RADIO
The NBA postseason rolls on as we begin the weekend with four games on the schedule. The Nets and Sixers will both be looking to avoid going down three games to zip, while Utah and Denver will go toe-to-toe again, with both teams looking to gain a game over the other. The Dallas Mavericks and Los Angeles Clippers are also both in the same boat.
As far as injuries are concerned, things are relatively quiet as of this writing. Kristaps Porzingis is back on the latest report with a heel injury. However, he was able to play in Game 2, so he should be good to go once again, barring a significant setback. Meanwhile, Mike Conley is back inside the bubble after briefly departing due to his son's birth, with his status remaining unknown heading into Game 3. Trey Burke and Patrick Beverley are also on the fence regarding their availability on Friday, so their situations should be monitored accordingly. To finish things off, Courtney Lee, Jamal Crawford, Gordon Hayward, and Gary Harris will all remain out.
In this article, I will be providing you with my daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for FanDuel on 8/21/20. You can also check out today's DraftKings lineup picks. Remember to monitor injury news as the slate can completely change before lineups lock. Feel free to give me a follow on Twitter @DennisMClausen. Good luck.
FanDuel DFS Guards
Caris Levert, SG - vs. TOR ($8,400)
With the Nets down a plethora of players, notably Kyrie Irving, Kevin Durant, DeAndre Jordan, Spencer Dinwiddie, and Wilson Chandler, Levert is the unanimous No. 1 offensive option for the team. He has lived up to expectations during the playoffs, to say the least, as he is averaging 42.9 fantasy points during the first two games of the series against the defending champs. Expect LeVert to continue to play a substantial amount of minutes and take an abundant amount of shots until the end of Brooklyn's season, whenever that may be.
Kyle Lowry, PG - @ BKN ($8,200)
Lowry is the clear-cut best option at the point guard position on Friday's slate. He has logged nearly 40 minutes of work throughout the first two games of the series and is averaging almost a double-double thus far.
Fred Vanvleet, SG - @ BKN ($7,900)
Vanvleet produced some of his best numbers of the year against the Nets as he averaged 26.7 points and shot 48.1 percent from deep throughout three meetings during the regular season. That trend appears to be continuing because the 26-year-old is currently tallying a double-double thus far during the playoffs. He has been playing too good to keep out of your lineup, especially at that price.
FanDuel DFS Forwards
Jayson Tatum, PF - @ PHI ($9,000)
Tatum is beginning to look like an established NBA veteran. Without Gordon Hayward in the lineup during Game 2, the former third overall pick made some noise, finishing with 33 points, five boards, five assists, and shot nearly 67 percent from deep. He shouldn't be ignored on Friday night, primarily since he has seemingly arrived at the next level over the previous two games.
Tobias Harris, SF - vs. BOS ($7,100)
Despite his shooting woes during the first two games of the Sixers' playoff series with the Celtics, Harris is still generously priced as the upside is still there. He dropped only 15 points in Game 1 and followed that up with an even less impressive 13 points in Game 2, but he is too talented to remain in a funk. When others are scared off due to Harris' recent shoddy performances, you can potentially gain some separation during tournament play if he gets some shots to fall.
Garrett Temple, SF - vs. TOR ($4,900)
If you are running short on cash, consider Temple. He has been getting a ton of minutes during the playoffs and has made the most of it by averaging 16.5 points throughout the first two games and 26.2 fantasy points during that same time frame. He will need only 24.5 fantasy points in Game 3 to hit his value, which is very attainable considering his generous allotment of time on the floor.
FanDuel DFS Centers
Joel Embiid, C - vs. BOS ($10,100)
Though the Sixers have been playing like garbage, Embiid has been an abundant source of production. While his talent on the court has never been in question, his ability to remain healthy has been a consistent issue for the big man over the years. Nonetheless, his body has held up despite his workload, and he will be coming off an efficient Game 2 where he produced 34 points and 10 rebounds. With Ben Simmons out of the equation, Embiid will get plenty of chances to keep racking up fantasy points moving ahead.
