Due to technical difficulties today's starting five video will be done in written form, apologies to all who enjoy the videos. Expect the video form back for tomorrow's main slate!
That said, lets get into today's starting five where I bring you my top plays at each position!
Point Guard
Russell Westbrook , WAS - Westbrook has been phenomenal in recent games, going for 50 and 73 fantasy points in matchups against the Blazers and Nets. Tonight comes another solid spot against the Heat in a game with a total of 230 which is the second highest on the slate. Miami ranks 18th in DvP against the point guard position this season and quite frankley, Westbrook is far too cheap on both DraftKings and FanDuel tonight.
Shooting Guard
Norman Powell , TOR - Lets get it! Powell has been a lineup staple since OG Anunoby has been out with an injury and here he gets one of the best matchups in the NBA as the Raptors face a Nets team that plays zero defense. This matchup has a slate high 239.5 game total with just a 5.5 point spread so Vegas is thinking high scoring and close. Powell has at least 30 FP in each game since he has entered the starting lineup while scoring at least 37 FP in each of the last three contests.
Small Forward
Kevin Durant , BKN - LOL, I mean why on earth is Durant under $10,000 on DK tonight? The Raptors are the worst defensive team in the NBA against opposing small forwards and power forwards. Durant, though overshawdowed in recent games by James Harden and Kyrie Irving is in a spot to smash tonight. He was honestly the first person I put in my lineups. As I mentioned above, this game has a nice 239.5 game total and Durant has 60 FP upside here.
Power Forward
Jayson Tatum , BOS - Jaylen Brown has been ruled out for tonight's game which means Tatum is going to absorb a ton of usage. On the year with BOTH Jaylen Brown and Marcus Smart off the floor Tatum has a 34.4% usage rate while averaging 1.42 FP/Min. Sure, the matchup against Kawhi Leonard may seem a bit daunting and a reason to avoid but truthfully, Tatum is going to get his 20+ shots here regardless and his ability to contribute across five categories makes him an appealing and possibly low owned play.
Center
Thaddeus Young , CHI - Young has center eligibilty now after playing the majority of his minutes at the position following the injury to Wendell Carter . Since moving into this new role we have seen Thad thrive, scoring at least 38 DK points in four straight games. While Nikola Vucevic is a great offensive player, his defense is nothing to write home about . Thad has also been a fantastic source of blocks and steals which included a five stream game just the other night against the Knicks.