NBA Fanduel Lineup 2/5/15 **update**

Update I’m not on instagram, and to promote it, I’m going to post an alternative, more GPP type lineup on instasgram. You can follow me here.

First off, I’d like to apologize for yesterday and the lack of a blog. I was trying to fit it in on my lunch break at work, and ran out of time. Normally I do all my research the night before, and I may even write some of it, but I was in bed by 9:30 the other night…….anyways, I’m sure you care, so let’s get to why you’re here.

So only 4 games on tonight’s slate, so another night of limited options. Unlike the last 4 game slate though, there are some top-tier players playing tonight, which is a gift and a curse.

I say gift because we have guys that we know with near certainty will put up points tonight. You won’t be forced to play a fourth or fifth tier guy because he is all that’s there.

I say curse, because everyone will have these same guys in their lineup, and if one of them goes off, and you don’t own him, chances are you’re not gonna make any money.

I’m going to do my best to filter through it and hopefully win us some money. It’ll be hard filling my top 10 tonight, and they will probably end up being just the top guys at every position, but here we go…

TODAY’S TOP 10 PLAYS

10)  SF Michael Kidd-Gilchrist He won’t make my Top 10 often, but on a 4 game slate, there isn’t much to work with. MKG has put up 2 straight 35+ FDP nights, and one of them was versus the same team he plays tonight, the Wizards. Living in the DC area as I do, I know first hand the struggles the Wizards are having on defense. Defensively they aren’t what the were last year, they are starting to feel the loss of Ariza I think. MKG is probably the best value in my Top 10 @ $6100. No reason to expect less than 35 again tonight.

9) PG Darren Collison He is a bit of an enigma over his last 5 games. He has 3 games over 30, 2 versus Golden State and 1 versus the Pacers, both pretty good defenses. On the flip side he has 2 games under 20, versus the Raptors and the Cavs, both below average defenses. Go figure. That truth really has nothing to do with my pick here, as he plays Dallas, and they are not a good defense, I just thought it was interesting. Collison isn’t going to wow you, but at $6800, he is a decent play and will allow you to spend elsewhere.

8) SG Eric Bledsoe The next 3 guys at 8 thru 6 are really close in where I ranked them. They can all be pretty much interchanged. I put Bledsoe at 8 because he has the worst match-up of the 3. He put up 50FDP on Memphis the other night, so I wouldn’t shy away from him based on matchup. He has one of the largest disparities between his floor and his ceiling of any player in my Top 10 tonight. In his last 10 games, he has three games at or under 24 FDP, but also has 4 games over 35, including a 50 and a 47. His price may be a little steep for that kind of inconsistency, but may be worth the risk because I don’t think he’ll have a high ownership percentage.

7) PG Damien Lillard On the opposite end from Bledsoe in terms of consistency is Lillard. Having only one game in his last 10 under 30FDP, with a couple 40FDP nights sprinkled in. Aldridge limits his ceiling though, as he caps out somewhere in the low 40’s. That’s not to say he can’t get to 50+, but in the world of Fanduel you want consistency and not doing what I call “chasing points”. Play him and expect 35-40 points and be happy when he gets it.

6) SG Monta Ellis Another inconsistent player in Ellis. Like Bledsoe, he could get you 50 on any night, and he could also get you 18. With Rondo down, he has picked up the slack some, especially in the assist column. Only thing that makes me nervous is the back to back issue. I’m writing this just as the Golden State and Dallas game starts, so this rating could change if they go into OT, or if he is forced to carry his team versus the Warriors, but at just under 8K, on paper in a vacuum he looks like a good play.

5) C Al Jefferson Now we get to the first of 4 straight big men. As the first big man on the list, there is a lot to like. How does 18 and 12 sound? That was his line versus this same opponent the other night. He has been over 30FDP four of his last five, and even then he had 29. Put him in your lineup and watch him do work.

4) PF Blake Griffin Blake hasn’t scored less the 30 in his last 10 games, and has had only one game with less them 30 minutes, a blowout versus the Nets. I said this before, but it’s worth saying again, the Clippers are not a very deep team, they need their starters to play big minutes, which they do. Blake should be good for 40+FDP tonight.

3)  PF LaMarcus Aldridge He tapered off a bit in the last 2 games, and by tapered off, I mean he didn’t have a 58FDP night. The last 2 games he played teams that play big, and play slow, thus limiting his opportunities. Big and Slow are two things not associated with his next opponent, the Suns. There will be plenty of shots put up, plenty of possessions, and plenty of opportunity for Aldridge to get into the 40-45FDP range again.

2) C DeMarcus Cousins Oh DeMarcus how I love thee, let me count the ways, 56, 49, 51…. Those are his last 3 game totals in FDP. He is a beast, a beast among men. He will put the Kings on his back again tonight versus, what should be, a tired Mavericks team having just played Golden State last night. 50FDP is attainable here, and I’d be surprised if he gets less than 45.

1) SF LeBron James James is number 1 tonight for a few reasons. One, he is Lebron James. Two, he is so far above the second highest player at his position tonight, it makes him a near must start. Rudy Gay is the next guy down at $7,900. James is at $11,000. After Gay its drops to $6100. So needless to say SF is very shallow tonight. Without diving too deep into SF just yet, I’m not seeing a lot of value in there either, so all this makes James my number 1 play.

My blog has really started to gain some readers in last few days, so I will go over again, briefly, my “Dunks and Passes” segment.

Dunks are third or fourth tier guys that I think will have a good game, based on matchup, recently playing well, added minutes, or an injury to a starter.

Passes are just the opposite. They are top or second tier guys that I’m avoiding for various reasons. Sometimes I’ll pass on a guy that I think might get you 30, but if he costs 9K+, is that really getting all the bang for your buck? So, let’s get into tonight’s….

DUNKS AND PASSES

Tonight’s Dunks

• PG Isaiah Thomas **DUNK OF THE NIGHT** As the 3rd guard in a 3 guard lineup, Thomas doesn’t get the minutes as the other 2 do, but he makes the most of the minutes he gets. In all but 2 of his last 8 games, he has averaged over 1 FDP per minute played, and that’s pretty good when you consider he is getting 25 minutes a game. @ $5,800 he is decent value tonight at Portland.

• PG JJ Barea This post is being written pre- Warriors vs Mavericks, so if he goes out tonight and plays awful, maybe I change this pick. With Rondo out, he is most likely going to get the start, and with the start, he’ll get minutes. Now if that translates to points remains to be seen, and at $3900, he could allow you some flexibility in your lineup.

• SG Ben McLemore He is a very streaky scorer, but if he is hitting his shot, as he was 2 nights ago, he is well worth his $4400 price tag. He doesn’t do a lot in the way of peripherals, though he has gotten 5 rebounds on a few occasions, so if he isn’t scoring he will hurt you.

• SG Jamal Crawford The caveat here is if Reddick sits out again. As a starter Jamal Crawford is capable of putting up good numbers versus a soft Cavs defense. He should get plenty of minutes in what should be a close game. $5200 is a little steep if he is coming off the bench, but as a starter he is worth it. Check Reddick’s status.

• C Robin Lopez On a night with very little in the way of value, Robin Lopez could be a bright spot. He had 25 minutes in his return, and looked pretty good. He had 20FDP, which isn’t great, but if his minutes go up, his production will too. He is more of a punt play at $5200, and I’d probably only use him in a GPP.

Tonight’s Passes

PG Goran Dragic **PASS OF THE NIGHT** Though technically not a top-tier guy, on a night like tonight he is. Goran is just way too inconsistent to trust on any given night, regardless of the matchup. I’d keep him far away from any of my lineups.

PF Kevin Love Love remains on my Pass List again. Until his price tag comes down under 8K, I will continue to keep him out of my lineup. He has been “ok” recently, but with anything over 8K, you want at least the potential of a big game, and right now he doesn’t have it.

That wraps up Dunk and Passes for tonight. There aren’t as many as usual due to the small slate. As I’ve mentioned a few times in the blog, I’m writing this on the evening of the 4th, so all the games have yet to be completed. I’m going to wait till the dust settles before posting Tonight’s Starting 9. Check back later today and I’ll have my lineup up, and I promise I’ll have time to get it up tomorrow, I’m off.

In the meantime, please like my page on Facebook,follow me on Twitter @GeoffLambert77, and subscribe to the blog. Thanks for the support, and please comment me with any questions on lineups,etc.

Ok. I’ve gone over a few lineups, and this is the one I’ve settled on for tonight. Decided to go cheap the point cause of the depth at that position.

Here’s Today’s Starting 9:

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