This article is part of our FanDuel NBA series.
The NBA starts off the week with a relatively full slate of nine games, including many of the biggest hitters in the game. There are five players on Monday that are priced above $10k, and all of them are proven to be huge producers. However, none of them feature in the article below, as there are also a lot of value plays beneath the max tier that have max tier upside. Let's explore.
GUARDS
Lonzo Ball, LAL at PHO ($7,600): Ball is an unusual choice here, since both John Wall ($9,700) and Damian Lillard ($9,600) have much higher season averages. But, both Wall and Lillard have been playing below their average over the last few games, while Ball's triple-double in his last outing raised his three-game running averages to 12.7 points, 9.0 assists, 8.3 rebounds and 4.7 combined blocks/steals. Plus, he has a good matchup on Monday against the Suns.
Will Barton, DEN at POR ($6,100): This is another choice that could have gone a different way. Bradley Beal ($7,700), Devin Booker ($7,400), CJ McCollum ($7,000) and Klay Thompson ($6,600) all make sense tonight, with Thompson being particularly interesting if Stephen Curry (Q, quad) sits on Monday. Barton earned this spot, though, by dint of producing three games of between 37.6 and 49.3 fantasy points in his last four outings, while still maintaining the lowest price on Monday among that group of interest.
Mike James, PHO vs LAL ($5,300): There is an assumption inherent in this pick that James was indeed benched for disciplinary reasons on Saturday and that he will resume his starting slot on Monday. If that isn't the case and James is still coming off the bench on Monday, players like the Nuggets point guards (Jamal Murray, $4,700 and Emmanuel Mudiay, $4,600), T.J. McConnell ($4,600) or Frank Ntilikina ($4,400) may make better low-priced lottery tickets.
FORWARDS
Kristaps Porzingis, NY vs CLE ($9,600): Porzingis has scored between 28 and 40 points in seven of his last eight games, a span that has also produced six efforts of between 49 and 68.1 fantasy points. He is in a zone right now, worthy of consideration with any of the five forwards with a higher price tag than his, and on Monday he faces a Cavaliers defense that he lit up for 32 points and 12 boards just two weeks ago.
T.J. Warren, PHO vs LAL ($7,100): Warren is a risky play, but when he booms he really booms. In his last six healthy games (i.e. not leaving early for injury or recovering in his first game back), Warren has two games in the 20s of fantasy points, but two games in the upper 40s of fantasy points and one explosion of 61.5 fantasy points. He also is playing in my favorite game of the day for fantasy purposes, as the Suns vs Lakers on Monday seems like it could produce some fireworks.
Dario Saric, PHI @ LAC ($4,600):Markieff Morris ($5,400) would have also been a worthy value pick here, as he's been ramping up his minutes and production since returning from injury. However, Saric gets the nod because he has quietly started producing at his level whether he starts the game or not. In his last three games, he has averaged 17.3 points, 7.7 boards and 2.0 assists with two double-doubles while still maintaining a low price going into Monday.
CENTERS
Karl-Anthony Towns, MIN at UTA ($9,400): There was a three-way race for this slot, with DeMarcus Cousins ($11,700) as one option and Nikola Jokic as the other. However, Towns earns this spot because he's facing a Jazz defense that will be lacking Rudy Gobert, giving Towns a great opportunity to shine.
Kevin Love, CLE at NY ($7,500): Love has quietly detonated twice in his last three games, dropping 32 and 16 on the Bucks and 29 and 15 on the Mavericks. While he had pedestrian efforts in the two games before this stretch, and was only okay against the Rockets on Thursday, that level of explosive upside at this price point makes him worth considering on Monday against a Knicks squad that he dropped 22 and 11 against two weeks ago.
Alex Len, PHO vs LAL ($4,400): Len's minutes have fluctuated wildly over the last few games, as starter Tyson Chandler has been in and out of the line-up with back spasms. Chandler played in the last game, and is currently not listed on the injury report, but his availability for a whole game is far from a sure thing. Meanwhile, in the games before Chandler went out, Len was already showing that he could be productive with seven straight games between 19.4 and 32.3 fantasy points with an average in the mid-upper 20s of fantasy points.
