This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Basketball series.
Two teams will be facing elimination Thursday after they were both blown out in their respective games Tuesday. The good news is that both the 76ers and Mavericks will be trying to keep their seasons alive at home. The Heat will first try to move onto the Eastern Conference Finals, even though Kyle Lowry (hamstring) will miss his second straight game. The Suns will try to advance to the Western Conference Finals by finally winning a game in Dallas. Let's break down these matchups and highlight some players to consider for your Yahoo lineups, as well as a few to possibly void.
GUARDS
Luka Doncic, DAL vs. PHO ($56): Despite facing a very tough Suns' defense, Doncic has averaged 32.0 points on 46.4 percent shooting from the field. He's also provided his robust contributions elsewhere, putting up 9.6 rebounds, 7.4 assists and 1.8 steals per game. With the Mavericks' facing elimination, look for Doncic to put up a monster stat line as he attempts to force a Game 7.
Victor Oladipo, MIA at PHI ($12): Having Oladipo waiting in the wings has proven to be huge for the Heat. After appearing in just eight games during the regular season, he has averaged 25 minutes and played in all five games of this series. The result has been him scoring at least 23.7 Yahoo points three times. At near the minimum salary, he has a great opportunity to provide value with Lowry out again.
Guard to Avoid
Spencer Dinwiddie, DAL vs. PHO ($17): Dinwiddie laid an egg in Game 5, producing two points, one rebound, one assist and three turnovers over 16 minutes. His playing time has decreased in each game of the series, and he's scored at least 10 points just twice. With his limited role off the bench, it's difficult to justify adding him to your lineup.
FORWARDS
Jimmy Butler, MIA at PHI ($41): Butler barely played in the fourth quarter of Game 5, but he still finished with 23 points, nine rebounds, six assists and one steal. In addition to his excellent scoring numbers, Butler has averaged 7.2 rebounds, 5.8 assists and 1.8 steals in this series. Look for him to try to carry the Heat with Lowry out again.
Dorian Finney-Smith, DAL vs. PHO ($17): It's difficult to get overly excited about the performance of many of the Mavericks' players in Game 4 with the team scoring only 80 points. Finney-Smith wasn't immune to the struggles, scoring eight points on 2-for-6 shooting from the field. The good news is, he usually plays a ton of minutes, and he's scored at least 24.2 Yahoo points three times in this series, so he could still be worth considering.
Forward to Avoid
Tobias Harris, PHI vs. MIA ($23): The key to this slate might be finding a way to get Butler into your entry. Overall, the lack of forward options behind him isn't very inspiring. Allocating this much of your budget to Harris, who has scored 26.6 and 15.6 Yahoo points, respectively, the last two games, might not be wise.
CENTERS
Deandre Ayton, PHO at DAL ($28): Other than when he was in foul trouble during Game 2, Ayton has had a masterful series. He narrowly missed his third straight double-double in Game 5, and he's scored at least 20 points in a game twice. He's a matchup problem for a Mavericks team that doesn't have much of a presence in the paint, so expect him to continue to be productive.
Maxi Kleber, DAL vs. PHO ($11): Coming off of four straight games with at least 20.1 Yahoo points, Kleber scored just 9.2 Yahoo points in Game 5. He only logged 24 minutes in the blowout defeat, which was likely a big part of the problem. In what should be a closer game at home, Kleber is a viable target if you don't want to allocate much of your budget to the center position.
Center to Avoid
Joel Embiid, PHI vs. MIA ($48): Fading Embiid in DFS during this series has been a wise move. He hasn't scored more than 39.2 Yahoo points in any of the three games in which he's played, and his salary was at least $50 each time. While it's starting to come down, it's still too high for a player who not only has a very difficult matchup, but is also battling two injuries.
