3 NBA DraftKings Value Plays to Target on 3/9/18

Mario Hezonja, SF/PF, Orlando Magic

DraftKings Salary: $4,200

The Orlando Magic will be without both Aaron Gordon and Evan Fournier tonight, and could potentially be missing D.J. Augustin, which opens up huge minutes for several guys in a terrific matchup against the Sacramento Kings. The most obvious plug-and-play vlaue of the bunch is Mario Hezonja, who needs just 21 DraftKings points to pay off his price tag and has averaged 31 minutes and 30.2 DraftKIngs points in 16 games as a starter this season.

A more under-the-radar value is Jonathon Simmons ($4,700), who may go a bit overlooked with a plethora of salary-saving options tonight. Simmons has seen a huge boost in usage in 345 minutes with Gordon, Fournier, and Elfrid Payton off the court this season, posting a 30.1% usage rate that is up 7.9% from his season average. Hezonja has a higher DraftKings points per minute (0.90) than Simmons (0.86) during that span and is the preferred cash-game option at a $500 discount, but Simmons is still very appealing in tournaments with such a hefty usage rate.

Both should exceed value at their respective price points, and both become even stronger values if Augustin does end up sitting. In that instance, Shelvin Mack ($3,800) would also become a very appealing punt play.