Yahoo DFS Basketball: Saturday Picks

Yahoo DFS Basketball: Saturday Picks

This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Basketball series.

There's no slowing down the NBA on Saturday with eight more games on the schedule, six of which make up the main slate on Yahoo. A few of the teams set to take the floor are dealing with key injuries, setting up the potential for some cheap value play options to pounce on. Here are some players to target and avoid as you create your entry.

GUARDS

Donovan Mitchell, UTA vs. CHI ($32): The Jazz are basically playing without a true point guard with Ricky Rubio (hamstring), Dante Exum (ankle) and Raul Neto (groin) all out. Mitchell stepped into more of a playmaking role Friday against the Lakers and finished with nine assists. He also scored 33 points on his way to a robust 57.3 Yahoo points. This is a great matchup against a horrible Bulls team that has allowed an average of 123.6 points across their last five games.

Kyle Korver, UTA vs. CHI ($10): While Mitchell was spectacular Friday, Korver had a bit of a disappointing performance with just 15.4 Yahoo points. He only played 21 minutes and was 2-for-7 from the field, including 2-for-6 from behind the arc. His lack of rebounding and assist numbers somewhat limit his upside, but if he can get hot from behind the arc, he could provide value. Considering how poorly the Bulls have played defensively, Korver might be a low-owned option in tournament play to take a chance on at the minimum price.

Guard to Avoid

Terry Rozier, BOS at ORL ($16): Now that Kyrie Irving is healthy, it's back to the bench for Rozier. Across three games since Irving returned from an eye injury, Rozier has averaged just 20.5 Yahoo points. When the Celtics have their full allotment of guards like they do at the moment, Rozier just doesn't have enough upside.

FORWARDS

Josh Jackson, PHO vs. DEN ($23): All signs are pointing to the Suns playing shorthanded again Saturday with Devin Booker (back) listed as doubtful. Jackson has started both of the last two games that Booker has missed, scoring 30.3 and 38.7 Yahoo points, respectively. He logged at least 30 minutes in both contests, which has been an important threshold for him this year. Over seven games in which he has logged at least 30 minutes, Jackson has averaged 13.3 points, 5.6 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.3 three-pointers.

Royce O'Neale, UTA vs. CHI ($10): With the Jazz running out of healthy players, O'Neale logged 40 minutes Friday. He's only averaging 16 minutes per contest and hadn't even logged more than 30 minutes in any previous game this season, so the fact he jumped up that significantly was somewhat surprising. Expect him to receive extended run again Saturday, especially since he cashed in his added playing time for 17 points, seven rebounds and two steals.

Forward to Avoid

Jayson Tatum, BOS at ORL ($26): Tatum isn't playing poorly for the Celtics, but he's not a very exciting option in DFS. He's scored 32.8 Yahoo points or fewer in six straight games and has topped 40 Yahoo points in a game only seven times all season. With both of these teams in the bottom-half of the league in pace of play and the Celtics playing with a mostly healthy roster, Tatum might not have a high enough ceiling to warrant this price tag.

CENTERS

Nikola Jokic, DEN at PHO ($47): Jokic had a masterful performance against the Clippers on Thursday, registering a triple-double and 54.8 Yahoo points in just 28 minutes. Had the Nuggets not won that game easily, Jokic could have had an even crazier stat line. He'll have another chance to thrive against the Suns, who have allowed the second-most Yahoo points per game (52.9) to opposing centers. In two previous matchups against them this season, Jokic scored 80.9 and 54.1 Yahoo points, respectively.

Willie Cauley-Stein, SAC vs. CHA ($25): The Kings are fighting to stay in the playoff hunt in the Western Conference. The fact that they are 21-21 is pretty impressive in its own right considering how poorly they've played in recent years. Cauley-Stein has been one of their key contributors and enters Saturday having scored at least 41.3 Yahoo points in three of his last four games. The Hornets are soft in the middle defensively without Cody Zeller (hand), leaving Cauley-Stein with another favorable opportunity to be productive.

Center to Avoid

Wendell Carter Jr., CHI at UTA ($16): Carter has shown signs of becoming a promising player in his rookie season. However, he's had some games where he's been in foul trouble and doesn't always receive consistent playing time. For example, he's played 23 minutes or fewer in three of his last five games. This is certainly a risky spot to deploy him in DFS facing Rudy Gobert, so buyer beware.

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. Mike Barner plays in daily fantasy contests using the following accounts: FanDuel: mbarner, DraftKings: mbarner51.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Mike Barner
Mike started covering fantasy sports in 2007, joining RotoWire in 2010. In 2018, he was a finalist for the FSWA Basketball Writer of the Year award. Mike also won the 2022-23 FSGA NBA Experts Champions league. In addition to RotoWire, Mike has written for Sportsline, Sports Illustrated, DK Live, RealTime Fantasy Sports, Lineup Lab and KFFL.com.
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