After a relatively quiet night on Thursday, the schedule is set to ramp up again. There are 10 games on the slate for Friday night for us to work with for NBA fantasy purposes. There will be plenty of options to choose from when it comes to building the ideal lineup for Friday’s DraftKings Daily Fantasy Leagues and the key remains finding the perfect balance between star talent and value sleeper plays. Here is some important fantasy advice to consider for Friday’s NBA action.
Weak Defense To Target: Phoenix Suns
The Suns have been confronted with the inevitable need to at least retool their roster and they have absolutely fallen apart since December. Phoenix has dropped nine of its last 10 to fall to 15-45 and that includes an absolutely brutal 4-24 record on the road this season. The Suns have also fallen to 29th in the NBA in team defense, allowing an average of 107.9 points per game. That should mean a favorable matchup for the Orlando Magic when they host Phoenix on Friday so it makes sense to take advantage of the situation. Orlando hasn’t exactly dominated from a win-loss perspective, but they do have some viable fantasy options available at a reasonable price on DraftKings. Aaron Gordon has averaged 15.6 points, 8.6 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.0 three-point shot per game over the last week of action and might be the best value play from the Magic’s roster at a very reasonable price.
Player Who’s Hot Right Now: Kyle Lowry, Toronto Raptors
Toronto has won a franchise-record 11 straight home games and Kyle Lowry has been among the biggest reasons for their success. The All-Star point guard has averaged a ridiculous 37.5 points, 7.0 assists, 4.5 rebounds, 3.5 steals and 2.5 three-point shots per game over the past seven days and he is still available at a better value on DraftKings than some of the bigger names in the NBA. Since the All-Star break, Lowry is averaging 27.2 points per game, 7.7 assists, 5.0 rebounds, 2.3 threes, 1.7 steals, 6.2 free throws while shooting 57.1% from the field. Those are approaching first-round NBA fantasy numbers. A matchup with Damian Lillard and the visiting Portland Trail Blazers should bring out the best in Lowry so look for him to produce another impressive statistical performance.
Injuries, Rest Create Opportunities For… D.J. Augustin, Shabazz Muhammad
Denver Nuggets guard D.J. Augustin scored more points than minutes played in Wednesday’s win over the Los Angeles Lakers and his production over his last three games makes him worth considering as a value option. Augustin has averaged 19.0 points, 3.3 assists, 2.3 three-point shots and 1.7 rebounds per game over that span so it makes sense to ride the hot hand with Denver set for a favorable matchup when they host the Brooklyn Nets on Friday night.
Meanwhile, Shabazz Muhammad has averaged upwards of 27 minutes per game over the past seven days and has rewarded the Minnesota Timberwolves’ faith in him with some strong production. Muhammad has averaged 14.3 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.0 three-point shot per game over that span and is another intriguing option with the Timberwolves set to visit the Milwaukee Bucks.
Highest Scoring Game Of The Night: WAS @ CLE
The Cleveland Cavaliers were embarrassed by the Washington Wizards with LeBron James on the bench in their last meeting and the expectation is that things will be much different this time around. The Cavaliers are going to be out for revenge. Both teams rank in the top-10 in the NBA in scoring and that should mean another high scoring affair. LeBron would be the obvious star option for a big performance, but there are other value options worth considering with this matchup. J.R. Smith has averaged 10.4 points, 3.4 rebounds, 2.1 three-point shots and 1.1 assists over the past couple of weeks and is a solid value play. Meanwhile, Alan Anderson has provided a spark off the bench for Washington over the last week with 9.3 points, 2.3 rebounds and 2.0 three-point shots per game and might be worth taking a chance on as a deeper sleeper option for Friday night.
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