This article is part of our DraftKings EuroLeague DFS Picks series.
Slate Overview
We have reached the final day of an awesome double-week full of competitive contests. Efes is off Friday, which fortunately means there will not be a mass of chalk. It's nice to be able to build lineups and go with whoever you want without having to navigate some extra hurdles. As far as injuries go, I don't expect much to affect the picks below, and the main thing we are monitoring is the status of Virtus Bologna's Alessandro Pajola. If he's out again it keeps their guards in play for me. Good luck and let's close the week on a high note!
Guards to Go After
Players listed in order of confidence
Preferred Plays
Mike James, AS Monaco ($11,200)
The guy is just absolutely in his bag right now and is getting it done in so many ways, even flirting with a triple-double in a very tough road environment his last time out. He has returned 3.5x value in three straight appearances, which is the baseline we're looking for.
Markus Howard, Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz ($9,500)
Does 36.0 DraftKings points despite 4-of-13 shooting beyond the arc interest you? That's what we saw last game from the former Marquette star, who is excelling with Darius Thompson elsewhere. Howard returned 3.5x value in four of his last five games at this price, and they weren't even all great matchups.
Wade Baldwin IV, Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv ($11,000)
It hurts that Baldwin was bumped all the way up to this price, but his usage rate is massive. Having watched him recently I'm a little concerned about his confidence in the three-point shot, but he's able to contribute in other ways. One of those is his elite ability to get to the free-throw line.
Carsen Edwards, FC Bayern Munich ($9,000)
It truly is the year of the small guard in the EuroLeague, with many of them showing their ability to return 5x value. The thing with Edwards has always been the playing time. It took him a while to get consistent minutes, but he is finally getting those and thriving as a result.
Nando de Colo, LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne ($8,800)
He will presumably continue coming off the bench, but he leads ASVEL in shot rate and got up 15 shots against Maccabi on Wednesday.
Valuable Values
Daniel Hackett, Virtus Segafredo Bologna ($8,100)
Isaia Cordinier, Virtus Segafredo Bologna ($7,300)
Iffe Lundberg, Virtus Segafredo Bologna ($6,000)
All three of these Virtus guards benefited in Round 12 with Pajola out. Although he only plays around 15-to-18 minutes per game, Pajola dominates the ball and runs the show when he's out there, so when he's not out there all three of these guys are primed to see an increase in usage.
Jared Harper, Valencia Basket ($6,900)
Harper averaged 23 minutes over the last two Rounds despite getting into a little foul trouble in Round 12. He has a very appealing matchup against ASVEL.
Tomas Dimsa, Zalgiris Kaunas ($6,700)
Dovydas Giedraitis, Zalgiris Kaunas ($5,000)
Edmond Sumner, Zalgiris Kaunas ($4,500)
With Lukas Lekavicius going down, the Zalgiris rotation gets even thinner, and these three guys are left to share the backcourt with Keenan Evans. I don't think any of them are must-plays due to a very tough matchup and the fact only one team scores less than Zalgiris, but they are all fine to slot in as a final piece in your lineups.
Nick Calathes, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul ($6,800)
Calathes has been starting but rarely goes past 20 minutes. With the entire backcourt healthy Calathes is a GPP dart at best.
Frontcourt in Focus
Players listed in order of confidence
Preferred Plays
Serge Ibaka, FC Bayern Munich ($10,500)
I mean who doesn't love 35 minutes from Ibaka? He has been playing sensationally, and it's time to go back to Kurt's school of math. Ibaka is averaging 1.13 fantasy points per minute this season, and when you multiply that by his expected minutes you get a pretty nice projected score. Considering the last game went to overtime I think Ibaka will see about 29 minutes Friday. Bayern's matchup with Olympiacos should be a close one, so I think it's safe to expect 3x value from Ibaka -- with the upside for more.
Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot, LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne ($10,300)
He did not shoot the best his last time out and still came close to 3x value. He's starting to reach the level of the next guy on the list when it comes to players with an elite fantasy floor.
Tornike Shengelia, Virtus Segafredo Bologna ($10,900)
Shengelia did not wow in the last two games, but that gives us a bit of a price decrease, and that's nice to see with a quality matchup.
Nigel Hayes-Davis, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul ($9,400)
This is a pretty simple one. Not many players consistently get 34 minutes, and it's nice to know you are getting that from a guy who can put up fantasy points in many ways.
Semi Ojeleye, Valencia Basket ($8,400)
He's starting to play like the $9,000 player he is capable of being. He's a little dependent on field goal attempts, but I'm okay with that type of player when he checks in less than $8,500.
Chima Moneke, Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz ($10,700)
I think it may be time to hop off here, as he continues to come off the bench even with Matt Costello out. It's also worth mentioning that with the next player on the list seeing more minutes, Moneke's rebound ceiling is lower. Costello is a stretch big while the next guy mainly patrols the paint.
Valuable Values
Maik Kotsar, Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz ($7,600)
Kotsar stepped in for Costello and looked very comfortable with the extended run. I see no reason why he can't return 3x at this price. He will be very popular -- and for good reason.
Roman Sorkin, Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv ($7,500)
Josh Nebo is the starting center, but Sorkin has been challenging him, and there could be a bit of a changing of the guard down low for Maccabi.
Vanja Marinkovic, Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz ($7,800)
The shooting guard/small forward hybrid continues to hit value and is always in play when he's below the $8,000 mark.
Isaac Bonga, FC Bayern Munich ($7,500)
Much like Youssoupha Fall, Bayern's small forward just has to avoid the fouls to give you a shot in GPPs. He was able to manage them last game but had a tough night shooting the ball.
Dyshawn Pierre, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul ($6,600)
Pierre will start and play anywhere from 16-to-28 minutes. He sometimes finds himself in the corner-filling role depending on the matchup, but he can return value at this rate if the triples are falling.
Sertac Sanli, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul ($4,300)
He let us down Tuesday but saw 16 minutes, which isn't bad for a player at this price. Plus, Georgios Papagiannis remains unavailable.
Jordan Mickey, Virtus Segafredo Bologna ($7,400)
He will likely come off the bench and play 19-to-24 minutes. He has some upside in the blocks department, which brings him into plays in GPPs.
