Friday Fantasy Basketball Tournament Picks, Lineups and Injuries (1/21/11)
Jan 21, 2011 Blog
Fanduel.com is having a $2500 Fantasy Basketball Tournament tonight and I figured it might be a good feature here on FBD to post a pregame article for the weekly Friday tournament. I have tried to pick out a sleeper from each NBA game for tonight’s tourney and also provide some lineup and injury news. To qualify for the sleeper list, a player must be priced at less than $7000.
If you haven’t heard of Fanduel.com, it’s a site that offers one day fantasy basketball games played for real cash. Fantasy owners draft a new team for each day’s NBA action and play either a head-to-head match against another owner or enter their team in a multiplayer tournament style contest. You can play for as little as $5 or as much as $100. Ther are also some very large payouts on the multiplayer tournaments. Registration at Fanduel.com is free and you can deposit funds with Paypal or a credit card.
Cheap Sleeper Picks for Friday’s Tournament:
Greg Monroe (DET, $5600) – Ben Wallace continues to be sidelined and Monroe will get the start. He’s capable of a double-double.
DeMar DeRozan (TOR, $6400) – Kleiza and Weems have both been out, which has left some extra offensive opportunities for DeRozan. He put up 28 points against the Spurs on Wednesday and 23 points against the Hornets on Monday.
Nick Young (WAS, $6200) – Young continues to get big minutes and light up the scoreboard. He should get 35+ minutes tonight and again top 20 points.
Kevin Garnett (BOS, $6100) – Fanduel has a little glitch in their pricing system right now that affects players returning from injury. They seem to have fixed the glitch, but the pricing won’t take effect for a couple of days. Garnett at $6100 is a gift, so take advantage.
Jamal Crawford (ATL, $6400) – Al Horford is probably going to miss tonight’s game, so the Hawks are going to have to get some scoring from somewhere. Crawford could be the beneficiary of some extra minutes and shot attempts.
Corey Maggette (MIL, $5200) – Maggette has recently moved into the starting lineup for Milwaukee and could be a nice gamble. He can really light it up when he’s on.
C.J. Miles (UTA, $5600) – Doing a great job holding down the 6th man role in Utah.
Chuck Hayes (HOU, $4700) – He’s starting for the Rockets and will get good minutes. Has the ability to pick up a double-double.
DeJuan Blair (SAS, $5600) – Blair is an aggravatingly inconsistent player, but tonight’s matchup against the weak center position of the Knicks should be one of his better opportunities for a big line.
Andrew Bynum (LAL, $5600) – His price hasn’t fully adjusted upward since his recent return from injury and he’s a great bargain. A word of caution though, he did suffer an elbow injury in his last game, so check his pregame status before committing to him.
DeMarcus Cousins (SAC, $6700) – Cousins won’t qualify as a sleeper pick very much longer, as his price creeps toward that $7000 mark. He’s got a good matchup tonight against a high scoring Warriors club that doesn’t play much defense.
Daniel Gibson (CLE, $5300) – Gibson just returned from injury and put up 16 points in his last game. He was hot before getting hurt, so hopefully he can return to form and help fantasy owners.
Danilo Gallinari (NYK, $5800) – He’s a little risky since he’s just returning from injury, but the price is right.
Grant Hill (PHO, $6400) – Hill has been solid this season and has had three nice games in a row, going over 20 points in each. Great value for the salary.
Hedo Turkoglu (ORL, $6300) – Honestly, Turkoglu has been horrible most of the year, but tonight he gets a game against his old club that he probably despises. He could have a little something to prove in this one, which could mean a big line.
J.J. Hickson (CLE, $5600) – I like Hickson, but I’m not crazy about his matchup against a tough Milwaukee defense. His price is nice, but I wish the matchup was a little better, still good value though.
Shaq O’Neal (BOS, $5100) – The old man has been pretty amazing lately and makes a pretty good value play with Jermaine O’Neal out with knee problems. I’d expect Shaq to get around 25 minutes.
Injuries:
Al Horford – Ankle, out.
Andrew Bogut – Virus, day to day.
Rajon Rondo – Cut, probable.
Andrew Bynum – Elbow, probable.
John Salmons – Hip, gametime decision.
Jameer Nelson – Quad, questionable.
Carlos Delfino – Could be activated.
Andrea Bargnani – Sore knees, probable.
Rashard Lewis – Sore knee, probable.
Francisco Garcia – Calf, out.
Linas Kleiza – Ankle, probable.
Marvin Williams – Back, doubtful.
Carmelo Anthony – Missed shootaround for a ‘personal matter’
Tags: daily fantasy contests, daily fantasy picks, fantasy basketball, fantasy sports betting, handicapping