Philadelphia 76ers @ Los Angeles Lakers

The Philadelphia 76ers take on the Los Angeles Lakers in the second night of a back-to-back for the visiting team. That means with a veteran team like the 76ers, we have to watch for players getting added to the injury report for Rest or Injury Management. But Philadelphia gets a big bump in pace this game and there are plenty of stars to build around if they all suit up. Here are the NBA DFS top plays we can invest in for our lineups on FanDuel and DraftKings!

 

NBA Injury Report:

Philadelphia Injuries:

NONE

Los Angeles Injuries:

Anthony Davis – OUT

Lonnie Walker – OUT

Austin Reaves – OUT

Patrick Beverley – QUESTIONABLE

LeBron James - PROBABLE

 

MVP/CAPTAIN

LeBron James (SF/PF)

LeBron James has been simply unstoppable since Anthony Davis went down with injury and James had to put this mediocre team completely on his back. He is averaging 56 fantasy points per game over the last 10 days and has below 48 fantasy points once since December 28th. James played this Philly team once this year, and had only 40 fantasy points in that one. But it was one of his worst shooting performances of the season (40% from the floor, 12% from three) and he still managed to score 23 points. The 76ers will try and roll out P.J. Tucker and Tobias Harris against James tonight, but this is a sure 50 fantasy points waiting to happen. 

Joel Embiid (C)

In the NBA this season, there is a holy trinity for DFS in terms of elite center matchups: the Hornets, the Jazz, and the Lakers. Los Angeles has actually been the worst team against centers the last 15 games, allowing more than 25 points and 15 rebounds per game to the position. Embiid, of course, is an absolute monster and should treat Thomas Bryant like his little plaything in this game. The last time these two teams squared off, Embiid torched the Lakers for 62 fantasy points. 

James Harden (PG)

There is no other player who has a more perfect storm tonight than Harden. First, the Lakers (2nd in pace) represent a massive bump for the 76ers (25th) so this should be a much faster-paced game than they normally see. Second, the Lakers are the third-worst team in the league against point guards this season, barely trailing the lowly Rockets and Pistons. In addition to allowing nine assists and seven rebounds per game to the position, they give 27 actual points per night. And third, Harden is on one of his patented heaters right now, scoring at least 57 fantasy points in four straight games. He scored exactly 57 last time these two teams played, and is likely to be the lowest rostered in the MVP spot of the three big players tonight. 

 

UTILITY 

Tyrese Maxey (PG/SG)

Maxey is often the forgotten man among the 76ers star hierarchy, but has been a very reliable source of 4x value at his salary for weeks now and has a very reasonable price tag in the mid-$7,000s. He is over 31 fantasy points per game in the last 10 days but more importantly is up over 33 minutes every game now when he was slightly limited earlier in the season. Maxey, with his ability in assists, rebounds, and steals, is a player who will benefit greatly from the pace bump tonight. 

Russell Westbrook (PG)

Since Anthony went down with injury, Russell Westbrook has been playing at an all-NBA level even though he continues to come off the bench each game. He still is averaging 34 minutes and 49 fantasy points per game in the last 10 days and has scored below 43 fantasy points in a fully healthy game just once since Christmas. In his last game against Philadelphia, Westbrook put up 53 fantasy points despite shooting 28% from the floor. The 76ers are the best team against the position this year, but Westbrook always finds a way to fill up the stat sheet regardless.  

Thomas Bryant (C)

Bryant has a tall task ahead of him tonight to try and slow down Joel Embiid, but the best thing about that is Bryant should continue to see the strong minutes the Lakers have been giving him since he took over the starting center spot. Bryant now consistently plays between 30-34 minutes every game and is averaging 36.3 fantasy points per game the last 10 days. Over their last six games, the 76ers have allowed the 12th-most points in the paint to opponents and their defensive rating ranks just 24th. 

 

DART THROWS

Georges Niang (PF)

Niang has a couple things potentially working in his favor tonight at a low salary of $2,600 on DraftKings. First, we know Tobias Harris missed last night with an illness, so if he misses again or is limited, Niang would be in for more minutes. Second, there is always a chance Embiid sits on a back-to-back, which would mean a TON of minutes for Niang. Even if Embiid does play, the last time he did on the second night of a back-to-back, he only saw 28 minutes. Niang has more than 13 fantasy points in five of his last seven games, so he is likely in play regardless of what happens at this cheap salary. 

Juan Toscano-Anderson (PF)

In a recent lineup shakeup, Toscano-Anderson was inserted in as the power forward and now is seeing close to 20 minutes per game over the last two weeks. JTA has never been a dominant fantasy scorer, but he does have double-digit fantasy points in three of his past four games and has minutes secured tonight with wing players Lonnie Walker and Austin Reaves out. The 76ers are a bottom-six team against power forwards the last 15 games as it’s clear that P.J. Tucker has lost a step in that department. 

 

Fantasy Alarm is the home of all things Fantasy Sports. Bringing you the best Fantasy Football, Fantasy Baseball, and Fantasy Basketball content all year long. Be sure to also check out the best fantasy promo codes on offer today!

Dominate your NBA DFS Showdown contests today using our Player Projections that you can use specifically for Showdown!