This article is part of our FantasyDraft NBA series.
Saturday evening brings a modest six-game slate that's dominated by forward/center options in the upper tier of the pricing scale. There are some very solid individual frontcourt matchups overall, and it's conceivable that all six contests could be relatively competitive for all four quarters. That leaves plenty of choices to be made, so let's dive into who's looking the most appealing at each price level.
GUARD
John Wall, WAS vs. MIL ($16,200): Wall has scored over 50 fantasy points in two of his last three games and logged 45.25 in the other contest during that span. He's posting a 27.2 percent usage rate and averaging a team-best 1.17 fantasy points per minute since returning from a knee injury on Dec. 13, and he'll be poised to continue his current tear in Saturday's matchup. The Bucks have allowed 47.6 fantasy points per game to point guards on the season -- including the second most (66.7) to the position over the last five – and they've surrendered the second highest shooting percentage (54.0) to ones over the latter span as well.
Evan Fournier, ORL vs. CLE ($12,500): Eric Gordon is undoubtedly going to be robustly owned in tournaments at this same price, but he's slated to see plenty of Avery Bradley's stingy defense. Fournier thus makes for an intriguing same-price pivot Saturday against a Cavs defense that's been unable to slow down many two-guards this season. Cleveland has allowed the most fantasy points (56.5) per game to shooting guards on the season, including the third most (62.9) over the last 10. They're also yielding a whopping 4.7 made three-pointers to the position on the campaign, while Fournier is equaling a career high with 5.3 three-point attempts per contest and draining a solid 40.0 percent of them in the process. Fournier has seen a downturn over the last two contests due to some significant shooting struggles (6-for-26 from the field), but he'd scored 32.25 and 37.50 fantasy points in the two games prior and is still posting the second highest shooting percentage (46.5) of his career.
Avery Bradley, DET vs. HOU ($10,000): Bradley scored 29.00 fantasy points Wednesday against the Heat, his first game back from a groin injury. The veteran encouragingly logged 37 minutes as well, putting to rest any concerns about his conditioning or overall health after what was a seven-game absence. He'll be in an uptempo contest against the Rockets on Saturday, and in a favorable individual matchup as well. The Rockets have allowed 56.0 fantasy points per game to two-guards over the last 10 games -- along with the fourth most made three-pointers (4.7) to the position over that span – while Bradley is posting a career-high 40.9 percent success rate from behind the arc over his first 29 games.
FORWARD/CENTER
LeBron James, CLE at ORL ($20,800): James posted an atypically low 38.75 fantasy points in Wednesday's double-digit loss to the Celtics, but he'd scored less than 51.50 fantasy points on only one other occasion in the prior 13 contests. The Cavs have lost five of their last seven games, and as has been the case in previous skids, James is likely to take matters into his own hands more than is customary before things get too far out of hand. The Magic could well be the ideal target to help him right the ship, as they've allowed the fourth most fantasy points (54.0) per game to small forwards in their last five, while James compiled 22 points (on 53.3 percent shooting) over 31 minutes in his one prior meeting against Orlando this season.
Nikola Jokic, DEN at SAC ($15,400): Jokic has scored between 30.75 and 53.25 fantasy points in his last nine games, a stretch that includes a 25.5 percent usage rate and average of 1.19 fantasy points per minute. He also trampled this same Kings squad for 43.50 fantasy points Nov. 20 on the strength of a 16-point, 14-rebound double-double, while Sacramento comes in allowing the third most fantasy points (40.0) per game to centers, along with the most rebounds (12.4) and fourth highest shooting percentage (56.0). Jokic is shooting 50.0 percent overall in his last 10 contests as well and has encouragingly seen at least 36 minutes in six of his last seven games.
Mason Plumlee, DEN at SAC ($8,100): Plumlee has carved out a starting role at power forward for the time being, as head coach Mike Malone appears content with having Trey Lyles ($11,000) – who is an appealing mid-tier option in his own right – come off the bench. Plumlee has logged between 20 and 31 minutes in the last 12 games, scoring between 22.00 and 40.50 fantasy points in 10 of them. Meanwhile, no defense has been more generous to power forwards than the Kings, which come in allowing the most fantasy points per game (48.8), most points (24.2), second most rebounds (12.2), most made threes (2.6) and second highest shooting percentage (49.0) to power forwards on the campaign. Plumlee is also scoring a career-high 80.8 percent of his points in the paint this season, while Sacramento's Zach Randolph is allowing an average of 23.6 points in that area of the court.
UTILITY
Anthony Davis, NO at MIN ($18,200): Davis checks in cheaper than teammate DeMarcus Cousins ($19,000) or Giannis Antetokounmpo ($18,400), the two options immediately above him in salary at forward/center. However, he could well provide the best per-dollar return of the three Saturday, considering the Timberwolves have allowed the third most made three-pointers (2.2) per game to power forwards, along with a robust 43.9 fantasy points to the position over the last 10 games. Moreover, Davis was on his way to what likely would have been a huge night against this same squad back on Nov. 29 before getting ejected after two quick technicals, as he'd already compiled 17 points and five rebounds in just 17 minutes. He's also stepped up his production over the last four contests, scoring between 29 and 33 points while compiling between 46.25 and 66.75 fantasy points in those games.
Darren Collison, IND vs. CHI ($11,200): Collison lit up this same Bulls squad for 45.75 fantasy points just three games ago, and he's scored between 27.50 and 32.75 in three other contests over his last six. Chicago continues to be highly susceptible to point guards, and they'll come into Saturday on the second game of a back-to-back having allowed the most fantasy points (65.4), points (31.6) and rebounds (9.5) per game to ones over their last 10, along with the second most assists (10.5). Collison is currently putting forth the best shooting effort of his career as well, as both his 48.9 percent overall success rate from the floor and 42.9 percent from three-point range are high-water marks.
