This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Basketball series.
We're primed for a big 10-game slate Wednesday that presents us with plenty of appealing scenarios and some players that are arguably carrying salaries not quite befitting their significant upside.
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
Terry Rozier, CHA at IND ($36): Rozier arguably is deserving of a higher salary considering some of the spike performances he's delivered this season, particularly during LaMelo Ball's ongoing absence due to an ankle injury. Rozier has eclipsed 50 Yahoo points in three of his last five games and just posted 45.1 Yahoo points on Monday against the Raptors, all returns that make him an enticing value against a Pacers team that plays at the league's fastest pace and has given up 48.6% shooting, including 39.1% from 3-point range, to point guards.
Cam Thomas, BKN vs. NYK ($28): Speaking of elevated fantasy-point tallies, Thomas has provided several already this season that make his current salary worthy of a double take. The third-year guard has tallies of 48 and 44.3 Yahoo points in his last two games and has four others of greater than 40 this season, including one over 50. The Knicks check in having allowed 38.3% 3-point shooting to two-guards this season as well, and Thomas has shot 42.9% from behind the arc in his last nine contests.
ALSO CONSIDER: Luka Doncic, DAL vs. LAC ($59); Fred VanVleet, HOU vs. ATL ($35)
Guard to Avoid
Dejounte Murray, ATL at HOU ($30): Murray is a fine player with a strong fantasy ceiling, but he's still carrying a salary that may be a tick higher than justified. The veteran guard will do battle with a Rockets squad that's been vastly improved defensively compared to the last few seasons, and that has limited shooting guards to 43.1% shooting on the way to surrendering the fifth-lowest offensive efficiency rating (20.8) and fifth-fewest Yahoo points per game (39.3) to the position. Murray could naturally still turn in a solid score, but if you're paying up to around his level at SG, you might consider Tyler Herro ($30) playing without Jimmy Butler (calf), or either Thomas or Spencer Dinwiddie at $2 and $3 less in salary, respectively.
Forwards
Scottie Barnes, TOR vs. DEN ($39): Barnes continues to put together the best all-around season of his career, and he should be set for a particularly high-usage night against the challenge of the defending champion Nuggets. The third-year forward is in the midst of another heater that arguably warrants a salary in mid-to-high 40s, as he's scored 45.8 to 62 Yahoo points in four of his last five games. The numbers that have gotten Barnes to those stellar returns are a study in essentially perfect balance/efficiency from a DFS perspective – he's averaging 24.6 points (on 62.2% shooting, including 44.0% from 3-point range), 9.4 rebounds, 7.2 assists, 1.4 blocks and 1.0 steals across 36.2 minutes over the entirety of that span. The Nuggets have been tough against small forwards all season, but Barnes' usage and role is such that he's essentially matchup-proof.
Tari Eason, HOU vs. ATL ($15): Eason could ultimately prove to be one of the best fantasy-point-per-dollar plays of the night, considering his recent body of work and expanding offensive role on Houston's second unit. The second-year big has played at least 27 minutes in four of his last five games, and he's scored 25.7 to 46.3 Yahoo points over the entirety of that span. Eason's salary is all the more eye-catching when considering those returns, and the fast-paced Hawks, which are allowing 47.9% shooting to second-unit players and 52.2 Yahoo points per contest to power forwards in the last 15 games, make for very good targets.
ALSO CONSIDER: Karl-Anthony Towns, MIN at PHI ($36)
Forward to Avoid
Mikal Bridges, BKN vs. NYK ($32): Like Murray, Bridges isn't usually a player you might associate with an Avoid label, but the talented wing is arguably worthy of the designation Wednesday due to the combination of his robust salary and recent performances. Bridges is in a rare slump, having scored 9.5 to 29.2 Yahoo points in his last three games and shooting an abysmal 31.7% in that span. While he's too good a player for that not to correct itself in relatively short order, Bridges' salary and matchup against a Knicks team allowing the third-lowest offensive efficiency rating to small forwards (19.1) and just 44.3% shooting to the position points me in the direction of steering clear Wednesday, instead focusing on the likes of a Jaylen Brown ($30) or Michael Porter Jr. ($26) as more cost-effective alternatives at the position.
Centers
Bam Adebayo, MIA at ORL ($40): Adebayo looked like he hadn't missed a beat in his return from a hip injury Monday against the Timberwolves, producing 40.2 Yahoo points across 36 minutes. It's a good thing the big man proved capable of handling such a large workload right out of the gate, considering he'll take the floor without Jimmy Butler (calf) on Wednesday. Adebayo sports a team-high 29.7% usage rate with Butler off the floor, and he's also facing a Magic team that's allowing over 52 Yahoo points per game to centers and gets some of Wendell Carter's questionable defense back into the equation Wednesday.
Alperen Sengun, HOU vs. ATL ($38): Sengun continues to equal or set new career-best numbers across the stat sheet, and his versatility should play well against a Hawks team that's shown its fair share of vulnerability to centers. Atlanta is surrendering the sixth-most Yahoo points per game to centers (57.3) and third-highest offensive efficiency rating to the position (36.7), and Sengun comes in having compiled at least 34.8 Yahoo points in 10 of his last 11 games.
ALSO CONSIDER: Nikola Jokic, DEN at TOR ($59); Nick Richards, CHA at IND ($14)
Center to Avoid
Wendell Carter Jr., ORL vs. MIA ($24): Carter has been cleared to return from his finger injury Wednesday after a 20-game absence, but there's no shortage of questions surrounding his conditioning and expected workload. The big man has seen Goga Bitadze do a fine job in his stead with a starting opportunity, and when Carter is out there, he'll also be up against a Heat team that's allowed the fourth-lowest offensive efficiency rating to centers (28.5), along with the fewest Yahoo points per game to the position in the last 15 games (46.3). With a salary that's reflective of a healthy player that plays a normal amount of minutes, I'd suggest Carter is an Avoid candidate in his first game back.
