Now that the NBA season is well under way, statistics are starting to get a little bit more accurate of a player’s true ability, and that means that you will now be able to make more informed and accurate decisions when it comes to drafting your daily fantasy basketball rosters.
We’ll start by looking at one of the most hyped games of the night for Friday.
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Cleveland Cavaliers at New York Knicks
The Cavs are still the number two team projected to win the NBA Championship this year, and although the Knicks had a bit more attention paid to them preseason than they have warranted so far, they still have a decent team. The Cavs have a 7-1 record and the Knicks are clocking in with a record of 4-5. The big name on the Cavs, of course, is LeBron James. He’s currently the number three forward in the NBA when it comes to points per game. The Knicks have Carmelo Anthony at this slot, and he’s ranked as the number six point scorer in the NBA. Either of these players will be great fantasy picks for Friday, with James having the edge. James has a better ability to help his teammates out, though, with a much higher number of assists. This gives him the obvious fantasy advantage, but his elevated price may drive people away from selecting him. If you can fit him in on your salary, he’s a strong choice at forward.
At guard, the Cavs’ strongest player is Mo Williams. He’s averaging just 16.5 points per game, though, which knocks him down into the second tier category. Players like Stephen Curry and James Harden are killing the NBA in points per game this season at this position with around 30 points per game. 16.5 is good, but definitely not what your top choice should be. For the Knicks, their top guard is currently Langston Galloway. At 11.3 points per game, he’s low enough on the overall list that he probably doesn’t have a spot on your fantasy roster, unless you are trying to find a dirt cheap player. However, against the Cavs, he should not be a choice even given the dirt cheap qualifier as he’s unlikely to come close to double digit scoring.
Philadelphia 76ers at Oklahoma City Thunder
The 76ers haven’t won a game yet this year. Most Vegas bookies have them listed as the team least likely to win the NBA Championship, too. And when you take a great team like the Thunder and put them against the 76ers, there is a lot of potential for Thunder players to have big nights. The obvious choice is Kevin Durant, but he’s not the only one you should consider when healthy. If you can find a lesser player that is likely to get minutes, you can get them for very cheap and still be sure that they will put up a good amount of fantasy points.
For example, Enes Kanter is averaging 12.4 points per game and getting about 21 minutes of playing time. In a game situation like this, there’s a good chance that both of these numbers will be much higher. However, because Kanter is not a big name center, Kanter is going to be extremely cheap in price. Because of the weaker competition, that means he is a high value player. The same is true of Dion Waiters at forward. He gets about 25 minutes or so per game and is averaging 10.6 points per game, but there’s a big chance that these numbers will be elevated because of a weaker opponent and more playing time. Situations like this occur far more often in the NBA than other major sports, so pay attention to this.
Anthony photo by.
