Five Guys Expert NBA Top Daily Picks 3-17-14
Tonight’s expert NBA top daily picks feature two red-hot studs and the return of a familiar face.
Friday night saw Damian Lillard go off without LaMarcus Aldridge in the lineup. The young point guard’s usage rate spikes without his All-Star teammate on the court, and that means a great deal of added opportunity for fantasy point potential. Usage is an underrated aspect of daily fantasy sports, and even though minutes played are one of the more reliable baselines we have for determining daily fantasy basketball output, they don’t always tell the entire story. There are some players who when on the court are able to remain invisible from a daily fantasy perspective, despite logging heavy minutes. Still others may play limited minutes but have a huge role in their team’s offensive strategy when on the floor. You can always check a player’s usage rate here.
Tonight we key on on two big men who are intricate cogs in their team’s offenses. Both of these expert NBA top daily picks touch the ball on almost every possession for their squads, and they act as spark plugs for the entire unit. Let’s get into the nitty gritty of today’s expert NBA top daily picks.
Five Guys Expert NBA Top Daily Picks
Eric Bledsoe $10,700 - Bledsoe was a staple of this column in the early season, and after suffering an unfortunate injury has finally found his way back onto the court. He’s also looked great in his first action back, and this price tag is more than fair for the dynamic athletic ability he brings to the table. The only concern is a surprise scratch on the second night of a back-to-back, but we should know in enough time if that becomes an issue.
Gordon Hayward $10,800 - Hayward continues to find himself slightly discounted due to intermittent, spotty production. He’s capable of more than 40 fantasy points on any given night, and while I don’t particularly love him this evening I think he’s one of the more reasonable upside options available.
Joakim Noah $13,400 - What Noah is doing right now is unprecedented, as he’s essentially become a point-center. The entire Chicago offense runs through him, and Noah has proven himself to be an elite passer. As long as the entire team is playing through his creativity the sky will be the limit for this frenetic ball of energy.
Derrick Favors $8,800 - Favors has picked up his season in a big way after essentially falling off the map during a stretch that saw his minutes shrinking and his production tanking. He went for a career-high last night, and before that had been logging one solid game after another. Use him as a source of salary relief tonight.
Al Jefferson $13,100 - Jefferson, much like Noah, is a the primary component of his team’s offense, albeit in a slightly different fashion. Where Joakim is called upon to create offensively, Big Al is needed to pace the scoring load as the Bobcats play a deliberately slow pace to compensate for their lack of scoring options. As long as he’s chucking like a maniac you can’t go wrong with this selection.