NBA

3 NBA FanDuel Value Plays to Target on 3/22/21

Thomas Vecchio  —  @Tom_Vecchio1 Mar 22nd, 2021
Devonte' Graham is set for an expanded role with LaMelo Ball out for the year. Who else should you be targeting for your lineups?

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-salaried options into your lineup.

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

Devonte' Graham, SG, Charlotte Hornets ($4,300)

With LaMelo Ball ball expected to miss the rest of the season, the Charlotte Hornets' starting lineup is set to change.

It was announced on Sunday night that LaMelo Ball suffered a fractured wrist and is set to miss the rest of the Hornets' season. Always a tough situation for a young player but we need to focus on the fantasy ramifications, specifically, who will be in the Hornets' starting lineup and where will the offensive usage now go? Devonte' Graham is projected to be in the starting lineup and is holding a 21.2% usage rate while producing 0.93 FanDuel points per minute when Ball and Cody Zeller -- who is listed as out tonight -- are off the court this season.

Graham is projected for 33.75 minutes and 28.3 FanDuel points, making him the fourth-best value option on tonight's slate. Graham and the Hornets are taking on the San Antonio Spurs, where the over/under is set at 221 points with a 4.5-point spread. Graham should be one of the most popular players on tonight's slate but it's OK to eat the chalk with this type of value.

Bobby Portis, PF, Milwaukee Bucks ($3,700)

Since Giannis Antetokounmpo is listed as doubtful for tonight's game, the Milwaukee Bucks can offer plenty of value.

Whenever a player with Antetokounmpo's fantasy potential is set to miss a game, we have to find who will be picking up that production. For the Bucks, we should see both Khris Middleton and Jrue Holiday take a step forward with their usage and production, but we shouldn't forget about Bobby Portis. This season when Antetokounmpo is off the court, Portis is producing 1.10 FanDuel points per minute on a 21.4% usage rate. That is a significant level of production for a bench player, especially one who is under $4,000.

Portis is currently projected for 26.00 minutes and 27.7 FanDuel points, which makes him the top-projected value play on the entire slate. That shouldn't be too much of a surprise since he is up against the Indiana Pacers, who are allowing the seventh-most (45.45) FanDuel points per game to opposing power forwards. Both teams enter this game in the top-eight of the league for offensive pace, which is why we see a solid 228.5-point over/under. We have to wait on the final confirmation that Antetokounmpo is actually ruled out for this game, then load up Portis in all formats.

Derrick Favors, C, Utah Jazz ($3,500)

If Rudy Gobert is out tonight, Derrick Favors is an easy answer at center.

Gobert is currently listed as questionable for the Utah Jazz, which makes Favors an intriguing option if you are looking for at center tonight. While we need to wait and see if Gobert is out tonight, we can look forward to the matchup Favors has against the Chicago Bulls, who are allowing the third-most (56.55) FanDuel points per game to opposing centers this season. That should make Favors all the more enticing because he comes in producing 1.09 FanDuel points per minute when Gobert is off the court this season.

This game has a slate-high 231-point over/under and has the Jazz (18th) playing up in pace against the Bulls (7th), putting them and Favors in a very solid fantasy matchup tonight.