NBA

3 Daily Fantasy Basketball Players to Avoid on 3/6/19

Bogdan Bogdanovic is in a bad spot against the Boston Celtics on Wednesday. Who else are we passing up in NBA DFS tonight?

In daily fantasy basketball, finding players you want to roster is a lot easier than finding players to avoid.

You can find a ton of great information and research on guys you might want to include in your DFS NBA lineups, but what about guys you may want to lessen your exposure to, or even fade altogether?

Avoiding players whose matchups or situations aren't as great as they seem can often be just as important as finding the best targets. After all, it takes only one player to sink a lineup. Searching for the landmines could mean the difference between winning and losing your contests. Which players should we avoid tonight?

Bogdan Bogdanovic, SG, Sacramento Kings

FanDuel Price: $6,500

Over his last four games, Bogdan Bogdanovic has seen an increased role with the Sacramento Kings, averaging over 36 minutes per game. He has been heavily involved in the offense too, taking 15.3 shots per game. Unfortunately, even with the extra minutes and shots, the swingman has scored more than 25.2 FanDuel points just once on the four contests. He is averaging only 22.7 FanDuel points in those three games -- that would come out to just 3.5 FanDuel points per $1,000 at Wednesday's salary.

The issue has been Bogdanovic is shooting just 25.6% from the floor in those three games, while averaging only 4.3 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game. Facing a Boston Celtics team on Wednesday that is coming off a beatdown of the Golden State Warriors, Bogdanovic may find it hard to get back on track.

The Celtics limit small forwards -- where Bogdanovic plays 60% of his minutes -- to 0.82 Fanduel points per minute, the fifth-lowest rate in the NBA. The Celtics also hold opponents to 44.4% shooting from the field, the second-lowest rate in the league.

Cody Zeller, C, Charlotte Hornets

FanDuel Price: $5,700

Since returning from a hand injury about a month ago, Cody Zeller has posted solid DFS numbers. He is averaging 31.1 FanDuel points per game. His hot streak culminating with 28 points, 9 rebounds, 3 blocks, and 58.8 FanDuel points against the Warriors on February 25. Since then, though, he has started to trend backward.

In the last three games, Zeller is averaging just 11.3 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 0.3 blocks for 24.6 FanDuel points. That is closer to his season-long average of 25.3 FanDuel points per game. His minutes have been reduced, too, with the emergence of Frank Kaminsky over the last two games. Zeller saw just 23.9 minutes on Friday and 21.3 on Sunday, the Charlotte Hornets' previous game.

Also hampering his outlook for Wednesday is a difficult matchup against the Miami Heat. The duo of Bam Adebayo and Hassan Whiteside has given opposing centers nightmares in DFS, limiting them to 1.03 FanDuel points per minute, the lowest rate in the NBA this season. The Heat overall rank top six in both points and rebounds allowed, limiting Zeller’s ceiling and usefulness on a busy 10-game slate.

Derrick Rose, PG, Minnesota Timberwolves

FanDuel Price: $5,500

Since late-January, Derrick Rose's minutes have been trending down with the veteran guard having played fewer than 27 minutes in his last 12 games. Over the last week, Rose has played just 22.5 minutes per night for the Minnesota Timberwolves.

In those three games, Rose logged double-digit points in each contest, thanks to some excellent efficiency with his shot, going 21-for-41 (51.2%). That is well above his career rate of 45.3%, meaning there is room for his shot to regress. If Rose's points drop, his fantasy production suffers as his 47 total points over his last three games accounts for 73.5% of his FanDuel points (63.9). Facing a tough defense in the Detroit Pistons on Wednesday won't help Rose rack up lofty scoring numbers, either.

The Pistons allow the eighth-fewest points per game (107.8) as they play at the fifth-slowest pace in the league. Opposing point guards haven't done too well against Detroit, either, as they have racked up the 10th-fewest FanDuel points per minute.


Dale Redman is not a FanDuel employee. The views expressed in his articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.