The dirtiest four-letter word in the NBA is rest, and at this point in the season constructing a DFS roster almost has more to do with finding guys who will play 30+ minutes and less to do with predicting how they will produce with that playing time. The only star players we can be confident will play close to their normal minutes play for the Timberwolves. Guys like Russell Westbrook could certainly have big games, even if they play fewer minutes, but there is reason for concern.
Most of the strong options on Tuesday’s slate are at point guard, which comes as little surprise. When most of the guys on the court are bench players, the point guards tend to have the ball even more than normal. One thing that did surprise me a bit is the lack of punt plays at shooting guard. You don’t have to pay a ton at that position, but you will probably have to pay something. Power forward, on the other hand, is especially devoid of anyone you can trust. Rather than waste your time with guys like Julius Randle, Gorgui Dieng and Willie Cauley-Stein, I decided to simply go with cheap options.
Despite only having five games to work with, I tended to go quite long with today’s analysis. I hope you will indulge me on the penultimate day of the regular season, as you won’t have to hear from me regarding the NBA for some time.
Point Guard
I agonized a bit over whether to include Russell Westbrook in this second, and you can see for yourself where I wound up. Anytime you fade Westbrook there is a chance you will look silly, especially in a short slate where so many cheap players will get run and affording Russ is pretty easy. Westbrook presumably wants to win the MVP award. So there is a decent chance he goes all out even though he has already clinched a triple-double for the season, broken Oscar Robertson’s record for triple-doubles in a season and locked the Thunder into the sixth seed in the West.
All that being said, I feel like the most likely outcome is for Westbrook to play 27 or 28 minutes, take around 12 shots and put up an unspectacular triple-double, as he did against the Bucks, 76ers and Raptors within the last 30 days. That would be good for around 55-60 fantasy points on DraftKings. Westbrook could easily score the most points of the night in this scenario, but it is an open question if it will be worth the price you paid.
Ricky Rubio is the riskiest of the Timberwolves big three, with two 1-10 efforts from the field in April. That being said, Tom Thibodeau hates resting his guys and Rubio has double-digit assists in six of his last eight games.
Jamal Murray has at least four assists and three rebounds in four consecutive games. The only real question is how many points he scores. Murray scored fewer than 10 points in two of those games, but scored 16 in one and 30 in another. Murray is a solid choice with a very high ceiling.
Tyler Ulis is basically a poor-man’s Ricky Rubio, and he is priced as such. Ulis had 20 points and 10 assists in 33 minutes Sunday, but he is just as likely to have 12 and five, as he did Friday. He is perfect if you need an option in between Rubio and Jamal Murray.
Jrue Holiday has played at least 32 minutes in six of his last seven games, and even if he only plays 24 minutes as he did Friday, his usage should be through the roof with Anthony Davis and DeMarcus Cousins out.
Tyler Ennis had 19 points and six assists in 39 minutes in his only start of the season, and he has an excellent chance to start again with D’Angelo Russell out. Ennis is not as safe as Jamal Murray, but he is cheaper.
| PLAYER | TM | H/A | OPP | GP | MPG | FT% | 3PTM | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | FG% | USAGE | FDPTS/G | DKPTS/G | YPTS/G | $FD | $DK | $Y |
| Russell Westbrook | OKC | A | MIN | 80 | 34.8 | 85% | 2.5 | 31.9 | 10.7 | 10.4 | 1.7 | 0.4 | 5.4 | 43% | 41.80% | 59 | 63.5 | 60.3 | $13,900 | $13,900 | $66 |
| Ricky Rubio | MIN | H | OKC | 74 | 32.9 | 89% | 0.8 | 11.1 | 4.1 | 9.1 | 1.7 | 0.1 | 2.6 | 40% | 17.30% | 30.7 | 32.6 | 31.1 | $7,700 | $7,900 | $37 |
| Jamal Murray | DEN | A | DAL | 80 | 21.1 | 88% | 1.4 | 9.7 | 2.6 | 1.9 | 0.6 | 0.3 | 1.4 | 40% | 21.60% | 16.2 | 17.7 | 16.9 | $4,600 | $5,500 | $13 |
| Tyler Ulis | PHX | A | SAC | 60 | 18.1 | 79% | 0.3 | 7 | 1.5 | 3.7 | 0.8 | 0.1 | 1.3 | 42% | 19.90% | 14.8 | 15.6 | 14.9 | $6,400 | $6,800 | $26 |
| Jrue Holiday | NOP | A | LAL | 65 | 33 | 71% | 1.5 | 15.5 | 4 | 7.3 | 1.5 | 0.7 | 2.9 | 45% | 23.40% | 32.8 | 35.2 | 33.6 | $7,400 | $7,800 | $30 |
| Tyler Ennis | LAL | H | NOP | 31 | 6.3 | 67% | 0.2 | 1.9 | 0.6 | 1.1 | 0.2 | 0 | 0.8 | 39% | 19.50% | 3.9 | 4.4 | 4 | $4,000 | $4,400 | $10 |
Shooting Guard
Nicolas Batum was not nearly as good as I thought he would be Monday with Kemba Walker out, but he still led the team in field goal attempts and finished with 11 points, eight assists and five rebounds in 30 minutes. That is fine production for his price, and he could easily have a bigger day if he takes more shots or makes more shots. At the very least, his usage should remain high.
Buddy Hield isn’t a great player, but he probably doesn’t have to be against the Suns. Perhaps more importantly, Hield has played at least 30 minutes in four consecutive games. There is a solid argument to be made that Hield is safer than Nicolas Batum, even if Hield’s price is a bit high for my liking.
I wouldn’t feel great paying for Devin Booker after he played just 23 minutes Sunday, but he did still score 21 points. Booker played 38 minutes the game before that, and there aren’t any other shooting guards with his kind of upside. Booker is a GPP play.
| PLAYER | TM | H/A | OPP | GP | MPG | FT% | 3PTM | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | FG% | USAGE | FDPTS/G | DKPTS/G | YPTS/G | $FD | $DK | $Y |
| Nicolas Batum | CHA | A | ATL | 76 | 34.3 | 86% | 1.8 | 15.3 | 6.3 | 5.9 | 1.1 | 0.4 | 2.5 | 41% | 22.30% | 32.3 | 34.8 | 33.2 | $6,600 | $7,000 | $25 |
| Buddy Hield | SAC | H | PHX | 57 | 20.4 | 88% | 1.6 | 8.6 | 2.9 | 1.4 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.8 | 39% | 20.90% | 14.1 | 15.4 | 14.9 | $5,500 | $6,300 | $20 |
| Devin Booker | PHX | A | SAC | 78 | 35 | 83% | 1.9 | 22.1 | 3.2 | 3.4 | 0.9 | 0.3 | 3.1 | 42% | 28.60% | 30.4 | 33.1 | 31.4 | $7,900 | $8,400 | $33 |
Small Forward
Andrew Wiggins has played at least 37 minutes in seven of his last eight games and he has scored at least 20 points in 13 of his last 14. That is extremely valuable as the season winds down.
Dante Cunningham and Nicolas Brussino both have a chance to play 30+ minutes, but it is far from a sure thing. Even if they get the playing time, there is no guarantee they will do anything with it. Cunningham probably has a bit more upside, but I think I prefer Brussino on DraftKings, where he is $800 cheaper than Cunningham.
T.J. Warren probably isn’t as safe as Andrew Wiggins, but he is safer. Warren has played 29 and 33 minutes in his last two games, averaging 22.0 points and 11.5 rebounds in those games. Waren has scored at least 21 points in five of his last seven games.
| PLAYER | TM | H/A | OPP | GP | MPG | FT% | 3PTM | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | FG% | USAGE | FDPTS/G | DKPTS/G | YPTS/G | $FD | $DK | $Y |
| Dante Cunningham | NOP | A | LAL | 64 | 25.1 | 59% | 1 | 6.5 | 4.2 | 0.5 | 0.6 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 48% | 10.70% | 13.9 | 14.8 | 14.4 | $3,500 | $3,800 | $10 |
| Andrew Wiggins | MIN | H | OKC | 80 | 37.3 | 76% | 1.3 | 23.7 | 4 | 2.3 | 1 | 0.4 | 2.3 | 45% | 28.90% | 32.4 | 34.3 | 33 | $8,100 | $7,000 | $32 |
| Nicolas Brussino | DAL | H | DEN | 52 | 8.8 | 74% | 0.5 | 2.5 | 1.6 | 0.8 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.4 | 36% | 16.30% | 6.1 | 6.7 | 6.4 | $3,800 | $3,000 | $10 |
| T.J. Warren | PHX | A | SAC | 65 | 30.9 | 78% | 0.4 | 14.4 | 5.1 | 1.1 | 1.2 | 0.6 | 0.9 | 50% | 19.20% | 24.9 | 25.7 | 25.1 | $6,500 | $6,700 | $29 |
Power Forward
I believe Donatas Motiejunas is a real NBA player. Maybe his back simply hasn’t allowed him to be the player who looked really good at times for the Rockets. That being said, Motiejunas has played at least 16 minutes in each of his last two games, and there is an opportunity for a lot more minutes with Anthony Davis joining DeMarcus Cousins on the sideline. Motiejunas is risky, but I don’t think anyone would be shocked if he has a big game against a Lakers team that might not even be good enough to contend for the D-League title.
Cheick Diallo probably doesn’t have Motiejunas’s upside, but he may be a better cash play. Diallo had seven points and nine rebounds Saturday in 26 minutes.
Dwight Powell played 32 minutes Sunday and finished with 21 points and five rebounds. He may never score 21 points again, but I don’t see why he can’t finish with double-digit points and 5+ rebounds, as he has in three of his last four games.
Skal Labissiere has played at least 31 minutes in five of his last six games, averaging 15.4 points and 6.4 rebounds in those five games. Labissiere profiles similarly to Willie Cauley-Stein or Gorgui Dieng, but he is cheaper than both of those guys.
| PLAYER | TM | H/A | OPP | GP | MPG | FT% | 3PTM | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | FG% | USAGE | FDPTS/G | DKPTS/G | YPTS/G | $FD | $DK | $Y |
| Donatas Motiejunas | NOP | A | LAL | 0 | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0 | $3,500 | $3,000 | $10 |
| Cheick Diallo | NOP | A | LAL | 15 | 9.5 | 71% | 0 | 3.7 | 3.1 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 40% | 20.80% | 8.5 | 8.8 | 8.5 | $3,500 | $3,000 | $10 |
| Dwight Powell | DAL | H | DEN | 75 | 17 | 74% | 0.2 | 6.6 | 4 | 0.7 | 0.8 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 53% | 16.50% | 14.5 | 15 | 14.6 | $3,800 | $3,700 | $10 |
| Skal Labissiere | SAC | H | PHX | 31 | 17.8 | 70% | 0.1 | 8.7 | 4.9 | 0.8 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 1.2 | 55% | 22% | 16.4 | 17.3 | 16.4 | $4,500 | $5,100 | $11 |
Center
Karl-Anthony Towns is a superstar level player virtually guaranteed to play at least 30 minutes. Nobody else on Tuesday’s slate can lay claim to that. Towns is averaging 29.3 points and 10.3 rebounds against the Thunder this season.
Alexis Ajinca has played at least 28 points in each of the last two games with DeMarcus Cousins out, recording at least 15 points and six rebounds in each. Ajinca should be pretty safe, and he could play even more with Anthony Davis out as well.
Alex Len is a riskier version of Ajinca, but he is worth noting after he had 14 points and 10 rebounds in 28 minutes Sunday. Len has two double-doubles in his last four games.
| PLAYER | TM | H/A | OPP | GP | MPG | FT% | 3PTM | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | FG% | USAGE | FDPTS/G | DKPTS/G | YPTS/G | $FD | $DK | $Y |
| Alexis Ajinca | NOP | A | LAL | 37 | 14.5 | 73% | 0 | 4.9 | 4.4 | 0.3 | 0.5 | 0.6 | 0.7 | 50% | 16.50% | 12 | 12.6 | 12 | $3,700 | $4,100 | $12 |
| Karl-Anthony Towns | MIN | H | OKC | 80 | 36.9 | 83% | 1.2 | 25.1 | 12.2 | 2.7 | 0.7 | 1.3 | 2.6 | 54% | 27.60% | 45 | 47.6 | 45.6 | $10,600 | $10,200 | $47 |
| Alex Len | PHX | A | SAC | 76 | 20.3 | 72% | 0 | 8 | 6.6 | 0.6 | 0.5 | 1.3 | 1.3 | 50% | 17.60% | 19 | 20 | 19 | $4,800 | $4,000 | $11 |