3 Fantasy Basketball Players to Avoid on 12/28/18
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 takes only one player to sink a lineup. Searching for the landmines could mean the difference between winning and losing your contests. Which players should we avoid tonight?
Larry Nance Jr., PF, Cleveland Cavaliers
FanDuel Price: $7,100
Since moving into the Cleveland Cavaliers' starting lineup five games ago, Larry Nance Jr. has been a fantasy favorite. The big man is averaging 13.4 points, 11.6 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 2.2 steals, and 40.4 FanDuel points since December 18. Those are impressive numbers despite flopping his last time out. Nance racked up just 26.3 FanDuel points in 31.0 minutes versus the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday. He ended up with just six points and nine rebounds as Marc Gasol and Jaren Jackson Jr. shut him down. Facing off with another challenging big man on Friday night -- Hassan Whiteside of the Miami Heat -- Nance is best left out of your DFS lineups.
Over their last five games, the Miami Heat have posted a top-three defensive rating (101.5). They are also second in the league with a 54.1% rebound percentage. Whiteside is a big reason for that success as he has grabbed 13.1 boards per game while leading the NBA with a 25.6% rebound percentage this season. He is also limiting those he defends to just a 49.5% field goal percentage on shots at the rim (3’ or closer) -- 13.6 percentage points lower than expected.
Dennis Schroder, SG, Oklahoma City Thunder
FanDuel Price: $5,600
In December, Dennis Schroder has put together a solid run of offensive output off the bench for the Oklahoma City Thunder as he has posted double-digit points in 10 of 11 games. He is averaging 14.4 points in 28.4 minutes per game since December 3. While those are nice real-world stats, the problem in DFS is that Schroder is not contributing much else.
The guard is averaging just 3.2 rebounds and 3.5 assists in December, leaving him with only 23.0 FanDuel points per game. Over the last two weeks, his fantasy numbers have dipped even further as Schroder has collected more than 18.7 FanDuel points just once in his previous six games. The matchup with the Phoenix Suns on Friday may seem like a boost to Shroeder, but the Suns have played well in recent games.
Over their last 10 games, the Suns rank in the top half of the league as they hold opponents to 46.0% shooting from the field and 33.8% from three.
Reggie Jackson, PG, Detroit Pistons
FanDuel Price: $5,500
Of all the point guards on Friday's slate, Reggie Jackson has by far the most difficult matchup. His opponent, the Indiana Pacers are the best in the NBA as they limit opposing point guards to 0.82 FanDuel points per minute. The Pacers also rank near the top of the leaderboard in nearly every significant defensive metric.
Indiana is second in opponents field goal percentage (43.7%) and defensive rating (102.4) while they lead the league in points against (101.2). A rarity in today's high-scoring NBA, the Pacers have held five of their last eight opponents to under 100 points, with 10 of their previous 12 opponents scoring 101 or fewer. It should come as no surprise then that the Detroit Pistons own an implied point total of just 100 points on Friday, the second-lowest of the 10-game slate.
For his part, Jackson has not been lighting up their scoreboard either. In four of his last seven games, he has dropped 23.2 or fewer FanDuel points. He is averaging just 25.0 FanDuel points per game since December 12.
Dale Redman is not a FanDuel employee. The views expressed in his articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.
