RADIO
The NBA serves up a typically compact Thursday night slate, as only five games are set to unfold. However, an abbreviated ledger isn’t always necessarily a negative for DFS purposes, as it offers us a decent amount of options to set unique lineups with in tournaments without being too overwhelming in terms of options to consider.
Additionally, the good news is the five matchups on tap should all be reasonably-to-very competitive, and there’s a chance for positive DFS game environments to varying degree in each contest with at least one elite scorer in each game.
In this article, I will be providing you with my daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for FanDuel on 2/11/21. I’ll be providing multiple player suggestions for players at guard, forward and center on FanDuel, aiming to highlight one option apiece at the high, middle and lower end of the salary scale. You can also check out DraftKings lineup picks and injury news before lineups lock. Good luck, RotoBallers.
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FanDuel DFS Guards
Damian Lillard, PG – vs. PHI ($10,000)
Lillard has scored at least 44.3 FD points in nine of his last 10 games, a stretch that’s also featured three tallies of at least 54.9 FD points. The star guard is averaging 32.4 points, 7.5 assists, 4.4 rebounds and 1.0 steal over that span while also shooting 40.0 percent from behind the arc. Lillard missed the Trail Blazers’ first game with the 76ers this season a week ago due to injury, but Philadelphia comes into Thursday ranked in the bottom half of the league in points (24.6), assists (9.3), rebounds (6.3) and steals (2.0) allowed per game to point guards. Lillard continues to thrive without backcourt mate C.J. McCollum (foot) and Jusuf Nurkic (wrist) as well, posting a 32.0 percent usage rate and averaging 1.33 FD points per minute.
Delon Wright, PG – vs. IND ($6,700)
Wright checks into Thursday’s matchup in the midst of a highly productive eight-game stretch, one in which he’s averaged 13.6 points, 6.5 assists, 5.4 rebounds and 2.5 steals across 32.0 minutes. Wright is displaying improved 46.8 percent shooting in that sample, and he’ll be in position to preserve that momentum Thursday. The opposing Pacers will be on the second game of a back-to-back set, and Indiana is allowing elevated 39.6 percent shooting from three-point range on the road. Additionally, Wright has scored 35.6 to 44.3 FD points in his last three, and he’s put up over 30 in eight of the last 11 overall.
Seth Curry, SG – at POR ($4,100)
Curry makes for an intriguing large-field value play against one of his old squads Thursday, as the veteran wing comes into the favorable positional matchup having scored 25.4 and 27.1 FD points in his last two games. The key to Curry’s improvement in that modest sample has been a boost in usage, as he’s logged double-digit shot attempts in each of the two contests after five consecutive games in single digits. The Trail Blazers are also allowing the third-highest offensive efficiency (53.9 percent) to backcourt players, as well as 39.4 percent shooting from three-point range. Moreover, Curry has already delivered over 5x his current salary in half his 18 games thus far.
Also consider: Stephen Curry ($10,500); Fred Vanvleet ($9,300); Ben Simmons ($8,800); Victor Oladipo ($8,000); Kyle Lowry ($7,300); Malcolm Brogdon ($7,200)
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FanDuel DFS Forwards
Jayson Tatum, PF- vs. TOR ($9,500)
Tatum continued to log heavy usage Tuesday against the Suns despite the return of Jaylen Brown to action, as the former still put up 20 attempts. Sub-par shooting limited Tatum to 33.8 FD points in that contest, but he’d scored no fewer than 41.3 in five of the previous six. The four-year pro continues to carry career-best figures in several categories, including three-point shooting (41.4 percent), while the Raptors come into the contest allowing a 38.3 percent success rate from behind the arc on the road. Toronto has also struggled defending power forwards in particular, giving up the fourth-highest offensive efficiency (27.0 percent) to the position, along with 50.4 percent shooting, including 42.1 percent from deep.
Jerami Grant, SF – vs. IND ($8,200)
Grant has totaled 53.8 and 45 FD points in his last two games after an atypical stretch during which he posted 26.9 FD points or less in three of four contests. The veteran wing has scored 27 to 32 actual points in three of the last four games heading into Thursday, and the Pacers went into Wednesday’s game against the Nets allowing elevated 48.6 percent shooting, including 44.3 percent from deep, to small forwards. Grant also sports a team-high 26.5 percent usage rate and averages 1.09 FD points per minute, so the opportunities should certainly be there for him to deliver over 5x his salary for the 14th time this season.
Jae'sean Tate – vs. MIA ($5,500)
Tate continues to hold down the starting small forward role and has scored 23.4 to 38.4 FD points in five of the last seven contests. The undrafted rookie is shooting an outstanding 62.3 percent within that stretch, and while he hasn’t logged any double-digit shot attempts within the sample, his salary is certainly reasonable enough to account for the volatility that brings to the table. The opposing Heat make for potentially good facilitators for Tate as well, as they’re ranked in the bottom 10 in points (22.3), assists (4.2) and steals (1.8) per game allowed to small forwards, as well as the second-highest three-point shooting percentage (45.0) to the position.
Also consider: Bam Adebayo ($9,000); Jimmy Butler ($8,700); Jaylen Brown ($8,400); Tobias Harris ($7,800); Kelly Oubre Jr. ($6,500); Blake Griffin ($5,100)
FanDuel DFS Centers
Nikola Vucevic– at GS ($9,800)
Vucevic has most recently offered a glimpse of his massive ceiling with tallies of 73.8 and 62.0 FD points in two of his last three games. The twin absences of Evan Fournier (back) and Aaron Gordon (ankle) are certainly playing a part, as Vucevic boasts a team-high 33.9 percent usage rate and averages 1.44 FD points per minute without his teammates on the floor. Fournier does reportedly have a chance to return to action Thursday, but Vucevic will still find himself in a premium matchup against a Warriors frontcourt that will be missing both James Wiseman (wrist) and Kevon Looney (ankle). The 6-foot-11 Vucevic should therefore frequently have his way with a five-inch height advantage on both Draymond Green and Eric Paschall, and the significant bump in pace the Warriors bring will also benefit him in the form of some extra possessions.
Myles Turner- at DET ($6,800)
Turner draws what has consistently been one of the most favorable matchups for centers this season, as the Pistons are ranked in the bottom five or 10 in rebounds (16.3), assists (3.7), steals (1.3) and blocks (3.1) per game surrendered to fives. The big man had offered relatively consistent production of late before a clunker on Wednesday, as he’d scored 28.3 to 53.3 FD points in 13 of the prior 16 games. Foul trouble played a major part in Turner’s issues against the Nets, but he should have a chance to redeem himself against a Detroit squad allowing an NBA-high 46.8 percent shooting, and the third-highest three-point shooting (39.1 percent).
Kelly Olynyk – at HOU ($5,100)
Olynyk has seemingly finally hit his stride, scoring between 21.4 to 27.0 FD points over the last six games while shooting 51.8 percent, including a blistering 46.7 percent from behind the arc. The floor-spacing veteran is averaging a solid 25.7 minutes and putting up 9.3 shot attempts per game during that span as he holds down the starting power forward spot. The Rockets have been a relatively solid defensive team overall, but they’ve been more susceptible in the frontcourt with Christian Wood (ankle) out of action and are allowing the most rebounds (11.8) and third-most blocks (1.4) per game to fours.
Also consider: Joel Embiid ($10,800); Enes Kanter ($6,500)
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