FanDuel NBA: Sunday Value Plays

FanDuel NBA: Sunday Value Plays

This article is part of our FanDuel NBA series.

We have larger-than-usual Sunday main slate, as there are nine games overall on the docket. That gives us no shortage of options in terms of value, though a lot of it is concentrated in a certain pool of games. Appealing matchups combined with affordable prices abound in certain games, so let's dive into examining where some of the best bargains are on the oversized ledger.

POINT GUARD

J.J. Barea, DAL at POR ($5,000): Barea crossed the 20-fantasy-point mark for the fourth straight game Saturday night, totaling 22.4 versus the Warriors. Given his limited workload (20 minutes Saturday), the second game of a back-to-back shouldn't present an inordinate obstacle for the veteran, who already posted 19.9 fantasy points in just 17 minutes in one prior meeting against Portland. The Blazers have been relatively tough on point guards overall, but they're still allowing 43.0 fantasy points per game to the position, and yield the highest three-point shooting percentage (37.8) in the NBA overall.

Collin Sexton, CLE vs. CHI ($4,700): Sexton has seen a significant price drop over the last several games, but he'll check into Sunday's contest having scored 20.1 and 29.5 fantasy points in his last two games, respectively. Sexton has scored in double digits in four straight overall, and he'll draw a matchup Sunday that could prove very conducive to similarly strong production. The Bulls are ranked in the bottom 10 with 47.1 fantasy points allowed per game to point guards, along with the fifth-highest shooting percentage (45.4) to the position. It's also worth noting Sexton is draining an impressive 39.7 percent of his three-point attempts, while Chicago is allowing the fourth-most made threes (2.8) per game to ones.

SHOOTING GUARD

Jordan Clarkson, CLE vs. CHI ($5,400): Clarkson sets up as an appealing option himself in the Cavs' backcourt, considering the Bulls have also had a certain vulnerability to shooting guards. Chicago is allowing 38.2 fantasy points to twos, including the fourth-most made threes (3.2). Clarkson has scored 27.6 to 37 fantasy points in his last five games, excellent returns on his current price and is taking a career-high 5.2 three-point attempts per contest. His overall usage is up over the last five contests as well, as Clarkson has averaged just under 18 shot attempts per game over that span.

Jaylen Brown, BOS vs. CHA ($4,100)
: Brown appears somewhat mispriced relative to upside, despite some recent inconsistency. Brown is coming off a 44.4 fantasy-point effort versus the Bucks on Friday, and he also has tallies of 31.9, 38.5 and 25.6 over his last seven games. The matchup is a juicy one Sunday as well, as the Hornets have allowed the sixth-most fantasy points to shooting guards (42.1), along with the seventh-most assists (5.0) and sixth-most made threes (3.1) to twos. Charlotte yields the second-highest shooting percentage (46.7) to the position overall, while Brown has drained better than 50 percent of his attempts in five of his last nine contests.

SMALL FORWARD

E'Twaun Moore, NO at SAC ($4,400): Moore was running red hot earlier in the season before going through a slump, but he appears to be clawing his way back to productivity recently. The veteran wing has scored 19.4 and 21.4 fantasy points in two of his last three games, modest totals that nevertheless represent an uptick for him compared to the pair of consecutive single-digit tallies he'd generated earlier in the month. His Sunday matchup could facilitate another improvement, as the Kings have allowed the fourth-most points (22.4), fourth-most assists (4.1) and sixth-highest shooting percentage (44.9) to small forwards.

Evan Turner, POR vs. DAL ($4,100): Turner's price is very reasonable for a player averaging 21.4 fantasy points per game and scored over 20 fantasy points in three of his last five games. His production naturally fluctuates in his bench role, but his price is affordable enough where that's a tolerable risk to assume. His matchup Sunday also inspires confidence, as the Mavericks have allowed 40.3 fantasy points per game to small forwards, along with the sixth-most assists (4.0) to the position per contest. Turner also racked up 26 fantasy points more than 29 minutes against Dallas in his one prior meeting with them this season, furthering his case.

POWER FORWARD

Jerami Grant, OKC vs. MIN ($5,200): Grant naturally flies under the radar considering who he shares the floor with, but he's been offering excellent complementary production in most games this season. That much was evident again Saturday, when the emerging big totaled 31.4 fantasy points versus the Jazz, his second game over 30 fantasy points in the last four games. Grant has also crossed the 20-mark on two other occasions over the last five overall, making his price Sunday especially appealing. The Timberwolves' weaknesses against power forwards serve to clinch Grant's value-play candidacy, as Minnesota has allowed 46.4 fantasy points per game to fours, along with bottom-10 figures in both assists (3.9) and made threes (2.3) per game surrendered to the position.

Taj Gibson, MIN at OKC ($4,000): Gibson is in play on the other side of the individual matchup versus Grant, as OKC also sports subpar numbers versus power forwards. The Thunder checks in allowing the third-most fantasy points per game to fours (49.2), a byproduct of OKC allowing the third-most points (24.0) and fourth-most rebounds (12.2) to the position. Gibson has scored 27.8 and 24.9 fantasy points in two of his last three games, giving him more than enough potential upside to deliver a strong return on his bargain price.

CENTER

Kevon Looney, GS vs. LAC ($3,900): Looney isn't a bad way to go if you're looking to pay down at center, considering he's flashed a ceiling north of 30 fantasy points this season and has crossed the 20-mark in four of his last eight games. His minutes have been locked into the high teens-low 20s recently, giving him more than enough opportunity to exploit a Clippers defense that's been vulnerable to bigs all season. Los Angeles is allowing the fourth-most fantasy points per game to centers (60.0), along with the second-most points (26.6) and fourth-most assists (4.0) per contest to fives. They're also yielding the fourth-most points in the paint per game (51.9), while Looney is logging 74 percent of his scoring in that area of the floor.

The author(s) of this article may play in daily fantasy contests including – but not limited to – games that they have provided recommendations or advice on in this article. In the course of playing in these games using their personal accounts, it's possible that they will use players in their lineups or other strategies that differ from the recommendations they have provided above. The recommendations in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of RotoWire. Juan Carlos Blanco plays in daily fantasy contests using the following accounts: DraftKings: jcblanco22, FanDuel: jc_blanco22, DraftPot: jc_blanco22, FantasyDraft: jc_blanco22, OwnThePlay: jcblanco22.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Juan Carlos Blanco
Winner of the FSWA 2016 Newcomer of the Year Award, Juan Carlos Blanco has been playing fantasy sports for over 20 years and covers NBA, MLB, NFL, CFL and Arena Football for Rotowire.com, including serving as the beat writer for teams in multiple sports. He has previously written for KFFL.com and remains an avid season-long and daily fantasy player in multiple sports as well.
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