The Knicks look to continue their momentum Saturday night as the series shifts to Cleveland, while the favored Cavaliers are fighting to avoid falling into a likely unsurmountable 0-3 series hole.
With only one matchup, we're dealing with FanDuel's single-game contest rosters comprised as follows:
- MVP - (Garners points at 1.5x the normal rate)
- Five Utility spots - (Garner points at normal rate)
With salaries also being different than in conventional FanDuel contests and top players inevitably headed for heavy rostering, there are definitely strategic elements particular to single-game lineups. Finding value plays is key, as it enables you to roster a superstar in the MVP slot, where salaries for each player are 1.5x higher than if you were rostering them in a Utility spot.
Slate Overview
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Listed spreads/totals are from FanDuel Sportsbook and current as of Saturday, May 23 @ 12:00 a.m. EDT:
New York Knicks at Cleveland Cavaliers (-2.5) (O/U: 213.5)
The Cavaliers are relatively unsurprising narrow favorites; even though they've dropped the first two games of the series, they below 22-point fourth-quarter lead in Game 1. However, it's worth noting the Knicks are a league-best 9-3 against the spread so far in the playoffs.
Meanwhile, the relatively modest total is justified, considering the first two games have finished with 219 and 202 total points. The Over is 10-6 in Cleveland's postseason games thus far, but just 22-26 in the Cavs' home games since the start of the regular season.
Injury Situations to Monitor
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Elite Players
The player with the highest MVP salary on Saturday's slate is Jalen Brunson ($20,700). Donovan Mitchell ($20,100) sports the second-highest salary in that spot.
Brunson has scored 59 and 40.6 non-multiplier FD points in the first two games of the series. While the Cavs' defensive adjustments in Game 2 limited him to half of his 38-point Game 1 tally, Brunson helped make up for it with 14 assists.
Mitchell is averaging 43.5 non-multiplier FD points since Game 2 of the semifinal-round series against the Pistons, hitting at least 50 on on four occasions in that eight-game span.
Expected Chalk
With only one matchup, the likes of Karl-Anthony Towns ($12,400), Evan Mobley ($11,800) and James Harden ($10,600) should also be very popular as non-MVP candidates.
Towns' offensive production surged in Game 2 after several more modest performances in that capacity, and his 18-point, 13-rebound double-double helped net a second straight 35.1 FD-point tally. Given he's averaging 42.8 FD points over the entirety of the postseason, he should be very popular.
Mobley is putting up 36.5 FD points over the first two games of the series and 39.3 over the Cavaliers' 16-game postseason field, a level of reliability that should lock in a high roster rate.
Harden continued to struggle with his shot in Game 2, but he still recorded 34.2 FD points and is averaging 37.4 FD points over the course of the postseason.
Key Values
The following players make for strong candidates for the Utility spots:
OG Anunoby, NYK ($8,400)
Anunoby still isn't quite as involved as he was before his hamstring injury, but the talented forward did rediscover his stroke in Game 2 by going 5-for-8 from the floor after connecting on just two of nine shots in his Game 1 return. The veteran forward 24.0 and 35.3 FD points in the first two games against Cleveland, and in the eight playoff games prior, he'd put up 40.8 FD points across 35.3 minutes per contest while shooting 61.9 percent, including 53.8 percent from behind the arc. Given his typical efficiency and solid work on the boards, Anunoby is in play in Game 3.
Jarrett Allen, CLE ($7,800)
Allen has come through as a value suggestion in the each of the first two games of the series, averaging 11.5 points, 8.5 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 1.5 blocks, 1.0 steals and 30.9 FD points per contest. He's enjoyed a solid postseason overall despite one outlier single-digit FD-point tally, averaging 30.9 FD points on the strength of 12.9 points, 7.4 rebounds, 1.1 assists, 1.8 blocks and 1.0 steals across 29.1 minutes per game. Allen also has five consecutive games with at least seven rebounds and 10 performances of 30 FD points or more thus far in the playoffs, affording him plenty of appeal yet again.
Mikal Bridges, NYK ($6,400)
Bridges remained red hot in Game 2 after opening the series with 28.5 FD points in Game 1, as he delivered 30.1 with a big assist from another highly efficient offensive performance. Bridges' red-hot shooting continued with a 9-for-12 showing from the field, and he's now averaging 32.4 FD points while shooting an outstanding 68.3 percent, including 50.0 percent from behind the arc, over the last seven games. Bridges has shot at least 50.0 percent in eight consecutive playoff contests as well, and he also has a solid 53.3 percent conversion rate on his 7.5 rebounding opportunities per game.
ALSO CONSIDER: Josh Hart, NYK ($8,600)
