NBA Yahoo DFS Advice: Who To Play, Avoid for Wednesday, April 12

Written by

Published on April 12, 2023

We're set for a second consecutive two-game Play-In slate Wednesday night, giving us a compact but largely healthy player pool to work with as we build cash game and tournament lineups.

As customary, we'll highlight multiple advantageous positional matchups to exploit at each position for your Yahoo Fantasy lineups, as well as a good trio of candidates that may be best to steer clear of due to a combination of circumstances/salary.

Guards

Josh Giddey, OKC at NOP ($31): Giddey carries an appealing salary for a player who averaged 36 Yahoo points per contest during the regular season and demonstrated north of 50 Yahoo points on multiple occasions. The versatile second-year pro finished the season with a flourish as well, scoring 34.4 to 61.9 Yahoo points in seven of his last eight games. The Pelicans allowed 44.8 Yahoo points per contest to two-guards in the last seven games of the season as well and a tally of 42 Yahoo points to Giddey back on Dec. 23 as well.

CJ McCollum, NOP vs. OKC ($29): McCollum also brings impressive upside relative to salary into Wednesday's matchup, and he shot 46.7 percent from three-point range against the Thunder this season in two games while averaging 21.5 points, 9.5 assists, 6.5 rebounds and 1.0 block in those contests. The Thunder finished the regular season surrendering 50 Yahoo points per contest to point guards in the last 15 games as well, enhancing McCollum's appeal.

ALSO CONSIDER: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, OKC at NOP ($47)

Guard to Avoid

Ayo Dosunmu, CHI at TOR ($10): There's certainly nothing wrong with Dosunmu's salary, but he simply doesn't offer much upside, especially in a postseason game where his minutes are likely to be limited. Prior to the final two games of the regular season where the Bulls rotation was in flux, Dosunmu averaged just 19 minutes per contest in the prior seven games and scored 17.4 Yahoo points or fewer in seven of his last eight contests overall.

Forwards

Brandon Ingram, NOP vs. OKC ($38): Ingram finished off the regular season with a spectacular 71.9 Yahoo-point tally against the Timberwolves, and he scored over 50 Yahoo points in four of the last six contests overall. The Thunder finished the season ranked No. 20 in offensive efficiency rating allowed to small forwards (23.1), and Ingram carries a ceiling north of 50 Yahoo points that makes his salary all the more appealing.

Herbert Jones, NOP vs. OKC ($17): Jones is another intriguing option on New Orleans on the discounted side of the ledger, as he faces a unit that allowed the sixth-highest offensive efficiency rating to power forwards (27.5), along with the fourth-most Yahoo points per game to the position in the last seven (52.0). Jones went off for 54.9 Yahoo points in the third-to-last game of the regular season and also had tallies of 25.8, 28.6 and 33.8 within the final five games of the campaign. OKC's propensity for surrendering blocks – the Thunder allowed the third-most rejections per game (5.5) – could also benefit Jones, who finished the regular season with eight stuffs in the last four contests alone.

ALSO CONSIDER: Pascal Siakam, TOR vs. CHI ($39); Zach LaVine, CHI at TOR ($34)

Forward to Avoid

Javonte Green, CHI at TOR ($10): Much like his teammate Dosunmu, Green could be relegated to a minor role or be left on the bench altogether as coach Billy Donovan likely tightens his rotation Wednesday. The fourth-year pro only saw action in four games from Mach 20 on as he also battled knee issues, and the risk associated with him makes him a stay-away candidate, even at his salary.

Centers

Jakob Poeltl, TOR vs. CHI ($26): Poeltl is particularly suited for tournament play and makes for an intriguing play considering his ability to complement his fantasy production with his contributions on the defensive end. The big man's production experienced some fluctuations in down the stretch, but he still averaged 32 Yahoo points per contest on the season and put up 16.3 points, 8.3 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 1.7 blocks and 1.3 steals while shooting 68.8 percent in three games against the Bulls.

Jonas Valanciunas, NOP vs. OKC ($25): Valanciunas averaged an efficient 11.3 points and 7.3 rebounds across 22 minutes over four games versus the Thunder this season, and he should be ticketed for a heavier workload in Wednesday's high-stakes matchup. The veteran offers outstanding upside relative to his salary, having scored over 35 Yahoo points on 25 occasions this season, including at least 40 in 14 games. The Thunder were vulnerable to centers most of the campaign as well, surrendering 54 Yahoo points per contest to the position and an NBA-high 56.8 rebounds per road game.

ALSO CONSIDER: Nikola Vucevic, CHI at TOR ($32)

Center to Avoid

Christian Koloko, TOR vs. CHI ($10): Koloko is another reserve who's likely headed to a minor role now that the postseason has arrived. The rookie had some moments this season, but he saw under 20 minutes or was out of the rotation entirely in all but one game from Jan. 12 until Sunday's regular-season finale, when he logged 25 minutes as Raptors regulars played abbreviated minutes.

The author(s) of this article may play in daily fantasy contests including – but not limited to – games that they have provided recommendations or advice on in this article. In the course of playing in these games using their personal accounts, it's possible that they will use players in their lineups or other strategies that differ from the recommendations they have provided above. The recommendations in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of RotoWire. Juan Carlos Blanco plays in daily fantasy contests using the following accounts: DraftKings: jcblanco22, FanDuel: jc_blanco22, DraftPot: jc_blanco22, FantasyDraft: jc_blanco22, OwnThePlay: jcblanco22.