This article is part of our FanDuel NBA series.
The NBA is back! There are six games on the docket coming out of the All-Star break, returning to an NBA season where so much has changed. There have been trades big and small that seem to affect almost every game on Thursday, including the landscape-changing DeMarcus Cousins-to-New Orleans deal that pairs Cousins with Anthony Davis.
In other games, the Trail Blazers are still working in Jusuf Nurkic as possibly the center of the future -- but when does the future begin? The Kings now have a massive statistical void to fill, and a bunch of players in an unproven rotation that attempts to do it. Chris Paul won't be back for the Clippers on Thursday, but he should return soon, which affects Blake Griffin's upside going forward. And, if he isn't traded today, Carmelo Anthony gets to face old nemesis LeBron James in his first game without active trade rumors swirling in weeks.
Oh yeah, did I forget to mention that the trade deadline doesn't pass until later this afternoon, which means that any/all of these picks could change if more trades happen between article publication and tip-off. Fun, fun, fun!
James Harden, HOU at NO ($12,600): Harden has been as inevitable as death and taxes this season, posting video game stats on a daily basis. His team has traded for Lou Williams in the last few days, and he is facing a Pelicans squad that is entirely new with DeMarcus Cousins now on the frontline. But with that said, Harden will be Harden until evidence to the contrary is presented. On a night when there aren't any other super-elite shooting guard options going, Harden is still the closest thing to a sure thing.
Darren Collison, SAC vs DEN ($5,500): Collison was injured early in the year, settled in as a third/fourth option when he finally returned to the lineup, moved up into the number two slot when Rudy Gay went down, and now may find himself on the precipice of being the main offensive engine for the Kings in the post-Cousins era. Their whole rotation is an unknown, especially in the first game of the new reality, but he is used to carrying a solid load for them and he will also be defended by Jameer Nelson and a Nuggets defense that has allowed the second-most fantasy points to point guards this season.
E'Twaun Moore, NO vs HOU ($3,600): Moore is a min-priced player who looks to be in his team's starting lineup on Thursday, since the Pelicans traded away their other starting shooting guard options. Moore has started 18 games at shooting guard this season, averaging 11.3 points, 3.0 assists and 2.3 boards in 27 minutes. On Thursday, if he does start, he has a great matchup against a Rockets D that allows the fourth-most fantasy points to shooting guards this season.
Kevin Durant, GS vs LAC ($10,300): Durant is a constant max-value player, like LeBron James, but his price is $900 cheaper. Overall, Nikola Jokic is probably the best high-priced forward option going on Thursday, but my other two forward picks are power forwards so this slot goes to a small forward. Durant last faced the Clippers earlier this month, when he turned in 26 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds on the second half of a back-to-back.
Kristaps Porzingis, NY at CLE ($6,600): Porzingis was flirting with becoming a DFS monster in December, but he has clearly struggled with an Achilles injury that has kept him out of seven games and limited him in the games he has played. Porzingis has had a week away from true competition to recover, though, and was showing some positive signs with strong games in the week leading up to the break. If he returns to healthy form on Thursday, he could certainly outproduce his price tag.
Willie Cauley-Stein, SAC vs DEN, ($3,800): Cauley-Stein has gotten the most press as the next-big-man-up in Sacramento, with DeMarcus Cousins now residing in New Orleans. Cauley-Stein was playing less than 20 minutes in the five games leading up to the break, but he did show some positive signs in averaging more than 10 points with almost five boards in limited minutes. On Thursday, he has good upside at a near-min price against a Nuggets defense that has allowed the sixth-most fantasy points to centers over the last 10 games.
Andre Drummond, DET vs CHA ($8,300): Drummond has been vacuuming the glass in 2017. In his last six games he has averaged 15 rebounds to go with 15.3 points and 3.4 combined steals and blocks. On Thursday he has a good match-up against the Hornets, who have allowed the seventh-most fantasy points to centers on the year.
Nikola Vucevic, ORL vs POR ($,7200): Vucevic has moved into a more secure slot for the Magic, with Serge Ibaka now on a different team. Vucevic led the Magic frontline with 16 points and 10 boards in only 28 minutes in his debut without Ibaka, and on Thursday has a good matchup against a Trail Blazers frontline that is coping with the loss of their own former starting center, Mason Plumlee, to recent trade.
Jusuf Nurkic, POR at ORL ($3,700): This slot could easily have gone to Kosta Koufos ($3,500), as both are min-priced centers with legitimate upside today after trades that changed their fortunes. Nurkic gets the call on the strength of a strong debut with the Trail Blazers, in which he scored 13 points with seven boards, three steals, an assist and a blocked shot in 21 minutes off the bench against a strong Jazz frontline. He's now had a week to settle in to his new team, and on Thursday faces a Magic defense weakened by the Serge Ibaka trade that was already allowing the ninth-most fantasy points to centers this season.
