This article is part of our FanDuel NBA series.
We have a five-game slate on tap Tuesday night to get us primed for the annual massive Thanksgiving Eve ledger Wednesday, and tonight's group of games features a pair of particularly intriguing matchups. The injury report does have a couple of especially big names but isn't too extensive otherwise in terms of short-term absences, which leaves us with a solid player pool to operate with.
Slate Overview
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Point spreads are all over the map as of Tuesday morning, as we have a figure as low as two points (Raptors-Magic) and one as high as 13 (Trail Blazers-Suns). That latter number is a pretty substantial outlier, however, as the next closest line is a pair of 7.5-point tallies.
Projected totals also have an interesting extreme in their midst, as the Hawks-Pacers game has a jaw-dropping figure of 251.5, with a very appealing spread of four points alongside it as of Tuesday morning on FD Sportsbook. With both teams also at full health, that should very well make the game the darling of DFS players tonight, especially since two other games are at 220 or lower. The Jazz-Lakers clash isn't a bad pivot, as it does have a number of 237.5 points, even with LeBron James questionable for Los Angeles.
Injury Situations to Monitor
For all the latest updates, visit RotoWire's NBA Injury News page and our comprehensive NBA Injury Report.
Donovan Mitchell, CLE (hamstring): OUT
Mitchell's ongoing absence will continue to offer Darius Garland the opportunity for massive usage and keep Caris LeVert in a potential starting role if he can overcome his questionable designation due to a knee injury. If LeVert is out as well, Dean Wade would likely remain in the starting five.
LeBron James, LAL (calf): QUESTIONABLE
If LeBron can't go, Anthony Davis figures to be a primary beneficiary, while Taurean Prince would be in line for a run with the first unit.
Other notable injuries:
Anthony Davis, LAL (hip): PROBABLE
Caris LeVert, CLE (knee): QUESTIONABLE
Malcolm Brogdon, POR (hamstring): QUESTIONABLE
Bradley Beal, PHO (back): OUT
Markelle Fultz, ORL (knee): OUT
Wendell Carter, ORL (finger): OUT
Walker Kessler, UTA (elbow): OUT
Kelly Oubre, PHI (ribs): OUT
Scoot Henderson, POR (ankle): OUT
Elite Players
We have six players with five-figure salaries on Tuesday's slate – Joel Embiid ($12,000), Anthony Davis ($10,800), LeBron James ($10,500), Tyrese Haliburton ($10,300), Kevin Durant ($10,200) and Devin Booker ($10,000).
Embiid eclipsed 60 FD points for the third time in the last five games against the Nets on Sunday and has been under 54 FD points just once in the last seven games, justifying his massive salary.
Davis, who's fully expected to play through his hip injury, could potentially take the floor without LeBron and checks in having eclipsed 50 FD points in three of his last five games. He's also an integral part of the game with the second-highest total of the night.
If LeBron overcomes his questionable tag, he'll aim to build on a stretch that's seen him score 57.5 to 67 FD points in his last three contests.
Haliburton should have a major hand in the game with the highest projected total of the night, and although he's coming off an extreme outlier game against the Magic where he scored only 17.9 FD points, he'd been at 60.7 and 72.9 in the two contests prior and is averaging 48.7 per game for the season.
Durant has his FD-point average up to 50.3 for the season after eclipsing 60 in each of his past two games.
Booker has scored 41.3 to 50.3 FD points in his first three games since returning from a calf injury and just proved his health by logging 40 minutes in the overtime clash with the Jazz on Sunday.
Expected Chalk
Other likely chalk plays include:
Tyrese Maxey, PHI ($9,500)
Maxey has already put together multiple performances worthy of a five-figure salary this season and is averaging 46.5 FD points per contest, which should keep him very popular on the smallish slate.
Trae Young, ATL ($9,200)
Young is always in plenty of lineups thanks to his name value and comes in having scored over 40 FD points in four straight games.
Scottie Barnes, TOR ($9,000)
Barnes has slowed some in recent games but is still enjoying his best season across the board and retains an average of 46.1 FD points per game.
Lauri Markkanen, UTA ($8,600)
Markkanen exploded for 69.4 FD points in Sunday's OT game against the Suns and has another pair of tallies over 40 in his last six games.
Darius Garland, CLE ($8,300)
Garland should be in plenty of lineups at his salary with Mitchell out again Tuesday.
Key Values
Jusuf Nurkic, PHO vs. POR ($6,600)
Nurkic has proven an excellent fit in his new Suns digs overall and draws a favorable matchup against his old Blazers squad Tuesday, setting up what could be a very appealing DFS scenario. The big man checks in having scored 42.4 FD points in the OT clash with the Jazz on Sunday, and he also had an early-November stretch where he posted 34.3 to 52.4 FD points in four straight games. While Devin Booker's return to health has naturally resulted in a bit of a usage hit for Nurkic, he remains a top-3 option in Phoenix's attack with Bradley Beal (back) out of action and faces a Blazers squad allowing the third-highest offensive efficiency rating to centers (38.0), along with an NBA-high 61.2 FD points per game to the position.
Clint Capela, ATL vs. IND ($6,200)
Capela is another big with bright prospects Tuesday, as the Pacers have surrendered the second-highest offensive efficiency rating (38.9) to centers and a robust 58.1 FD points per game to centers. Indiana is also yielding an NBA-high 62.7 points in the paint per contest, an area of the floor where 83.6 percent of Capela's scoring emanates from. Capela comes into the night running hot as well, as he's scored over 30 FD points in three of his last four games, including 39.4 in a tough matchup against the 76ers in his most recent contest.
De'Anthony Melton, PHI vs. CLE ($6,000)
Melton comes into Tuesday in the midst of a particularly productive stretch, as he's scored over 30 FD points in three of his past four games and is shooting 53.2 percent, including a blistering 55.9 percent from three-point range, in his last six contests overall. The veteran wing can supplement his fantasy production nicely with steals – he's averaging 1.4 per contest on the season – and he's found a solid offensive floor of late with six consecutive double-digit scoring efforts. Melton has also encouragingly taken double-digit shot attempts in four straight, partly a byproduct of Kelly Oubre's ongoing absence due to his rib injuries.
ALSO CONSIDER: Jalen Johnson, ATL vs. IND ($6,500); Bogdan Bogdanovic, ATL vs. IND ($5,800); Collin Sexton, UTA at LAL ($5,100); Grayson Allen, PHO vs. POR ($4,900)
