NBA DFS Preview - First Look (2/11)

The NBA trade deadline has passed, and the league has truly been altered. With that, so has the fantasy basketball landscape, and the impact will immediately be felt on Friday’s seven-game DFS slate. Depth charts and rotations have changed so be sure to react to recent moves.

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NBA Vegas Data for February 11 | NBA DFS First Look

Charlotte Hornets @ Detroit Pistons

CHA -7, total: 226.5
Pace: CHA (1st), DET (13th)

Situations to monitor:

Cade Cunningham (hip) has missed the last five games for Detroit and is listed as questionable. The Pistons also traded for Marvin Bagley.

Cleveland Cavaliers @ Indiana Pacers

CLE -7, total: 215
Pace: CLE (23rd), IND (19th)

Situations to monitor:

Tyrese Haliburton will be available to make his Pacers debut Friday, along with Buddy Hield. Malcolm Brogdon, meanwhile, remains questionable with his Achilles injury. Isaiah Jackson is also listed as questionable.
Lauri Markkanen (ankle) has once again been ruled out for Cleveland.

Oklahoma City Thunder @ Philadelphia 76ers

PHI -13, total: 206.5
Pace: OKC (15th), PHI (26th)

Situations to monitor:

Philadelphia traded Seth Curry and Andre Drummond to Brooklyn for James Harden and Paul Millsap. Tyrese Maxey (hamstring) is listed as questionable.
Josh Giddey will continue to be limited to around 30 minutes for Oklahoma City.

Denver Nuggets @ Boston Celtics

BOS -6, total: 218
Pace: DEN (21st), BOS (21st)

Situations to monitor:

Boston traded Josh Richardson for Derrick White and traded away Dennis Schroder before the NBA trade deadline.
For Denver, Monte Morris has been ruled out due to a concussion.

San Antonio Spurs @ Atlanta Hawks

ATL -8, total: 232.5
Pace: SAS (5th), ATL (19th)

Situations to monitor:

Again, Derrick White has been traded to Boston, while Thaddeus Young was traded to Toronto.

Minnesota Timberwolves @ Chicago Bulls

CHI -3.5, total: 240
Pace: MIN (1st), CHI (11th)

Situations to monitor:

Nikola Vucevic (hip) is listed as probable for Chicago while Ayo Dosunmu is listed as questionable with a concussion.
For Minnesota, Anthony Edwards, D’Angelo Russell and Patrick Beverley are all listed as questionable.

Orlando Magic @ Utah Jazz

UTA -13.5, total: 221
Pace: ORL (8th), UTA (13th)

Situations to monitor:

Rudy Gobert (calf) has been upgraded to questionable for this contest.
Jalen Suggs (Achilles) is listed as questionable for Orlando.

Stats to Know | NBA DFS First Look

Cole Anthony is sporting a 28% usage rate with Jalen Suggs off the floor this season

Once Suggs returned to Orlando’s lineup, Anthony’s numbers took a bit of a hit. With Suggs on the floor, Anthony’s usage rate is sitting just above 22%, while averaging just under a fantasy point per minute. However, with Suggs off the court, that usage rate climbs to 28%, while Anthony is also averaging 1.15 fantasy points per minute to go along with a 19% assist rate and 17% rebounding rate in the split. And as you can see, nearly all of Anthony’s numbers across the board are more fantasy-friendly in games where Suggs has been inactive. If he is out for this game, Anthony projects as a very strong play, regardless of the tougher matchup with the Jazz.

Bojan Bogdanovic is averaging 5.3 spot-up points per game this season

That is tied for 16th in the league, while Bogdanovic is also averaging a healthy 1.15 points per possession and shooting neatly 42% off the play type. Bogdanovic’s shot volume has been very solid and a matchup with Orlando is extremely favorable, as the Magic are coughing up the second-most points per possession (1.07) and second-highest field goal percentage (41.3%) off spot-ups this season. Opponents are also shooting 36.1% from beyond the arc against the Magic this season, tied for the sixth-highest mark in the NBA.

Joel Embiid leads the NBA in post-up points per game (9.1)

Embiid has a new teammate in James Harden. but not Friday, as Harden won’t make his Philadelphia debut yet. And with Andre Drummond and Seth Curry obviously no longer with the team, Embiid should once again dominate the usage, especially if Tyrese Maxey (hamstring) can’t play. Regardless, Embiid is going to get his against a weak Oklahoma City interior defense. The Thunder are allowing the second-highest field goal percentage (53.1%) and fourth-most points per possession (1.00) to the post this season, while no player in basketball is averaging more points (9.1) or possessions (8.2) off post-ups than Embiid, which shouldn’t surprise anyone.

Value Plays | NBA DFS First Look

Aleksej Pokusevski vs. PHI — After not being part of the rotation for a while, Pokusevski has now played 26 and 30 minutes over the last two games, scoring 28.2 and 38 fantasy points during that span. With Shai Gilgeous-Alexander out and Josh Giddey’s minutes being limited, Pokusevski has an avenue for minutes again, at least until after the All-Star break. Over the last two games, he is sporting a 23% rebounding rate, while averaging 1.19 fantasy points per minute.