This article is part of our FanDuel NBA series.
A three-game playoff slate gives us a fair amount of options at each position, with likely enough choices to differentiate from other users. Per usual, Fred VanVleet (shoulder) is marked as questionable for the day's bout against Washington, and George Hill's back spasms also make him a 50/50 shot to take the floor. There's a new name on the injury report, however: Otto Porter, who is dealing with a bone bruise in his right leg. He too is listed as questionable, but didn't go through morning shootaround, which could be a cause for concern.
Let's jump in:
Point Guard
John Wall, WAS vs. TOR ($10,800)
Wall has been excellent all series, averaging 26.6 points, 12.2 assists, 5.6 rebounds, 2.4 steals and 1.4 blocks. From a DFS perspective, he's out-paced his price on all but one occasion -- that occasion being when he registered 46.3 fantasy points at a $9,800 price. However, he's cracked the 5x mark during the other four games and is averaging 58.4 fantasy points overall in the series. He also gets a bump here from playing at home, where he put up back-to-back 60-plus fantasy point outings during Games 3 and 4, averaging 27.5 points, 14.0 assists, 6.0 rebounds and 3.5 steals while committing just 3.5 turnovers. Facing elimination in Washington, I'm counting on Wall to be at his best.
Shooting Guard
Donovan Mitchell, UTA vs. OKC ($8,700)
I actually don't mind going Victor Oladipo ($9,000) here, either, as his price has fallen drastically relative to his potential as a result of poor shooting. Mitchell is undoubtedly the safer pick due to consistent play, but Oladipo is worth considering from a tournament perspective, since he'll presumably have low ownership.
It's practically cliche at this point, but Mitchell has not looked like a rookie during the postseason. Through five games against OKC, he's averaged 26.6 points, 7.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.6 steals in 38.4 minutes while shooting 44.4 percent from the field and 30.6 percent from deep. Friday's game is in Utah, which gives Mitchell a slight bump inherently, but he's only averaging 1.9 more fantasy points at home than away during the series, so I don't key that in as a main reason I'm slotting him in. Overall, Mitchell has dipped below 40 fantasy points just once this postseason, with his average coming in at 45.2. For the price, it's tough to get much safer.
Small Forward
LeBron James, CLE at IND ($12,300)
If Otto Porter (leg) doesn't play, there's certainly precedent to slot in Kelly Oubre ($4,200) in at small forward. That said, he hasn't played particularly well with Porter out this season, especially compared to Mike Scott, who will be mentioned in the following section. Even still, when it comes to saving money, there aren't too many better options than Oubre in that price range, especially if you're trying to get a few top-tier players in your lineup -- LeBron James, for example.
Unsurprisingly, LeBron has been dominant this series. Through the first five games, he's averaged 34.8 points, 11.4 rebounds, 8.0 assists, 1.0 steal and 1.0 block in 42.8 minutes. He's also turning the ball over just 3.6 times per tilt and is shooting 55.0 percent from the field. Slotting him in your lineup will undoubtedly break the bank, but it's hard to look elsewhere even at his price, as he's averaging 62.9 fantasy points against Indiana. If there's an argument against him, it's that he's registering just 58.8 fantasy points away from Cleveland during the series compared to 65.5 at home. Still, 58.8 fantasy points is hovering around 5x value and I have faith in LeBron to step up during a potential close-out game.
Power Forward
Mike Scott, WAS vs. TOR ($3,700)
Most people will likely go Kelly Oubre if Otto Porter (leg) is ruled out, since Oubre would probably get the starting nod. But, it was Scott that saw the noticeable bump in production when Porter was sidelined during the regular season. In the five contests that Porter missed, Scott saw his average fantasy points jump from 14.1 to 23.1, which correlated with a spike in usage (7.5 to 11.2), minutes (18.3 to 25.2) and shots (6.6 to 11.2). At a price of $3,700, Scott needs just 18.5 fantasy points to hit 5x value, which is foreseeable considering the aforementioned numbers.
Center
Marcin Gortat, WAS vs. TOR ($3,700)
Rudy Gobert ($7,900) is the safer pick here, and someone that probably makes more sense for cash games depending on the rest of your lineup. However, similar to Mike Scott, Gortat appears to be in line for increased production, assuming Porter will not play during Game 6. Though Gortat's usage and shots didn't change significantly while Porter was sidelined during the regular season, his minutes (25.1 to 28.5) and fantasy points (22.2 to 29.2) did. Also of note, he played better at home during the regular season, raising his fantasy points per game by 3.2 compared to away games. Aside from Gobert, I'm not sold on the other options at center, so Gortat presents a nice way of gaining some salary relief while also being in a good position to outperform his average.
