RADIO
Welcome back, NBA fans and DFS addicts to another installment of my favorite FanDuel plays for tonight's 9-game NBA slate. After an entire week off for the All-Star Break, it was great to be able to make some lineups yesterday and last night's 6-game slate was just an appetizer for tonight's 9-gamer.
There are three starting point guards who are already ruled out tonight in Damian Lillard, Kemba Walker, and Mike Conley. Their absences are going to open up a lot of production to others on their respective teams and I'll be touching on several of those plays here today. The other major injury tonight is Karl-Anthony Towns, who will be out of the lineup for the Timberwolves. There's no absence of star power on this slate, however, as we have superstars Luka Doncic, LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Nikola Jokic taking the floor tonight. You won't find them in this article, but some of them will be in my lineups.
In this article, I will be providing you with my daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for FanDuel on 2/21/20. These DFS lineup picks can vary from higher-priced players and elite options to lower-priced players and value picks on FanDuel. You can also check out today's DraftKings lineup picks. Find me in the NBA Chat Room or @ThunderDanDFS on Twitter.
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FanDuel DFS Guards
Collin Sexton - PG, CLE@ WAS ($6,000)
Let's start with an excellent mid-range play at the point guard position. Sexton has been as consistent as it comes lately, scoring 30 or more FanDuel points in six of his last eight games. While the Cavs rotation has been a bit of a mess in the frontcourt since acquiring Andre Drummond at the deadline, Sexton's minutes and role as their main ball-handler and lead guard remains secure. This matchup with the Wizards is an excellent one as Washington is dead last in defensive rating (the only team worse than Cleveland) and fifth in overall pace. I love taking guards in these pace-up spots and Sexton is a very safe bet to hit his 5x floor of 30 FD points while also having a solid 6-7x ceiling here as well.
C.J. McCollum - SG, POR vs. NO ($6,900)
I usually don't write up a lot of obvious, chalky plays, but I felt compelled to make sure you all understand why C.J. should be in 100% of your lineups tonight. With Damian Lillard off the floor, McCollum carries a 33% usage rate and averages 1.17 FD points-per-minute. Tonight, he will have to step up and help carry this Portland offense that is trying to replace their main scorer and passer with Lillard out. This Portland-New Orleans game carries the highest total on the slate and it's going to be a lot easier to target the Portland side than try to figure out which Pelicans to use since they are at full health. I expect C.J. to be highly owned, but it's chalk that you're going to want to eat as he has a tremendous ceiling in this game that you don't want to fade at this price.
Marcus Smart - SG, BOS @ MIN ($5,400)
It used to be a joke that Marcus Smart chalk was always chalk you wanted to fade since he would usually play poorly in good spots and let us down. However, this season has been an entirely different story as the young guard is finding ways to contribute on a nightly basis and has been really good in these spots so far (fingers crossed). In the six games this season that Kemba has missed, Smart is averaging 17 points, 3 rebounds, 6 assists, and 3 steals a game. He's also attempted seven three-pointers per game with Kemba out and has made an average of three per game. His price here is simply too appealing for a prime matchup with the Timberwolves, a team that plays at a solid pace and has a very mediocre defense.
FanDuel DFS Forwards
Carmelo Anthony - SF, POR vs. NO ($4,900)
Melo is enjoying a renaissance of sorts this season as he's been a solid contributor for this Portland team that so badly needed help on the wing that they signed him out of retirement. He hasn't been all that great lately, but because of that, his price has dropped under 5k which makes him a potentially elite value tonight. With Lillard out, Anthony is second on the team in usage behind McCollum with a 27.9% usage rate and I expect his shot attempts to increase tonight as Portland will desperately need him and others to pick up the slack in the scoring department in order to keep pace with an improving Pelicans team.
Naz Reid - PF, MIN vs. BOS ($4,200)
With Karl-Anthony Towns out of the lineup for Minnesota, I expect to see James Johnson draw another start at center. However, my favorite big man to target from the T-Wolves is Reid for 1000 dollars less. The young power forward has shown some elite shooting ability so far in his short career, connecting on 37% of his three-point shots. He's not afraid to fire away from outside, attempting three long-balls per game in only 11 minutes per game. If we project him for around 20-24 minutes, then I expect him to put up 5-6 three-pointers tonight in an underrated matchup against a Boston team that can struggle against stretch fours like Reid. In the last game Towns missed right before the break, Reid played 22 minutes and produced 25 FanDuel points. He makes for a great value today at the PF position.
Serge Ibaka - PF, TOR vs. PHX ($6,600)
Serge has become a staple of my lineups over the last few weeks since Marc Gasol went down with an injury. He's starting at center for the Raptors and has been a very reliable fantasy asset in this role. Over his last ten games, he's averaging over 20 points per game to go along with 7 boards and 1.6 blocks/steals. He and Kyle Lowry play well together and are a very nice pick-and-roll or pick-and-pop combo on the floor. The matchup against Phoenix here is a good one, as they have been very poor this season against big men. Deandre Ayton, specifically, has been a horrible individual defender so if he plays tonight I expect the veteran Ibaka to exploit him on the blocks and on the perimeter.
FanDuel DFS Centers
Rudy Gobert - C, UTA vs. SA ($8,200)
There are a number of good plays at the center position today, but Gobert stands out to me as an underpriced asset at this price. Getting center correct is crucial on FanDuel since we only get to roster one player and I feel pretty good about Gobert in this matchup against the Spurs. These are not the Spurs that I remember watching during their dynasty, they are significantly worse on defense than any of those teams were as they are the 7th-worst ranked in the NBA currently. Gobert's rebounding production always gives him a nice floor, while his shot-blocking is what can boost his overall fantasy production on any given night. He went for 17 points and 19 rebounds in Utah's first meeting against the Spurs this season and I expect him to have another big tonight in this game, too.
