NBA

3 Daily Fantasy Basketball Players to Avoid on 11/3/17

Jordan Sharp  —  @TehSharp Nov 3rd, 2017
Detroit's Tobias Harris is in a tough spot on Friday against Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks. Who else should you avoid on this big NBA DFS slate?

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 only takes one player to sink a lineup. Searching for the landmines could mean the difference from winning or losing your contests.

Tobias Harris, PF, Detroit Pistons

FanDuel Price: $6,700

Tobias Harris is having an outstanding start to the season for the Detroit Pistons, averaging 29.6 FanDuel points and 20.5 real life points per game. However, a matchup with Giannis Antetokounmpo is looming on Friday, which is not the greatest spot for Detroit's power forward.

Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks are holding power forwards to just 0.82 FanDuel points per minute this year, and while Harris has posted some big numbers against Antetokounmpo in the past, overall it's been underwhelming.

Over their last seven meetings with one another, Harris is averaging just 27.6 FanDuel points per game, which is not enough value for his salary of $6,700 tonight. Our models project Harris for 27.2 FanDuel points on Friday, so it's best to lay off him against the Greek Freak.

Jonas Valanciunas, C, Toronto Raptors

FanDuel Price: $5,300

Jonas Valanciunas made his return to the lineup on Wednesday against the Denver Nuggets, scoring 8 points and grabbing 5 boards in 14 minutes of action.

Yes, Valanciunas has posted some big games against Rudy Gobert, including their most recent meeting, but the Utah Jazz, are first in the league against opposing fantasy centers, allowing just 0.91 FanDuel points per minute against them.

Valanciunas will likely be needed for a few more minutes on Friday, but his uncertain role makes him a player to avoid, especially in cash games.

Kelly Oubre, SF, Washington Wizards

FanDuel Price: $4,300

Two nights ago, Kelly Oubre was the second highest-owned small forward on the slate behind LeBron James, and Oubre ended up as a huge landmine scoring just 8.4 FanDuel points -- even with Otto Porter out with an illness.

Oubre is still very much in landmine status here on Friday night against James and the Cleveland Cavaliers, and it's mostly because the Washington Wizards are getting healthier.

Porter practiced on Thursday and is listed as probable in the Washington game notes for Friday. Markieff Morris is also scheduled to start and make his season debut on Friday, but he will be limited to about 15-to-16 minutes. All of this takes minutes away from Oubre, so feel free to leave him off your DFS rosters tonight.



Jordan Sharp is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Jordan Sharp also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username TEHSHARP. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in his articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.