This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Basketball series.
Yahoo has elected to include all six of Monday's games in their featured slate, so we'll be looking at the full complement of games available to us. This slate is going to be dependent on a few different injury designations, so it will be important to keep your ears to the ground for late developments.
Phoenix, Philly and Milwaukee are playing the tail end of back-to-backs Monday, and Boston will head all the way to Denver with an altitude adjustment to make. Vegas has taken a conservative angle on the BOS/DEN game with a low O/U of 204, which I expect will end up on the plus side of that threshold. I'm also favoring Denver in this matchup and playing Nuggets in multiple spots. We lack a few lines at time of publication, but CHA/IND and MIN/ATL both come in at 215 and MIA/DAL lags well behind the field with an O/U of 197.
As far as games to target, the slate is unique in that there aren't many spots that I look at as definite stacks. Our only $50-plus player on the slate is Giannis Antetokounmpo ($57), and while I expect him to be highly owned it is probably your best bet to lock down some production in your cash lineups by slotting the Greek Freak in against the Sixers at home. History has dictated that Joel Embiid ($49) has yet to see the tail end of a back-to-back this season, so if that trend holds Giannis will have an easier time in the paint. The other fool-proof spot lies in the MIN/ATL game where I have confidence in both Karl-Anthony Towns ($46) and Jimmy Butler ($41). Towns remains one of the league's most dependable assets from a fantasy perspective, and though Butler's shot was a bit off after a four-game absence, he's had a day to rest and I expect him to back at full speed. I'm likely locking both of these players down in cash lineups.
One injury situation to keep an eye on is the Tyreke Evans ($34) / Devin Booker ($37) matchup in Memphis. Evans will simply need to test his ankle in the morning shootaround and most expect him to be fine for Monday's contest, but the same is not true for Booker, who was removed late in the game Sunday with a rib injury. While a definitive call will probably come later in the day, Tyreke becomes an excellent choice if Booker is unable to hit the floor Monday night, which seems to be the most likely scenario at this juncture. On the off-chance that Evans sits, I like Mario Chalmers ($12) to be a huge value in Evans' stead.
As usual, I'll be highlighting two players at each position, with an additional list at each slot that holds equal weight in my predictions. We'll also target one player to fade at guard, forward and center. For the highlighted players, I will endeavor to include one value pick in every category.
GUARD
As previously stated, Butler and Evans (if he's in) are definitely in play for me. Here are some other excellent plays.
Kyrie Irving, BOS at DEN ($39): I think Boston is in a bit of trouble in this one. It's not a good matchup for the Celtics across the board, which is all the more reason to expect Irving to go off here. He hung 50.7 YFP on the Nuggets in their last matchup and he'll be called upon to carry the team again Monday. Jamal Murray ($27) has had a few slow games of late but I'm not scared to field him either, as these two will exchange shots in the backcourt.
Tyus Jones, MIN at ATL ($12): Of course, a lot will depend on Jeff Teague's condition at tipoff, but Teague actually requested to get off the floor in the fourth quarter of Saturday night's game, so I think his ankle issue is more than just a tweak. Even if Jones plays in the second unit, he's easily going to exceed value at this price, but at the moment I can really only endorse him as a tournament pick here.
Other guards to consider: Victor Oladipo, IND vs. CHA ($42); Dennis Schroder, ATL vs. MIN ($27); Gary Harris, DEN vs. BOS ($25); Wesley Matthews, DAL vs. MIA ($17)
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GUARDS TO AVOID
Kemba Walker ($38) / Darren Collison ($22), CHA/MIL: Both of these defenses are EXTREMELY tough against the PG position, especially over the past few games. While I'd normally never intentionally fade either of them, I have a feeling that this spot is one to steer clear of, as it's entirely likely that they may cancel each other out. I think Oladipo plays better here on the Indiana side, and Nicolas Batum ($21) and Jeremy Lamb ($14) are spots to consider for the Hornets. I think Walker will be the better of the two, but you can escape the volatility here by looking elsewhere for better matchups on the slate.
FORWARD
As I said above, Giannis is a cash lock for me if you can afford him, but here are some other forwards to round out your lineup.
Will Barton ($23) / Mason Plumlee ($14), DEN vs. BOS: I felt it would be too boring to load the forward side with two Nuggets and tell the same story, so I bunched them together. On a slate chock-full of negative matchups at forward, I think this game remains the most exploitable in the frontcourt. Boston has rarely failed to disappoint when it comes to yielding big stat lines to forwards, and Monday should be no exception. I think Boston will be forced to mix up their lineups due to a significant height advantage inside, so while that plays best for Nikola Jokic (see below), these two will get a big boost as well.
Jarell Martin, MEM vs. PHO ($10): When you consider how long JaMychal Green (ankle) has been out, I'm surprised that Martin isn't more expensive. He's easily the best $10 candidate on Monday's slate. Martin possesses all the skills to be a premier big man in the league – he just needs to find an ideal landing place, and Memphis might be the spot if Green plays himself out of the Grizzlies' long-term plans. I'll likely have Martin in 75 percent of my lineups.
Other forwards to consider: Khris Middleton, MIL vs. PHI ($37); Dario Saric, PHI at MIL ($28); Thaddeus Young IND vs. CHA ($22); Trey Lyles, DEN vs. BOS ($20)
FORWARD TO AVOID
Jayson Tatum, BOS at DEN ($22): Tatum's been wicked inconsistent in Boston (sorry, couldn't resist) for the past two weeks after emerging as one of the Celtics' pleasant surprises in the wake of Gordon Hayward's injury. Unfortunately, Tatum's been plagued with a dreadful shooting slump and can't seem to put two good games together. He is currently too expensive to play in relation to his potential value.
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CENTER
Again, I love Towns here, but there's a lot to like in the – you guessed it – BOS/DEN game!
Nikola Jokic, DEN vs. BOS ($44): Whoopee! I am certainly riding the Denver trend all the way up the fantasy mountain of value Monday. I think Jokic will certainly fare better than my poor use of metaphor. He was a scratch when Denver last played Boston, but the Celtics will have a difficult time matching up with Jokic, who has a huge size advantage over Al Horford. I suspect this will slide Aron Baynes ($10) into the lineup, and as a result he could be a great punt play. Jokic is set up perfectly for a dominant game.
Greg Monroe, PHO at MEM ($16): I was fond of calling him "Won't Go" Monroe after his inexplicable string of DNP's earlier in the season, but Alex Len looks to be out Monday and Tyson Chandler has been largely uninspiring. Monroe has a sky-high ceiling but an equally undependable floor, so there's some definite risk here. An alternate way to approach this slate is by way of Dragan Bender ($13), but Monroe is the better tournament pick.
Other centers to consider: Dwight Howard, CHA at IND ($42); Marc Gasol, MEM vs. PHO ($30)
CENTER TO AVOID
Myles Turner, IND vs. CHA ($21): Turner's return to action is encouraging, but the Pacers seem fine with bringing Turner back slowly as Domantas Sabonis has played well in his absence. Even if Turner was 100 percent I wouldn't be a big fan of matching him up against Howard, so I'm definitely fading him at this price until he gets more minutes.
