NBA

NBA FanDuel Value Plays to Target on Wednesday 5/19/21

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.

De'Anthony Melton, SG, Memphis Grizzlies ($3,800)

The Memphis Grizzlies and San Antonio Spurs are set to face off in the first Western Conference play-in game.

This game features a 223-point over/under which is the higher of the two games tonight but only by 5.0-points. Given the four teams on this slate, paying up for some combination of Anthony Davis, LeBron James, and Stephen Curry is likely to be very popular and that means you'll need significant value to fit two of them in your lineups. This is where you can turn to De'Anthony Melton, who has carved out a nice role for the Grizzlies, regularly playing off the bench for 15-25 minutes on a nightly basis. Melton is projected for exactly that tonight, set for 21.55 minutes and 22.2 FanDuel points, making him the second-best value option on the slate.

Both teams are in the top half of the league in offensive pace. Hopefully, that should set things up for a higher-scoring game, which will help Melton reach and exceed fantasy value.

Keldon Johnson, SF, San Antonio Spurs ($4,500)

If you are looking for value from the Spurs, Keldon Johnson could be an option.

Johnson has shown to be more of a tournament option in NBA DFS since his production can be highly variable on a nightly basis. In the final 10 games of the regular season, Johnson posted as many as 40.7 FanDuel points, with as few as 8.7 FanDuel points, all while playing 20 minutes or more in every game. That level of production can be risky but that is something you want to embrace given the potential ceiling of production he can bring to your lineups.

As noted above, both teams are in the top half of the league in offense pace, which has helped contribute to the fact we've seen both games this season between them hit the over, according to KillerSports. Extra possessions and scoring is ideal for a player like Johnson, who can fill up the stat sheet and break fantasy value.