NBA

5 Under-the-Radar Daily Fantasy Basketball Plays for 2/1/16

Paul Millsap will go overlooked due to recent poor performance and injury concerns, but he's in a prime spot for a bounce-back.

If you have played daily fantasy sports for a while, you realize by now the importance of being contrarian, especially in large-field tournaments. Being able to recognize which players are going to be owned by the majority of the field and find players that you think have a similar point projection but will come at much lower ownership can really separate yourself from your opponents.

It’s a lot easier in NFL to identify the players who will be low-owned due to Thursday Night slates, but NBA can be much more difficult if you aren’t an experienced player.

The purpose of this article will be to bring you my favorite high-upside players at each position that will likely go overlooked and give you an edge.

Keep in mind when constructing rosters that these are contrarian picks. There is a reason that they will be overlooked by many; they are risky plays. If possible, I’d try to relegate these players to GPP-only use, where their high risk-reward styles make more sense.

Any previous ownership numbers are taken from an assortment of large-field tournaments on DraftKings.

Paul Millsap, PF, Atlanta Hawks

FanDuel Price: $8,400
DraftKings Price: $8,200

Why He Will Go Overlooked:

Paul Millsap's ownership hovered around three to six percent yesterday, which isn't overly surprising considering he was returning from an injury and had a tough matchup. He disappointed those who did roster him, scoring only 24.5 FanDuel points.

Millsap will have to compete with Anthony Davis, the red-hot Ryan Anderson, and young breakout forwards Myles Turner and Aaron Gordon for ownership at power forward. People may be more likely to take a chance on Derrick Favors than Millsap too. Both are returning from an injury and find themselves in a good spot tonight, but Favors is cheaper and performed well in his last game.

Why You Should Use Him:

In the seven games prior to his ankle injury, Millsap was playing some terrific basketball, averaging 42.41 FanDuel points per game. While he put up a dud in his first game back, he was able to play 36 minutes, so he should be all systems go tonight in a much more favorable matchup.

Millsap will clash with Dirk Nowitzki and the Mavericks, who have allowed the fifth most fantasy points to opposing power forwards and allowed Millsap to put up 47.7 FanDuel points against them in a game earlier this season. Nowitzki is ranked 62nd among power forwards in Defensive Real Plus-Minus and 46th in Rebounding Rate. Dallas as a team is 25th in Rebounding Rate.

Giannis Antetokounmpo, SF, Milwaukee Bucks

FanDuel Price: $7,500
DraftKings Price: $7,300

Why He Will Go Overlooked:

There are several ways to go at small forward today, and Giannis Antetokounmpo may get lost in the shuffle. Kevin Durant has a premier matchup and is always a popular option when he plays against Washington due to the narrative that he will sign there this offseason. Rudy Gay is in a great spot too and will be very popular if DeMarcus Cousins sits. Danilo Gallinari and Chandler Parsons have both been playing well and are cheaper than Antetokounmpo.

Within his own team, Antetokounmpo may be overshadowed by Khris Middleton, who has been playing well and draws the notorious "Sacramento versus shooting guards" matchup.

Why You Should Use Him:

While Antetokounmpo hasn't been as consistent as the aforementioned forwards, he has as much upside as any of them. He has five games with 40-plus FanDuel points in his past 10 and two with 50-plus. Tonight's matchup is the perfect opportunity for him to realize that potential.

The Kings have allowed the most points and the second most fantasy points to opposing teams. That should come as no surprise considering they are ranked 23rd in Defensive Efficiency and play at the fastest pace in the NBA.

Antetokounmpo has an enticing individual matchup as well. Rudy Gay boasts a Real Defensive Plus-Minus of -0.61, which ranks 44th among small forwards. The Kings as a team have allowed the ninth most fantasy points to opposing small forwards on the year.

Rudy Gobert, C, Utah Jazz

FanDuel Price: $7,200
DraftKings Price: $6,700

Why He Will Go Overlooked:

Similar to small forward, center is full of viable options tonight. DeMarcus Cousins will likely see relatively high ownership if he is able to play against the Bucks tonight. Brook Lopez has been playing very well lately and will be on everyone's radar tonight. In the same game, Andre Drummond should be popular in a terrific matchup. If Marc Gasol suits up, he will be popular in an elite matchup against the Pelicans. There are some cheap options that have been playing very well too, such as Nikola Jokic, Myles Turner (on DraftKings), Jordan Hill (on FanDuel), and Enes Kanter.

This game also has the lowest over/under on the slate. Don't expect many to make rostering Gobert a priority tonight.

Why You Should Use Him:

Gobert is finally seeing big minutes, averaging 34.42 over his past seven games, and he has turned those into solid fantasy production. Over that stretch, he has topped 35 FanDuel points four times, while averaging 35.8. He's also coming off of a double-double in which he posted 37.4 FanDuel points, even with the return of Derrick Favors, which is encouraging for Gobert's prospects going forward.

Attacking the Chicago frontcourt has paid off for daily fantasy players all year, and we can expect that to continue tonight. The Bulls have given up the eighth most fantasy points to opposing centers and are the seventh most blocked team in the NBA. In Gobert's one start against Chicago last season, he put up 41.5 FanDuel points.

Zaza Pachulia, C, Dallas Mavericks

FanDuel Price: $6,300
DraftKings Price: $5,800

Why He Will Go Overlooked:

As mentioned previously, center is a pretty loaded position tonight. Zaza Pachulia is not a flashy player to roster and almost always goes overlooked. His Sunday ownership ranged from 6 to 10 percent, which is very low considering it was only a six-game slate. With all of the directions to go at center, Pachulia will likely go overlooked again.

Why You Should Use Him:

Pachulia has looked healthy in his two games back, averaging 12.5 points and 13.5 rebounds in 34 minutes per game. He did play 36 minutes last night, and Dallas has shown a tendency to be cautious with his health, so keep an eye on the injury news. Assuming he doesn't sit, Pachulia should put up a big performance in this matchup.

Centers against Atlanta are almost always great plays, especially for rebound-first centers. The Hawks have given up the fourth most fantasy points to opposing centers this season, which is largely due to the individual defense of Al Horford, who owns the 54th best Defensive Real Plus-Minus rank among centers. Atlanta is also dead last in Rebounding Rate and has given up the third most rebounds to opposing centers. In his previous matchup with the Hawks, Pachulia put up 11 points and 17 rebounds on his way to 32.9 FanDuel points.

George Hill, PG, Indiana Pacers

FanDuel Price: $5,600
DraftKings Price: $5,200

Why He Will Go Overlooked:

George Hill almost always goes overlooked, and that should continue tonight with other Pacers playing well recently. Assuming Ian Mahinmi sits again, Hill will probably be the least popular option among Indiana's starting five.

Why You Should Use Him:

Hill hasn't had any huge games recently, but he has pretty consistently hit value, averaging 24.34 FanDuel points per game over his past seven. His minutes are extremely secure with Rodney Stuckey out, as he's played 37.86 minutes per game over his past seven.

While others will chase points with Monta Ellis and Jordan Hill, George Hill is clearly the Pacer with the path of least resistance. The Cavaliers are ranked in the top seven against every position other than point guard, a position to which they have allowed the 14th most fantasy points in the league.

A big reason for their poor defense against point guards is the individual defense of Kyrie Irving, who has a Defensive Real Plus-Minus of -2.72, which ranks 69th among point guards. Since 2012, Hill has played six games against Irving. In those games, Hill has averaged 33.65 FanDuel points per game, which is 8.77 points above his average in other games during that span.