NBA

3 NBA DraftKings Value Plays to Target on 1/25/21

Brett Oswalt  —  @bRo14thekid Jan 25th, 2021
With Joel Embiid questionable, Dwight Howard could be a must-play against the Pistons. Who else can help fill out your Monday lineups?

A major key to success in daily fantasy basketball is uncovering potential value plays. If you're looking to roster a stud or two, you need to consider squeezing one of these lower-salaried options into your lineup.

Let's take a look at three players who can help fill in the gaps in your lineup on DraftKings tonight.

Jeff Green, PF/C, Brooklyn Nets

DraftKings Salary: $4,700

Carry a 235.5 over/under at NBA Finals odds, the game environment between the Brooklyn Nets and Miami Heat maybe one of the best -- if not the best -- on tonight's slate. You, of course, will want exposure to the top tier plays, but the others are worth a look as well. And that starts with Jeff Green.

After starting nine straight games at power forward, Green has ben relegated to bench duty over the last two. However, he's still played 26 minutes in each game, serving as both a power forward and small-ball center when DeAndre Jordan doesn't fit the game flow. In those two, he's averaged 12.0 points and 22.1 DraftKings points with a 15.7% usage rate, according to NBA.com. For a reference point, Joe Harris is at 16.2% in that same time.

Green isn't an exciting play, nor is he a lock to hit value. He is, however, a great candidate to fill out a game stack in tournaments and GPPs.

Isaiah Roby, PF/C, Oklahoma City Thunder

DraftKings Salary: $4,600

Isaiah Roby is one of the more obvious values tonight. Due to the birth of his daughter, Al Horford can be considered questionable to play Monday after not playing on Sunday. That should translate to a fifth straight start for the sophomore big.

To date, Roby is averaging 12.4 points, 6.6 rebounds and 26.0 DK points over 26.3 minutes a start. That's all come on a respectable 18.7% usage rate to boot. But what's most encouraging is that he is coming off of a double-double and 30-DK-point outing against a tough Los Angeles Clippers defense. Imagine what he could do versus a far weaker defense in the Portland Trail Blazers.

Despite starting Jusuf Nurkic -- now injured -- as opposed to Enes Kanter at center, Portland's allowed the ninth-most DK points (55.4) per game to centers thanks to the league's third-worst defensive rating. Roby requires just 23 DK points to return five-times value -- a number he's hit or bypassed four times in the past five games.

Dwight Howard, C, Philadelphia 76ers

DraftKings Salary: $4,200

If you couldn't already tell, value is among the trees tonight. This play, of course, assumes that Joel Embiid sits this game out -- or at least is limited -- but it could certainly happen with Philadelphia's starting center questionable with back tightness.

In his first year with the Sixers, Dwight Howard has started three games in place of Embiid. He was limited to only 15 minutes in a blowout, but went on to play 23 and 34 minutes in two games that finished within 12 points. In those two he's averaged 33.6 DK points per game and 1.18 per minute. At that rate, if Howard were to play 25-plus minutes he would smash his salary-implied total of 21.

Keep an eye on Embiid's status. If he's ruled out Howard will be a must-play against a Detroit team that ranks fourth-worst against the center position this season.


Brett Oswalt is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Brett Oswalt also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username BRO14THEKID. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his/her 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.