This article is part of our FanDuel NBA series.
We have a solid eight-game slate on tap Saturday night, affording us ample options on the value front. As is often the case each season, the trade deadline has created some opportunities to take advantage of mispriced players that have jumped into larger roles than what they had just a few days prior. With several of those scenarios in play Saturday, let's jump right into examining where some of the best bargains might be:
POINT GUARD
Patrick Beverley, LAC at BOS ($5,100): Beverley recently saw a notable production boost while filling in for Danilo Gallinari during the latter's absence due to a back injury. Gallinari is back in the fold now, but with Avery Bradley having been shipped off to Memphis, Beverley remains in the starting five at two-guard. The Clippers have a need for more offense with Tobias Harris now in Philadelphia, and Beverley is capable of providing it. The feisty veteran has scored 20.7 to 25.7 fantasy points in three of his last four, and 39.6 to 44.0 in the three games prior. The Celtics are naturally tough on the shooting guard position with Marcus Smart patrolling the backcourt, but Beverley's price and recent production make him worth the investment if you're paying down.
Cory Joseph, IND vs. CLE ($4,900): Speaking of veterans with recently expanded roles, Joseph fits the bill. The eighth-year pro has taken on more responsibility in the wake of Victor Oladipo's season-ending knee injury, logging over 30 minutes in four of the last five contests. Joseph has scored at least 20 fantasy points in five straight as well, and he's posted double-digit point tallies in the last two. The Cavaliers also come in allowing the most fantasy points to point guards (45.0), and highest offensive efficiency rating (29.6) to the position as well. They've also yielded the fourth-most fantasy points to shooting guards (38.7) and eighth-highest offensive efficiency to the position (22.9), leaving Joseph poised for success regardless of which backcourt position he fills.
SHOOTING GUARD
Kevin Huerter, ATL vs. CHA ($5,400): Huerter put up a clunker in his most recent game versus the Raptors on Thursday, but he'd scored 22.8 to 33 fantasy points in the five games prior. The rookie sharpshooter has flashed a ceiling north of 40 fantasy points on multiple occasions this season, and he's scored over 20 fantasy points in all three games versus the Hornets this season. Charlotte comes in allowing the fourth-most fantasy points (38.7) to shooting guards, along with the sixth-most points (21.1). The Hornets are also ranked in the bottom half of the league in three-point percentage yielded on the road (36.4), which could certainly spell trouble against Huerter's 39.1 percent success rate from distance on an average of 4.6 three-point attempts per contest.
David Nwaba, CLE at IND ($4,200): Nwaba is slated for another start at two-guard now that Alec Burks is in Sacramento. The third-year wing racked up 32.6 fantasy points over 29 minutes against the Wizards in that role Friday night, and he'd put up 21.3 over just 15 minutes off the bench versus the Mavericks last Saturday as well. The Pacers are naturally a lot less intimidating defensively in the backcourt with Victor Oladipo (knee) on the shelf, and they're allowing 43.7 fantasy points per contest over the last five games to the position. Nwaba is also an above-average rebounder, and as such, he should benefit from the Cavaliers' fourth-lowest road shooting percentage (43.8) in the form of extra opportunities on the offensive glass.
SMALL FORWARD
Nicolas Batum, CHA at ATL ($5,600): Batum has scored 22.3 and 31.7 fantasy points, respectively, in his last two games versus the Hawks. He's been exceedingly steady in terms of his fantasy production overall, scoring over 20 fantasy points in 13 consecutive games -- a sample that includes a trio of tallies over 30. Atlanta continues to be a good candidate to target, as they've allowed the second-most fantasy points (39.7) per game to small forwards, along with the sixth-highest offensive efficiency rating (22.5) and fourth-highest shooting percentage (46.0) to the position. Batum can contribute across the stat sheet, leaving him poised to fully take advantage of the Hawks' overall weakness on defense.
Jabari Parker, WAS at CHI ($3,900): Parker made quite the splash in his Wizards debut Friday against the Cavaliers, totaling 45.7 fantasy points in just 23 minutes off the bench. The performance was a testament to Parker's versatility, as he supplemented a modest seven points with 11 rebounds, nine assists and three steals. He now gets to face off against his former Bulls teammates just a handful of days following his trade from Chicago, positioning him for another strong outing. Parker has fresh legs after just having played one game in February thus far, and the Bulls come in allowing a bottom-10 figure in fantasy points to small forwards (36.5).
POWER FORWARD
Bobby Portis, WAS at CHI ($6,500): Portis was the second former Chicago Bull to put up a very strong showing in his Wizards debut Friday. The 2015 first-round pick compiled 41.2 fantasy points on the strength of 30 points, six rebounds, two assists, and one steal over just 27 minutes. Portis had also eclipsed 40 fantasy points in his last game for Chicago against the Hornets last Saturday, and he'll now get to face his former teammates. Partly due to Portis' own suspect defense, the Bulls are allowing the second-most fantasy points (42.6) per game to power forwards, including the second-most rebounds (10.7) per contest to the position. However, a lot of those numbers have also been generated against Portis' former frontcourt mate Lauri Markkanen, so Portis should still be in a good position to thrive again. Then, Chicago is also allowing the sixth-highest offensive efficiency rating in the paint (60.5) and sports the fifth-lowest home shooting percentage in the NBA (44.6), the latter which should afford Portis plenty of opportunities on the defensive glass.
Marcus Morris, BOS vs. LAC ($5,100): Morris has seen his price drop several hundred dollars over the past week, with a clunker versus the Lakers in his last game on Thursday largely to blame. A knee issue that had caused Morris to miss the prior contest Tuesday against the Cavaliers may have been partly responsible for the drop in production, but Morris may ready for a bounce-back effort Saturday. There isn't any Tobias Harris to worry about in the frontcourt any longer in Los Angeles, and the Clippers already come in allowing the third-most fantasy points (41.4) and second-highest shooting percentage (52.0) to power forwards, along with a bottom-10 offensive efficiency rating (26.2) to the position. Prior to his aforementioned one-game absence, Morris had scored over 20 fantasy points in nine straight games, a sample that included a pair of tallies over 30.
CENTER
Cody Zeller, CHA at ATL ($5,400): Zeller has generated 27.2 and 28.1 fantasy points in his first two games back from a hand issue, and he'd tallied 23.2 to 47.0 fantasy points in the three games prior to suffering the injury New Year's Eve. Zeller has also averaged over 20 fantasy points in his three previous games against the Hawks this season and drained an impressive 57.9 percent of his shots against Atlanta. The Hawks are yielding bottom-half figures in fantasy points (34.0) and offensive efficiency rating (33.5) to centers, along with the highest shooting percentage (60.0) the position. Unsurprisingly given those numbers, they're giving up a lot of scoring near the basket, allowing 49.8 points in the paint per game and the fourth-highest offensive efficiency rating (61.3) in that area of the floor. That's a weakness Zeller is especially well-equipped to exploit, considering he logs just under 75 percent of his points in that part of the court.
