De’Aaron Fox is poised for a big night against the Pelicans on Tuesday.
It’s Tuesday, February 25th — our first Tuesday back after the NBA had its All-Star break.
We have a nationally televised doubleheader on TNT/truTV/Max, tipping off at 7:30 p.m. ET with the Cleveland Cavaliers visiting the Orlando Magic. In the nightcap, the Dallas Mavericks visit old friend Luka Dončić and the Los Angeles Lakers at 10 p.m. ET in perhaps the most intriguing game of the night.
Here are our top NBA DFS lineup picks and advice for tonight’s slate.
We have to go with Luka Dončić as a core piece tonight, right? He gets a crack at the Dallas Mavericks, a team that stunningly traded him a few weeks ago to the Lakers in exchange for Anthony Davis, Max Christie and more. Dončić should enter this game with a huge chip on his shoulder against his former squad in his new home.
The 25-year-old is coming off what was, easily, his best performance in purple and gold, going for 32 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists and four steals with a blocked shot and four 3-pointers against the Nuggets in Denver on Saturday. Dončić is averaging 23 points, 10.5 rebounds, 7.5 assists, 2.5 steals and 2.5 3-pointers made per game in the past two outings, heating up just in time to crush his former mates.
If you think Dončić might be too keyed up for his revenge game, or you would like to squeeze both he and Damian Lillard into a lineup together, Lillard is a good value. If you prefer him, you do save quite a bit, especially at FanDuel.
Lillard has averaged 44.6 fantasy points per game and faces a team with the 24th opponent rank, so it’s a prime matchup for Lillard to do his thing in Houston. The 34-year-old is coming off a giant performance against Miami, going for 28 points on 9-of-17 shooting, including 5-of-12 from downtown, while adding eight assists and three rebounds.
The last time Lillard faced the Rockets he had a double-double with 18 points and 10 assists in 36 minutes back on November 18th in Cream City.
You don’t often see Durant’s salary dip this low, especially at DraftKings. Take advantage, as he is still averaging 43.6 fantasy points per game. He faces a strong matchup against Memphis in a potentially high-scoring game. The Grizzlies sport an opponent rank of 31.
Durant has managed 21.3 points with 6.3 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game in three games after the All-Star break. — pedestrian numbers by his standards. He also knocked down six total 3-pointers in the span. Durant had three blocked shots and three steals in 30 minutes in Toronto last time out on Sunday, so that’s encouraging.
Durant has a tremendous opportunity to overproduce here, especially in a game with a betting total of 245.5. The books are expecting a high-scoring affair, which usually means fantasy points are sure to follow.
De’Aaron Fox probably could be considered a core target, too. We went rather point guard heavy up top, but there are so many good options to choose from. He faces a very giving New Orleans Pelicans team in the Crescent City on Tuesday. Fox is averaging 43.8 fantasy points per game and the Pelicans’ opponent rank is 26. Things are aligned for Fox to have a big night.
The Spurs guard has scored 23+ points in four of the past five games. It’s a little disconcerting that he was 3-of-16 from the floor for just 13 points, with seven rebounds, five assists, a blocked shot and a steal across 34 minutes in the front end of the back-to-back in New Orleans on Sunday. Look for Fox to rebound into that 25-5-5 territory, at a minimum.
Zion Williamson (SF, PF – NOP)
In the same game as Fox, Zion Williamson is a stud DFS option. Yes, there is always a higher-than-average chance the brittle big man could be injured. However, if he makes it through the entire game, he faces an ultra-favorable matchup with Victor Wembanyama no longer clogging the middle for the Spurs.
Williamson went for 22 points with nine rebounds, three assists, two blocked shots and two steals in the front end of the back-to-back. He is averaging 28 points, 8.3 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 2.0 steals per game in the past three outings. Nice.
At the lower end of the stud point guard pool is Ja Morant. He should be able to put up some hefty numbers against the Suns in what is expected to be a track meet.
Morant is averaging 39.2 fantasy points per game, thus the savings in salary, as it is just a tick off some of the other bigger names. But, the Suns have an opponent rank of 29. Morant could easily be in the 45-50 fantasy points category before the dust settles Tuesday evening on the banks of the Mississippi River.
Stephon Castle rooked his DFS managers on Sunday in the front end of this set, going just 1-of-10 from the floor, ending up with a mere two points. He was 0-for-3 from downtown and contributed just two assists with two turnovers in his 22 minutes. Yuck.
Castle is more intriguing on FanDuel for a much lower price. In his previous six games, Castle had 10+ points, including a 33-point outburst at Charlotte on February 7th. The Pelicans are very giving, but Castle just needs his shot to fall. Since the break, he has gone 0-for-7 from downtown. Look for that to change in a big way on Tuesday.
Rui Hachimura is coming off a huge showing in Denver, going for 21 points on 7-of-12 shooting, including 4-of-9 from downtown. He tweaked his back a bit, but he was able to return and finish the game. The back issue is a bit of a concern still, but he has been on fire lately and is worth a roll of the dice.
Hachimura has scored 17+ points in five of his past six games while grabbing at least six boards in four of those outings. He will exceed salary expectations if he can get to 20 points and six boards with a handful of assists and 3-pointers on Tuesday.
If you want to go another way and not blow all of your salary at point guard, Jose Alvarado is a solid, yet unspectacular option. The versatile 26-year-old managed 12 points, nine rebounds and eight assists with two triples against the Spurs on Sunday.
The Mavericks head into Los Angeles to tangle with the Lakers, but it won’t be the Anthony Davis redemption game. He remains sidelined, joining Daniel Gafford and Dereck Lively II in street clothes. That means Kessler Edwards will be relied upon heavily in the frontcourt. At this price, you cannot go wrong.
The former Pepperdine Waves standout is good for 6.8 points, 6.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.0 blocks per game with a total of three steals and three 3-pointers in the past four outings.
If you want to go another way, rather than loading up at point guard, go with the cheaper option of Anthony Black instead. He is seeing plenty of run with Jalen Suggs nursing a quadriceps injury.
Black led the team with 23 points on 7-of-12 shooting against the Washington Wizards last time out on Sunday. He also chipped in with seven rebounds, three assists, a blocked shot and a steal in 27 minutes. That’s the higher end of what to expect. If Black can get to 15 points, five boards and three assists with a blocked shot and a steal, that’s not bad.
Olivier-Maxence Prosper (PF – DAL)
It’s a tough matchup for Olivier-Maxence Propser, but if you need a low-cost DFS option with some upside, Prosper could be a solid add. With all of the frontcourt injuries and absences for the Mavericks, Prosper could, yeah, prosper, in Tuesday’s game.
The Mavericks’ forward isn’t killing it lately, going for a modest 6.7 points, 3.6 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.0 steals per game over the past five outings, but he should see 18-20 minutes. At this price, he could overproduce.
