FanDuel Daily Fantasy Basketball Helper: Friday 5/28/21

The NBA scene changes on a week-to-week, day-to-day, and -- depending on injury news -- even a minute-to-minute basis, making every slate a unique one that requires an ever-changing approach.

With so much changing so quickly, we're here with plenty of tools to help you out. We have daily projections, a matchup heat map, a lineup optimizer, and a bunch of other great resources to help give you an edge.

Daily fantasy NBA is very reliant on opportunity, so you'll need to make sure that you're up-to-date with key injuries and COVID-19 situations. Our projections update up until tip-off to reflect current news and we also have player news updates.

We'll also be coming at you with this primer every day, breaking down a few of the day's top plays at each position.

Please note: When I'm referencing a player's value figure, it is the number of fantasy points scored for every $1,000 in salary. Typically, a value figure of 5.0 (meaning, 5.0 FanDuel points for every $1,000 in salary) is the minimum baseline we'll be targeting.

Let's take a look at who you should target on tonight's three-game playoff slate, which locks at 7:00 PM Eastern.

All injury updates are via the NBA's official injury report or numberFire's player news.

Point Guard

Luka Doncic ($10,500) - After not reaching 51 fantasy points in nine straight games entering the postseason, Doncic has dropped 56.9 and 65.5 FanDuel points on the Los Angeles Clippers. This shouldn't come as a surprise -- Luka pegged the Clippers for more than 60 in three of their six matchups in last year's playoffs. Our algorithm has the 22-year-old projected for 54.4 FanDuel points tonight, which is the highest on the slate and 11.9 more than any other point guard.

Derrick Rose ($6,500) - We featured Rose here on Tuesday, and he rewarded our efforts by putting up 26 real-life points and 35.8 of the fantasy variety. The explosive veteran has garnered 37.7 and 38.7 minutes in the first two games of the series, which are two of his three highest totals this season. numberFire's model projects Rose to hit again tonight in fantasy, predicting him as the top value play at the position.

Shooting Guard

Paul George ($8,800) - The Clippers will have their backs up against the wall tonight versus the Dallas Mavericks, and that will likely lead to a ton of volume from their two stars, just like it did in Game 2. PG13 hoisted 22 shots in that one and ultimately totaled 28 real-life points and 52.4 FanDuel points. Our model has him amassing 44.1 tonight, which is good enough for five-times value (five points per $1,000 in salary).

Marcus Smart ($6,000) - Our algo projected Smart to be one of the top values on Tuesday, and he very much complied, returning a very nice value figure of 6.9 fantasy points for every $1,000 in salary. While repeating that kind of value will be a much tougher task for Smart at a salary of $6,000, we still project the 27-year-old to be the top point-per-dollar play at the two-guard position.

Small Forward

Kawhi Leonard ($10,000) - Once again, Playoff Kawhi is an entirely different animal. Last season, Kawhi averaged 54.6 FanDuel points in the postseason, including 58.8 in six efforts against Dallas. Through two games in this series, Leonard has put up 57.5 and 58.2. The Klaw is one of the more trustworthy studs to target on tonight's three-gamer.

Joe Harris ($5,000) - The Boston Celtics seemingly chose death by Joe Harris in Game 2, and he made them pay by erupting for 25 points and 42.3 FanDuel points. If Boston chooses to go down that route again, Harris should continue to feast. And with Jeff Green out, his role should be as safe as it can get.

Power Forward

Kristaps Porzingis ($7,500) - Porzingis returned to form in Game 2, collecting 39.8 fantasy points in 32 minutes of action. The Latvian has now seen more than 30 minutes 31 times this season, and he's averaging 39 FanDuel points in those contests. An output in that range would result in a value figure comfortably better than 5.0.

Maxi Kleber ($4,800) - Trying to find two power forwards to roster tonight is going to be a chore, but we'll double down on the two Dallas options. Kleber has seen 34.2 and 36.0 minutes in the first two games of the series, and he has produced 22.3 and 22.8 fantasy points in the process. That's basically as good as it's going to get at this position tonight.

Center

Taj Gibson ($5,000) - Despite the fact that we have to roster just one center, we're still short on intriguing options. That said, given what Gibson has done in the first two games of the series, we could certainly turn to him for a combination of value and salary savings. Gibson has racked up 24.8 and 27.9 fantasy points through the first two games, and he should continue to have a large role with Nerlens Noel not 100% healthy.