This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Basketball series.
Tuesday's slate is thin, with only three games on the docket. Boston looks to have favorable matchups against a Nets team without D'Angelo Russell. The Mavericks will almost certainly be outplayed and outclassed by the Spurs, and the most evenly matched game features the Rockets facing the Raptors. With a first look at high-salary players, I find it difficult to not put James Harden ($56) in all your cash lineups. Yes, he'll be heavily owned, but it will be difficult to keep pace in a 50/50 without his output, assuming it meets value. He also should be present in all but your punt-play GPP rosters. With that in mind, let's go through each position.
GUARD
DeMar DeRozan, TOR at HOU ($35): DeRozan will line up against Eric Gordon at the two, and he figures to be a slightly better option than Kyle Lowry ($32), who has struggled with his shot since his ejection last week. Although he tweaked his wrist against Boston over the weekend, DeRozan appears to have no lingering effects, and should be slightly under-owned.
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Others:Dennis Smith Jr., DAL vs. SA ($25), Terry Rozier, BOS vs. BKN ($13), Spencer Dinwiddie, BKN vs. BOS ($11)
Guard to Avoid:
Caris LeVert, BKN vs. BOS ($13): LeVert looks to be one of the players to most benefit from D'Angelo Russell's absence, but Tuesday is not the night to speculate on how much time he'll receive. Spencer Dinwiddie has a firm handle on most of the output, and while LeVert will get some time at the point moving forward, a stalwart Boston backcourt is not what you want to be betting against.
FORWARD
Things get thin quickly here. The GPP darling with low usage will probably come from this pool, but we will look at the most solid options at two price points. LaMarcus Aldridge ($39) seems obvious against Dallas but a chalk play if you're still able to afford him. Let's look at the rest.
Harrison Barnes, DAL vs. SA ($25): He's at the Yahoo median price, he's solid, he's reliable for output, and while not the most exciting play, he's a safe bet for cash games Tuesday at the price. Although he has struggled with his shot a bit, the steady of improvement of Dennis Smith Jr. at the point is opening up the game for Barnes.
Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, BKN vs. BOS ($21): This is almost a toss-up between Hollis-Jefferson and DeMarre Carroll ($21) at the same price, and one usually excels while the other struggles. The 6-7 forward will most likely match up with Jayson Tatum in the frontcourt but the rookie is still developing defensively. I favor Jefferson over Carroll at the wing, although I think both have GPP value.
Others:Rudy Gay, SA at DAL ($22), Trevor Ariza, HOU vs. TOR ($20)
Forward to Avoid:
Trevor Booker, BKN vs. BOS ($13): Earlier in the season players were reaching for Booker as a value pick, but over the past four games Booker's minutes have a taken a huge dip, and his output has tanked along with it. He's yielded more and more time to Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, which is bad news for Booker owners. He's an easy fade for Tuesday.
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CENTER
There are really only five players you can confidently play on this slate. Luckily, they all range from $13-$29, so I'll pick two I like best, and one I'd fade.
Clint Capela, HOU vs. TOR ($28): I predicted a breakout year for Capela in one of my pre-season articles and so far, that forecast is proving to be dead-on. He's on a three-game streak of 40-plus YFP and will face Jonas Valanciunas under the basket, who'll be caught flat-footed by Capela's surprising speed in the paint. Capela is a chalk cash play.
Pau Gasol, SA at DAL ($21): With the Mavs switching between Dirk Nowitzki and Nerlens Noel, Gasol will not-so-quietly outplay them both on Tuesday. He had a masterful 21-point, 10-rebound performance against the Bulls in his last game and will look to keep the streak going.
Other centers to consider:Al Horford, BOS at BKN ($29)
Center to Avoid:
Jonas Valanciunas, TOR at HOU ($17): You have an argument to use him as a GPP candidate, but Valanciunas has been so up-and-down since returning from injury, he can't be dependable enough for much else. He's only broken 30-plus YFP once this year, and that's not the kind of value you want. Spend the extra few dollars for Gasol if your budget allows.
