This article is part of our FanDuel NBA series.
After a very busy week, we're down to a compact four-game slate Saturday night. There are plenty of contending teams in action that have varying degree of motivation, and the injury report is relatively modest but does include some big names. With a narrow player pool to work with, it should be a challenging but interesting night of DFS lineup construction and sweats.
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.
Listed spreads/totals are from FanDuel Sportsbook and current as of Saturday, 4/5 @ 1:00 a.m. EDT:
Minnesota Timberwolves (-15) at Philadelphia 76ers (O/U: 225.0)
Memphis Grizzlies (-1.5) at *Detroit Pistons (O/U: 239.5)
Milwaukee Bucks (-1.5) at Miami Heat (O/U: 215.0)
*Dallas Mavericks at *Los Angeles Clippers (-8) (O/U: 219.5)
* - denotes team on second night of back-to-back set
Despite there only being four games on the ledger Saturday, we have a little bit of everything when it comes to point spreads Saturday night. The projected blowout by the Timberwolves is on one end of the spectrum, while the Grizzlies-Pistons and Bucks-Heat clashes could well be the wire-to-wire battles they're implied to be.
The Mavs-Clippers matchup could also be a bit closer than expected, considering that the two teams are meeting for the second straight night and that Anthony Davis ould potentially suit up for Dallas after sitting out.
In terms of the best potential all-around DFS environment, there's no question it shapes up on paper as the Grizzlies-Pistons battle, which features several high-upside players and should be played at a very fast pace.
Injury Situations to Monitor
For all the latest updates, visit RotoWire's NBA Injury News page and our comprehensive NBA Injury Report.
Anthony Davis, DAL (groin): GTD
If Davis sits out a second straight night, Daniel Gafford is likely to draw another spot start at center.
Cade Cunningham, DET (calf): QUESTIONABLE
If Cunningham remains out Saturday, Dennis Schroder should draw another start at point guard, while Malik Beasley and Tim Hardaway could see big usage bumps as well.
Tyler Herro, MIA (thigh): QUESTIONABLE
If Herro sits out Saturday, Alec Burks and Terry Rozier could handle the majority of point guard minutes.
Andrew Wiggins, MIA (hamstring): OUT
In Wiggins' ongoing absence, Pelle Larsson could draw a fifth straight start at small forward.
Kawhi Leonard, LAC (rest): GTD
Leonard could reportedly sit out Saturday's game, in which case Derrick Jones could draw a start at power forward.
Other notable injuries:
Damian Lillard, MIL (calf): OUT
Bobby Portis, MIL (suspension): OUT
Kelly Oubre, PHI (knee): OUT
Andre Drummond, PHI (toe): OUT
Dereck Lively, DAL (ankle): OUT
Tobias Harris, DET (Achilles): QUESTIONABLE
Giannis Antetokounmpo, MIL (foot): PROBABLE
Elite Players
We have three players with five-figure salaries on Saturday's slate: Giannis Antetokounmpo ($12,500), Anthony Davis ($10,600) and Cade Cunningham ($10,100).
Antetokounmpo put together a massive 35-point, 20-assist, 17-rebound triple-double that netted 89.4 FD points against the Sixers on Thursday, just two games after putting up 69.5 FD points against the Suns. He also put up 55.7 FD points in 31 minutes during his last meeting with the Heat on Feb. 23.
Davis' status will have to be monitored carefully after he missed the first game of the back-to-back set with the Clippers, but he's coming off his first big breakout game for the Mavericks on Wednesday that saw him score 69 FD points over just 29 minutes versus the Hawks.
Cunningham's status will have to be monitored since he's listed as questionable due to his calf strain, and he'd be returning from a six-game absence if he does make it back on the floor and may be on some sort of minutes restriction.
Expected Chalk
Other likely chalk plays include:
James Harden, LAC ($9,500)
Harden typically sports a floor of about 40 FD points, and he could take the floor Saturday without Kawhi Leonard, which would make The Beard even more popular than usual.
Anthony Edwards, MIN ($9,300)
Edwards has scored 40.2 to 56 FD points in three straight games, and he has a very favorable matchup against a short-handed 76ers team.
Bam Adebayo, MIA ($8,700)
Adebayo has tallied 54.9 and 48.9 FD points in two of his last three games, and he could be taking the floor Saturday without Tyler Herro in addition to Andrew Wiggins.
Ja Morant, MEM ($8,600)
Morant has scored 39.5 to 48.6 FD points in four straight and should be an intergral part of the game with the highest projected total of the night.
Quentin Grimes, PHI ($8,500)
Grimes continues to deliver strong returns on his current salary, supplying 44.3 and 42.6 FD points in his two most recent games as the 76ers' top remaining offensive option.
Key Values
Naji Marshall, DAL at LAC ($6,100)
Marshall just put up 31.8 FD points against the Clippers on Friday night in a blowout loss for Dallas, and with a chance that Anthony Davis sits out a second straight contest Saturday, the former is right back in play at a salary he's proven amply capable of overdelivering on. Marshall has already delivered more than a 5x return on 18 occasions this season, with 11 of those instances coming since March 1. Marshall should have a solid workload Saturday irrespective of Davis' availability, keeping him firmly in play at his salary.
Adem Bona, PHI vs. MIN ($6,000)
Bona has been a revelation down the stretch thanks to the 76ers' decimated frontcourt, averaging 34.8 FD points on 13.5 points, 7.9 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 2.6 blocks and 1.4 steals across 27.9 minutes per game in his last 12 contests. Bona just put up a career-high 47.2 FD points against the Bucks on Thursday as well, and he's scored over 32 FD points in four consecutive contests overall. The T-Wolves have also given up 56 FD points per contest to centers in the last seven games, a sample that includes Nikola Jokic's 61-point, 10-rebound, 10-assist triple-double.
Zach Edey, MEM at DET ($5,400)
Edey's production has experienced a lot of the ebbs and flows typical of most rookies, but he's still managed to average a solid 26.1 FD points over his last 10 games, a span where he's averaged 9.7 points, 8.0 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.7 blocks across 21.6 minutes per contest. Edey has exceeded 32 FD points on four occasions in that span, including two tallies of greater than 40 FD points. Then, Detroit has been more vulnerable to centers in the last seven games by allowing 55.6 FD points per contest to the position in that stretch, and the Pistons have also conceded an Eastern Conference-high 8.7 blocks per game in the last three contests.
ALSO CONSIDER: Santi Aldama, MEM at DET ($5,700); Malik Beasley, DET vs. MEM ($5,400)
