This article is part of our FanDuel NBA series.
Every week, this article will take a look at players who are undervalued and should be in your lineup. These are players who should exceed their value in fantasy points when looking at their cost. These players could be at the minimum or near minimum of $3,500 or could be in the $7-$8,000 range. It's easy to peg players like LeBron James or Anthony Davis, but the key is to find value players to plug in with them.
Point Guard
Shabazz Napier, $3900 – The key to using Napier is using him on nights that Dwyane Wade sits with an injury or is rested. This happened on the tail end of the Heat's recent road trip, and Napier played 33 and 38 minutes their last two games of the trip. Napier's game has developed nicely, and while he's not a candidate to go off for 30 points, he scores enough and contributes in multiple categories, padding his fantasy numbers. Again, only consider using him on nights Wade has been ruled out for sure.
Jeremy Lin, $4900 – Ronnie Price's elbow injury has kept him sidelined the last two days, giving Lin another chance to start for the Lakers. Lin had a bad game in his first start against the Jazz but followed it up with a stellar performance Monday with 10 points and 10 assists. It's unclear exactly how long Price will be out, and using Lin is completely dependent on Price being out of the lineup. Lin is probably best used in GPPs rather than cash games given his inconsistency.
Shooting Guard
Eric Gordon, $5100 – This isn't a crazy low price for Gordon, but he's established a nice floor for himself since returning from injury. With the injuries to Anthony Davis and Jrue Holiday, Gordon has logged at least 34 minutes the last five games and has scored over 24 fantasy points in each one of those games. With the limited bench options the Pelicans have, Gordon should continue to log heavy minutes even after Davis and Holiday return. For games without Davis and Holiday in the lineup, there's nothing wrong with pairing Gordon up with teammate Tyreke Evans ($7600).
Langston Galloway, $4000 – The former D-Leaguer provided a nice spark for the Knicks Monday as they finally ended their 16-game losing streak. Galloway finished the game with 21 points (29.5 fantasy points) and could stick in the starting five for time being. With the Knicks having limited options at shooting guard, Galloway should see around 30 minutes per game and doesn't need to do a ton to reach his value given the current price tag.
Small Forward
Trevor Ariza, $5400 – Nicolas Batum ($5300) is another interesting player at a similar price point, but it's Ariza who has been the more consistent fantasy player as of late. He continues to log plenty of court time and has had 20 or more fantasy points in eight of his last nine games. Oddly, Ariza is shooting a career-worst 37.4 percent from the field which means he should see an uptick in percentage and scoring the rest of the season.
Power Forward
Channing Frye, $4300 – Frye has shown an improved confidence on the court and an uptick in playing time with Tobias Harris out and Kyle O'Quinn regressing has aided his fantasy production. Frye has played at least 32 minutes in each of his last five games and scored over 20 fantasy points in all of those contests. As long as continues to see a lot of playing time he's a steal at this cheap of a price.
J.J. Hickson, $4700 – While all eyes were on Jusuf Nurkic when Timofey Mozgov was traded away, it was Hickson who has had his fantasy value see a significant boost since that deal occurred. Outside of Monday's loss to Golden State when he got into foul trouble, Hickson had six straight games of over 23 fantasy points. The key to Hickson's success is cleaning the glass as he's become a nightly threat to post a double-double, dominating the boards and opposing teams' second-unit big men. It helps that Denver plays an up-tempo style of offense and is usually in high-scoring games.
Center
Chris Kaman, $4600 – The big men for Portland have been dropping like flies, with LaMarcus Aldridge being the latest casualty. Kaman was already starting for the Trail Blazers but should see a higher user rate on offense as well as more opportunities to rebound the ball. It's hard to see him put in a ton of minutes, but expecting him to play anywhere from 25-30 while Aldridge is out is a reasonable expectation.
