NBA

3 NBA FanDuel Value Plays to Target on Monday 12/20/21

Thomas Vecchio  —  @Tom_Vecchio1 Dec 20th, 2021

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.

Buddy Hield, SG/SF, Sacramento Kings ($5,100)

There are a number of players out for the Sacramento Kings, and it makes Buddy Hield a priority target tonight.

Despite several players being out along with Hield playing 36 and 39 minutes in the past two games, he is still only $5,100. Hield should be in the starting lineup tonight, which has him coming in with a projection of 37.57 minutes and 36.3 FanDuel points, making him the second-best value option on the slate. That shouldn't be a surprise since he is going up against the Golden State Warriors, where the over/under is set at 222.5-points, which is the second-highest on the slate.

Both Sacramento (3rd) and Golden State (11th) are top-11 in offensive pace, putting this game environment in a spot to be very fantasy-friendly. Hield comes in with seven three-point attempts or more in 4 of his last 5 games and 7 of his last 10 games, giving him immense scoring upside.

Otto Porter, SF/PF, Golden State Warriors ($3,900)

The Warriors are going to be without Andrew Wiggins and Jordan Poole, putting Otto Porter in a spot to start.

When we account for those players being off the court, Porter is producing 0.91 FanDuel points per minute on a 17.0% offensive usage rate. As noted above, this game has a very solid over/under and offensive pace. The Kings come in allowing 41.05 FanDuel points per game to opposing small forwards, which is the 13th worst in the league.

This is why we see Porter coming in with a projection of 26.01 minutes and 25.3 FanDuel points, putting him as the third-best value option on the slate. A great game environment, a salary under $4,000, a good matchup, and a solid projection should make Porter a chalky option tonight.

Alex Caruso, PG/SG, Chicago Bulls ($5,400)

The Chicago Bulls are going to be missing seven players on Monday night.

Over the past two weeks, the Bulls have been missing a number of players, and that isn't changing tonight. This is why we saw Alex Caruso in the starting lineup for the Bulls last night, which is a trend that should continue tonight versus the Houston Rockets. This season, the Rockets are allowing the 13th most (39.72) FanDuel points per game to shooting guards, putting Caruso in a spot to reach or exceed value for the second time in as many nights.

When all of those players are off the court, Caruso is producing 1.14 FanDuel points per minute on a very modest 14.1% offensive usage rate. This is nothing new for Caruso, as his ability to fill up the stat sheet gives him plenty of fantasy potential, which is why we see him projected for 31.81 minutes and 30.4 FanDuel points.