We have a modest five-game main slate on tap Friday, and an injury report that continues to be populated by some big names narrows our player pool further.
Slate Overview
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Listed spreads/totals are from FanDuel Sportsbook and current as of Friday, March 13 at 2:30 a.m. ET:
New York Knicks (-13.5) at Indiana Pacers (O/U: 227.5)
Memphis Grizzlies at Detroit Pistons (-15.5) (O/U: 232.5)
Phoenix Suns at Toronto Raptors (-4) (O/U: 218.5)
Cleveland Cavaliers (-13) at Dallas Mavericks (O/U: 236.5)
New Orleans Pelicans at Houston Rockets (-7) (O/U: 228.5)
The betting metrics paint a mixed picture Friday, as the trio of double-digit favorites is particularly unappealing on such a small slate. However, the other two games have potential to facilitate some useful DFS performances, and if some of the players carrying questionable tags are ultimately ruled out, they could be even more competitive than already projected.
Injury Situations to Monitor
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Alperen Sengun, HOU (back): QUESTIONABLE
If Sengun is is unable to play, Clint Capela and Jeff Green are likely to absorb most center minutes, while the rest of the starting five will see a notable boost in usage.
Scottie Barnes, TOR (illness): QUESTIONABLE
If Barnes sits out, Collin Murray-Boyles (thumb) is likely to draw a spot start at power forward if he can play through his injury, while Immanuel Quickley and Brandon Ingram would be among those in line for the biggest usage increases.
Karl-Anthony Towns, NYK (knee): QUESTIONABLE
If Towns can't play, Mitchell Robinson will likely draw a spot start at center, and the usage rates for Jalen Brunson and OG Anunoby should certainly expand.
Pascal Siakam, IND (knee): GTD
If Siakam can't suit up, Micah Potter and Kobe Brown could handle plenty of power forward minutes, and Ivica Zubac and Jarace Walker could see plenty of extra usage.
Jarrett Allen, CLE (knee): OUT
In Allen's absence, Thomas Bryant could see plenty of minutes at center, while Evan Mobley may see a significant boost in rebounding opportunities.
Other notable injuries:
Ja Morant, MEM (elbow): OUT
Santi Aldama, MEM (knee): OUT
Ty Jerome, MEM (calf): GTD
Cam Spencer, MEM (back): GTD
Cedric Coward, MEM (knee): OUT
Scotty Pippen, MEM (toe): OUT
Ausar Thompson, DET (ankle): OUT
Grayson Allen, PHO (knee): GTD
Josh Hart, NYK (ankle): QUESTIONABLE
Elite Players
We have one player with a five-figure salary on Friday's slate – Cade Cunningham ($10,900).
Cunningham hasn't scored under 38 FD points since way back on Feb. 6, and he'll draw a highly appealing matchup against an extremely short-handed Grizzlies team.
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Expected Chalk
Other likely chalk plays include:
Donovan Mitchell, CLE ($9,500)
Mitchell is averaging 45 FD points per contest on the season and has an appealing matchup against the Mavericks, which should ensure his popularity Friday.
Jalen Brunson, NYK ($9,100)
Brunson put up 44.8 and 50.8 FD points while recording 28 points apiece in the last two games, and he could be taking the floor without Karl-Anthony Towns on Friday.
Cooper Flagg, DAL ($8,900)
Flagg is averaging 38.2 FD points per game for the season, and he should be very busy in a matchup against the Cavaliers where the Mavericks will have to be particularly aggressive.
Devin Booker, PHO ($8,800)
Booker went off for 62.9 FD points against the Pacers on Thursday, and he's been over 42 in five straight games.
James Harden, CLE ($8,700)
Harden put up 44 FD points over 36 minutes against the Magic his most recent time out, which should play a role in locking in a high roster rate Friday.
Key Values
Jabari Smith, HOU vs. NOP ($6,000)
Smith has had a handful of disappointing games over the last several weeks, but he's still averaging 30.6 FD points over his last 12 contests while shooting an impressive 53.8 percent, including 43.1 percent from behind the arc. The floor-spacing big man has had his fair share of success against the Pelicans this season as well, furnishing 25.4 and 43.6 FD points in the first pair of meetings between Houston and New Orleans. The Pelicans remain an appealing target, surrendering 48.2 FD points per game to power forwards over the last 15 games, along with the sixth-highest offensive efficiency rating to frontcourt players (86.4).
Tobias Harris, DET vs. MEM ($5,300)
Harris has seen a nice dip in salary recently due to some fairly wild swings in his production, but the veteran forward is a tournament consideration Friday against an opponent with an extremely short-handed frontcourt. Harris is still averaging 26.4 FD points over the last 12 games, even with three games of under 20 FD points in the last four contests. The Grizzlies could coax one of his better performances out of him, however, as Memphis is conceding the third-highest offensive efficiency rating to power forwards (28.8), and the seventh-most made three-pointers per game overall as well (13.9).
Jaylen Wells, MEM at DET ($5,100)
Wells is one of the select few members of the Grizzlies that's mostly managed to avoid the injury bug, and he's been the beneficiary of additional opportunities as a result of the decimated nature of Memphis' roster. Wells is averaging 24.3 FD points in his last nine games while shooting an outstanding 49.6 percent, including 41.8 percent from behind the arc in that span. The Pistons are a tough matchup overall on paper, but with multiple Grizzlies set to sit out again Friday, Wells could once again prove to be bargain at his salary.
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