This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Basketball series.
Get ready for a loaded slate with 11 games in the NBA on Wednesday. So many options means lots of great players to choose from at various price points, so let's examine some players to target and avoid as you create what will hopefully be a winning Yahoo entry.
GUARDS
Kemba Walker, CHA at CHI ($35): Walker has really put the team on his back through their first four games, averaging 33 points with a 34.7 percent usage rate. The Bulls are a bad defensive team who will be without one of their best defenders in Kris Dunn (knee), leaving Walker with the potential for a monster performance.
Josh Hart, LAL at PHO ($21):Rajon Rondo and Brandon Ingram will serve the second game of their respective suspensions Wednesday. Hart logged 39 minutes with them both out Monday, finishing with 20 points, 10 rebounds, two steals and four three-pointers. While Hart has yet to start a game this season, he's significantly outplayed Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who is shooting 26.7 percent from the field in the early going. Hart also gets added opportunities to provide value with the Lakers currently playing at the fastest pace (108.7 possessions per game) in the league.
Guard to Avoid
Darren Collison, IND at SA ($17): Collison started each of the 64 games in which he played in last year, but he only averaged 29 minutes per contest. He's still starting this season but is playing even fewer minutes at 24 per contest. That's not likely to increase much based on the Pacers adding Cory Joseph and Tyreke Evans over the summer. Collison doesn't get a lot of opportunities to score with his 16.2 percent usage rate, leaving him with very little upside in this contest.
FORWARDS
Kevin Love, CLE vs. BKN ($34): After recording a 25.1 percent usage rate last year, that number has jumped to 28.8 percent this season with LeBron James now in LA. While his increased offensive involvement was largely expected, what is surprising is that Love is only shooting 30.4 percent from the field. He's never been hyper-efficient for his position, and he's still averaging 20.7 points per game, but he could really be an offensive force when he gets his shot corrected. Add in his averages of 14.3 rebounds and 4.0 assists per contest and Love is going to be a handful for the Nets.
Markieff Morris, WAS at GS ($19): Morris only contributed 23 Yahoo points in his first game of the season, but he has at least 32.9 Yahoo points in both games since. His best performance came Monday against the Blazers when he finished with 28 points, nine rebounds, one steal and one block across 25 minutes. Dwight Howard (back) will be out again Wednesday and with the Warriors propensity to deploy small lineups, Morris could get plenty of minutes. At this price, he's a viable option if you want to go a cheaper route at forward.
Forward to Avoid
Thaddeus Young, IND at SA ($20): Young hasn't been able to get things going through four games, scoring 24.1 Yahoo points or fewer in each contest. He did play 34 minutes Monday against the Timberwolves, but finished with only nine points and six rebounds. With his 14.7 percent usage rate, don't expect his offensive production to change much Wednesday.
CENTERS
DeAndre Jordan, DAL at ATL ($32): Jordan couldn't be off to a much better start with his new team. Not only is he averaging 17 points and 12.7 rebounds, but he's returned to his shot blocking heyday with 2.3 rejections per contest. To top it all off, he's 9-for-10 from the charity stripe, which is a sharp contrast from his 44.7 percent career mark. Expect his free-throw woes to return sooner rather than later, but he's the unquestioned main man in the middle for Mavericks and he has some excellent passers like Luka Doncic and J.J. Barea to set up him up with easy buckets. This is a matchup to exploit against a Hawks team that has allowed 122.7 points per game thus far and is still without John Collins (ankle). Atlanta will get Dewayne Dedmon back on Wednesday, however.
JaVale McGee, LAL at PHO ($16): McGee is a major reason the Lakers have been horrific on defense, but he's nonetheless averaging what would be his most minutes per game since the 2011-12 season. The Lakers have no other viable center on the roster, and McGee has made the most of his opportunity, averaging 15 points, 7.3 rebounds and three blocks per contest. His price is climbing, but it's still low enough to make him a great option Wednesday.
Center to Avoid
Dewayne Dedmon, ATL vs. DAL ($17): The Hawks will be getting some reinforcements Wednesday with Dedmon set to make his season debut. While his return is much needed, he only averaged 25 minutes per game last year. He wasn't overly productive, either, with 10 points and 7.9 rebounds per contest. Alex Len is around now to eat into some of Dedmon's playing time -- Len will remain the starter Wednesday -- so it's best to take a wait-and-see approach to using Dedmon in DFS.
