NBA

5 Daily Fantasy Basketball Value Plays for 2/24/16

Looking for value plays for tonight's slate of games? We've selected five players who will help propel your lineup to success.

One of the keys to finding success in daily fantasy basketball is uncovering potential value plays. If you're looking to roster a stud player or two, you'll need to find one of these lower-priced options to squeeze everyone into your lineup.

Let's take a look at five guys -- prices according to FanDuel -- who can help fill the gaps in your lineup tonight. Of course, remember to check our projections closer to tip because so much can change in the NBA throughout the day.

Deron Williams, PG, Dallas Mavericks

FanDuel Price: $6,000

Deron Williams  finds himself in what should be an exploitable situation this evening, facing off against a Thunder team that is allowing the fourth most FanDuel points per game to opposing point guards. While his matchup with Russell Westbrook itself isn't exactly inviting -- Westbrook has an impressive Defensive Real Plus-Minus of 1.23, fourth among all point guards -- the fantasy production allowed to the position by OKC combined with the evening's highest over/under of 214.5 certainly are.

Williams has had a propensity for throwing up a random dud throughout the year -- he has seven games with fewer than 15 FanDuel points on the season -- but he is coming off of back-to-back nice games, having posted 29.6 and 40.3 FanDuel points in his two post All-Star Break appearances.

With this game projected to be close throughout, expect Williams to see plenty of playing time, which should allow him ample opportunity to return solid value tonight.

Jamal Crawford, SG, Los Angeles Clippers

FanDuel Price: $4,900

It will be tough to click on Jamal Crawford's name and lock him into your lineup this evening, and we understand the hesitation. His performance on Monday was potentially the worst we've seen fantasy-wise from a player who didn't suffer an injury this year.

If he burned you, you're not alone. Remember that.

And we don't mean remember it in a support-group style "we're here for you" manner. We mean it in a "let's take advantage of recency bias and make money" kind of way.

Crawford was so highly owned -- 40 to 50% in many tournaments, higher in cash games -- that a vast majority of people who played on Monday likely had some exposure to him. That means they're having those same concerns and are highly likely to scroll right past his name this evening when setting lineups.

Because of Jeff Green's play on Monday, fading Crawford in cash games is likely advisable, as we can't be truly positive how he'll affect Crawford's role moving forward. But in tournaments, Crawford has a decent enough matchup against the Nuggets to warrant consideration at his reduced price.

Vince Carter, SF, Memphis Grizzlies

FanDuel Price: $3,800

Vince Carter will likely be a fairly chalky play this evening, as he's near minimum price and has averaged 25.85 FanDuel points and 28.28 minutes in the past two games. It also doesn't hurt that the matchup against the Lakers is highly exploitable as well.

Though listed at small forward on FanDuel, Carter will likely see the majority of his minutes at shooting guard against Los Angeles. The Lakers are allowing the fifth most FanDuel points per game to opposing small forwards on the season and are weak against opposing wings in general.

Confirm Tony Allen's availability before locking Carter into your lineup this evening, as his status hasn't been confirmed at the time of this writing.

Bobby Portis, PF, Chicago Bulls

FanDuel Price: $4,300

Chicago is set to face off against Washington in what is projected to be a fairly high-scoring, close game this evening. The over/under sits at 210 and the spread is set at just one. Bobby Portis has been playing well of late and will offer us a chance to get exposure to this game at a reduced cost.

Portis has now topped 20 FanDuel points and 20 minutes in six of his previous seven games. While he is a good bet to reach value, don't necessarily expect a massive game from him tonight, as the Wizards are middle of the pack in terms of production allowed to the position on the season and have had success in limiting the amount of big games from opposing power forwards. But as a punt play, Portis should make for a fine option.

Robin Lopez, C, New York Knicks

FanDuel Price: $6,000

Considering his price tag, Robin Lopez offers really nice upside that is generally reserved for players priced a tier or two above where he's at. Unfortunately, he's also a highly volatile player who has extreme downside as well.

Over his past eight games, Lopez has exceed 38 FanDuel points on four occasions, but he has also managed to score fewer than 20 three times as well. It's this volatility that keeps his price in check, but it also pushes him towards more of a tournament play.

The matchup against Indiana is acceptable enough -- they're just above league average in fantasy production allowed to opposing centers -- to keep Lopez and his high ceiling in play this evening.

On a night where we have a number of big-name centers in play, Lopez's ownership should be fairly low, and paying down for him will provide a chance to differentiate your lineup a bit from the masses.