This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Basketball series.
Thursday's are usually a quiet night in the NBA, but we have five games making up the main slate on Yahoo. There are a few games with significant blowout potential, making for a potentially treacherous night in DFS. Let's highlight some options to target and avoid as you create your entry.
GUARDS
Russell Westbrook, OKC vs. LAL ($52): The Thunder are coming off of a disappointing loss on the road to the Hawks on Tuesday. Westbrook certainly played well, scoring 31 points and dishing out 11 assists on his way to 67.7 Yahoo points. He's now scored at least 52.3 Yahoo points in seven of his last eight games and continues to have one of the highest floors in DFS since he is averaging a triple-double for the season. This sets up as an excellent opportunity for him to shine since both the Thunder and the Lakers are in the top-four in the league in pace of play.
Malik Beasley, DEN vs. CHI ($12):Gary Harris (hamstring) has missed the last five games for the Nuggets and is listed as questionable for this contest. Beasley has started each game that Harris has missed and has scored at least 21.7 Yahoo points in four straight games. It makes very little sense for the Nuggets to push Harris to play here against a horrible Bulls team. Even if he does play, this game has blowout written all over it, so Harris might only see limited time on the floor. At near the minimum price, Beasley is someone to consider in tournament play.
Guard to Avoid
Corey Brewer, PHI at IND ($15): The pricing for Brewer seems odd. He just signed a 10-day contract with the Sixers and scored 11.4 Yahoo points in his debut Tuesday against the Timberwolves. He only logged eight minutes in what was a blowout win for the Sixers. Expect him to have a very limited role off of the bench moving forward, so stay away from him Thursday.
FORWARDS
Thaddeus Young, IND vs. PHI ($21): Young is not a flashy option, but he's scored at least 30.4 Yahoo points in five of his last six games. Even though his usage rate sits at just 17.8 percent, he's still been able to average 12.5 points per game on the strength of his 53.3 percent shooting from the field. The Sixers are thin at power forward and play at the seventh-fastest pace (102.9 possessions per game), leaving Young with a favorable opportunity to continue his recent run of success.
Jabari Parker, CHI at DEN ($13): The Bulls signing Parker seemed like an odd move right from the start. They had intentions of using him small forward, a position he is not really suited to play. He also struggles defensively, which eventually led to him seeing limited playing time. After Jim Boylen took over as head coach, Parker even fell out of the rotation entirely. However, he's back to playing now and has scored at least 22.4 Yahoo points in back-to-back games. The Bulls will be without Wendell Carter Jr. (thumb) for this matchup, which could leave Parker with even more playing time. He's still a good offensive player, making him someone to consider in tournament play.
Forward to Avoid
Josh Jackson, PHO at TOR ($21): With Devin Booker healthy, Jackson shifted back to the bench Tuesday against the Pacers. He played just 19 minutes and scored 15.3 Yahoo points. As long as Booker is healthy, Jackson is going to struggle to find significant minutes. His price has dropped a couple of bucks since Tuesday, but it's still too high based on his role.
CENTERS
Willie Cauley-Stein, SAC at CHA ($26): Cauley-Stein had a tough matchup in his last game Monday against the Blazers and scored just 29.1 Yahoo points. However, he had scored at least 40.4 Yahoo points in four of his last five games entering that contest. That included a strong performance against these same Hornets when he scored 12 points to go along with 12 rebounds, four assists, two steals and a block in 32 minutes. The Hornets have struggled to slow down opposing centers with Cody Zeller (hand) out, making Cauley-Stein someone to target.
Bismack Biyombo, CHA vs. SAC ($10): Zeller's replacement in the starting five has been Biyombo. He's not logging a ton of minutes, but he seems to have secured the role over Willy Hernangomez. Biyombo scored 25.5 Yahoo points when these two teams met Saturday and could have similar success in their rematch considering the Kings allow the fifth-most Yahoo points per game (50.7) to opposing centers.
Center to Avoid
JaVale McGee, LAL at OKC ($16): With the Lakers struggling mightily, they decided to shake up their starting five Tuesday against the Bulls. One of the moves that they made was to relegate McGee to the bench in favor of Tyson Chandler. McGee only played 14 minutes in that game, significantly down from his season average of 23 minutes per contest. Since the Lakers won, expect them to stick with their new lineup for at least one more night. Without a clearer path to playing time, McGee comes with limited upside.
