FanDuel NBA Lineup Advice: Friday (12/27)

Kicking off the weekend, Friday’s slate is a very light one with only six games on the schedule, five of which are on the main slate. Tip-off locks ta 7:00 p.m. EST for the main slate, though it locks at 4:00 p.m. EST for the all-day experience. Only the Oklahoma City Thunder are operating on a back-to-back.

Check out today’s NBA Shot from FanDuel

Point Guard

Ricky Rubio (PG – PHO): $7,200 @ GS
The point guard position doesn’t look great tonight, but Rubio could be one of the gems that comes from tonight’s light slate. Healthy and playing a solid number of minutes, Rubio has topped 40+ FanDuel points three times in his past six games and now gets a Golden State Warriors defense that ranks 23^rd in defensive rating and 15^th in pace. The Phoenix Suns are expected to be one of the higher scoring teams of the night.

Chris Paul (PG – OKC): $7,300 @ CHA
Note that the Thunder are playing on a back-to-back, but it hasn’t affected the legendary point guard in Paul as he’s been incredibly healthy this year. Coming off a strong performance last night, Paul totaled 52.7 FanDuel points on the back of a 23-6-11 line. The Charlotte Hornets are really bad defensively and present a solid matchup in that regard as they rank only 27^th in defensive rating, but also only 28^th in pace.

Shooting Guard

Devin Booker (SG – PHO): $6,900 @ GS
It feels like forever ago since Booker was relied upon as a stud DFS option, but not anymore. Booker’s price tag has taken a nosedive into the higher-end of the average options, but that does represent a great opportunity for Booker to crush value on any given night. Booker is a real-life scoring machine, but he hasn’t performed well recently after missing three games and failing to top 35 FanDuel points in any of his last three contests. Like Rubio, Booker benefits from a good matchup tonight against the Warriors.

Donte DiVincenzo (SG – MIL): $4,900 @ ATL
The Milwaukee Bucks have the highest implied total of the night by a large margin, which is why it would be wise to find some exposure to them tonight. DiVincenzo is a good way to find some relatively cheap exposure in the Bucks’ starting five, particularly when you evaluate his recent performances. DiVincenzo has managed to hit value in four of his last six contests, with the worst one being his most recent (18.8 FanDuel points). The Atlanta Hawks are a great matchup as they rank 28^th in defensive rating and 8^th in pace.

Small Forward

Giannis Antetokounmpo (SF – MIL): $11,600 @ ATL
Make sure to monitor Giannis’ status prior to tip-off as he’s currently nursing a back injury and is probable on the injury report, but he was healthy enough to suit up in all of his recent contests, particularly the latest one. Tonight’s matchup does pose some blowout potential against the Hawks, but you’d be crazy to leave Giannis out of your lineups tonight with not many stud options to choose from. Giannis is coming off a so-so performance on Christmas day, though his recent game logs show a bunch of strong performances. The Bucks and Hawks contest is the best and paciest one of the night.

Darius Bazley (SF – OKC): $3,700 vs. CHA
If you’re looking for value on this slate, there really isn’t much to choose from, but Danilo Gallinari‘s absence does catapult Bazley into the starting lineup for the Thunder. Bazley is coming off a stinker of a performance in which he totaled only 6.8 FanDuel points but had three strong contests prior, all of which hit value. Bazley isn’t seeing a ton of playing time, meaning he likely won’t crush value, but he’s a good shot to at least return value at such a cheap price tag.

Power Forward

Dario Saric (PF – PHO): $4,200 @ GS
The four-spot possesses some of the bigger names of the night, but I chose to pay down with Saric. One thing to note, his minutes have taken a nosedive recently, so make sure to monitor that as he offers a decent ceiling when playing his usual 30 minutes. Saric comes in at such a discounted and low price that he’s got a shot to return value, especially against a weak Warriors defense.

John Collins (PF – ATL): $8,100 vs. MIL
Even a 25-game suspension couldn’t slow Collins down as he exploded in his first game back, totaling 51 FanDuel points on a 27-10 double-double right out of the gate. The matchup against the Bucks is an awful one as they rank 1^st in defensive rating, though they do offer some intrigue as the paciest team in the NBA to boot. Collins will likely draw a decent amount of Giannis on defense tonight, severely capping his potential value, but Collins is an incredible athlete in his own right and could very well scoop some points in an incredibly pacey contest.

Center

Willie Cauley-Stein (C – GS): $6,100 vs. PHO
Aron Baynes is a tough matchup defensively, but Trill has cemented himself as a solid DFS option recently, totaling 31+ FanDuel points in both of his last two contests. Trill doesn’t score a ton, but he does have the ability to chip in defensively and typically does in bunches. The Suns are a solid matchup as they rank 20^th in defensive rating and 9^th in pace.

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Sosa Kremenjas is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Sosa, check out his archive and follow him @QBsMVP.