This article is part of our FanDuel NBA series.
Friday night affords us a big 10-game slate that features some intriguing matchups, particularly in the latter portion of the night. Only four of the 20 teams in action will be on the second night of a back-to-back set; therefore, we could be in for a relatively competitive night that produces plenty of useful DFS scores, even though there are more double-digit favorites than usual.
Slate Overview
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Listed spreads/totals are from FanDuel Sportsbook and current as of Friday, 4/4 @ 1:00 a.m. EDT:
Utah Jazz at Indiana Pacers (-15.5) (O/U: 235.5)
Sacramento Kings (-10.5) at Charlotte Hornets (O/U: 220.0)
Phoenix Suns at Boston Celtics (-15) (O/U: 228.0)
Detroit Pistons (-11.5) at *Toronto Raptors (O/U: 228.0)
Oklahoma City Thunder (-6.5) at Houston Rockets (O/U: 231.5)
Cleveland Cavaliers (-14) at San Antonio Spurs (O/U: 240.5)
*Portland Trail Blazers at Chicago Bulls (-6) (O/U: 238.5 )
Denver Nuggets (-2.5) at *Golden State Warriors (O/U: 233.5)
New Orleans Pelicans at *Los Angeles Lakers (-13.5) (O/U: 219.5)
Dallas Mavericks at Los Angeles Clippers (-9.5) (O/U: 224.5)
* - denotes team on second night of back-to-back set
As alluded to above, there are an inordinate amount of big favorites Friday, but that naturally doesn't automatically equate to lopsided games. The Suns and Mavericks are two big underdogs that could outperform betting-line expectations, and there's also a chance the Pelicans give a tired Lakers team more than they bargain for.
In terms of the best potential spots for all-around DFS production, the Thunder-Rockets, Trail Blazers-Bulls and Nuggets-Warriors clashes would appear to have a good chance of qualifying, especially since they also carry totals of 231.5 points or higher.
Injury Situations to Monitor
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Pascal Siakam, IND (elbow): QUESTIONABLE
If Siakam sits out, Tyrese Haliburton should be the biggest beneficiary in terms of increased usage, while Obi Toppin, who posted 53 FD points in Siakam's only other absence this season on March 17, is likely to draw the start at power forward.
Cade Cunningham, DET (calf): QUESTIONABLE
If Cunningham remains out Friday, Dennis Schroder should draw another start at point guard, while Malik Beasley and Tim Hardaway could see big usage bumps as well.
Jamal Murray, DEN (hamstring): QUESTIONABLE
If Murray sits out Friday, Russell Westbrook is likely to draw another start at point guard.
Jaylen Brown, BOS (knee): QUESTIONABLE
If Brown sits out Friday, either Sam Hauser or Al Horford are likely to make their way into the starting five and Jayson Tatum will see even more usage than usual.
Other notable injuries:
Deandre Ayton, POR (calf): OUT
Brandon Ingram, TOR (ankle): OUT
John Collins, UTA (ankle): OUT
Lauri Markkanen, UTA (knee): OUT
Walker Kessler, UTA (concussion/nose): OUT
Jeremy Sochan, SAN (back): OUT
Tobias Harris, DET (Achilles): OUT
P.J. Washington, DAL (illness): GTD
Anfernee Simons, POR (forearm): GTD
Bennedict Mathurin, IND (calf): QUESTIONABLE
Aaron Nesmith, IND (ankle): QUESTIONABLE
Christian Braun, DEN (foot): PROBABLE
Aaron Gordon, DEN (calf/illness): PROBABLE
Mark Williams, CHA (back): PROBABLE
LeBron James, LAL (groin): PROBABLE
Nikola Jokic, DEN (ankle): PROBABLE
Elite Players
We have six players with five-figure salaries on Friday's slate: Nikola Jokic ($12,800), Luka Doncic ($11,700), Shai Gilgeous-Alexander ($11,600), Anthony Davis ($10,600), Jayson Tatum ($10,300) and Cade Cunningham ($10,100).
Jokic got Wednesday off after his memorable 61-point, 10-rebound, 10-assist triple-double in a double-OT loss to Minnesota on Tuesday, so he should be at full strength for what could be another wire-to-wire battle against the Warriors.
Doncic has at least 43.7 FD points in 17 straight contests and just saw a streak of four 50-plus FD-point tallies snapped, and he draws a very favorable matchup against the Pelicans.
SGA recorded 58.7 FD points over 35 minutes against the Pistons in his most recent game Wednesday and has eclipsed 50 in five of the last seven contests overall.
Davis had his first big breakout game for the Mavericks on Wednesday against the Hawks, supplying 69 FD points over just 29 minutes. He still hasn't topped 30 minutes since his return from an extended absence due to an abdominal injury, however, and has a tough positional matchup versus the Clippers.
Tatum could be taking the floor without Jaylen Brown on Friday, which would give him a boost in a game against a Suns team that could still be competitive without Kevin Durant considering the projected return of Bradley Beal.
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 five-game absence if he does make it back on the floor. However, he will draw a very favorable matchup against the Raptors if he suits up.
Expected Chalk
Other likely chalk plays include:
Domantas Sabonis, SAC ($9,900)
Sabonis has scored 46.2 to 50.8 FD points in three of the last four games, which should make him one of the more popular high-end centers outside of Jokic on Friday.
LeBron James, LAL ($9,800)
LeBron is coming off a 54.5 FD-point tally against the Warriors on Thursday and 53.2 three games ago versus the Grizzlies, which should help lock him into a high roster rate Friday.
James Harden, LAC ($9,600)
Harden has scored 43.6 to 50.1 FD points in three straight, and the combination of his safe floor and favorable matchup against the Mavericks should place him in plenty of lineups.
Josh Giddey, CHI ($9,500)
Giddey has put up 47.0 to 74.5 FD points in eight of the last 10 games, which should make him very popular at his salary.
Devin Booker, PHO ($9,300)
Booker went off for 54.1 FD points in Kevin Durant's first absence Tuesday against the Bucks and should be in plenty of lineups thanks to the expectation he'll enjoy a sizable role again.
Key Values
Norman Powell, LAC vs. DAL ($6,400)
Powell has seen a drop in salary but has really had only one dud in the last five games, as he put up 12.7 FD points against the Pelicans on Wednesday. However the veteran wing averaged 31.4 FD points in the four games prior, shooting 52.5 percent, including 51.9 percent from behind the arc. Powell has also enjoyed plenty of success at the expense of the Mavericks this season, posting 42.0 and 51.9 FD points in his two previous meetings with Dallas. The Mavs have also been reeling against small forwards of late, surrendering the third-most FD points (46.0) to the position in the last 15 games. Then, Dallas has yielded 38.5 percent three-point shooting on the road and 39.8 percent in the last three games overall, particularly relevant when considering Powell's viability.
Bradley Beal, PHO at BOS ($6,000)
Beal is a quintessential tournament play Friday, as he's a talented player coming off a multi-game absence that has led to a drop in salary and is also taking the floor without his team's highest-usage asset in Kevin Durant. Beal has missed eight games, so there could be some sort of modest minutes restriction at play for him Friday. However, Beal has averaged 31.3 FD points over his 10 post-All-Star-break games, a span where he's also shot 54.9 percent. The Celtics naturally present a tough defensive matchup on paper, but Phoenix is desperate to vault into the play-in level and Beal should be very aggressive in his return. He's also already averaging 36.1 FD points per 36 minutes without KD on the floor, enhancing Beal's case even further.
Keegan Murray, SAC at CHA ($5,900)
Murray has been on a nice run of production, averaging 30.4 FD points, 14.8 points (on 48.8 percent shooting, including 42.3 percent from distance), 6.5 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.2 blocks across 35.0 minutes over his last 11 games. The third-year forward is facing a Hornets squad allowing 47.2 FD points per game to PFs in the last 30 games as well, and Murray has delivered over a 5x return on his current salary on 30 occasions already this season.
ALSO CONSIDER: Jose Alvarado, NOP at LAL ($5,600); Malik Beasley, DET at TOR ($5,400)
