NBA

3 Fantasy Basketball Players to Avoid on 12/10/18

Nikola Mirotic and the Pelicans have tough matchup with Boston on Monday. Who else should you leave out of your DFS lineups?

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?

Nikola Mirotic, SF, New Orleans Pelicans

FanDuel Price: $6,400

After sitting out two games last week with an illness, Nikola Mirotic has been bumped from the starting lineup in favor of Julius Randle. In the last two games, coming off the bench, the New Orleans Pelicans' forward has seen a dip in minutes and production. Mirotic has averaged 8.0 points, 4.5 rebounds, 0.5 assists, and 0.5 blocks in 25.4 minutes. Running with the second unit has hurt him as Mirotic is shooting 31.5% (6 for 19) from the floor and 16.7% (2 for 12) from three over the past two.

His struggles are likely to continue on Monday against a tough Boston Celtics defense. In the conversation for the best defense in the league, Boston limits opponents to 32.0% shooting from three and a league-low 43.6% clip from the field. Making matters worse, the C’s hold opposing power forwards -- a spot where Mirotic spends 87% of his time -- to just 0.83 FanDuel points per minutes, the lowest rate in the NBA.

Jabari Parker, SF, Chicago Bulls

FanDuel Price: $6,100

Another player struggling after a demotion is Chicago Bulls forward Jabari Parker. In the three games since the new coaching staff moved Parker to the second unit, the forward is averaging 12.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 22.2 FanDuel points in 26.5 minutes per night. In two of the three games, Parker has posted 9.1 or fewer FanDuel points as his usage rate has been reduced to 23.0%. He was routinely in the upper 20s before the benching.

Even as they play in a somewhat favorable matchup against the Sacramento Kings, most Bulls should be off limits after the dysfunction this weekend. The team nearly skipped out on practice Sunday as they feud with new coach Jim Boylen. The Bulls are also in a offensive slump, scoring 90 or fewer points in the three of their last five games, including just 77 on Saturday as they got thumped by 56 points.

Between the reduced minutes, the struggling offense, and the team turmoil, it’s best to stay away from Parker on Monday.

Goran Dragic, PG, Miami Heat

FanDuel Price: $5,800

Dealing with a knee injury, Goran Dragic has played only one game since November 18. On Friday, the Miami Heat point guard suited up and played just 21.3 minutes against the Phoenix Suns. His shot was off (5 for 12 for 11 points), but he dished out 10 assists to put up a solid fantasy night.

He is expected to play again on Monday, against the Los Angeles Lakers, but Dragic could be in line for another game in the low-20s in minutes. Also making Dragic less appealing is the way the Lakers have been playing defensively this season, especially as of late.

Over their last 10 games, the Lakers own the second-best defensive rating in the NBA (101.6) and are holding opponents to 104.2 points per game, the sixth-lowest total in the league. The Lakers have been limiting shooters to a league-low 42.4% from the floor and 32.4% from three during their hot stretch. For the season, opposing point guards have struggled their way to just 0.84 FanDuel points per minute, the fourth-lowest rate in the league, against LA.



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.