Daily Fantasy Basketball Game Scripts to Target on 3/17/17

Al Horford, C, Boston Celtics

FanDuel Price: $6,500

Al Horford has played much better since taking a couple games off to rest his elbow and has posted double-digit point totals in all four games, most recently dropping 20 points and 45.8 FanDuel points against the Minnesota Timberwolves. He's also been distributing the ball quite well, with at least six assists in three of those four games. With Isaiah Thomas out, he will likely be asked to take on an even larger role as a facilitator.

According to RotoGrinders' Court IQ, Horford has been one of the biggest beneficiaries of court time without Thomas this season, with a 2.3% increase in usage rate and a 0.10 increase in FanDuel points per minute. His 1.08 FanDuel points per minute with Thomas off the floor leads the Boston Celtics.

Boston has a perfect draw for their players to benefit from the absence of Thomas, as they face the Brooklyn Nets. Brooklyn leads the league in pace and ranks 28th in both defensive efficiency and rebounding rate, which is a near perfect formula for success for opposing bigs. As such, it should come as no surprise that they have allowed the fourth-most FanDuel points to opposing centers.

Boston is expected to see a near 6-point improvement over their season scoring average as a result, currently boasting the second-highest implied team total (113.25 points). There's some blowout risk, with an eight-point spread, but Boston's increase in scoring should be enough to make up for it.

Center is deep enough today that Horford isn't a must-play in cash games, but he is definitely a viable play in any format.