This article is part of our FanDuel NBA series.
After ceding Monday night altogether to the NCAA's Men's Basketball Championship, the NBA returns with a vengeance Tuesday night as teams begin the march to the end of the campaign. There are 12 matchups on tap, and although the postseason picture is certainly clearer than a week ago at this time, there's still multiple clubs that can improve their position or see it worsen.
Slate Overview
Cleveland Cavaliers (-8.5) at Orlando Magic (O/U: 214.0 points)
Philadelphia 76ers (-12.5) at Indiana Pacers (O/U: 232.0 points)
Atlanta Hawks at Toronto Raptors (-4) (O/U: 226.0 points)
Houston Rockets at Brooklyn Nets (-17.5) (O/U: 244.0 points)
Charlotte Hornets at Miami Heat (-5.5) (O/U: 223.5 points)
Portland Trail Blazers at Oklahoma City Thunder (-4) (O/U: 223.5 points)
Milwaukee Bucks (-4.5) at Chicago Bulls (O/U: 229.0 points)
Washington Wizards at Minnesota Timberwolves (-11.5) (O/U: 233.5 points)
San Antonio Spurs at Denver Nuggets (-7) (O/U: 234.5 points)
Memphis Grizzlies at Utah Jazz (-5) (O/U: 224.0 points)
New Orleans Pelicans (-8) at Sacramento Kings (O/U: 225.5 points)
Los Angeles Lakers at Phoenix Suns (-11.5) (O/U: 232.5 points)
The slates will get increasingly trickier for DFS purposes this week as more and more teams seal their fate for better or worse, but Tuesday night, there are still a few games that give us some certainty with respect to what we should expect in terms of starter's minutes. The Hawks-Raptors, Hornets-Heat, Bucks-Bulls and Spurs-Nuggets matchups should be particularly good in this regard, with all eight teams still having something to play on paper.
It's also worth noting the game with the highest projected total on the slate, the Wizards-Timberwolves battle, sees only one team (the T-Wolves) with any postseason incentive; nevertheless, with Washington playing as short-handed as it is and Minnesota boasting multiple explosive offensive players, it can still be a good night to target some Timberwolves players.
Injury Situations to Monitor
NOTE: Injury reporting is especially fluid in the NBA, where the status of multiple players can change during the course of a day. Therefore, although the following serves as a foundation for the latest injury report as of the time the article is written, check back throughout the course of the day with RotoWire for the latest news regarding the status of all players on that night's slate, including those carrying injury designations that aren't listed in this section.
Giannis Antetokounmpo, MIL (knee): PROBABLE
Antetokounmpo is expected to continue playing through his knee soreness after playing 40 minutes versus the Clippers on Sunday.
LeBron James, LAL (ankle): QUESTIONABLE
If James can't suit up, Carmelo Anthony and Stanley Johnson are expected to handle most power forward minutes.
Anthony Davis, LAL (foot): QUESTIONABLE
If Davis is unable to go, Dwight Howard should see extra minutes at center.
Dejounte Murray, SAN (illness): OUT
With Murray out, Tre Jones will likely draw the start at point guard and the remainder of the first unit will see elevated usage.
Jonas Valanciunas, NOP (ankle): QUESTIONABLE
If Valanciunas sits out, Willy Hernangomez is likely to draw the start at center.
De'Aaron Fox, SAC (hand): OUT
In Fox's absence, Davion Mitchell should handle another start at point guard.
Wendell Carter, ORL (wrist): OUT
In Carter's absence, Chuma Okeke should be in line for a start at power forward.
Evan Mobley, CLE (ankle): OUT
In Mobley's absence, Moses Brown should draw another start at center.
Other notable injuries:
Kyle Lowry, MIA (general soreness): QUESTIONABLE
Domantas Sabonis, SAC (knee): OUT
Ja Morant, MEM (knee): OUT
Jarrett Allen, CLE (finger): OUT
Kyle Kuzma, WAS (knee): OUT
Franz Wagner, ORL (ankle): QUESTIONABLE
Cole Anthony, ORL (toe): QUESTIONABLE
Jalen Suggs, ORL (ankle): QUESTIONABLE
Zion Williamson, NOP (foot): OUT
Josh Hart, POR (knee): OUT
Christian Wood, HOU (hamstring): OUT
Tre Mann, OKC (hamstring): OUT
Trendon Watford, POR (leg): OUT
Elite Players
We have six players with five-figure salaries that have a chance to suit up on Tuesday's slate: Giannis Antetokounmpo ($12,100), Nikola Jokic ($12,000), Joel Embiid ($11,600), Kevin Durant ($11,200), LeBron James ($11,100) and Trae Young ($10,000).
As mentioned, Antetokounmpo is slated to play through his knee injury and will be looking to build on his streak of scoring at least 54 FD points in all three previous games against the Bulls this season.
Jokic is in a prime matchup against a Spurs team that's he's already scored no fewer than 59.6 FD points against in three games this season. He's also scored no fewer than 67.3 FD points in five straight games.
Embiid just scored 83.3 FD points against the Cavaliers on Sunday, but he could be in a potential blowout scenario against the Pacers, which are 12.5-point underdogs.
Durant exploded for 66.9 FD points himself against the Hawks on Sunday and has scored no fewer than 50.9 in the last four games, but like Embiid, there's some blowout risk in his matchup against the Rockets.
If LeBron is able to play through his ankle injury, he could see his usage go through the roof in what could be an elimination game for the Lakers, and one in which he might take the floor without Anthony Davis (foot).
Young has scored 55.2 FD points or more in three of his last five games, and the Hawks are one of the teams with something to play for Tuesday. He also has one tally of 64.3 FD points in one outing against the Raps this season.
Expected Chalk
Other likely chalk plays include:
James Harden, PHI ($9,800)
Harden has been under 46 FD points in three straight yet hasn't really seen a salary drop, but his name should keep him popular again Tuesday.
Pascal Siakam, TOR ($9,500)
Siakam has scored 43.5 to 71.1 FD points in five of the last six games and is a key part of what could be one of the highest-scoring games of the night.
LaMelo Ball, CHA ($9,300)
Ball dipped to 22.9 FD points in his last game against the 76ers, but he'd scored 48.7 to 62.9 FD points in the three games prior and should be in plenty of lineups again Tuesday.
Kyrie Irving, BKN ($9,000)
Irving has scored 39.1 and 43.4 FD points in the last two games, and although there's blowout risk against the Rockets, he's facing a team that's allowed the highest offensive efficiency to point guards (28.1 percent) and most FD points per game to the position as well (50.4).
Key Values
Aleksej Pokusevski, OKC vs. POR ($6,100)
Pokusevski continues to enjoy an elevated role with the likes of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (ankle) and Josh Giddey (hip) out for the season, and he's averaged a well-rounded 13.3 points, 7.4 rebounds, 5.9 assists and 1.0 steal over his last 10 games while averaging 32.4 FD points in that span. The second-year big should continue in a high-usage role Tuesday in a tantalizing matchup against the Trail Blazers, which are allowing the third-most FD points per game to power forwards (49.3). Pokusevski also put up 34.1 FD points in his most recent game against Portland, and the Blazers are ranked in the bottom 10 in shooting percentage, rebounds and assists allowed on the road this season.
Caris LeVert, CLE at ORL ($5,400)
LeVert has started to get comfortable in Cleveland of late, averaging 17.2 points, 5.3 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.2 steals across the last six games, all starts. The veteran wing has averaged 32.6 FD points over that span as well, and his matchup Tuesday could certainly allow the good times to keep rolling. LeVert is sporting a 24.7 percent usage rate and averaging 33.9 FD points per 36 minutes without Mobley on the floor this season, and the Magic are allowing an elevated 47.2 percent success rate from the floor over the last three games along with the 10th-highest offensive efficiency to backcourt players (48.9 percent).
Gary Trent, TOR vs. ATL ($5,100)
Trent's salary is particularly low for a player averaging 29.5 FD points per game on the season and that's scored 23.7 to 30.4 FD points in four straight. Trent also has a tally of 41.7 FD points against the Hawks this season, and he's averaging a solid 28.6 FD points over his last 15 games overall. Atlanta comes in allowing the third-highest offensive efficiency to two-guards (23.6 percent), along with 42.0 FD points per game to the position. The Hawks are also ranked in the bottom 10 with 3.6 made threes per game allowed to twos, while Trent is draining 38.0 percent of his career-high 7.9 three-point attempts per outing.
ALSO CONSIDER: Will Barton, DEN vs. SA ($5,600); Damian Jones, SAC vs. NOP ($5,500)
