This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Basketball series.
The NBA follows up Thursday's crazy trade deadline with eight games on the schedule Friday. Many of the teams in action made moves, which creates some interesting opportunities of which to take advantage in DFS. Here are some players to target and avoid while creating your entry.
GUARDS
Bradley Beal, WAS vs. CLE ($40): The Wizards were busy at the trade deadline, shipping Otto Porter Jr. to the Bulls and Markieff Morris (neck) to the Pelicans. The good news from a fantasy perspective is that they held onto Beal, who is in a great spot as the top scoring option on the team. He's scored at least 41.2 Yahoo points in six of his last seven games and should once again have a high floor considering the Wizards play at the eighth-fastest pace (102.3 possessions per game) in the league.
Collin Sexton, CLE at WAS ($15): The Cavaliers stripped down their roster even further by trading away Rodney Hood and Alec Burks. Now their guard rotation will be made up of Sexton, Jordan Clarkson, Matthew Dellavedova, David Nwaba and Brandon Knight. That's not exactly an inspiring group. Sexton is likely going to see a ton of playing time and scoring opportunities down the stretch and should be targeted Friday considering the uptempo pace at which the Wizards play.
Guard to Avoid
Caris LeVert, BKN vs. CHI ($17): After LeVert's gruesome foot injury, it's pretty amazing that he's making his return before the All-Star break. He was playing extremely well before the injury, and his return will provide a huge boost to a Nets team that currently occupies the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference. There will be plenty of days down the road where he will be a great DFS option, but this isn't one of them. He hasn't played since the middle of November, so expect the Nets to slowly ease him back onto the floor.
FORWARDS
Lauri Markkanen, CHI at BKN ($31): There haven't been a lot of bright spots for the Bulls this season. They've fired their head coach, dealt with numerous injuries and find themselves among the worst teams in the league. If there is a ray of sunshine peeking through the clouds, it's been the recent play of Markkanen. He's posted a double-double in four of his last five games and scored at least 33.6 Yahoo points in each of those five contests. He already had secure playing time and will be featured even more now after Bobby Portis was traded to the Wizards. The Nets struggle to contain big men, which allowed Markkanen to score 45.3 Yahoo points when these two teams met last week. Don't expect the Nets to slow him down in their rematch.
Luke Kennard, DET vs. NY ($10): Kennard is an intriguing prospect who's averaging 1.3 three-pointers across just 20 minutes per contest. His lack of playing time has suppressed his upside, but minutes likely won't be hard for him to come by in this game after the Pistons traded away Reggie Bullock and Stanley Johnson. He's logged at least 30 minutes in a game just twice all season, but he averaged 25 points, 5.5 rebounds and three assists in those contests. With the increased likelihood that he at least approaches that threshold against the Knicks, he makes for a great option in tournament play.
Forward to Avoid
Noah Vonleh, NY at DET ($18): The Knicks have parted ways with Enes Kanter, although it appears that DeAndre Jordan will remain on the team for the rest of the season. With the Knicks also wanting to find playing time for Mitchell Robinson, it's going to be tough for Vonleh to receive consistent minutes. He's already started to see his playing time dwindle lately, which has resulted in him scoring 18.2 Yahoo points or fewer in four of his last six games. He's not that cheap, so keep him out of your lineup.
CENTERS
Andre Drummond, DET vs. NY ($39): Drummond is rolling right now with at least 49 Yahoo points in five of his last six games. There is so little talent around Blake Griffin and him that he's going to have a high floor on a nightly basis. He torched the Knicks for 53.2 Yahoo points Tuesday and should be considered one of the top center options on the slate for their rematch.
Dwight Powell, DAL vs. MIL ($14): There are a lot of things working in Powell's favor right now. The Mavericks had already traded away Jordan and now they've also dealt Harrison Barnes to the Kings. That should free up some playing time for Maxi Kleber at power forward. To top it off, they also waived Salah Mejri. Powell scored 40.4 Yahoo points against the Hornets on Wednesday and should receive added playing time from here on out. This is a great opportunity to deploy him at a cheap price against a Bucks team that plays at the fifth-fastest pace (103.3).
Center to Avoid
Jahlil Okafor, NO vs. MIN ($26): Okafor showed he might not be the bust that most people thought he was at this stage of his career. With the laundry list of injuries for the Pelicans, he had a stretch where he scored at least 31.4 Yahoo points in six of eight games. However, when Julius Randle returned against the Bulls on Wednesday, Okafor scored just 19 Yahoo points across 25 minutes. Anthony Davis (finger) is expected to play in this game after not being moved at the deadline, which should further decrease Okafor's minutes. He's way too risky at this price.
