This article is part of our FanDuel NBA series.
Every night in the postseason has sparse game loads, which means lots of overlap but also lots of opportunity to win if you hit on the right player or two. These are both elimination games, which means that the home teams will be playing for their playoff lives. The Raptors won the last game in Milwaukee, while the Grizzlies pulled out their last game at home in overtime over the Spurs. This suggests that both games could be highly competitive, with no real advantage on either side of the coin in either game. The star players will be so heavily owned that many of the FanDuel games tonight will be decided by picking the right role players, so it should be noted that, very often, role players play better at home than on the road.
Giannis Antetokounmpo, MIL vs TOR ($10,800): Antetokounmpo scored 55.3 fantasy points in a Game 5 loss to the Raptors, and has three games over 47 fantasy points in the series vs two in the 30s of fantasy points. Facing elimination at home, Antetokounmpo should be expected to perform at his best.
Mike Conley, MEM vs SA ($8,700): Conley has been consistently excellent in this series, averaging about 37 fantasy points through the first three games before upping that average to a bit more than 50 fantasy points in the last two games. Conley has very clearly stepped forward as the primary engine for the Grizzlies, and on Thursday he will be leading them in a game to remain in the playoffs.
Norman Powell, TOR at MIL ($2,600): Powell has played progressively better in the last three games, two of which since he has taken over as starter. His production has increased from 21.1 fantasy points in 15 minutes, to 24.8 fantasy points in 34 minutes to 39.8 fantasy points in 34 minutes in his las three outings. His price tag is dramatically low for that level of production, which means that he will likely be extremely heavily owned on Thursday.
Kawhi Leonard, SA at MEM ($10,200): Leonard scored "only" 38.2 fantasy points in Game 5, a relatively straight-forward Spurs win where they got solid across-the-board contributions. However, in Game 4, Leonard showed what he could do on the road in a tight game as his 65.1 fantasy points carried the Spurs to overtime and almost got them the win. Expect him to face tough competition on Thursday as the Grizzlies look to avoid elimination, which gives Leonard another chance to potentially rise to the occasion.
Serge Ibaka, TOR at MIL ($6,400): Ibaka has still been the most consistently productive Raptor this postseason, scoring between 30.1 and 40.8 fantasy points in four of his five games outside of a Game 3 clunker. He is coming off a 36.7 fantasy point effort in Game 5, and will try to help his squad close out the Bucks on the road.
David Lee, SA at MEM ($3,400): Lee started Game 4 in place of an ill Dewayne Dedmon, and responded with 19 fantasy points in 33 minutes after combining for 11.7 in 30 total minutes over the first two games of the series. In Game 5, with Dedmon available, Lee played 26 minutes and contributed 24.1 fantasy points. He's very risky in Game 6, but essentially is a punt play with starter-level upside.
Marc Gasol, MEM vs SA ($7,800): Gasol has settled in as Mike Conley's main lieutenant on the Grizzlies. He has scored between 31 and 34 fantasy points in three straight games, making that a solid expected value with his Game 2 total of 25.7 fantasy points as his expected min and his Game 1 total of 44 fantasy points as his expected max.
Greg Monroe, MIL vs TOR ($6,500): Monroe managed only 14.4 fantasy points in 22 minutes in the Game 5 loss, but had scored between 25.3 and 36 fantasy points in each of the other four games in the series. At home, with the season on the line, Monroe seems poised for a bounce-back on Thursday.
Thon Maker, MIL vs TOR ($3,900): Maker has played between 20 and 24 minutes in each of the last four games in the series, scoring between 15.4 and 19.6 fantasy points in those games. He is the center version of the punt play on Thursday, with limited upside but seemingly consistent production in the upper teens of fantasy points.
