This article is part of our FanDuel NBA series.
It's a rather atypically compact four-game slate Saturday night, but luckily, both star power and value abound. That's a good combination to have, especially for tournaments, as an abundance of affordable plays can help you fit in multiple higher-priced options. A combination of injury- and non-injury related absences are also playing a large part in producing some appealing bargains Saturday, so without further ado, let's analyze some of the top cost-saving selections:
POINT GUARD
Darren Collison, IND at MEM ($6,500): Collison is one of the beneficiaries of injury just alluded to, as he's in a position to up his already strong production even further in the absence of backcourt mate Victor Oladipo (knee) the rest of the way. Collison is already averaging 1.02 FD points per minute without Oladipo on the floor this season, and he'll draw a matchup versus a Grizzlies squad that's allowed the 10th-most fantasy points (43.8) per game to point guards, along with bottom-half figures in points (21.7) and assists (7.4). Collison already comes in having scored 24.7 to 40.3 fantasy points in his last six games, with all but one of his tallies during that stretch eclipsing the 30-mark.
Landry Shamet, PHI at DEN ($3,900): Somewhat lost in the shuffle on a team with plenty of star power on its starting five, Shamet is putting together an impressive rookie season as part of the backcourt rotation. The emerging guard has scored 18.2 to 27.6 fantasy points in three of his last five games, encouragingly logging at least 20 minutes in those contests. His playing time does fluctuate from time to time – making him strictly a GPP play – but he's proven capable outpacing his current price on multiple occasions this season. Moreover, the Nuggets come in allowing a robust 46.1 fantasy points per game to two-guards, along with 24.9 points and 3.1 made threes per contest. In turn, Shamet is taking 4.5 three-point attempts across 20.0 minutes per contest and is draining them at an impressive 40.5 percent clip.
SHOOTING GUARD
Jaylen Brown, BOS vs. GS ($4,800): Brown has likely driven those who've rostered him a little batty on more than one occasion this season, but when he hits, he often hits big. Most recently, the third-year guard racked up 32.2 fantasy points versus the Cavaliers on Wednesday with Kyrie Irving out of the lineup due to illness. Brown also scored 23.7 to 38.2 fantasy points in three of the prior five contests, and he'll be in a potentially good spot again Saturday while coming off the bench. The Warriors have allowed 47.3 fantasy points per game to shooting guards, along with the third-most points (28.1) and most made threes (4.0) per contest to the position. They'll also bring a nice bump in pace (105.0 possessions per game) with them to Beantown, which should give Brown a few extra opportunities to work with.
Andre Iguodala, GS at BOS ($4,400): Iguodala's role continues to steadily afford minutes in the mid-20s on average, providing the versatile veteran an ample platform with which to generate solid returns on his modest prices. Most recently, Iggy has scored 23.9 to 31.4 fantasy points in five of his last six games, solid-to-excellent returns on his current price. It's also worth noting that a lot of Iguodala's success has come on the road, as he's shooting an impressive 52.6 percent outside of Oracle Arena, compared to 44.3 percent on his home floor.
SMALL FORWARD
Will Barton, DEN vs. PHI ($5,200): Barton's shot was understandably rusty following a long layoff due to his groin injury, but he bounced back to drain 61.5 percent of his attempts, including 80.0 percent from distance, versus the Jazz on Wednesday. That led to an impressive haul of 43.3 fantasy points, and he could be set up for another strong performance Saturday. The Sixers are expected to be without Jimmy Butler (wrist), which will certainly make matters a bit easier for Barton, who already checks in shooting a career-high 50.0 percent from three-point range.
Corey Brewer, PHI at DEN ($4,000): Brewer appears slated for another start Saturday at small forward due to Jimmy Butler's (wrist) projected absence. The veteran wing has scored 25.1 and 17.2 fantasy points in his last two games, and he's likely to be in for another allotment of minutes in the high 20s at minimum Saturday if he does indeed slot into the starting five. The Nuggets make for highly appealing targets as well, as they've allowed the fourth-most fantasy points (48.3) to small forwards, along with the seventh-most points (24.2) and fourth-highest shooting percentage (47.0) to the position. Given that his price is nowhere near reflective of his expected starting role, Brewer makes for one of the better potential fantasy-point-per-dollar values of the night.
POWER FORWARD
Paul Millsap, DEN vs. PHI ($5,700): Millsap has thrown in an occasional clunker lately, but he's poised for one of his better performances Saturday. The 76ers have struggled versus power forwards all season as well, and they continue to allow the most fantasy points (47.3) per game to the position, along with the second-highest shooting percentage (51.0) and bottom-half figures in points (22.4) and rebounds (11.5). It's also worth noting Millsap is coming off a 40.8 fantasy-point effort versus the Suns on Friday, and he'd scored 27.5 and 28.6 fantasy points in two of the prior three games as well.
Al-Farouq Aminu, POR vs. ATL ($5,100): The matchup could hardly line up better for Aminu on Saturday, as the Hawks come in allowing the fifth-most fantasy points (46.1) per game to power forwards, along with 20.9 points and 11.0 rebounds per contest to the position. For his part, Aminu is averaging a career-high 8.2 boards per game, a figure that could see a boost Saturday via defensive rebounds courtesy of Atlanta's poor 44.5 percent road shooting. It's also worth noting the veteran big man has flashed some nice upside recently relative to his current price (24 to 37 fantasy points in nine of his last 13 games) and that the Hawks come in allowing the seventh-highest road three-point percentage (37.6) in the NBA – a vulnerability the floor-spacing big man (34.9 percent success rate from distance this season) has the ability to exploit.
CENTER
Mike Muscala, PHI at DEN ($3,500): Joel Embiid will be held out for rest Saturday, while Jimmy Butler (wrist) and Wilson Chandler (hamstring) will sit as well. The trio of absences leaves Muscala in an advantageous position. His expected starting role and minimum price are likely to afford him plenty of ownership on the short slate, but he's certainly viable if you need to save at center to pay up elsewhere. The sixth-year big man has proven capable of producing with expanded minutes on multiple occasions this season, and he comes into Saturday with a trio of efforts of greater than 20 fantasy points in his last seven games. Muscala has regularly eclipsed that mark when logging over 20 minutes this season.
