NBA DraftKings & FanDuel DFS Primer: April 26
The Cavaliers prepare for a win-or-go-home Game 5 against the Knicks at 7 p.m. ET.
This is going to be a fascinating slate! We have numerous teams looking at elimination, with the only non-elimination game being the Kings-Warriors Game 5. That means all of these teams will leave everything on the floor, and I can’t wait to watch all of these matchups. We saw some historic performances earlier in the week, so, we’re hoping for more of that here!
Injury Report
As of 9:30 a.m. ET:
- De’Aaron Fox (finger) Questionable
- Quentin Grimes (shoulder) Questionable
- Steven Adams (knee) OUT
- Brandon Clarke (Achilles) OUT
- Victor Oladipo (knee) OUT
- Tyler Herro (hand) OUT
Core Plays
Domantas Sabonis (PF/C – SAC): $9,300 DraftKings, $9,100 FanDuel
Sabonis has been one of the best players in fantasy for months, and he’s going to be tough to fade here. The big man is flirting with triple-double averages over the last three months but is going to be asked to do everything with De’Aaron Fox likely limited. In the eight games that Fox missed during the regular season, Sabonis scored at least 47 DraftKings points in seven of them while averaging nearly 55 fantasy points per game!
Donovan Mitchell (PG/SG – CLE): $8,700 DraftKings, $9,700 FanDuel
Mitchell has been one of the best postseason performers throughout his career, and you know he’ll be firing away in this elimination game. The All-Star is averaging 27.7 points, 4.9 rebounds, 5.0 assists, and 1.3 steals across 43 playoff games. That’s about 45 DK points per game, and he could be looking at 45 minutes and 25 shots in this must-win matchup. We also don’t mind that New York allows the fourth-most fantasy points to opposing guards.
Cash Game Considerations
Giannis Antetokounmpo (PF/C – MIL): $10,400 DraftKings, $12,000 FanDuel
Milwaukee is trailing 3-1 in this series, but this former MVP has posted some of his best lines in elimination games. Giannis is averaging nearly 65 DK points per game in elimination games throughout his career and is coming off a triple-double in his most recent outing. It’s rare to have a 60-point floor and a 100-point ceiling, but that’s what we’re looking at for Antetokounmpo.
Stephen Curry (PG – GSW): $9,500 DraftKings, $9,900 FanDuel
Curry averaged 50 DK points per game in the regular season and should be even better here. The former MVP has scored at least 41 DK points in 13 of his last 14 games but could be looking at a season-high in minutes. That’s huge in this sort of matchup, with Sacramento sitting 26th in both points allowed and defensive efficiency. That’s clear by the fact that Curry has at least 41 DK points in all eight of their meetings this year.
Ja Morant (PG – MEM): $9,700 DraftKings, $10,300 FanDuel
Morant is clearly dealing with a hand issue, but he’s leaving it all on the line in this series. He has 120 combined DraftKings points in the last two games. That’s no surprise since he averaged 48 fantasy points per game during the regular season. This feisty guard facing an elimination game makes him all the more enticing, especially since LA owns a 28th OPRK against opposing point guards.
GPP Targets
Julius Randle (PF/C – NYK): $6,900 DraftKings, $7,600 FanDuel
It’s strange to have Randle in the GPP section, but his struggles have moved him into this spot. The reason we’re willing to take the risk is the price drop because Randle was approaching $10K in the regular season. He averaged 45 DK points per game in an All-Star campaign, and should still take 20 shots and play 40 minutes, which means he’s way too affordable with the sort of upside he presents.
D’Angelo Russell (PG/SG – LAL): $6,000 DraftKings, $6,100 FanDuel
Russell has been rough at times in this series, but he shouldn’t be sitting below $6,000. The former All-Star averaged 32 DK points per game in the regular season and is still the starting point guard for this team. That role has allowed him to score at least 35 DK points in two of the four games in this series, and that total would be tremendous from such a cheap player. We have to assume Davis and LeBron will swallow up a lot of attention, so Russell needs to thrive for them to advance.
Value Plays
Caris LeVert (SG/SF – CLE): $5,200 DraftKings, $5,900 FanDuel
LeVert is playing at least 35 minutes in three straight games. He’s also scored at least 28 DraftKings points in all of those, which is all you can hope for from a player in this price range. We saw him average over 30 DK points per game as a starter in the regular season, and they’ll lean on him more in this elimination game.
Xavier Tillman (PF/C – MEM): $5,500 DraftKings, $6,700 FanDuel
Tillman is getting a massive opportunity in this series, locking into 30 minutes guarding LeBron James. He’s also playing much more with Clarke and Adams both sidelined, scoring at least 30 DK points in the last three games of this series. He showcased a 45-point upside and should be $1,000 more on each site in this expanded role.
Advantageous Pricing
Donovan Mitchell (PG/SG – CLE): $8,700 DraftKings, $9,700 FanDuel
Giannis Antetokounmpo (PF/C – MIL): $10,400 DraftKings, $12,000 FanDuel
Xavier Tillman (PF/C – MEM): $5,500 DraftKings, $6,700 FanDuel
Jalen Brunson (PG – NYK): $7,500 DraftKings, $8,600 FanDuel
RJ Barrett (SG/SF – NYK): $5,400 DraftKings, $6,400 FanDuel
Mitchell Robinson (C – NYK): $4,800 DraftKings, $6,100 FanDuel
Brook Lopez (C – MIL): $6,400 DraftKings, $7,900 FanDuel
Draymond Green (PF/C – GSW): $6,300 DraftKings, $7,300 FanDuel
Jordan Poole (PG/SG – GSW): $5,000 DraftKings, $6,200 FanDuel
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Joel Bartilotta is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Joel, check out his archive and follow him @Bartilottajoel.
