NBA

5 NBA FanDuel Value Plays to Target on Monday 12/5/22

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 one of these lower-salaried options into your lineup.

Let's take a look at some players who can help fill in the gaps in your lineup on FanDuel tonight, using numberFire's daily fantasy basketball projections as a guide.

Andrew Nembhard, SG, Indiana Pacers
Bennedict Mathurin, SG, Indiana Pacers

Nembhard's FanDuel Salary: $4,900
Mathurin's FanDuel Salary: $4,900

The Indiana Pacers are a prime source for daily fantasy value on tonight's slate due to the injuries to Tyrese Haliburton and Chris Duarte. T.J. McConnell is looking to be questionable. If he plays, he's a great value option at $4,200.

Anyway, Andrew Nembhard is projected to be the best value play of anyone on tonight's slate, according to numberFire. Nembhard is slated for 36.2 minutes and 30.9 FanDuel points (6.31 per $1,000 in salary).

The Pacers are up against the Golden State Warriors on the road in a game with a slate-high 236.5-point total. Indiana is an 11.0-point underdog, so there are some blowout concerns, but without Haliburton, Nembhard should see a safe floor of minutes no matter the score.

Without Haliburton and Duarte on the floor, Nembhard holds a 15.2% usage rate but averages 0.93 FanDuel points per minute, according to CourtIQ.

The usage rate for Bennedict Mathurin is much better: 32.8%. He averages 0.98 FanDuel points per minute in this split.

Indiana is going to give us some value. How much of it depends on how close they can keep this game -- and whether McConnell plays.

Jalen Johnson, SF, Atlanta Hawks

FanDuel Salary: $4,000

Jalen Johnson stands to get another start with John Collins out, and that means a matchup with an Oklahoma City Thunder defense that ranks just 20th in defensive rating on the season.

Johnson, projected for 30.0 minutes tonight, is also expected to post a solid all-around line of 11.3 points, 6.2 rebounds, 1.4 assists, and 1.7 combined steals and blocks.

Johnson, in his lone start of the season, played 32.7 minutes and scored 31.0 FanDuel points on the back of a 10-point, 10-rebound double-double.

Dillon Brooks, SG/SF, Memphis Grizzlies

FanDuel Salary: $5,900

The Memphis Grizzlies have myriad injuries for tonight's game, but the primary one here is that Desmond Bane is out.

Dillon Brooks has a 27.2% usage rate without Bane on the floor, and he puts up a respectable return of 0.90 FanDuel points per minute in that split.

Brooks and the Grizzlies are in a tight game with the Miami Heat, who have a huge injury list. Notably, that includes Jimmy Butler as questionable.

Overall, that game environment gives Brooks one of the best composite matchups of any player on the board.

Markelle Fultz, PG/SG, Orlando Magic

FanDuel Salary: $4,800

Markelle Fultz has started all three games in his return to the lineup for the Orlando Magic.

All three of those were double-digit losses, but interestingly, Fultz started on a back-to-back over the weekend. He's played 18.8, 29.6, and 16.8 minutes in his three games.

He's projected for 27.1 minutes tonight against the Milwaukee Bucks as a large underdog once again, so there are good odds his team struggles.

That being said, the salary is just $4,800 for a player who has generated 0.95 FanDuel points per minute in terrible game scripts already.

numberFire projects Fultz for 27.6 FanDuel points tonight (a value rating of 5.74).