSX) is a good place for that.
