This article is part of our EuroLeague Primer series.
PREGAME UPDATES
- Real Madrid's Walter Tavares and Rudy Fernandez will suit up Thursday, but Alberto Abalde and Trey Thompkins will not.
- Elie Okobo, Chris Jones and Youssoupha Fall will all be available Thursday for ASVEL.
- Krunoslav Simon remains sidelined for Efes.
- Zalgiris' Joffrey Lauvergne will not play Thursday due to a sore neck.
STATS AND INFO.
- Betting Odds
- Starting Lineups
- Injury Report
- Team Stats
- Opponent Averages
- Team Trends
- Twitter - @RotoWireEuro
THE SLATE
Anadolu Efes Istanbul at 
Zalgiris Kaunas
Status Check: Krunoslav Simon (EFS), Mantas Kalnietis (ZAL)
Best Bets for Success: All three of Thursday's games feature teams that are far apart in the standings, but this one could be the closest of the bunch. The Turkish team won by a whopping 34 points when these teams met in Round 7, but Zalgiris is playing far better than they were earlier in the season and Efes comes in off two lopsided losses. The Lithuanian squad has been getting quality production from a number of players, as three players topped the 25-point mark on DraftKings at least three times over the last five games and two others did so twice. You can make a case for most of those players to be included in this section, but with Efes ceding the most points, rebounds, assists and easily the most field goal attempts to players at the forward spots, we're going to go limit ourselves to the duo of Edgaras Ulanovas and Tyler Cavanaugh. The former comes in particularly hot, averaging 13.2 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.2 assists, 2.0 steals and 28.1 DraftKings points since the EuroLeague break. Cavanaugh, meanwhile, showed no effects of an ankle injury in Tuesday's makeup game and has put up at least 25.5 points on DraftKings in three straight appearances. Neither runs more than $8,700 on DraftKings, so you could include both in the same lineup if you choose. It should come as no surprise that both Vasilije Micic and Shane Larkin land here for the visiting team, as they are averaging more DraftKings points than anyone else on the slate. Micic has really been on a roll, putting up fewer than 32.0 points on that website just once over his last nine appearances. Larkin tossed up a complete dud his last time out, but he averaged 35.5 DraftKings points in the six games prior to that, and he is easily returning the most value on the slate at $9,700.
DFS Darlings: Both Josh Nebo and Joffrey Lauvergne have gotten the job done of late, but Nebo was held in check when these teams last met and Efes has been pretty tough against centers, so Lauvergne -- who checks in $800 cheaper -- looks like the better option Thursday. Lukas Lekavicius is getting a bit pricey, but he can't be ignored, as he did not record fewer than 16.5 DraftKings points over his last 10 outings and played fewer than 24 minutes just once over that span. Zalgiris does not really have any matchups to target, but they have been pretty tough on forwards, so we'll avoid that position on the Efes side. Rodrigue Beaubois scored 13.7 ppg over his last seven appearances, making him a worthy play if you pass on Efes' top guards. Elijah Bryant can also be considered at $6,100. Efes' big men have taken turns sharing the load, but this could be a spot to take a shot with Bryant Dunston at $7,200.
Panathinaikos OPAP Athens at 
Olympiacos Piraeus
Status Check: Ioannis Papapetrou (PAO), Stefan Jovic (PAO)
Best Bets for Success: The home team is favored by quite a few points, and they should be, as they have essentially wrapped up a playoff spot and have only lost one EuroLeague game in their home stadium all season. However, anything goes when the two Greek powerhouses square off. If the visitors hope to come out on top, they will presumably need big nights from both Nemanja Nedovic and Georgios Papagiannis. The former seems likely to do so, as he has poured in points against Olympiacos all season and averaged 19.6 points over his last seven EuroLeague appearances. Papagiannis, who averaged 27.4 DraftKings points over his last four outings, will also be in position to produce against an opponent that has been below average against centers. Sasha Vezenkov will cost you a pretty penny Thursday on DraftKings, and he is the priciest player on the board. However, there is reason to believe he can hit 3x value, as he averaged 29.6 DraftKings points over his last eight appearances and dropped two double-doubles in three previous meetings with Panathinaikos this season. Plus, Panathinaikos ranks bottom-3 against forwards in points and rebounds per game as well as field goal percentage. They have struggled even more with guards, as they rank bottom-5 against backcourt players in all six counting stats and are allowing them to get up the most shots from the field. That bodes particularly well for Kostas Sloukas, who has averaged 27.1 DraftKings points since the start of 2022.
DFS Darlings: The home team will be at full strength for the derby, so their value plays will be limited a bit. At $9,200 on DraftKings, Tyler Dorsey is a bit costly for this section, but he just missed out on the section above and we don't want to ignore him altogether given the matchup. Panathinaikos is faring pretty well against centers, particularly in the points and FG% departments, but Hassan Martin has done enough recently to garner consideration at $5,600. It's tough to find a lot to like on the Panathinaikos side as well, but we'll toss out Okaro White, who put up at least 25.5 points on DraftKings three times over the last six games he handled a full workload in.
LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne at 
Real Madrid
Status Check: Elie Okobo (ASV), Chris Jones (ASV), Marcos Knight (ASV), Youssoupha Fall (ASV), Raymar Morgan (ASV), Charles Kahudi (ASV), Antoine Diot (ASV), Walter Tavares (RMB), Rudy Fernandez (RMB), Alberto Abalde (RMB), Trey Thompkins (RMB), Fabien Causeur (RMB), Jeffery Taylor (RMB), Carlos Alocen (RMB)
Best Bets for Success: It's no treat trying to peg the last game of the day, as uncertainty reigns on both sides and the home team is favored by double digits. It does seem likely that the three most notable players on the list above -- Okobo, Jones, and Tavares -- will play, and among that group, Jones and Tavares look like the best options, as even though Okobo dropped 26 points last time these teams squared off in Round 10, he is returning from an extended absence. Real Madrid has been tougher on opposing frontcourt players than any other team in the league, so even though Jones sat out in Round 29 with an illness, he looks like the ASVEL player most likely to produce. While Tavares may be a bit banged up, he is returning some of the most value on the board and is easily averaging the most fantasy points on his squad. He delivered last time he saw the French club, recording one of his six double-doubles on the season.
DFS Darlings: It would help to know who is in and who is out for Real Madrid, but there will be some bargains to be found in this one, as outside of the three players listed above, no one else who will take the court Thursday will run you more than $8,000 on DraftKings. Guerschon Yabusele looks like the top option to go after, as he remains underpriced at $7,900, will be facing his former team and got back on track in Round 29. He also is returning some of the most value on the board and hit the 30-point mark on DraftKings last time these teams met. If you pass on Tavares, Vincent Poirier will be a player to target at just $7,100. Gabriel Deck, coming off his best game since rejoining Real Madrid, looks like one of the better affordable options on the board at just $6,200. David Lighty is listed at a forward, but he is just as much a guard, so he shouldn't be avoided just because of his position, and there's a chance he could lead ASVEL in fantasy points despite checking in at just $7,700. Victor Wembanyama will face a tough test Thursday, but 3x value still seems within reach at $6,900. Paul Lacombe is a little pricier than we'd like at $7,800 but with Knight and Diot out and Okobo and Jones working back in, he can at least be considered.
