NBA

3 Fantasy Basketball Players to Avoid on 11/15/18

Dale Redman  —  @DTRedman Nov 15th, 2018
Facing the Nuggets, Trae Young is a long shot to break out of his shooting slump. Who else are we avoiding in DFS on Thursday?

In daily fantasy basketball, finding players you want to roster is a lot easier than finding players to avoid.

You can find a ton of great information and research on guys you might want to include in your DFS NBA lineups, but what about guys you may want to lessen your exposure to, or even fade altogether?

Avoiding players whose matchups or situations aren't as great as they seem can often be just as important as finding the best targets. After all, it takes only one player to sink a lineup. Searching for the landmines could mean the difference between winning and losing your contests. Which players should we avoid tonight?

Trae Young, PG, Atlanta Hawks

FanDuel Price: $7,200

In Trae Young’s last outing, he scored a career-low 4 points on 2-for-12 shooting. He finished the game with less than 30 FanDuel points for the eighth time this season, or over 57% of his games played. Young's inconsistent fantasy output is tied directly to his shooting woes, which over the last couple of weeks has gotten worse. In his last five games, the Atlanta Hawks guard is sinking just 16.4% of his 6.0 three-point attempts per game. Those misfirings have led him to average less than 15 points per game. Facing the Denver Nuggets on Thursday, Young's scoring woes are likely to continue.

The Nuggets own a top-five defensive rating and limit opponents to the fourth-lowest points per game. That leaves the Hawks with the lowest implied point total of the three-game slate. Opposing point guards are also averaging just 0.89 FanDuel points per minute, leaving Young on pace for a disappointing night on Thursday.

Quinn Cook, PG, Golden State Warriors

FanDuel Price: $5,800

Following a 27-point barrage in his first start of the season (41.1 FanDuel points), Quinn Cook has been a bit inconsistent in the last two games, posting 12.2 and 29.8 FanDuel points. But with Stephen Curry still out of action for the Golden State Warriors, Cook will remain in the starting lineup and get a healthy dose of minutes. His matchup, though, is perhaps the most difficult of the night.

Last season, playing the Houston Rockets meant an up-and-down the court, high-scoring affair. In 2018-19, not so much. The Rockets are running at the the third-lowest pace while limiting opponents to the sixth-fewest points and second-fewest three-point shots per game. For point guards, the matchup has been even more difficult as they face the pressure of NBA steals leader Chris Paul. Paul has helped limit opposing point guards to the lowest FanDuel points per minute in the NBA this season.

Eric Gordon, SG, Houston Rockets

FanDuel Price: $5,000

In the three games he has played since returning from a groin injury, Eric Gordon's shot has been off the mark. The Rockets guard has gone 16-for-49 (32.7%) from the field and 7-for-30 (23.3%) from beyond the arc. He's struggled to put up fantasy points in his last two, averaging just 10.0 points with 2.0 rebounds and 1.0 assists for 14.9 FanDuel points per game. Facing the Warriors on Thursday, Gordon is not likely to get back on track.

The Warriors hold opponents to shooting 45.0% from the field, the 10th-lowest rate in the NBA this season. Stepping back beyond the arc, the defense gets tougher, as opponents are shooting 31.8% on threes, with only the Detroit Pistons and Boston Celtics being stingier. Overall, the Dubs have held opposing shooting guards to 0.85 FanDuel points per minute, the second-lowest rate on Thursday's slate.

Dale Redman is not a FanDuel employee. The views expressed in his articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.