DFS NBA Lineups for February 27, 2017 at Draftkings.com & Fanduel.com
On days that there’s a nice slate of DFS NBA games, we’ll give you the game totals, point spreads, and pertinent injury news to follow for NBA daily fantasy, as well as some players that we’re considering for our lineups on DraftKings and FanDuel.
We’ve got seven games on the DFS NBA slate for 2/27/17. It’s a huge GPP day and will likely draw a lot of recreational players looking for the big score. There should be nice action out there today. James Harden comes in as the highest priced player on the board, a full $1100 more than than LeBron on DraftKings. If you wanted to grab a top tier player at much lower ownership, The Greek Freak could be in a prime spot tonight against the Cavs, especially if LeBron sits. Even if Bron plays, the Cavs are not good against the PG position as it is anyway. And further, Kris Middleton is sitting tonight, which will increase the offensive burden on Giannis. And finally, the mid tier could get overlooked today, but you might want to keep Dennis Schroder on your radar. He’s just $6300 on DK and Isaiah Thomas is one of, if not the, worst defender in the league.
We have a HUGE day in DFS NBA GPPs. At DraftKings, they’ve got three different levels of Leap Million tournaments. At the top, a $400 buy-in with a $1M guarantee. A mid-level Leap Million with a $40 buy-in with a $300,000 guarantee. And a $4 buy-in with a massive $650,000 guarantee. At FanDuel, they’re running the Enormous Shot, a $6 buy-in with $660,000 guaranteed.
As always, be sure and monitor any of the injury news that breaks throughout the day, as value plays and player upgrades can arise in a moments notice.
PLAYERS RULED OUT
Joel Embiid (knee)
Kevin Love (knee)
Khris Middleton (rest)
INJURY NEWS TO MONITOR
LeBron James (illness)
Kevin Durant (hand)
Kyle Lowry (wrist)
Kristaps Porzingis (ankle)
Avery Bradley (Achilles)
NBA GAME SPREADS, TOTALS & START TIME FOR TODAY’S GAMES
Warriors @ 76ers (7:00p): (TBD with Durant news)
Bucks @ Cavs (7:00p): (TBD with LeBron news)
Raptors @ Knicks (7:00p): (TBD with Lowry news)
Hawks @ Celtics -4.5 (7:30p): 212.5
Heat -1.5 @ Mavericks (8:30p): 200
Pacers @ Rockets -10 (9:30p): 232
Timberwolves -5 @ Kings (10:30p): 212.5
Best NBA Picks for February 27, 2017
Karl-Anthony Towns ($10.8k DraftKings, $10.6k FanDuel)
The departure of DeMarcus Cousins had a galvanizing effect on the Kings roster for one game, but in their next outing, the Kings fell flat and struggled to defend the paint. Willie Cauley-Stein will certainly have his hands full tonight with KAT, who has been wreaking havoc on the league over the past several months with averages of 26.8 PPG, 13 RPG and 3 APG since the calendar turned to 2017. He’s posted modest splits over two meetings with the Kings when Cousins was on the floor, but should make mince meat of his fellow ex-Wildcat in WCS this evening.
Kyrie Irving ($9k DraftKings, $9.1k FanDuel)
LeBron James could return to action tonight after sitting out Saturday’s game due to illness, but the fact that he was willing to miss one of the first games out of the ASB indicates that the superstar is taking it easy to an extent in order to prep for the playoffs. Irving took over as the Cavs top scoring option with LBJ out on Saturday, dropping 34 points with 9 rebounds and 7 assists, and he’s now sporting a crazy 46.5% Usage Rate and averaging 1.07 points per minute with both James and Kevin Love off the floor this season.
DeMar DeRozan ($8.9k DraftKings, $8.5k FanDuel)
He continued his scoring streak with another 33 points in a win over Portland last night and the matchups keep getting better for DDR while Kyle Lowry (wrist) likely remains out for a few more games. Tonight he’ll face a lowly Knicks defense, which coughs up the seventh-most FPPG (38.77) to opposing SGs on the season and has plummeted down to the point that they rank 25th in defensive rating. With Lowry off the floor, DeRozan sports a 43.7% Usage Rate and averages 1.36 FPs, so he’s a borderline must play whenever his all-star teammate sits.
Mid Tier DFS NBA Plays
Nerlens Noel ($5.3k DraftKings, $5.9k FanDuel)
Freed from the purgatory of Philadelphia and playing for a team that desperately needs his help down low, Noel’s price tag should rise along with his playing time going forward. He logged 30 minutes in his Mavs debut despite racking up 5 fouls against the Pelicans star-studded frontcourt and he’ll have to be on his game tonight against Hassan Whiteside and the Heat. If Noel can avoid foul trouble again, he’s a great bet for a double-double and is an easy candidate to exceed value on DraftKings.
Lou Williams ($5.4k DraftKings, $6.3k FanDuel)
Sweet Lou is simply a volume scorer who couldn’t have landed in a better spot than with the high-powered Rockets offense. Houston wants to take about 50 threes per game (Mike D’Antoni actually said this to reporters) and Williams is 9-for-18 so far as a member of the Rockets. He draws a great matchup tonight against a Pacers team that gets up and down the floor and often gets into shootouts and his price tag remains a bit too low on DK.
Cory Joseph ($5.2k DraftKings, $4.4k FanDuel)
Lou Will is our value option on DK, but Joseph is the superior value on FanDuel given his modest price tag on that site. With Lowry out over the past 2 games, Joseph has compiled 25 points and 12 assists in consistent fashion and he’s going to be worth a look tonight against a Knicks team that gives up the third-most APG (10.8) to opposing PGs over the last month. Joseph’s Usage Rate is a modest 21.4% but he averages 0.79 FPs per minute with Lowry off the floor this season and his appeal is directly tied to Lowry’s status.
Value DFS NBA Plays
C.J. Miles ($3.8k DraftKings, $4.1k FanDuel)
He’s certainly a risky play but Miles doesn’t need to do much to exceed value at this modest price tag. After putting up 25 points on 7-of-12 3pt shooting in brutal matchups against Memphis and Miami, he has to be considered as an appealing option in what should be a track meet in Houston tonight. The Rockets cough up the eight-most FPPG (38.53) to opposing SGs this season and James Harden’s defensive reputation proceeds him. Miles isn’t going to be afraid to shoot and the Pacers need him to light it up if they’re going to score with the league’s second-best offensive team.
Sacramento Kings
It appears that HC Dave Joerger is going to adjust the Kings lineup based on matchups, but he said that he’d like to go small as often as possible and that makes Ty Lawson ($4k, $4.8k) a great value option at that price tag on DK. Willie Cauley-Stein ($5.1k, $5.2k) is certainly worth a look in GPPs in the hopes that he bounces back and Ben McLemore ($3.9k, $4.2k) is also very appealing in tournament formats. Yet the best play in a Kings uniform could very well be rookie Buddy Hield ($4.5k, $4.6k) since he’s seen a steady bump in playing time and a hefty bump in usage with a new franchise that somehow considers him comparable to a young Steph Curry and worth parting with Cousins for.
If, Then Player
If Kristaps Porzingis can’t fight through his ankle injury, Guillermo Hernangomez and Kyle O’Quinn will both see a significant bump.
If LeBron is out due to illness, bump up Giannis Antetokounmpo and Michael Beasley on the other side of the ball while considering punt plays such as Derrick Williams.
