This article is part of our FanDuel NBA series.
We're set for a compact Saturday night main slate, as there are only four games on the docket. Some big names populate the injury report, but with eight teams in action, we're still working with a relatively solid player pool that will allow us to differentiate sufficiently in tournaments.
Slate Overview
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The spreads mostly shine favorably on us as DFS players Saturday night, as three of the four games have lines of 4.5 points or fewer on FanDuel Sportsbook as of early Saturday morning, including two games that check in with sub-two-point spreads.
Projected totals are also very encouraging, as we have a trio of tallies over 230 points, including a Hawks-Wizards tilt set at a whopping 248.5 which could rival Atlanta's wild 157-152 loss to the Pacers on Tuesday night.
Injury Situations to Monitor
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Anthony Davis, LAL (adductor/hip): PROBABLE
Davis is expected to take the floor and could be in line for expanded usage if LeBron James sits out with his calf injury.
LeBron James, LAL (calf): QUESTIONABLE
If LeBron sits out, Anthony Davis would be in line for a major usage bump, while Taurean Prince would be in line to draw a start at power forward.
Donovan Mitchell, CLE (hamstring): QUESTIONABLE
If Mitchell remains out Saturday, Caris LeVert would likely draw a start at shooting guard and there would be extra usage for the remainder of the starting five.
Lauri Markkanen, UTA (hamstring): QUESTIONABLE
If Markkanen, who's dealing with soreness, can't suit up, then Ochai Agbaji could draw a start at small forward or Talen Horton-Tucker could potentially enter the starting five.
Other notable injuries:
CJ McCollum, NOP (chest/lung): OUT
Dereck Lively, DAL (back): OUT
Rui Hachimura, LAL (nose): OUT
Dean Wade, CLE (ankle): OUT
Walker Kessler, UTA (elbow): QUESTIONABLE
Cam Reddish, LAL (groin): QUESTIONABLE
Isaac Okoro, CLE (knee): QUESTIONABLE
Trey Murphy, NOP (knee): OUT
Elite Players
We have three players with five-figure salaries on Saturday's slate – Luka Doncic ($11,900), Anthony Davis ($10,500) and LeBron James ($10,200).
Doncic should be in for a full load of minutes in a marquee matchup against the Clippers and is coming off having scored 54.5 to 62.4 FD points in his last three games. He also put up 62.2 FD points across 31 minutes in his first encounter with the Clippers on Nov. 10.
Davis scored only 34.6 FD points against the Mavericks on Wednesday night, but that was on the second night of a back-to-back set and third game in four nights overall. With two days off to rest his hip/adductor issue, Davis could be primed for production closer to the average of 50.6 FD points he boasts this season.
If James is able to play through his calf injury, he'll look to build on a stretch where he's posted 57.5 FD points or more in three of the last five games and 44.3 in his most recent contest Wednesday.
Expected Chalk
Other likely chalk plays include:
Trae Young, ATL ($9,500)
Young figures to play a central role in a game that has nearly a 250-point projected total and is coming off having scored 57.2 and 63.3 FD points in his last two contests.
Paul George, LAC ($8,600)
George has made 42 FD points his floor recently, as he's scored least that much in six straight games and seven of eight overall.
Kyrie Irving, DAL ($8,400)
Irving does have the ceiling of a player with a five-figure salary and has already exceeded 50 FD points twice, which should keep him very popular in a marquee matchup against the Clippers.
Darius Garland, CLE ($8,200)
Garland turned in a dud of 19.7 FD points against the Heat on Wednesday, but he'd scored 40.6 and 55 FD points in the previous two contests and should be in plenty of lineups if Donovan Mitchell misses another game.
Kyle Kuzma, WAS ($8,000)
Kuzma should be a major source of scoring in the game with the highest projected total of the night and has scored 52.1 and 60.8 FD points in two of the last three games.
Key Values
Bogdan Bogdanovic, ATL at WAS ($5,800)
Gaining cost-effective access to the Hawks-Wizards game on either side figures to be a prudent move Saturday, especially given how small the slate is. Bogdanovic certainly fits the bill as a value play with above-average upside and an ability to deliver a 5x or greater return on his current salary, as he's already done that on four occasions this season and has fallen just short on three other occasions by scoring 28 to 28.4 FD points. The Wizards make for excellent targets for the sharpshooting wing, as they've given up 49.2 percent shooting, including 40.5 percent from three-point range, to two-guards, along with the third-highest offensive efficiency rating to second-unit players (48.1).
Craig Porter, CLE vs. LAL ($5,800)
Porter has been maximizing his recent extended opportunity prompted by the ongoing absence of Donovan Mitchell due to his hamstring injury. Even if Mitchell, who's listed as questionable, returns Saturday, coach J.B. Bickerstaff already said Porter has earned a permanent spot in his rotation by averaging 32 FD points over his last four games while averaging 15.3 points, 5.8 assists, 3.0 rebounds, 1.0 steals and 1.0 blocks. Porter has played at least 25 minutes in each of the last three games, and although he will carry some risk if Mitchell is back Saturday, Porter carries some intrigue at his salary thanks to his elite efficiency (54.4 percent shooting across his first 10 games).
Tyus Jones, WAS vs. ATL ($5,700)
Like Bogdanovic, Jones offers you a value-based path to the offensive extravaganza that should unfold in the Wizards-Hawks clash, and he comes in running hot to boot. The veteran point guard has scored 24.1 to 43.9 FD points in his last four games, with the high end of that range coming Friday night against the Bucks on the strength of a season-high 22 points. The Hawks come in allowing 39.9 percent three-point shooting to point guards, and they're also yielding the second-most assists (9.9) and fourth-most made threes (3.5) per game to the position. Jones is shooting a career-high 49.2 percent as well, adding to his appealing at a salary he's proven capable of offering a 5x or greater return on .
ALSO CONSIDER: Talen Horton-Tucker, UTA vs. NOP ($5,200); Saddiq Bey, ATL at WAS ($5,200); Tim Hardaway, DAL at LAC ($5,000)
