This article is part of our FanDuel NBA series.
We're set for a lighter slate than usual for a Friday with only seven games, but many DFS players may actually consider that to be an ideal amount. The player pool is certainly ample enough to allow us differentiation in tournaments while also largely insulating us from the effect of key injuries, of which there are several.
Slate Overview
For the latest spreads and over-unders, visit RotoWire's NBA Odds page. There, you can also find player props, futures, picks articles and sportsbook bonus codes.
We have a good balance of narrow and slightly expanded point spreads Friday night, with numbers between 3.5 and 9.5 as of Friday morning on FanDuel Sportsbook. That range implies we should have a better-than-average chance of mostly competitive games that lock in the minutes of higher-salaried players.
Projected totals are centered around a narrow range of 223 to 225.5 points, with the exception of the Grizzlies-Trail Blazers clash that carries a figure of 220.5. The numbers don't jump off the screen, but they're also totals that imply there should be a solid amount of offense overall.
Injury Situations to Monitor
For all the latest updates, visit RotoWire's NBA Injury News page and our comprehensive NBA Injury Report.
Nikola Jokic, DEN (back): PROBABLE
Jokic is fully expected to play through his minor back issue and should be in store for a big workload in what should be a very competitive matchup against the Mavericks.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, OKC (knee): OUT
In SGA's absence, the rest of the Thunder starting five should naturally see big bumps in usage, while Cason Wallace may draw a start and Josh Giddey could earn more ball-handling responsibilities.
Kyrie Irving, DAL (foot): QUESTIONABLE
If Irving sits out again, Josh Green could remain in the starting five and Luka Doncic will be in store for even more usage than usual.
Tyrese Haliburton, IND (ankle): QUESTIONABLE
Should Haliburton not be able to go Friday, T.J. McConnell and Andrew Nembhard could be major beneficiaries while the rest of the first unit should receive elevated usage.
Darius Garland, CLE (hamstring): QUESTIONABLE
If Garland - who participated in morning shootaround Friday - can't suit up, Donovan Mitchell could once again operate as Cleveland's primary ball handler.
Other notable injuries:
Jimmy Butler, MIA (knee): PROBABLE
Zach LaVine (back): PROBABLE
Jamal Murray, DEN (quadriceps): PROBABLE
Shaedon Sharpe, POR (thumb): PROBABLE
Jarrett Allen, CLE (ankle): QUESTIONABLE
Spencer Dinwiddie, BKN (ankle): QUESTIONABLE
RJ Barrett, NYK (knee): QUESTIONABLE
Daniel Gafford, WAS (ankle): QUESTIONABLE
Nic Claxton, BKN (ankle): OUT
Cameron Johnson, BKN (calf): OUT
Elite Players
We have four players with five-figure salaries that have a chance to play on Friday's slate – Luka Doncic ($12,500), Nikola Jokic ($11,900), Giannis Antetokounmpo ($10,400) and Donovan Mitchell ($10,300).
As alluded to previously, Doncic could be in for another massive usage load above and beyond his already elevated norm if Irving sits out, and he comes into the matchup having already exceeded 65 FD points in three of his first four games.
Jokic will play just as critical a role on the other side of the matchup and checks in with a pair of tallies over 60 FD points in his first five outings. Two of the three games in which he failed to eclipse that number saw him log sub-30-minute workloads, and the big man should certainly be over that allotment in what should be a highly competitive game against the Mavericks.
Antetokounmpo's rebounds are down to an average of 8.8 early in the season, but he's still exceeded 45 FD points in three of his first four games and should be in for a big role in what could be a hotly contested battle against the Knicks.
Mitchell could once again take the floor without Garland and has already contributed tallies of 57 and 70.1 FD points, the first having come with Garland available.
Expected Chalk
Other likely chalk plays include:
Stephen Curry, GSW ($9,700)
Curry only posted 24.5 FD points on Wednesday against the Kings, but he already has a pair of tallies over 50 FD points and should be in plenty of lineups.
Tyrese Haliburton, IND ($9,600)
Assuming Haliburton fights through his ankle injury, he should be highly rostered on a seven-game slate after dropping between 46.1 and 49.1 FD points in his first three games this season.
Damian Lillard, MIL ($8,900)
Lillard has been a bit up and down during his brief Bucks tenure, yet he carries the upside of a five-figure-salaried player as he demonstrated in the opener with 54.6 FD points across 37 minutes versus the 76ers.
Josh Giddey, OKC ($7,900)
With Gilgeous-Alexander already confirmed out, Giddey should be extremely popular at his salary as the player most likely to benefit from that absence. He also checks in with tallies of 38.9 and 35.8 FD points in his two most recent games.
Key Values
Deni Avdija, WAS at MIA ($5,800)
Avdija has shown some sneaky upside early on by topping out at 40.5 FD points in his most recent game Wednesday against the Hawks while also contributing between 23.9 and 25.9 FD points over his first three contests. The fourth-year wing is locked into the starting small forward role on a revamped Wizards team and is encouragingly attempting a career-high 10.5 shots and draining them at career-best clips of 52.4 percent overall and 50.0 from distance. Avdija faces a Heat team Friday that experienced trouble defending small forwards all of last season, and that's already ranked No. 19 in offensive efficiency rating allowed to the position (23.2) early in the current campaign. Miami is also conceding 47 FD points per game to threes, making him a great sub-$6K selection.
Klay Thompson, GSW at OKC ($5,700)
Any time Thompson carries a salary under $6K, he's worth a look. The veteran sharpshooter has earned the modest figure by notching between 25.8 and 27.9 FD points thus far this season, but those figures are perfectly acceptable at his current value and the significant upside e possesses makes him worthy of consideration. The Thunder have made life difficult on shooting guards efficiency-wise in the early going, though they're still surrendering 46.1 FD points and the third-most made threes (4.2) to twos.
Luguentz Dort, OKC vs. GSW ($4,800)
While Giddey will certainly be the Thunder player most likely to see a usage spike with SGA's absence, Dort certainly offers the ability to significantly outpace his salary in that same scenario. The talented wing has already produced 40.2 FD points once in his first five games and generated a solid 26.4 in another. What's brought Dort's salary down is three straight efforts under 20 FD points, but the additional opportunity will give him an ample platform to boost his numbers. The Warriors have been exceedingly tough on small forwards so far, but Dort is shooting a career-best 50.0 percent, including 41.7 from three-point range, meaning his recent modest production has simply been a matter of usage, which shouldn't be a factor Friday.
ALSO CONSIDER: Jalen Williams, OKC vs. GSW ($6,700); Lonnie Walker, BKN at CHI ($5,500)
