This article is part of our DraftKings NBA series.
Tuesday's eight-game slate offers the promise of plenty of scoreboard fireworks at the end of the night, as four of the fastest-paced teams in the NBA will matchup in the Clippers-Pelicans and Nets-Warriors tilts. There's also some attractive individual matchups throughout the night, and some Eastern Conference battles between playoff-contending squads. With plenty to take into consideration, let's dive right into an intriguing ledger:
GUARDS
Stephen Curry, GS vs. BKN ($9,300): Curry already trampled the Nets for 39 points, 11 rebounds, seven assists and three steals over 33 minutes in one prior meeting this season, a performance that netted a whopping 69.3 DK fantasy points. Brooklyn hasn't gotten any better at defending point guards, as they come into Tuesday's contest allowing the sixth-highest offensive efficiency rating (26.4) to the position on the season, along with the ninth-most DK fantasy points (49.8) -- including the most (76.6) over the last 10. Curry is averaging 48.3 DK fantasy points over 20 home games this season, and the fact the Nets sport the sixth-highest pace of play (102.8 possessions per game) – including the third highest over the last three (105.8 possessions) – should dovetail perfectly with the Warriors' own breakneck style for Curry's fantasy purposes.
Jrue Holiday, NO at LAC ($8,200): Holiday is now sporting a 27.2 percent usage rate and averaging 1.23 DK fantasy points per minute with DeMarcus Cousins off the floor this season, and he's draining an outstanding 57.4 percent of his 20.2 shot attempts over the last five contests, including 44.4 percent of his 3.6 tries from distance. That's led to tallies of 36.5 to 60.25 DK fantasy points in that span, and three straight games with better than 60.0 percent shooting. The kind of heater he's on could well carry over into Tuesday, considering Holiday has averaged 36.8 DK fantasy points against the Clippers over two prior games this season, and Los Angeles comes in ranked in the bottom 10 in multiple categories against shooting guards over the last five contests. They've also the most susceptible team to long-distance shooting over the last three games, allowing the highest percentage of scoring from three-pointers (39.1) over that span.
Austin Rivers, LAC vs. NO ($5,800): Rivers is priced right on the other side of what should be a fast-paced, high-scoring matchup, considering he's scored 27.0 to 38.25 DK fantasy points in five of his last six games. He's shot a solid 50.7 percent over that span – including 42.1 percent from distance on an average of 6.3 three-point attempts per game – and he touched up the Pelicans for 31.3 DK fantasy points over 34.2 minutes in his one prior meeting with them this season. New Orleans comes in allowing the fourth-highest offensive efficiency rating (48.2) to backcourts on the season, so Rivers should be in a favorable position to pay off his modest price regardless of which guard position he puts time in on Tuesday.
FORWARDS
Anthony Davis, NO at LAC ($11,600): Davis has made 50 fantasy points his norm at a minimum on the majority of nights since DeMarcus Cousins' season-ending Achilles injury and has now racked up eight straight double-doubles. He's also averaged 57.4 DK fantasy points against the Clippers on the strength of averages of 25.0 points, 13.5 rebounds, 5.5 assists, 2.0 steals and 1.5 blocks across 40 minutes in two prior meetings this season. Los Angeles comes in allowing a robust 58.5 DK fantasy points per game to power forwards on the season, and like most teams, doesn't really have an answer down low for Davis, who should thrive in a contest between two teams playing at respective paces that rank within the top five (Pelicans-105.1 possessions per game) and top 10 (Clippers-102.1 possessions per game).
Paul Millsap, DEN at DAL ($5,800): The quality of Millsap's play in the three games since returning from an extended layoff due to wrist surgery has been nothing short of impressive, as he's scored 25.75 to 34.75 DK fantasy points in those contests despite playing no more than 27 minutes in any of them. He could potentially hit the 30-minute mark Tuesday against a Mavericks squad that's just playing out the string at this point and that's allowed 57.6 fantasy points per game to power forwards on the season, including 77.9 over the last five. The Mavericks' fifth-worst shooting percentage thus far in March (43.1) should give Millsap a fair share of rebounding opportunities as well, and an opportunity to pay off a price that hasn't quite yet caught up to his strong production since returning.
Kyle O'Quinn, NY at POR ($4,100): O'Quinn has quietly outpaced his price on multiple occasions recently, as he's scored 23.5 to 39.0 fantasy points in three of his past five games. He's putting up more than one shot attempt per game over his season figure during that stretch (5.8, as compared to 4.6) while draining 65.5 percent of them, and the 6.6 rebounds he's averaging within that sample also represent an improvement on his 5.7 seasonal figure. Just as important, O'Quinn's playing time has been steady, as he's averaging a solid 20.4 minutes in his second-unit role during the last five. He also racked up 25.8 DK fantasy points over 24.5 minutes in his one prior meeting with the Trail Blazers this season, and Portland comes in allowing considerably more points in the paint over the last three (47.3) than on the season (42.0). The latter figure is especially relevant when considering O'Quinn, as he's scoring a career-high 64.5 percent of his points in that area of the floor.
CENTERS
Nikola Jokic, DEN at DAL ($9,500): Jokic is averaging a whopping 61.5 DK fantasy points in two games against the Mavericks this season, nearly averaging a triple-double with 20.0 points, 17.0 rebounds, 9.0 assists, 1.5 blocks and 1.0 steals across 36.4 minutes. Dallas comes in allowing the sixth-highest offensive efficiency rating to centers (31.2), along with the fifth-most DK fantasy points (56.6) to the position on the season. They're ranked in the bottom 10 in multiple other categories against fives as well, and the Mavs' aforementioned recent shooting struggles should also set Jokic up with plenty of opportunities to round out his fantasy line on the glass.
Jusuf Nurkic, POR vs. NY ($6,400): Nurkic bounced back from a lackluster outing two games ago by compiling 42.5 DK fantasy points against the Lakers on Monday, as he was able to once again navigate foul trouble and put in 29 minutes on the floor. Granted, his propensity for drawing whistles always makes Nurkic a bit of a risk, but the matchup Tuesday makes him worth a roll of the dice as a mid-tier center play. He posted 31.3 DK fantasy points against New York over 30.1 minutes while accruing just one foul in his one prior meeting with them, and the Knicks come in allowing 71.1 DK fantasy points to centers over the last five games. They've also been more susceptible in the paint overall in the last five (47.3 points allowed during that span, compared to 42.7 on the season), while Nurkic is scoring 69.1 percent of his points in that area of the floor.
Ian Mahinmi, WAS vs. MIA ($3,500): Montrezl Harrell ($5,000) and Cheick Diallo ($3,700) are also appealing options for those that can afford to pay up, but Mahinmi has been flying under the radar some lately while providing solid returns on his near-minimum prices. He's coming off scoring 21.25 DK fantasy points against the Pacers on Sunday, and he'd posted 16.5 to 33.0 DK fantasy points in four of the prior seven as well. Those figures represent solid-to-excellent returns on his current price, and given that he continues to see a steady amount of playing time (16.2 minutes over the last six), he makes for a viable cost-savings tournament flyer. The Heat has allowed the ninth-most points in the paint (47.3) over the last three, a notably higher figure than the 43.6 they've allowed on the season, and one that dovetails well with the fact Mahinmi scores 69.7 percent of his points in that area of the floor.
