Main Slate Breakdown for NBA DFS 4/18:
Apr 9, 2023; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Los Angeles Clippers guard Russell Westbrook against the Phoenix Suns in the second half at Footprint Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Welcome to another year of the DFS Army NBA Full Court Press! Members had a ton of success using the Full Court Press along with various articles and tools that DFS Army provides last season, so we are glad to be back with another year of the all-inclusive article. You have to start your research somewhere, and oftentimes going game by game and breaking down every matchup and its key players is the first step in our process. My name is Mike aka @MadnessDFS on Twitter, make sure to give me a follow as I’ll occasionally make updates to the advice in the article. But, you’ll mostly find me in our VIP coaching forums where I provide detailed lineup maneuvers and answer all lineup questions. With that said, let’s get it started!
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Atlanta Hawks @ Boston Celtics
Vegas Total: 229.5
Vegas Spread: Bos -10.5
We’ll start with the Eastern Conference where the Hawks will go back into Boston to try and steal game two. The Hawks were pretty flat in game one but did make a bit of a run to at least make it a game in the second half. Trae Young had a tough day from the floor shooting just 5-18, he’ll be the focus of this Boston defense, so expect him to have his hands full. Dejounte Murray looked great and we know he’s going to play all the minutes he can handle, I have no issue going to him if you can’t quite find the salary for Young. Clint Capela continues to float around the 30-minute range which will make him look like a nice option here as well, we know he can rack up rebounds in a hurry. John Collins and Bogdan Bogdanovic both had some nice stretches while De’Andre Hunter and Saddiq Bey were pretty quiet in terms of DFS production. Bey and Hunter are the better defenders, however, so their minutes are a bit more secure. Then Jalen Johnson and Onyeka Okongwu both make sense as tournament options at their price tags as well. From the Celtics, Jayson Tatum ended up playing 40 minutes even though the game wasn’t all that competitive, he’s going to look like a top spend-up option on the slate. Jaylen Brown had the better game last time out, but that’s not something I necessarily want to chase, he’s always a guy I hesitate getting to due to the scoring dependency, but the production has obviously been there, and gets a great matchup again here. The trio of Derrick White, Marcus Smart, and Malcolm Brogdon are all pretty similar to me, but the minutes on White and Smart are much more secure in the starting lineup and are my preferred options while Brogdon is more of a tournament guy off of the bench. Finally, both Al Horford and Robert Williams were solid in their minutes, Horford started at the five with Williams coming off of the bench, but Williams still saw nice minutes.
5-star play: Trae Young, Jayson Tatum
4-star play: Dejounte Murray, Clint Capela, De’Andre Hunter, Jaylen Brown, Derrick White, Marcus Smart
Deeper Value: Jalen Johnson
GPP Sleeper: John Collins, Bogdan Bogdanovic, John Collins, Saddiq Bey, Malcolm Brogdon, Al Horford, Robert Williams
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New York Knicks @ Cleveland Cavaliers
Vegas Total: 213.5
Vegas Spread: Cle -5.5
Onto the Knicks where they’ll look to take the first two games in Cleveland. It sounds like Josh Hart is going to miss this game, I would expect a few more minutes spread out between Quentin Grimes and Immanuel Quickley with him out, but not really anything massive for this team. Julius Randle had a solid game one and is averaging 44.3 DraftKings points per game in three games against the Cavs this season. It’s a tougher matchup with Mobley and Allen down low, but he’s still a guy I want to get to. Jalen Brunson is going to provide a nice floor at the very least along with a solid ceiling that we know he has. They’ll need Mitchell Robinson’s size down low, so I expect the minutes to continue to be there for him and is someone I love on a per-minute basis. Then RJ Barrett is a solid piece to round your team out, his price came down to a much more useable range. From the Cavs, Evan Mobley was a guy I was fairly high on last time out and he was completely bodied by Randle and company down low. His price did come down a bit though, so I think he’s a solid option in all formats. I do like going right back to the Donovan Mitchell train as well. This guy turns it up a notch in the playoffs as we’ve seen ever since the bubble. He had a massive game in game one and is someone I’ll go right back to. Jarrett Allen had a nice game and is going to be a nice option here due to that mid-range price tag. He’s averaging 34.8 DraftKings points per game in three games against the Knicks this season. Then Isaac Okoro was popular last time out due to the limited value we had, he’ll continue to start but I just don’t think he’s going to beat us if we look for a pivot in his range.
5-star play: Julius Randle, Donovan Mitchell
4-star play: Jalen Brunson, Mitchell Robinson, RJ Barrett, Evan Mobley, Darius Garland, Jarrett Allen
Deeper Value: Isaac Okoro
GPP Sleeper: RJ Barrett, Quentin Grimes, Immanuel Quickley, Isaac Okoro, Caris LeVert
Los Angeles Clippers @ Phoenix Suns
Vegas Total: 225.5
Vegas Spread: Pho -8.5
Starting with the Clippers, they’ll continue to be without Paul George here which means we probably see Nic Batum in the starting lineup until he’s back. Below is how this team has operated over the last month with him off of the court:
- Russell Westbrook – 27.2% usage rate; 1.24 fpm
- Eric Gordon – 19.8% usage rate; 0.83 fpm
- Kawhi Leonard – 29.5% usage rate; 1.33 fpm
- Nic Batum – 11.0% usage rate; 0.73 fpm
- Ivica Zubac – 17.3% usage rate; 1.11 fpm
- Norman Powell – 27.0% usage rate; 1.02 fpm
Westbrook shot the ball absolutely terribly last time out but still put up a nice game due to his ability to put up ancillary stats. I like going right back to him, he did a nice job defensively on Kevin Durant last time out so I don’t see them pulling him for his mistakes on offense. Kawhi looked great and is the top raw option on the team, and one of the better raw options on the slate. Powell had a tough go of it last time out and his minutes came down which is worrisome. Then Eric Gordon looked solid and will make sense as a cheaper option who should play good minutes. From the Suns, Kevin Durant had a massive game last time out and is just too cheap on DraftKings, he’s more appropriately priced on FanDuel. He’s a top option in all formats on DraftKings at just $9.3k. Devin Booker was second fiddle behind Durant but still was able to put up a nice game and we know he’s going to play all the minutes he can handle. Chris Paul is now averaging 40.4 DraftKings points per game in four games against the Clippers this season and is a nice mid-range guy as well. Deandre Ayton hasn’t been the same Ayton with Durant on the court but he’s still putting up a good enough floor at a fair price tag to make him viable in this one. Then, Torrey Craig got the surprise start over Josh Okogie in game 1, assuming that’s the case again here he’s going to look solid. He had a nice game so I don’t know why they would change that up.
5-star play: Russell Westbrook, Kawhi Leonard, Kevin Durant, Chris Paul
4-star play: Eric Gordon, Ivica Zubac, Devin Booker, Deandre Ayton, Torrey Craig
Deeper Value: Torrey Craig, Nic Batum
GPP Sleeper: Norman Powell, Mason Plumlee, Torrey Craig
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