Which players should you build around and which players should you fade in DFS as we tip off Friday's NBA action? Our experts have the answers.
Today's panel includes ESPN Fantasy's Kyle Soppe, Jim McCormick and Joe Kaiser, plus DFS expert Renee Miller.
Players to build around
Renee Miller -- Evan Fournier, Orlando Magic
There is a cluster of guards in this price range ($7K) who I want to load up on, including Fournier, D'Angelo Russell and, on FanDuel, Victor Oladipo. Across positions, we can find quality midrange plays in great, fast-paced, high-scoring matchups. Fournier makes building-block status, not just because he has been a scoring machine this season (20-plus points in seven of eight games), but because the Magic will be without both Elfrid Payton and D.J. Augustin versus the Bulls, who are a terrific guard matchup for fantasy. Frank Vogel has indicated that Fournier could play some point, and at various times this season he has notched 8-9 rebounds and 4-5 assists to go along with his average of 1.4 steals per game. He has the right combination of floor and upside for tonight's busy slate.
Joe Kaiser -- Kyle Kuzma, Los Angeles Lakers
With Larry Nance Jr. sidelined indefinitely due to a broken hand, Kuzma goes from a good value to a great value, and you're not going to have many more days to get him under $6,000, like you can tonight. Making matters even better, the Lakers face a bad Brooklyn team that loves to run -- a style that fits Kuzma perfectly and will allow for extra possessions. The rookie first-rounder wowed on national TV on Thursday night, and he's going to do more of the same against the Nets on Friday ... at a discounted price.
Kyle Soppe -- D'Angelo Russell, Brooklyn Nets
Russell has impressed and yet, over the last two weeks, his price is up only 3.9 percent. What does this man have to do to get some love? I mean, he ranks second in the league in usage rate (not just on the Nets or among points guards, second in the entire league) while playing for the fastest-paced team. I'd take him in just about any matchup, but he faces a questionable Lakers defense that is going to have some heavy legs after playing a tight game last night and losing Nance for the foreseeable future. Yikes! I see no reason why Russell can't at least reach his season averages (21.7 PPG, 5.0 APG, and 4.1 RPG), something that would return value, with room for much, much more. Also ... #RevengeNarrative
Jim McCormick -- Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers
It's unclear if Myles Turner will be active for Indiana, but we can expect Embiid to net enough direct matchups with Domantas Sabonis to make this one of the more attractive matchups of the slate. The Pacers are allowing opponents to make 64.4 percent of shots from within 5 feet of the basket, the fourth-highest rate in the league. Embiid, meanwhile, is fifth in the NBA in usage rate -- a measure of team plays an individual player consumes -- and just topped 30 minutes for the first time in his career this past Wednesday. It's also worth noting Embiid is beginning to cut down on his turnovers with an eye on deftly passing out of double teams, which he regularly attracts, as his career-high six assists against Atlanta recently confirms. The price isn't so lofty for Embiid, but his fantasy ceiling is well above 50 points.
Players to fade
Renee Miller -- LaMarcus Aldridge, San Antonio Spurs
Despite liking the midrange quite a bit tonight, one player I'll be fading is Aldridge. He's coming off a superb individual effort vs. Golden State, during which he scored 24 points (two 3-pointers) while nabbing 10 rebounds, 2 blocks and 2 steals. We know how Gregg Popovich likes to manage his star players, and the last time the Spurs played in a back-to-back, Aldridge's minutes dropped precipitously from 36 MPG in Game 1 -- also what he played last night -- to 26 MPG in Game 2. So rather than chase last night's stat line with Aldridge, I'll be checking out some lower-priced forwards who I think can return more value, e.g. Ryan Anderson vs. Atlanta Hawks, Kuzma vs. Nets, or Marvin Williams vs. the Spurs.
Joe Kaiser -- Kelly Oubre Jr., Washington Wizards
Markieff Morris is set to make his 2017-18 debut tonight, and Oubre is expected to be one of the players most heavily impacted. Expect Oubre to play 5-10 fewer minutes than he was without Morris, which will limit his upside in this game against LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. Daily fantasy basketball is a game of opportunity, and with less of it, Oubre's value drops.
Kyle Soppe -- Paul George, Oklahoma City Thunder
The early returns on George haven't been that bad, but he comes with more downside than upside in this spot against the most efficient defense in basketball this season. He is relying as much on the deep ball as ever (career-high average depth of field goal attempt) and his decline in versatility is scary. Over the past two games, he has played 58 minutes, and the Thunder have scored 211 points ... and I have as many assists as George has in those games. With my building block, I viewed the season-average stat line as more of a floor, but for George, I feel that his 19.6 points, 2.1 assists, 4.4 rebounds and 2.4 steals are more representative of his ceiling tonight. There is no shortage at either forward spot so you have plenty of other options to consider.
Jim McCormick -- Jeremy Lamb, Charlotte Hornets
I was tempted to also include the Wizards' Oubre as a fade, but with an eye on offering more options, let's also fade Lamb. His price has risen over the past two weeks as a reflection of his steady minutes and scoring rates, but we should avoid this meeting with a stingy San Antonio defense, which is allowing the sixth-fewest fantasy points per game to shooting guards. Given just how dependent on scoring production Lamb has proved, I think it's wise to look for value plays such as Terrence Ross or Taurean Prince instead of Lamb.
