DFS NBA Lineups for March 30, 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.
Looking at the GPP tournaments for 3/30/17, both DraftKings and FanDuel are running big guarantee contests with $9 buy-ins. At DraftKings, there will be $875k in the prize pool with $150k going to the winner. At FanDuel, they went with a prize pool of $867,530. $9 is the buy-in. Giggle if you see fit. First place will take home $200k in that one.
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. As we enter the final weeks of the season, this is more important than ever. Looking at the late tips, there’s some risk in the Clippers players tonight on the tail end of a back to back. Blake Griffin played 40 minutes, DeAndre Jordan 38, and Chris Paul 37. They might not sit out, but they’re favored by 10 against a bad Suns team, so if they get up in this one, we could see their ‘big 3’ hit the bench as soon as the game is in control.
PLAYERS RULED OUT
Eric Bledsoe (knee)
Tyson Chandler (rest)
Brandon Knight (back)
Kyle Korver (foot)
Ryan Anderson (ankle)
Austin Rivers (hamstring)
INJURY NEWS TO MONITOR
Reggie Jackson (knee)
Devin Booker (ankle)
Leandro Barbosa (hamstring)
Brandon Ingram (knee)
Iman Shumpert (knee) – WILL PLAY – 11:15a update
Richard Jefferson (knee)
DFS NBA GAME SPREADS, TOTALS & START TIME FOR TODAY’S GAMES
Nets @ Pistons -6 (7:30p): 211.5
Cavs -5.5 @ Bulls (8:00p): 211.5
Lakers @ Timberwolves -10.5 (8:00p): 218
Clippers -10 @ Suns (10:00p): 219.5
Rockets -1 @ Blazers (10:30p): 230
Best DFS NBA Picks for March 30, 2017
LeBron James ($10.1k DraftKings, $10.7k FanDuel)
The Cavs essentially hit rock bottom in a 103-74 loss at San Antonio on Monday to lose their grip on the top spot in the East. Those 74 points is the lowest total on a LeBron-led team in several years and you can bet that The King laid into his teammates during practices over the last two days. The Cavs are in a get right spot tonight on the road against a Bulls team that’s lost 9 of their last 13 games and is giving up an above average 202.16 FPPG to opposing teams over the last month. LBJ is averaging 29 PPG and 10 APG over two meetings with Chicago and shooting 58% (25-of-43) from the floor during those tilts, so he shouldn’t have much trouble leading his squad to a much needed road win tonight.
Damian Lillard ($9.2k DraftKings, $9.3k FanDuel)
Lillard has some modest splits over two meetings with the Rockets this season, as he’s averaging just 22.5 PPG on 37.8% FG shooting during those contests. Yet Houston was fortunate enough to catch the sharpshooter in a slump and now he’s red hot with averages of 28.9 PPG and 5.7 while shooting a scorching 47.9% from the floor and 41.5% from downtown over 15 March games. Despite the efforts of pesky defender Patrick Beverley, the Rockets are giving up the most FPPG (49.07) to opposing PGs over the last month since their blinding pace of play leads to plenty of easy assist opportunities and open looks. Dame should keep the Blazers in this game at home after Jusuf Nurkic carried the offense in a revenge match on Tuesday.
Mid Tier and Value DFS NBA Plays
Ish Smith ($6.1k DraftKings, $5.3k FanDuel)
Since the ASB, Ish Smith and Reggie Jackson have combined to put up huge numbers as a PG tandem, but the problem has been that they’re sharing minutes as part of an unreliable rotation. Yet with R-Jax sitting out two games due to a sore knee, Ish has become the darling of DFS circles with 34 points, 11 assists and 9 rebounds while playing 66 minutes. Jackson is headed towards a game-time decision but with the lowly Nets coming to town, it wouldn’t be surprising if he sat another contest or played limited minutes while resting his ailing knee. Brooklyn is giving up the most FPPG (48.08) to opposing PGs this season and most PPG (114.2) overall, so Smith stands to exceed value once again if he doesn’t have any competition for minutes at the point.
Chicago Bulls
The Bulls will be led by the pricey Jimmy Butler, but he’ll have to contend with LeBron on both ends of the floor and they have a couple of mid-tier options that are more appealing in a fantastic matchup tonight. Rajon Rondo ($6.6k DK, $6.5k FD) narrowly missed a triple double in a tough matchup at Milwaukee on Tuesday and always gets up to face a LeBron-led team, especially this poor defensive version. Nikola Mirotic ($5.8k DK, $5.2k FD) has caught fire since drawing a much bigger role when Robin Lopez was suspended and he should see more minutes than the slow-footed center in a matchup with the small-ball Cavs. And Paul Zipser ($4k DK, $3.7k FD) is more of a true value as a reliable role player who has only failed to produce once over his last 6 appearances.
Jared Dudley ($4.2k DraftKings, $3.9k FanDuel)
Forget the fact that he’s listed as a PF, because Dudley won’t be asked to match up with Blake Griffin too often tonight. He should see plenty of minutes on the wing however if Devin Booker (ankle) and Leandro Barbosa (hamstring) both remain out in addition to a slew of other Phoenix players. T.J. Warren ($7.5k DK, $6.6k FD) and Tyler Ulis ($6.9k DK, $6.2k FD) would see significant spikes in usage if Booker remains out, but both are a bit risky at their price tags in tough individual matchups, while Dudley just needs to continue playing his role on both ends to meet value against another one of the NBA franchises that used him and discarded him over the past few years.
Houston Rockets
While James Harden is fully expected to suit up and should continue to orchestrate Houston’s high-powered offense, he’s reportedly fighting a jammed wrist that contributed to his 5-for-20 shooting performance on Tuesday and could limit him again tonight. If he becomes more of a passer than a scorer, Lou Williams ($5.4k DK, $4.6k FD) could see a big boost in usage as a playmaker. Eric Gordon ($5.3k DK, $4.8k FD) and Trevor Ariza ($5.7k DK, $5.6k FD) will continue to see increased opportunities as spot up shooters with Ryan Anderson inactive and Nene ($4.2k DK, $4.5k FD) is worth a look as a longshot in the event that he’s asked to post up on Portland’s poor defensive PFs.
If, Then Player
D’Angelo Russell has topped 50 DK points twice in his last five appearances and he might continue to see more usage along with Jordan Clarkson if Brandon Ingram (knee) remains out.
With Austin Rivers ruled out, Jamal Crawford is the player that has benefitted the most and has gotten over 27 minutes in each game without Rivers. He’s not been particularly good in those contests, but 27 minutes + Suns defense + $3.6k price tag on FanDuel = someone you need to consider.
