It's another three Game 3 matchup slate on Friday with some notable injuries to monitor. All three series have all been exciting so far, so we should be in store for an exciting night of DFS action.
Slate Overview
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Listed spreads/totals are from FanDuel Sportsbook and current as of Friday, April 24 at 1:45 a.m. EDT:
- Boston Celtics (-7.5) at Philadelphia 76ers (O/U: 215.5)
- Los Angeles Lakers at Houston Rockets (-9.5) (O/U: 206.5)
- San Antonio Spurs (-2) at Portland Trail Blazers (O/U: 220.5)
The betting metrics suggest all three games will be competitive to varying degree. If Kevin Durant is sidelined, the largest spread of the night will narrow. And should Victor Wembanyama be ruled out for the Spurs, that line could flip to favor the hosts.
Injury Situations to Monitor
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Victor Wembanyama, SAN (concussion): QUESTIONABLE
If Wembanyama - who was cleared to travel with the Spurs to Portland - is sidelined, the likes of De'Aaron Fox and Stephon Castle will be in line for significant usage bumps while Luke Kornet and Mason Plumlee should handle the majority of center minutes.
Kevin Durant, HOU (ankle): QUESTIONABLE
Durant missed Game 1 with a knee injury. So if he can't go on Friday, Tari Eason and Reed Sheppard could soak up most of the minutes at small forward while Amen Thompson, Jabari Smith and Alperen Sengun will enjoy significant usage increases.
Austin Reaves, LAL (oblique): QUESTIONABLE
If Reaves remains sidelined, Marcus Smart should continue to start at shooting guard.
Other notable injuries:
Luka Doncic, LAL (hamstring): OUT
Joel Embiid, PHI (abdomen): DOUBTFUL
Elite Players
We have three players with a five-figure salaries that have a chance to play on Friday's slate – Victor Wembanyama ($12,200), LeBron James ($10,500) and Jayson Tatum ($10,200).
If Wembanyama is active and set to play without restrictions, he'll be looking to build on the 44.5 FD points he produced during the opener before his 11-minute stint in Game 2 prior to getting hurt.
LeBron has scored 55.1 and 48.1 FD over the first two matchups and would see a slight usage hit should Austin Reaves be available.
Tatum has delivered 53.7 and 49.3 FD so far this series while coming just four total assists short of consecutive triple-doubles.
Go to RotoWire's NBA Daily Starting Lineups and NBA News for up-to-the-minute information!
Expected Chalk
Other likely chalk plays include:
Deni Avdija, POR ($9,600)
Avdija only registered 22.3 FD during Game 2, yet had erupted for 53.5 in the opener and should be very popular as the series shifts to his home floor.
Tyrese Maxey, PHI ($9,400)
Maxey tallied 52.3 FD on Tuesday and will be highly rostered with Joel Embiid still expected to be out.
Alperen Sengun, HOU ($9,200)
Sengun has averaged 49.2 FD through the series and will be even more popular if Kevin Durant is sidelined.
Jaylen Brown, BOS ($9,000)
Brown has totaled 39.3 and 53.4 FD over the first matchups, numbers that will make him popular at this salary.
Amen Thompson, HOU ($8,700)
Thompson is averaging 40.7 FD from the first two against the Lakers while logging 40-plus minutes in each to lock him into a high roster rate on Friday.
Key Values
Jrue Holiday, POR vs. SAN ($6,400)
Holiday has performed well this series despite the tough matchup presented by the Spurs by averaging 35.9 FD points on the strength of 12.5 points, 10.0 assists, 4.5 rebounds and 1.0 steals. The veteran guard has struggled with his shot having only connected on 10 of 32 field-goal attempts, but has been excellent distributing the ball and should start seeing it finding the net more often. In fact, Holiday was a much better shooter at home (47.8 percent, 40.0 from distance) than on the road during the regular season, furthering his case at a reasonable salary.
Jabari Smith, HOU vs. LAL ($6,300)
Smith has thrived with and without Durant on the floor from the first two games this series as he's posted 35.4 and 28.7 FD. The versatile forward is also shooting 37.5 percent from deep during that stretch while pushing his average against the Lakers since the start of the regular season to 32.2 FD (five total appearances). If Durant is sidelined again on Friday, Smith's outlook will obviously improve.
Luke Kennard, LAL at HOU ($6,000)
Kennard had averaged 37.9 FD across the last four starts during the regular season where he logged a conventional number of minutes - while only seeing 11 in the finale against the Jazz - and followed that up with a strong run that's provided 33.3 and 40.2 FD points against Houston. His efficiency has been off the charts shooting 65.4 percent, including 72.7 from beyond the arc. If Austin Reaves returns Friday in at least a limited role, Kennard will see a usage hit while his affordable salary and upside still make him worthy of consideration.
ALSO CONSIDER: Payton Pritchard, BOS at PHI ($5,500); Tari Eason, HOU vs. LAL ($5,400)
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