Well, pricing wasn’t adjusted very well across the industry leaving us with a LOT of extremely viable options to play across all formats and across all platforms. I’m here to try and help decipher which are the elite value options.
DraftKings
Brandon Clarke , MEM PF/C -- $4,800
Jaren Jackson Jr. has been ruled out of this game, which means we’re going to see Brandon Clarke in an extended role. Clarke is coming off his best game as a pro notching a 16-point, 11-rebound double-double along with three steals and two blocks. Clarke hasn’t played north of 26 minutes yet this year, but that’s mainly because he’s been backing up both starters of the Grizzlies front-court. Clarke has averaged 1.14 FP/min this year which is actually better than Jaren Jackson Jr. The match-up against Houston is a doozy as the Rockets rank dead last in DvP and rank 29th in DRtg. Let’s not overlook how fast a pace this game will be played at considering both of these teams are in the top-three in pace.
Bruce Brown , DET SG/SF -- $3,200
We thought for a second there was a potential for Blake Griffin to come back and we know Point-Blake can be pretty impressive at times, but he has been ruled out along with Reggie Jackson , Derrick Rose and Tim Frazier . Brown started at point-guard in the Pistons last game scoring 22 actual points, seven assists, two rebounds and two steals. Maybe the two most impressive parts of that outing was the 40 minutes and 20 shot attempts. There is no reason to think that won’t happen again and again, he’s literally free. Even if the minutes are closer to 30 and shot attempts to 10, we’re looking for 16 FP for 5X. Washington is 27th in DRtg and fourth in pace at 107 possessions per game. What more can we ask for? Get ready for chalk city.
Josh Richardson , PHI PG/SG -- $4,600
There are quite a number of value options on today’s slate and one that is flying under-the-radar is seemingly Josh Richardson . Richardson has been very solid since joining Philly and without Joel Embiid -- who’s serving his final game of a suspension -- Richardson owns a 23.3-percent USG rate which is up 2.6-percent from when Embiid is in the lineup. The Suns have actually defended well this season but it’s hard to ignore the price tag and the 223.5 game total this one has even without Embiid. Richardson has scored 30-plus FP in two of his last three games and at this current evaluation, he would put us in a nice spot in both tournaments and cash games.
FanDuel
Dillon Brooks , MEM SG -- $4,400
Things haven’t been smooth sailing to start the season for Brooks, but imagine ignoring someone going up against a defense allowing 126 PPG? Not only ignoring someone, but a player that has scored 16-plus actual points in two-of-three games? The 26 minutes per game is solid and considering we want to jam two, maybe even three stars into our lineups tonight we’re going to need to spend down somewhere. Whether Brooks is spending time at shooting-guard (his primary position) or small-forward, the Rockets rank dead last against both, so he has the advantage either way. Let’s also not forget to mention the fact that Houston is playing the second game of a back-to-back, so their legs could be slightly heavier than normal.
Taurean Prince , BKN SF -- $4,800
Despite back-to-back games in which he’s scored at least 20 actual points, Prince’s price remains under $5,000, so let’s take advantage of that fact shall we? Although the floor seemingly won’t pay off the price tag, the ceiling has been nearly 50, so in a GPP setting it doesn’t get much better than that considering FanDuel’s evaluation of him based on their pricing. We also cannot ignore the fact that this game that opened at 231 has moved SEVEN points up to 238. Prince, an undersized power-forward in Brooklyn’s lineup, gets another undersized PF in Brandon Ingram on the other side of this match-up and NOLA ranks 28th vs. the position this season. With how many shots will be hoisted in this one, Prince has double-digit rebounding upside here, something he’s been able to accomplish twice already this year. If he can piece it all together -- like he did versus Houston -- we could be looking at someone in a lot of winning GPP lineups.
Ky Bowman, GSW PG -- $4,400
This play hinges on the status of D’Angelo Russell. Russell is currently listed as questionable but without him in the lineup against the Hornets, Bowman did a little bit of everything pouring in 16 points with seven rebounds and four assists while coming away with two steals to boot. If Russell sits, the Warriors don’t really have any other players that can handle the ball other than Bowman, which puts them in a situation like they were in against Charlotte where Bowman was on the floor for 38 minutes. Portland is eighth in pace at 106 possessions per game while Golden State is 15th with 103, which is a boost in Bowman’s favor.