5 Stats to Know: NBA DFS April 7

We’re not even close to lock for the Friday DFS slate of NBA action as I write this, but we are already missing a ton of players. Many teams have nothing left to play for. so utilizing the value plays and picking stars that do need to win is going to rule the day on this slate. Let’s outline five players who can help us climb those leaderboards. 

1. Robert Williams played over 30 minutes Wednesday night 

That catches your eye because that has only happened five times through this whole season. Now, the Celtics are locked into the second seed in the East, but their highest-rated lineups all include Williams, in large part to his defensive acumen. Williams is around 1.05 points per minute on the season but his minutes (and games overall) have been very low all year. I don’t believe that Boston is going to get where they want to go without Williams playing solid minutes and I also think they’ll want Williams to get his conditioning to the best level they can, and his salary is awfully low on DK especially. 

2. Trae Young is driving to the hoop 18.4 times per game, fifth in the league 

The weird season for Young continues, but he did have a monster game against the Wizards, in large part because he got to the free-throw line a whopping 18 times. Now he gets to take on Philly, and while this is not official yet (it has been reported but not confirmed), I would be stunned to see Joel Embiid play in this game. The 76ers played Thursday night, and their seeding in the East is set. There is legitimately nothing left to play for but the Hawks are going to be motivated to win this game to stay out of the 9-10 matchup in the play-in tournament. Young is scoring 1.36 points per minute, he’s underpriced relative to the ceiling, and his path to the bucket should be a lot easier than a normal matchup against the 76ers. 

3. The Magic are punting the last couple of games 

Thursday, Orlando sat out their entire starting lineup, and they’ve already announced the same for Friday. They have a young and exciting core that doesn’t need to be risking injury for meaningless games. What did change was Moritz Wagner was added to the group of players sitting out. That means Bol Bol should be one of the best values on the slate since he’s under $4,000 on both sites and he generates 1.06 points per minute in the scenario for Orlando. While that sample size is only 185 minutes, Bol Bol logged 30 minutes and took 15 shots. He should have a great chance to double-double against the Nets Friday since they are 27th in rebounds allowed per game. 

4. The Kings have seven players listed as questionable against the Warriors 

They are a mess as far as the rotation could be concerned with so many players that could sit out. However, one player stands out in that scenario and that’s Terence Davis. Now, I don’t believe that the 1.44 points per minute or 37.9% usage rate in a 42-minute sample size matters all that much. What matters is a lot of the offense is going to fall on Davis if Domantas Sabonis, De’Aaron Fox and others are all out. Davis is not shy about shooting the ball and his salary is going to make him a prime target to build with a stars and scrubs lineup. Golden State continues to lead the league in pace and the Kings normally are happy to match, so Davis has a nuclear upside. 

5. LeBron James played 35 minutes on the second leg of a back-to-back Wednesday

That was a big deal since he’s missed plenty of games, and the Lakers are still alive for the fifth seed in the West (or at least getting out of the play-in). It may not be super likely after losing to the Clippers Wednesday, but James scored over 50.0 DK points despite scoring three real points in the first half. This game is a must-win and there is a scenario where the Phoenix Suns are going to sit some of their star players. Even if there is the possibility of a blowout, James will have to be a large part of that scenario and he’s scoring 1.50 points per minute. Additionally, we have so much value that it’s easy to play 1-2 star players Friday.