This article is part of our FanDuel NBA series.
We have a massive slate, especially by Tuesday night standards, as there are 11 games on tap tonight. Fortunately, the injury report is actually very light in terms of serious short-term injuries, and many players tagged as questionable should have a good chance to play. Consequently, we'll have an expansive player pool to work with if playing main-slate cash games and tournaments.
Slate Overview
For the latest spreads and over-unders, visit RotoWire's NBA Odds page. There, you can also find player props, futures, picks articles and sportsbook bonus codes.
Listed spreads/totals are from FanDuel Sportsbook and current as of Tuesday, 12/3 @ 11:00 a.m. ET:
Washington Wizards at Cleveland Cavaliers (-16) (O/U: 234.5)
Philadelphia 76ers (-4.5) at Charlotte Hornets (O/U: 211.5)
Milwaukee Bucks (-3.5) at Detroit Pistons (O/U: 221.0)
Indiana Pacers (-3) at Toronto Raptors (O/U: 238.0)
Orlando Magic at New York Knicks (-4.5) (O/U: 215.0)
Utah Jazz at Oklahoma City Thunder (-13.5) (O/U: 224.0)
Memphis Grizzlies at Dallas Mavericks (-4) (O/U: 242.5)
San Antonio Spurs at Phoenix Suns (-7.5) (O/U: 229.5)
Houston Rockets at Sacramento Kings (-1) (O/U: 227.5)
Golden State Warriors at Denver Nuggets (-5) (O/U: 239.5)
Portland Trail Blazers at Los Angeles Clippers (-9) (O/U: 219.0)
In addition to the sparse number of potential absences, another atypical aspect of this size of a ledger is the relative absence projected blowouts. We do have one very clear outlier in Wizards-Cavs, and the Jazz-Thunder battle could also turn one-sided. The rest of the slate looks very strong in terms of expected competitive environments.
There's plenty to be excited about with projected totals as well, considering we have three of 238 or higher, and all those games have lines of five points or fewer. The perfect storm of the night may well be the Grizzlies-Mavericks showdown with its -4 line for Dallas and the slate-high 242.5-point projected total. With Ja Morant and Luka Doncic both healthy and Kyrie Irving available as well, the potential for a wire-to-wire scoreboard-busting affair is there.
Injury Situations to Monitor
For all the latest updates, visit RotoWire's NBA Injury News page and our comprehensive NBA Injury Report.
Draymond Green, GSW (calf): DOUBTFUL
In Green's likely absence, Jonathan Kuminga and Kyle Anderson should be primary beneficiaries in terms of minutes at power forward.
Other notable injuries:
Khris Middleton, MIL (ankle): OUT
Kawhi Leonard, LAC (knee): OUT
Paolo Banchero, ORL (oblique): OUT
LaMelo Ball, CHA (calf): OUT
Kyle Kuzma, WAS (ribs): OUT
Jordan Clarkson, UTA (foot): OUT
Miles Bridges, CHA (knee): OUT
Naji Marshall, DAL (illness): OUT
Klay Thompson, DAL (foot): QUESTIONABLE
Dereck Lively, DAL (knee): QUESTIONABLE
Gradey Dick, TOR(ankle): QUESTIONABLE
Scoot Henderson, POR (quadricep): QUESTIONABLE
Jeremy Sochan, SAN (thumb): PROBABLE
Aaron Gordon, DEN (calf): PROBABLE
Bradley Beal, PHO (calf): PROBABLE
Stephen Curry, GSW (knee): PROBABLE
Giannis Antetokounmpo, MIL (illness/knee): PROBABLE
Elite Players
We have five players with five-figure salaries on Tuesday's slate – Nikola Jokic ($12,200), Giannis Antetokounmpo ($12,000), Victor Wembanyama ($11,600), Luka Doncic ($11,500) and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander($10,800).
Jokic was back over 60 FD points in his most recent game Sunday against the Clippers, his third time eclipsing that threshold since returning from a three-game absence for personal reasons.
Giannis is fully expected to play through his illness and ongoing knee issue and will be looking to build on the 71.9 FD points he scored last time out against the Wizards. With his last game having been Saturday, he's also on a coveted two full days of rest.
Wembanyama was spectacular against the Kings on Sunday with 74.3 FD points achieved through a 34-point, 14-rebound, 11-assist triple-double and has been over 54 FD points in three of the four games since returning from a knee injury.
Doncic will be a pivotal part of the game with the highest projected total of the night and went off for 69.9 FD points in 36 minutes against the Blazers on Sunday, which marked his return from a five-game absence due to a wrist injury.
Gilgeous-Alexander draws a highly favorable matchup against a Jazz team that's been defensively vulnerable all season and comes in having scored at least 50 FD points in seven straight, a span in which he's eclipsed 60 FD points twice.
Expected Chalk
Other likely chalk plays include:
James Harden, LAC ($9,800)
Harden has sandwiched a pair of 63+ FD-point tallies around a 54.7 effort in his last three games, figures that should keep very popular at his salaries.
Franz Wagner, ORL ($9,700)
Wagner has scored 44.8 to 69.7 FD points in five of his last six games, production that warrants an even higher salary and which should make him very highly rostered.
Karl-Anthony Towns, NYK ($9,400)
Towns offers a floor of 40-45 FD points at a coveted position, which should allow him to remain highly rostered Tuesday.
Damian Lillard, MIL ($9,300)
Lillard has been especially productive of late, scoring 60.6 and 56 FD points in his last two games and 48.5 four games ago as well.
Alperen Sengun, HOU ($9,200)
Sengun has put up 52.3 to 66.5 FD points in his last three games, which, when combined with his salary, should usher him into plenty of lineups.
Key Values
Quentin Grimes, DAL vs. MEM ($5,700)
Grimes should have a significant role in Tuesday's DFS-friendly Grizzlies-Mavericks matchup irrespective of whether Klay Thompson (foot) is available, considering the former has scored 29.8 to 50.5 FD points while working with the first unit in the last three games. Grimes has shot a blistering 59.5 percent, including 53.8 percent from deep, over that span, and he also recorded tallies of 29.3 and 29.1, the latter figure off the bench, within the last six contests. The Grizzlies have allowed 41.8 FD points per game to small forwards in the last 15 games as well, and Memphis is conceding a 37.6 percent success rate from behind the arc on the road.
Goga Bitadze, ORL at NYK ($5,700)
Bitadze was so effective during Wendell Carter's absence due to a foot injury that head coach Jamahl Mosley has kept the two players together in the frontcourt now that Carter is healthy again. Bitadze checks into Tuesday averaging 30.6 FD points over his last eight games, a stretch where he's generated a trio of double-doubles and four double-digit rebounding tallies overall. He's also averaging an impressive 2.1 blocks over that span, helping round out his fantasy production nicely. The Knicks have been generally effective against centers, but they've surrendered an elevated 6.3 blocks per game in the last three.
Julian Champagnie, SAN at PHO ($5,500)
Champagnie is enjoying a breakout season that includes career-high figures in points (12.0), rebounds (5.3), assists (1.7) and steals (1.0). The third-year pro is also shooting a respectable 36.0 percent from behind the arc and has averaged 31.7 FD points over his last five games while eclipsing the 30-mark on three occasions in the sample. Even if Jeremy Sochan (thumb) returns Tuesday as expected, he'll likely be on some form of minutes restriction following a long absence, and Champagnie should retain a solid workload given how impressive he's been in a starting role.
ALSO CONSIDER: Shaedon Sharpe, POR at LAC ($5,900); Jonathan Kuminga, GSW at DEN ($5,500)
