This article is part of our FanDuel NBA series.
With seven games on the schedule for Wednesday's slate, there's plenty of options to sort through at all levels of the price scale. The following list should provide a handful of players to consider building your lineup around:
GUARDS:
Rajon Rondo, NOP at SAC ($6,900): Rondo has really elevated his play of late, averaging 13.3 points, 6.7 rebounds, 10.3 assists and 1.0 steal across 31.0 minutes over his last three games. That's good enough for an average of 39.2 FanDuel points. With yet another favorable matchup against a Kings defense that has been a bit laxed against the point guard position over the last five games, Rondo should have a chance to build on those numbers once again. His assists continue to give him a fairly safe floor, so if Rondo is able to keep up with the double-digit scoring totals, he'll have no trouble reaching value on a $6,900 price.
Ben McLemore, MEM at CHI ($4,200): McLemore sat out the Grizzlies' last game for a personal matter, but is fully expected to rejoin the rotation following the one-game absence. McLemore should have a fairly big opportunity ahead of him in his return, as Memphis will be without the likes of Tyreke Evans (ribs), Andrew Harrison (wrist) and Mario Chalmers (hamstring) in the backcourt. That should allow McLemore to take on a hefty workload, especially considering he already logged 38 and 30 minutes, respectively, over the last two games he played. During those two contests, McLemore posted 37.4 and 33.6 FanDuel points and if he comes anywhere near those numbers, he'll be providing plenty of value at his extremely cheap price.
Kobi Simmons, MEM at CHI ($3,900): Simmons is in the same advantageous situation as McLemore, as the Grizzlies are going to be without a slew of their typical backcourt players. Simmons actually drew the start at point guard on Monday with that same group of guys sitting out and posted 27.3 FanDuel points. At a near minimum salary, that's more than enough to hit value and that sort of upside forces me to list him here. While the McLemore addition back to the lineup following his one-game absence is somewhat of a threat to a few of Simmons' minutes, I'm not worried to the point where I'd shy away from him. Again, his price is just too good to pass up for me.
FORWARDS:
LeBron James, CLE at DEN ($12,500): James is the second highest priced player on Wednesday's slate, with Anthony Davis ($13,000) being the lone guy ahead of him. While I typically avoid paying up for anyone at this price, I just can't pass up on James in what is expected to be one of the most uptempo games on the night. The over/under currently sits at a whopping 230.5, marking the highest number on the slate. When you add that to the fact that James just torched the Nuggets for 25 points, 10 rebounds, 15 assists and two steals (62.5 FanDuel points) on Saturday, you see what kind of damage he can do against this defense. For that reason, I'm going to do everything I can to build my lineup around James.
Kyle Kuzma, LAL vs ORL ($6,100): Kuzma has started the last two games at small forward and with Brandon Ingram (groin) slated to sit out once again, that should remain the case Wednesday. While Kuzma only averaged 29.1 FanDuel points over those two starts, it's the minutes load that I like here, as he's logged 35.5 minutes during that stretch. Kuzma showed his overall upside earlier this season, notching five games with 40-plus Fanduel points, which also included two above 50. That sort of potential production for a guy who's going to see 30-plus minutes and at a $6,100 price seems like a no-brainer.
Zach Randolph, SAC vs NOP ($5,900): Randolph is certainly the most risky pick I have listed, mostly considering the Kings rotation fluctuates fairly significantly on a night-to-night basis. He's been held out every other game in each of the last six contests, but after sitting out Sunday, Randolph should be good to go in his normal capacity. The Kings have already ruled out Willie Cauley-Stein (back) and Skal Labissiere (knee) is also questionable to play, so there could be a solid amount of minutes available for Randolph despite the Kings' efforts in developing their younger talents.
CENTERS:
Nikola Jokic, DEN vs CLE ($9,700): While the Cavaliers' Larry Nance bottled up Andre Drummond on Monday, I'm not entirely sold that he can do it twice in a row, especially against another superb player like Jokic. Admittedly, Jokic has played pretty poorly of late, but I think he has a good shot at bouncing back against a short-handed Cavs squad at center with Tristan Thompson out. Jokic has 50-FanDuel-point potential on any given night and like I mentioned in the James blurb, this game is the highest projected over/under on the night, so there's going to be a ton of statistics available throughout.
Clint Capela, HOU at MIL ($7,500): Capela is a solid mid-tier option for Wednesday's slate, as he's averaged 36.5 FanDuel points over his last nine outings. I don't see him having much trouble with Milwaukee, even though Milwaukee sits about middle of the pack in terms of points given up to the center position. Look for plenty of pick-and-rolls with James Harden as usual and another 40-FanDuel-point game wouldn't be surprising. If you can't afford Jokic or Capela and you're in dire need of a cheap center option, you could make a case for Kosta Koufos ($4,500) or Emeka Okafor ($3,800), though both players are extremely risky and their roles often change dramatically on a nightly basis.
