This article is part of our FanDuel NBA series.
We have a four-game slate on tap Tuesday night, but with the postseason fast approaching, even modest ledgers like these can make for entertaining nights of DFS play due to the higher level of urgency often exhibited by clubs. Three of the four games Tuesday particularly have a chance of being wire-to-wire affairs or close to them, and fortunately, the injury report is on the light side.
Slate Overview
Golden State Warriors (-8.5) at Orlando Magic (O/U: 216.5 points)
Atlanta Hawks (-1.5) at New York Knicks (O/U: 225.5 points)
Chicago Bulls at Milwaukee Bucks (-6) (O/U: 231.0 points)
Los Angeles Clippers at Denver Nuggets (-6.5) (O/U: 219.5 points)
Even the game with the highest spread of the night has a chance to not devolve into a lopsided affair, considering Golden State is struggling to adjust to the absence of Stephen Curry (foot) in its early stages. With the Warriors just having dropped a two-point decision to another losing team in the Spurs and the Magic having given several quality teams trouble this season, there could be more to this game than one might assume.
The other three matchups of the night all have intrigue attached. The Hawks have already lost three games to the Knicks this season and New York is particularly desperate to climb the standings and at least get to a No. 10 seed, which Atlanta just so happens to currently hold. Meanwhile, the Bulls look to notch a second straight win versus a quality squad and catch the Bucks without Khris Middleton (wrist), while the Nuggets and Clippers meet for the final time in the regular season after each of their first three games were decided by three or fewer points.
Injury Situations to Monitor
NOTE: Injury reporting is especially fluid in the NBA, where the status of multiple players can change during the course of a day. Therefore, although the following serves as a foundation for the latest injury report as of the time the article is written, check back throughout the course of the day with RotoWire for the latest news regarding the status of all players on that night's slate, including those carrying injury designations that aren't listed in this section.
Giannis Antetokounmpo, MIL (knee): PROBABLE
Antetokounmpo is fully expected to take the floor and will be seeing even more usage than usual with Khris Middleton (wrist) out of action.
Stephen Curry, GSW (foot): OUT
In Curry's absence, Jordan Poole is expected to draw another start at point guard, while the usage for the remainder of the starting five should see a sizable boost.
Khris Middleton, MIL (wrist): OUT
In Middleton's absence, Wesley Matthews could draw a start at small forward, while the remaining members of the starting five should see a bump in usage to varying degree.
Other notable injuries:
Paul George, LAC (elbow): OUT
Norman Powell, LAC (foot): OUT
Andrew Wiggins, GSW (knee): PROBABLE
Bogdan Bogdanovic, ATL (quadriceps): QUESTIONABLE
Lonzo Ball, CHI (knee): OUT
John Collins, ATL (finger, foot): OUT
Jalen Suggs, ORL (ankle): OUT
Elite Players
We have three players with five-figure salaries on Tuesday's slate: Nikola Jokic ($11,500), Giannis Antetokounmpo ($11,200) and Trae Young ($10,200).
Jokic dipped to 42.6 FD points Sunday in a tough matchup versus the Celtics, but he'd scored over 50 in the previous eight, including one tally of 92.9 against the Pelicans on March 6. He also scored 87.8 FD points against the Clippers in one of three previous meetings.
As alluded to earlier, Antetokounmpo, who's scored under 50 FD points only once since Feb. 8, will take the floor without Middleton, a circumstance in which he's sporting a 35.5 percent usage rate and averaging 62.3 FD points per 36 minutes. He also has one effort of over 65 FD points against Chicago this season.
Young played through his quad injury against the Pelicans on Sunday and posted 35 FD points. With one day off to rest Monday, he could be reenergized for his first game at Madison Square Garden since last summer's infamous quarterfinal-round series, given he missed this season's Christmas Day matchup in the Big Apple.
Expected Chalk
Other likely chalk plays include:
Julius Randle, NYK ($8,300)
Randle is mired in a shooting slump at the moment but should still be popular on the small slate against a Hawks team that's ranked in the bottom five in offensive efficiency allowed to power forwards.
Jrue Holiday, MIL ($8,100)
Holiday scored 56.3 FD points three games ago, and he's sporting a 29.1 percent usage rate while averaging 45.3 FD points per 36 minutes without Middleton on the floor.
Jordan Poole, GSW ($7,400)
Poole is expected to draw the start at point guard in place of Curry and hasn't scored less than 32.6 FD points since March 1. He also has eclipsed 40 FD points in two of the last four.
Wendell Carter, ORL ($7,300)
Carter is coming off having compiled 56.2 FD points in 30 minutes against the Thunder on Sunday and also posted 47.4 FD points three games ago, which should help keep him in plenty of lineups Tuesday.
RJ Barrett, NYK ($7,200)
Barrett has stepped up his play during New York's recent surge, averaging 39.7 FD points over 12 post-All-Star-break games.
Key Values
Bones Hyland, DEN vs. LAC ($5,800)
Hyland has scored in double digits in nine of the last 10 games, a stretch in which he's averaged 26.2 FD points while shooting 49.4 percent, including 49.1 percent from behind the arc. While Hyland is averaging a modest 22 minutes per game during the sample, he's still producing a well-rounded 13.8 points, 4.3 assists, 3.2 rebounds and 1.1 steals per game. Additionally, the Clippers are allowing the fifth-highest offensive efficiency to point guards (26.9 percent), along with 47.8 FD points per game to the position.
Bobby Portis, MIL vs. CHI ($5,600)
Portis is another member of the Bucks who'll benefit to a degree from Middleton's absence Tuesday, as he owns a solid 23.7 percent usage rate and averages 38.5 FD points per 36 minutes without his teammate on the floor. The big man has tallies of 25.4 and 28.1 FD points in two games against his old Bulls squad this season, and Chicago is allowing the 10th-highest offensive efficiency to centers (32.6 percent) along with 54.3 FD points per game to fives on the season. Portis has already generated at least a 5x return on his current salary in 39 games this season, and with Middleton out, he certainly seems to have a good shot at a 40th Tuesday.
Evan Fournier, NY vs. ATL ($4,800)
Fournier has put up a solid 17.7 points (on 52.6 percent shooting, including 55.0 percent from three-point shooting), 3.0 rebounds and 1.7 assists across three games versus the Hawks this season, posting 24.9 and 26.5 FD points in two of those outings. Fournier has also eclipsed 30 FD points in three of his last four games, shooting 51.0 percent, including 50.0 percent from three-point range, in that span. The Hawks have had trouble defending two-guards all season, yielding the fifth-highest offensive efficiency (23.4 percent) to the position. Atlanta has also yielded 41.4 FD points to twos, along with the sixth-highest three-point shooting percentage (36.4) on the season.
ALSO CONSIDER: Jonathan Kuminga, GSW at ORL ($4,700)
