This article is part of our FanDuel NBA series.
We have a seven-game Saturday night main slate that features several intriguing matchups. The player pool is also relatively unscathed by injuries, as the biggest names sporting injury designations are almost all listed as probable. With projected totals leaning toward a high-scoring night, we should be in for a full night lineup building and sweats.
Slate Overview
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Listed spreads/totals are from FanDuel Sportsbook and current as of Saturday, 3/8 @ 12:00 a.m. EST:
New Orleans Pelicans at Houston Rockets (-8) (O/U: 229.0)
Washington Wizards at Toronto Raptors (-4) (O/U: 223.5)
Indiana Pacers (-1.5) at Atlanta Hawks (O/U: 242.5)
Chicago Bulls at Miami Heat (-4) (O/U: 228.0)
Orlando Magic at Milwaukee Bucks (-6.5) (O/U: 217.5)
Detroit Pistons at Golden State Warriors (-6) (O/U: 232.5)
Los Angeles Lakers at Boston Celtics (-7.5) (O/U: 226.5)
Betting lines offer plenty of reason for optimism Saturday, beginning with the fact we have no double-digit favorites to be concerned with. Additionally the trio of games with spreads of four points or fewer could all live up to the wire-to-wire expectations, and both the Pistons-Warriors and Lakers-Celtics games may be even closer than projected considering the level of talent on both visiting teams.
The trio of projected totals of 229 points or higher represent a solid foundation for the night. and the Pacers-Hawks battle is very likely to provide the best environment of the night for DFS purposes. Not only does that contest have both the narrowest spread and highest total, but the two teams just combined for 242 points in the first of two consecutive meetings between the two squads.
Injury Situations to Monitor
For all the latest updates, visit RotoWire's NBA Injury News page and our comprehensive NBA Injury Report.
Tyrese Haliburton, IND (hip): QUESTIONABLE
If Haliburton can't play, Aaron Nesmith could draw a second straight start in his stead while Pascal Siakam should once again see a significant usage bump.
Kristaps Porzingis, BOS (illness): QUESTIONABLE
If Porzingis remains out for a fifth consecutive games, Luke Kornet and Neemias Queta should continue handling the bulk of minutes at center.
Nikola Vucevic, CHI (calf): DOUBTFUL
In Vucevic's continued absence, Zach Collins and Jalen Smith are likely to continue handling center duties, while Coby White and Josh Giddey should be big beneficiaries in terms of increased usage.
Other notable injuries:
Fred VanVleet, HOU (ankle): OUT
Brandon Ingram, TOR (ankle): OUT
Jakob Poeltl, TOR (rest): OUT
Andrew Wiggins, MIA (ankle): QUESTIONABLE
Jordan Poole, WAS (elbow): QUESTIONABLE
Tobias Harris, DET (personal): QUESTIONABLE
Coby White, CHI (toe): PROBABLE
Luka Doncic, LAL (knee): PROBABLE
LeBron James, LAL (foot): PROBABLE
Trae Young, ATL (Achilles): PROBABLE
Giannis Antetokounmpo, MIL (calf): PROBABLE
Damian Lillard, MIL (eye): PROBABLE
Elite Players
We have five players with five-figure salaries on Saturday's slate: Luka Doncic ($11,600), Giannis Antetokounmpo ($11,400), Cade Cunningham ($10,700), Jayson Tatum ($10,500) and LeBron James ($10,400).
Doncic has put together consecutive performances of more than 63 FD points, hitting or eclipsing the 30-point mark and accompanying the scoring with double-digit assists on both occasions.
Antetokounmpo has put up at least 53 and as many as 62.3 FD points in six consecutive contests, making him a potential salary-considered value despite the hefty investment he requires.
After three sub-40-FD-points efforts, Cunningham has bounced back with tallies of 49.7 and 58.4 FD points in his last two games and projects to be in a wire-to-wire battle against Stephen Curry and the Warriors.
Tatum has 84.7 and 51.4 FD points in two of his last three games and should be set for massive usage in a showdown against the Lakers.
Despite Doncic's aforementioned pair of stellar performances in the last two games, LeBron has recorded 57.6 and 59.4 FD points in those same contests and should be heavily involved in the Saturday night showdown versus the Celtics.
Expected Chalk
Other likely chalk plays include:
Trae Young, ATL ($9,600)
Young has scored over 46 FD points in three of the past four games, including 48.6 on Thursday against the same Pacers team he'll face Saturday.
Zion Williamson, NOP ($9,300)
Zion has put up 49.7 to 59.5 FD points in three of his past four contests, and he produced 41.5 in only 32 minutes during Thursday's game against the same Rockets squad he'll see again Saturday.
Stephen Curry, GSW ($9,300)
Curry is averaging 53.2 FD points in his last five games and shooting a blistering 51.6 percent from three-point range in that span, potentially making him a virtual bargain at his salary.
Bam Adebayo, MIA ($9,100)
Adebayo has scored over 51 FD points in three straight games and could once again take the floor without Andrew Wiggins (ankle), which would keep the big man even more highly rostered than usual.
Scottie Barnes, TOR ($9,000)
Barnes went off for 57.4 FD points against the Jazz on Friday and furnished 46.6 and 48.1 FD points on two other occasions in the last four contests, performances that should help keep him very popular at his salary.
Key Values
Alex Sarr, WAS at TOR ($6,100)
Sarr enters Saturday on a solid run of production, having averaged 29.4 FD points on the strength of 14.2 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.0 steals and 1.0 blocks across his last five games. The big man has eclipsed actual 20 points on two occasions during that span as well, scoring 38.9 and 41 FD points in those two games. Sarr's upside is very appealing relative to his salary, and the opposing Raptors could facilitate another strong performance from him considering Toronto is ranked No. 25 in offensive efficiency rating allowed to centers (34.9) and has allowed 52.2 FD points per contest to the position in the last 30 games. The Raptors have also allowed an Eastern Conference-high 6.2 blocks per home game, while Sarr has recorded multiple rejections in 22 of 46 games.
Andrew Nembhard, IND at ATL ($5,700)
Nembhard continued his run of impressive production Thursday against this same Hawks team, supplying 29.2 FD points via a 15-point, 10-assist double-double across 30 minutes. Nembhard had also averaged 32.9 FD points in his previous three games, and Saturday, he could take the floor without Tyrese Haliburton (hip) for a second consecutive game. Naturally, the Hawks make for an enticing target, as they're ranked No. 27 in offensive efficiency rating allowed to shooting guards (25.7) and have given up the third-highest three-point shooting percentage (37.4) of any team on its home floor. The Indiana-Atlanta clash also carries the highest projected total of the slate by far, making Nembhard all the more appealing at his salary.
Jabari Smith, HOU vs. NOP ($5,100)
Smith's salary is especially eye-catching considering he's delivered over a 5x return on it in 16 of 41 games this season. That includes 10 games with tallies between 32.4 and 48.7 FD points, excellent upside for his very reasonable salary. Smith just put up 26.5 FD points against this same Pelicans team as well on Thursday, and New Orleans checks in with a No. 24 ranking in offensive efficiency allowed to second-unit players (45.2) and also surrendering the third-most FD points to power forwards (52.4) in the last 15 games. Additionally, the Pels have yielded the third-highest three-point shooting percentage on the road (37.4), enhancing the floor-stretching Smith's case.
ALSO CONSIDER: Duncan Robinson, MIA vs. CHI ($4,900)
