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.
Players to build around
Andre Snellings -- Kyle Lowry, Toronto Raptors
Lowry started off the season terribly but has slowly turned it up until he is back at his dominant best of late. In his last eight games, he has averaged 21.6 points, 8.4 boards, 7.5 dimes and 1.3 steals, with 4.1 made treys. He also has a great matchup on Friday against an Indiana Pacers squad that has allowed the fourth-most fantasy points to opposing point guards in their past five games.
Bonus: Stephen Curry faces an Orlando Magic defense that has allowed the most fantasy points to opposing point guards in the NBA over the past five- and 10-game stretches. If Curry's hand feels better, he could also go off.
Kyle Soppe -- Buddy Hield, Sacramento Kings
After missing a pair of games, Hield proved he was healthy with 27 points and five rebounds against the Clippers on Saturday. While I'll admit that his production can be spotty, if you're going to roll the dice on a player like him, you're doing it against a team like Chicago (third-least-efficient defense) on the second night of a back-to-back. The lack of talent in Sacramento keeps the ball in Hield's aggressive hands (his usage rate is higher than that of Harrison Barnes or Andrew Wiggins), something I'm willing to take to the bank against a defense that held opponents to the fifth-lowest true shooting percentage last season but is allowing the sixth-highest rate this season.
Renee Miller -- Dwight Howard, Charlotte Hornets
The top center options are hurt or playing in Utah tonight, and while there are a couple of value plays at the position (Bam Adebayo or Kelly Olynyk), I'm rolling with a high-floor, high-ceiling player in Howard. He is working on six consecutive double-doubles and has at least one steal or block in each of those, plus a few assists here and there. He should enjoy slightly higher usage tonight with Kemba Walker missing a second consecutive game and faces a Miami Heat team lacking Hassan Whiteside. He is perfectly poised for a 50-plus fantasy point night.
Players to avoid
Andre Snellings -- DeMarcus Cousins, New Orleans Pelicans
Cousins has slowed down his torrid pace from earlier in the season. While the 17.8 points, 9.5 boards, 4.5 assists and 2.8 combined steals/blocks, with 4.7 turnovers, that he has averaged in his past six games is still a good stat line overall, it is not worth his near-max price in DFS platforms like FanDuel or DraftKings. Also, on Friday he faces a Jazz defense that has allowed the fewest fantasy points to opposing centers in the past five games, including stifling Nikola Jokic and DeAndre Jordan in their last two games. Plus, teammate Anthony Davis is coming off a game in which he was thrown out for the first time in his NBA career, and he could be looking to put a big number on the board himself on Friday.
Kyle Soppe -- Paul George, Oklahoma City Thunder
The struggle right now for George is real, and standing opposite Jimmy Butler doesn't figure to be the cure. For season-long and daily players alike, George's willingness to settle is a major concern (career-high average distance of shot and just nine free throw attempts over his past five games), as his production floor is much lower than in years past. The T-Wolves are still trying to figure out things on the defensive end (23rd in defensive efficiency), but Butler has been a top-30 defender in terms of defensive RPM and has the ability to physically match up with George. There is more downside with George tonight than I am willing to tolerate at this price point.
Renee Miller -- Arron Afflalo, Orlando Magic
Since shooting guard is a position where I frequently like to save on big slates, I thought I'd offer thoughts on Afflalo. Amid rampant speculation among fantasy hoops people, Orlando head coach Frank Vogel said Afflalo was in line to absorb a lot of Terrence Ross' minutes. I expect that comment to draw some people in, but Afflalo has hardly played this season, and when he has been on the court, it's been largely unimpressive. The last thing I want from a bargain play is under 0.5 fantasy points per minute. I, too, want to take advantage of what should be a fun, fast-paced and high-scoring game (depending a little bit on the Warriors' starters), but I'm going with Aaron Gordon, Evan Fournier or Jonathon Simmons over Afflalo tonight.
