Which players should you build around and which players should you fade in DFS as we tip off Tuesday's NBA action? Our experts have the answers.
Today's panel includes ESPN Fantasy's Joe Kaiser, Kyle Soppe and Andre Snellings.
Players to build around
Joe Kaiser -- DeMar DeRozan, Toronto Raptors
DeRozan and backcourt mate Kyle Lowry are both excellent plays on Tuesday thanks to the favorable matchup against the Suns, a team that just played last night and scored an upset win over the 76ers. Phoenix's troublesome defense has been particularly bad at slowing down guards, ranking in the bottom five in the league in DFS points allowed to both point guards and shooting guards, and this presents a major opportunity for DeRozan - one of the best pure scorers in the league.
Kyle Soppe - Kyle Lowry, Toronto Raptors
Russell Westbrook is a fine, but I'm opting to dip into the second tier of point guard (Westbrook himself makes up the entire top tier) and spend evenly across the board on this short slate. Listen, Lowry's usage is down a bit from last season, but I'll bet on that regressing to the mean and I've been impressed with his rebounding this season (1.5 more rebounds than he averaged last season). The well-rounded nature of Lowry's game and ability to get hot from distance (if you haven't noticed, he's nailed 20 of 36 3-pointers over the last 11 days) are enough to convince me that he offers more production per dollar tonight against a Suns team allowing the most fantasy points to point guards this season than Westbrook.
Andre Snellings -- Tyler Ulis, Phoenix Suns
This is a high-risk/high-value pick. Ulis has been splitting time with Mike James since Eric Bledsoe sent the infamous Beauty Shop Tweet, which has kept both of their values fairly low. However, James is in the midst of an extremely unique contract situation. He signed a two-way contract, which is something like a 45-day contract in which the player usually plays primarily in the development league, and it expires on Wednesday. He and the Suns haven't come to an agreement on an extension yet, and if they don't then he could leave the team. Seemingly as a result, the team relied more heavily on Ulis, who played 37 minutes on Monday to James' five. Ulis took advantage of his larger role to turn in a 12 point, 12 assist double-double. If this playing time ratio continues on Tuesday, Ulis could be a high-volume point guard option at minimum player prices.
Bonus: Alec Burks of the Utah Jazz has had two straight dominant scoring efforts with Rodney Hood injured, and he is also still widely available at low prices.
Players to fade
Joe Kaiser -- Bradley Beal, Washington Wizards
Beal has scored under 22 DFS points in three of the last four games but on a short slate he is going to still be a very tempting option at shooting guard. Anyone who faded him last night against Utah ended up being a step ahead of everyone else, and tonight's game against a Portland defense that ranks fourth in the league is another chance to use the same strategy and fade Beal.
Kyle Soppe - Donovan Mitchell, Utah Jazz
His recent hot streak has his price on the rise and I'm not paying up tonight against the third most efficient defense in basketball. Mitchell is on the second night of a back-to-back and will likely see a lot of Andre Roberson or even Paul George on occasion, both of whom have graded out as top 35 defensive players this season. The usage rate for Mitchell paints a pretty picture for season long players, but a tough matchup, an increase in hype (and thus ownership percentage), and some aggression concerns (more than five free throw attempts just once over the past month), make him a player that I will pass on tonight in an effort to gain on the field.
Andre Snellings -- Russell Westbrook, Oklahoma City Thunder
This is also a risky fade, as Westbrook has been playing very well lately and producing almost at last year's levels. However, he has a lot working against him on Tuesday. For one, he's facing one of the best defenses in the league in the Utah Jazz. It's unclear if Rudy Gobert will play in a back-to-back after just returning from injury, but the Jazz defense is still strong without him and stifling with him. The Jazz also play one of the slowest paces in the league, even slower than the Thunder, which will limit opportunities. Finally, both Carmelo Anthony and Paul George are coming off of single-digit scoring efforts, and much has been made about whether or not Anthony is sacrificing shots to help the team. While it makes a good narrative, it seems likely that there could be some shot/scoring correction on Tuesday which, when combined with the other factors, makes a big game from Westbrook less likely.
