If you're playing daily fantasy basketball on Thursday, read on to find out the players we're building around and the ones we're avoiding when constructing our lineups.
Players to build around
Jim McCormick -- Markieff Morris, Washington Wizards
Averaging 18.2 points and 9.2 boards over his past 13 starts, Morris is enjoying one of the better sustained stretches of production of his career. Finally fulfilling his potential as a capable 3-and-D forward, Morris is enjoying a rewarding usage rate of 22.3 percent to go with a true shooting clip of 58.1 percent in 2017. The Lakers have ceded the most fantasy points per game to power forwards on FanDuel this season, while they also claim the worst defensive rating in the league. With reasonable pricing still in place, Morris is well positioned to exceed value in a plus matchup tonight.
Renee Miller -- David Lee, San Antonio Spurs
Lee's price has come down recently thanks to the addition of David Bertrans to the starting lineup for the Spurs, which is great. That's especially true tonight as LaMarcus Aldridge, who had temporarily taken over Lee's starting spot at center, is ruled out with a sore knee. Philadelphia is literally the league's best fantasy matchup for opposing centers. The Spurs are big favorites at home, but still expected to score a ton of points in a faster paced contest with the 76ers. Lee is an affordable piece to build around who provides a high enough floor for cash games and enough upside for tournaments and fills this semi-scarce position. Pair him with Markieff Morris and you have room for the stars of your choosing.
Kyle Soppe -- John Wall and Bradley Beal, Washington Wizards
With all of the spreads tonight opening up at nine points or greater, it is impossible to outrun game-flow risk on this short slate. The Lakers are among the five worst defenses in preventing fantasy points to guards this season regardless of what site you play on, and a game against Washington doesn't feel like a spot to cure those ills. Both Wall and Beal have been considerably more efficient at home this season and, well, the Lakers aren't staying in front of people these days (in their last six games, the Lakers have allowed the Nuggets, twice, and the Mavericks to score at least 116 points). Vegas like the Wiz to flirt with 115-120 points and if they are right (and they normally are), you can count on this backcourt to lead your DFS squad tonight.
Joe Kaiser -- Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors
Yes, it's the second of a back-to-back, but Curry is red-hot right now. He made 11 3s in the blowout win over Charlotte on Wednesday and nine 3s in the game before that at Portland. Curry is bargain priced in this game against the rival Clippers. With Chris Paul out, Curry should have the space to put up another huge game, and he's a particularly great bargain on DraftKings, where he's priced below $9,000. Remember, too, that the Clippers are also on the second of a back-to-back, coming off a win in Phoenix last night.
Players to fade
Jim McCormick -- Jahlil Okafor, Philadelphia 76ers
On a four-game slate, we often seek value via increases in minutes, but even as Joel Embiid is sidelined for Philly tonight, I'm not buying shares of Okafor and his potential uptick in usage and opportunity. With such poor defensive rates while on the court, Okafor makes it difficult for coach Brett Brown to leave him on the floor for sustained stretches, while his offensive game tends to clog what has become one of the better passing schemes of the past month. I'd rather look to Kelly Oubre or David Lee than Okafor among the value-driven forward options tonight.
Renee Miller -- Draymond Green, Golden State Warriors
I know I just said PF is a bit scarce tonight, and then have to rub it in Green's face by going out of my way to fade him. There are games where I love the guy, but not tonight. Not only is he averaging significantly fewer fantasy points vs. the Clippers this season, Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson are hot fire right now, and then there is that other guy (Kevin Durant) on the court using a lot of possessions, too. Green is taking a backseat right now, and not only am I looking to roster as few PFs as possible tonight, I'm looking to do it for less salary.
Kyle Soppe -- DeAndre Jordan, LA Clippers
I'm not paying up for the highest priced rebounding specialist on the board. Ever. That burns me on occasion, but for the most part it has worked out fine and I anticipate it doing so again tonight. Jordan's always low shot total is trending downward in the three games since Blake Griffin returned to the lineup (he was averaging one shot every 4.5 minutes, a rate that has dropped to once every 7.7 minutes since Griffin returned), not to mention two of his three lowest minute totals this season have come in his last two games. I'm saving a few bucks and going with Dwight Howard tonight, allowing me to get my Wizards stack and still feel good about the rest of my lineup.
Joe Kaiser -- JaVale McGee, Golden State Warriors
There are going to be a lot of people who jump on the McGee bandwagon tonight, and it's easy to understand why -- Zaza Pachulia is out and McGee is minimum priced on both DraftKings and FanDuel. So why am I fading him? Because last night against Charlotte was the most he's played all season and he was only on the court for 17 minutes. I realize it's a down night at the center position, and that if there was ever a time to punt here this is probably it, but just realize there's a good chance McGee won't get you much more then 15-20 DFS points simply because he's not on the court long enough. Also, he's matched up against DeAndre Jordan, the game's leading rebounder with 13.8 RPG, and that isn't exactly ideal for a player like McGee who relies heavily on rebounds to accumulate DFS points.
