NBA

3 NBA FanDuel Value Plays to Target on Monday 4/26/21

Thomas Vecchio  —  @Tom_Vecchio1 Apr 26th, 2021
Jalen Brunson could be in for a big workload if the Mavericks have some players ruled out. Who else should you add to your roster tonight?

One of the keys to finding success in daily fantasy basketball is uncovering potential value plays. If you're looking to roster a stud player or two, you need to consider squeezing in 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.

Jalen Brunson, SG, Dallas Mavericks ($5,200)

To say Monday's slate is dependant on injuries is an understatement.

There are a ton of players on the injury report around the league, and for the Dallas Mavericks, they have Luka Doncic, Kristaps Porzingis, Maxi Kleber, and Josh Richardson all listed as questionable. This presents plenty of questions for their rotation and which of their depth players we would be targeting for value.

Jalen Brunson is a player who stands out since he is consistently a part of their rotation normally and could be in line for increased minutes if one or any of the questionable players are out.

If Luka Doncic were to miss tonight's game, that would benefit Brunson the most, as he carries a 23.1% usage rate and is producing 0.99 FanDuel points per minute when Doncic is off the court. That is a 3.0% increase in his usage compared to his normal rate, along with an additional 0.11 FanDuel points per minute.

This would elevate Brunson to an awesome value play because the matchup versus the Sacramento Kings is so favorable. This season, the Kings are allowing the third-most (50.57) FanDuel points per minute to opposing point guards, putting Bruson in an elite spot.

Dwight Howard, C, Philadelphia 76ers ($5,100)

If Joel Embiid is out for the Philadelphia 76ers, we can look to Dwight Howard for some value.

Embiid is listed as questionable right now and didn't play in the 76ers' most recent game. Although we saw Mike Scott get the start at center for Philly, Howard came off the bench and was able to post 35.9 FanDuel points in 24 minutes. This shouldn't come as too much of a surprise because Howard is producing 1.18 FanDuel points per minute when Embiid is off the court this season.

If Embiid is out again, we can be looking to roster Howard, regardless of whether he is in the starting lineup or not. He'll come off the bench again and be in a fantastic matchup, as he is taking on the Oklahoma City Thunder, who are allowing the sixth-most (56.47) FanDuel points per game to opposing centers.

We'll have to keep an eye on the injury news throughout the day but if Embiid is out, load up Howard tonight.

Bojan Bogdanovic, SF, Utah Jazz ($5,400)

The Utah Jazz have a super-soft matchup tonight and plenty of three-point upside.

We already know the Jazz can make it rain from downtown, as they lead the league with 16.9 made three-pointers per game. This puts them in a good spot since the Minnesota Timberwolves are allowing the 10th-most (13.1) made three-pointers per game, so it's no wonder we see the Jazz with the highest (119.0) implied team total on tonight's slate. With Donovan Mitchell still out of the lineup, their offensive usage is shifting a bit and we now see Bojan Bogdanovic carrying a 23.9% usage rate and producing 0.99 FanDuel points per minute.

Bogdanovic consistently takes six or more three-point attempts on most nights, with some games going past 10 attempts. That volume of three-point attempts gives him massive scoring upside, and with the weak Timberwolves defense on the other side of the floor, Bogdanovic shouldn't have any issues breaking value tonight.