This article is part of our FanDuel NBA series.
We have a larger than usual slate for a Thursday, as there are seven games on tap. There are multiple intriguing battles, with 76ers-Pacers, Nuggets-Knicks and Celtics-Heat among the marquee clashes. As of early Thursday, the injury report isn't overly populated, leaving us with an ample player pool to work with.
Slate Overview
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Point spreads paint a favorable picture for DFS purposes, considering there is no line larger than 7.5 on FD Sportsbook as of Thursday morning, including a pair of 1.5-point spreads. If oddsmakers are anywhere near accurate in their assessments, we should be in for a very competitive night.
Projected totals are also generally positive, with three tallies of 237.5 points or higher as of early Thursday. Three other games carry figures of between 224 and 225.5 points, which are solid numbers in and of themselves.
Injury Situations to Monitor
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Tyrese Haliburton, IND (hamstring): OUT
With Haliburton out, Andrew Nembhard and T.J. McConnell should split up the majority of minutes at point guard, while the rest of the starting five should enjoy elevated usage.
Anthony Davis, LAL (Achilles): QUESTIONABLE
If Davis sits out, Christian Wood and Jaxson Hayes could handle most of the Lakers' center minutes, while LeBron James (ankle) would be in line for significant usage if he's able to play through his questionable tag.
LeBron James, LAL (ankle): QUESTIONABLE
If James misses another game, Jarred Vanderbilt could draw another start at power forward, while Anthony Davis (Achilles) will be in line for even more usage than usual if he's able to suit up.
Tobias Harris, PHI (illness): QUESTIONABLE
If Harris sits out, Marcus Morris (foot) or Kelly Oubre could be in line for a start at small forward.
Isaiah Hartenstein, NYK (Achilles): QUESTIONABLE
If Hartenstein can't suit up, Jericho Sims and Precious Achiuwa should draw the majority of minutes at center.
Other notable injuries:
Zach LaVine, CHI (ankle): OUT
Ben Simmons, BKN (back): OUT
De'Anthony Melton, PHI (back): OUT
Jaime Jaquez, MIA (groin): QUESTIONABLE
Mike Conley, MIN (illness): GTD
Cameron Johnson, BKN (shoulder): QUESTIONABLE
Elite Players
We have five players with five-figure salaries that have a chance to play on Thursday's slate – Joel Embiid ($12,600), Nikola Jokic ($12,100), Anthony Davis ($11,300), Domantas Sabonis ($10,200) and Jayson Tatum ($10,100).
Embiid has had two days of rest since his unforgettable 70-point, 104 FD-point output against the Spurs, and he should therefore be ready for another favorable matchup against the Pacers.
Jokic comes into his interconference clash against the Knicks with tallies of 80.4 and 63.6 FD points in his last two games, and he has a minimum of a double-double in seven straight games.
Davis' condition will have to be monitored considering he's listed as questionable, and he could potentially take the floor without LeBron for a second straight game if he does play.
Sabonis now has a double-double, at minimum, in 25 straight games, and he already has two tallies of over 45 FD points against the Warriors this season.
Tatum just posted 74.7 FD points against the Mavericks in his most recent game Monday, and he approaches the matchup with the Heat with two full days of rest.
Expected Chalk
Other likely chalk plays include:
LeBron James, LAL ($9,800)
if James is able to return from his one-game absence, he should be as popular as usual, and even more so if Anthony Davis sits out with his ankle injury.
Jalen Brunson, NYK ($9,200)
Brunson was down to 37.6 FD points over 35 minutes against the Nets on Tuesday, but he still scored 30 points and had posted 65.6 and 57.5 FD points in his two previous contests.
Julius Randle, NYK ($9,100)
Randle has been a virtual lock for at least 40 FD points of late, which should keep him in plenty of lineups Thursday.
Anthony Edwards, MIN ($9,000)
Edwards just put up 48.1 FD points against the Wizards on Wednesday, and he's flashed a ceiling north of 50 FD points on multiple occasions that should make him very popular at his salary Thursday.
Jaylen Brown, BOS ($8,600)
Brown's recent run of fantasy production – he's scored 44 FD points or more in five of his last eight games – should help lead to a high roster rate Thursday, especially with two days of rest under his belt.
Key Values
John Collins, UTA at WAS ($6,200)
Collins does have some volatility to his production, but he's demonstrated plenty of upside for his salary by scoring 30 to 54.6 FD points in 14 games thus far this season. The big man could be due for one of those higher-percentile performances Thursday, considering the Wizards check in allowing an NBA-high 39.9 offensive efficiency rating to centers, along with a whopping 65.2 FD points per contest to the position in the last 15 games. Washington has also yielded an NBA-high 57.7 rebounds per game, and they've tied for highest shooting percentage (50.3) allowed overall.
Jonathan Kuminga, GSW vs. SAC ($6,100)
Kuminga was spectacular in the Warriors' return to action Wednesday, producing 49.8 FD points across 28 minutes while coming just one rebound short of a double-double to go with his 25-point tally. The stellar production was simply an extension of the numbers Kuminga had been putting up prior to Golden State's pause in play, as he'd averaged 17.7 points (on 54.1 percent shooting), 5.7 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 29.7 FD points per contest over his previous nine games. The Kings have been vulnerable to power forwards as well, surrendering the seventh-highest offensive efficiency rating to fours (29.2), along with 50.3 percent shooting and the fifth-most FD points per game to the position in the last seven games (52.8).
Marvin Bagley, WAS vs. UTA ($5,700)
Bagley has impressively hit the reset button since arriving in Washington, posting 37 to 48.2 FD points in three of his first four games in the nation's capital. The veteran big man has a trio of double-doubles in those contests as well, and he impressively tallied that aforementioned 37 FD-point tally Wednesday despite coming off the bench. The Jazz-Wizards game boasts the highest projected total of the night by far, and Utah checks in allowing 65.3 FD points per game to centers in the last seven contests. The Jazz are also conceding the sixth-highest offensive efficiency rating to second-unit players (45.7) and are tied for the eighth-most rebounds surrendered per game in that split (15.9), furthering Bagley's case.
ALSO CONSIDER: Walker Kessler, UTA at WAS ($6,300)
