NBA

5 NBA FanDuel Value Plays to Target on 1/13/20

Thomas Vecchio  —  @Tom_Vecchio1 Jan 13th, 2020
Kyle Kuzma is in for another big night if Anthony Davis is out. With a list of injuries tonight, which other value players should you look at?

One of the keys to finding success in daily fantasy basketball is uncovering potential value plays. If you're looking to roster a stud player or two, you need to consider squeezing in one of these lower-priced options into your lineup.

Let's take a look at three players who can help fill in the gaps in your lineup.

Kyle Kuzma, PF, Los Angeles Lakers ($4,700)

With Anthony Davis listed as questionable, Kyle Kuzma could be in for another big game.

Kuzma has started the past two games for the Los Angeles Lakers, and if he sees that role again, he is going to be one of the most popular options on the slate. He has played 33 minutes or more in each of these last two games, going for 36 and 43 FanDuel points. In the Lakers' most recent game, they were without both Davis and LeBron James, and Kuzma posted a season-high 36 real points and 24 field goal attempts.

Tonight, he is up against the Cleveland Cavaliers in a game where the over/under is set at 219.5 points, the highest on the slate. Kuzma will also see a soft defense, since the Cavaliers are allowing 45.5 FanDuel points per game to power forwards, the 10th-worst in the league.

Gorgui Dieng, C, Minnesota Timberwolves ($4,500)

Karl-Anthony Towns has been ruled out for tonight's game, meaning Gorgui Dieng will start again.

KAT has been out for a month at this point, and we have seen Dieng develop into a viable fantasy option. With the current starting lineup for the Minnesota Timberwolves, Dieng is carrying a 24.1% usage rate while producing 1.68 FanDuel points per minute.

Our projections are very high on Dieng tonight and have him going for 25 minutes and 29.1 FanDuel points against the Oklahoma City Thunder. That production has him coming in as our second-best value on the slate, which should make him very popular.

The Thunder are right at the league average in FanDuel points allowed per game to centers. It's not the best matchup, but with a 219-point over/under, we should see Dieng reach and exceed value.

Enes Kanter, C, Boston Celtics ($5,100)

One of the best matchups on the slate sits with the Boston Celtics and their center, Enes Kanter.

The Celtics have ruled Daniel Theis out for this game, and that means we should be seeing Kanter as the starting center. That is not yet confirmed, but it's safe to assume he will be there since Robert Williams is out. Kanter comes in as our top overall value on tonight's slate and is projected to go for 26 minutes and a very impressive 33.8 FanDuel points.

If you listen to The Daily Iso, you know that I always talk about a specific thing when it comes to teams playing the Chicago Bulls -- attack them via big men. The Bulls are allowing 58.4 FanDuel points per game to centers this season, dead last in the league. Between Dieng and Kanter, there are viable options at center in the lower price range.

Josh Hart, SG, New Orleans Pelicans ($4,400)

We have another game where Josh Hart could be starting and that means more value.

The New Orleans Pelicans have Jrue Holiday listed as doubtful for tonight's game, so we should see Hart in the lineup yet again. Holiday has been out four straight games, and in that time, Hart has played 26 minutes or more in each game, posting 19.8 FanDuel points or more in three of those four. At $4.4K tonight, he would need 22 FanDuel points in order to reach 5x value, which is lower than our models have him projected.

Hart is projected for 25.5 in 32 minutes against the Detroit Pistons, who are allowing 42.5 FanDuel points per game to shooting guards this season. Under one FanDuel point per minute isn't amazing, but that should be expected in this matchup, since the Pelicans are playing down in pace against the Pistons.

Jaxson Hayes, C, New Orleans Pelicans ($4,300)

Another Pelicans player who offers value tonight is Jaxson Hayes.

Derrick Favors is listed as a power forward but is the starting center for New Orleans, and he is listed as questionable for this game. If he is ruled out tonight, we should see Hayes get the start, as he did in their most recent game when Favors was out. This is a very clear injury situation: if Favors is in, Hayes is not an option, but if Favors is out, you play Hayes. It's a super simple decision to make when it comes to lineup construction and picking your player pool.

When Favors is out of the lineup this season, we see Hayes carrying a modest 16% usage rate and a very productive 1.08 FanDuel points per minute. He only needs 21.5 FanDuel points to hit value, and that is certainly doable, as he has exceeded that in three straight games, posting a double-double in two of those contests.