We have a solid six-game slate Friday night, a smaller number of games than usual but likely an ideal amount for DFS purposes. In terms of short-term injuries, we're dealing with a relatively light number of walking wounded, although there are some big names in danger of sitting or already confirmed as out.
Slate Overview
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Listed spreads/totals are from FanDuel Sportsbook and current as of Friday, Jan. 23 at 12:00 a.m. ET:
Houston Rockets at Detroit Pistons (-4) (O/U: 216.5)
Phoenix Suns (-3) at Atlanta Hawks (O/U: 233.5)
Boston Celtics (-8.5) at Brooklyn Nets (O/U: 216.5)
Sacramento Kings at Cleveland Cavaliers (-11.5) (O/U: 233.5)
New Orleans Pelicans at Memphis Grizzlies (-5.5) (O/U: 234.5)
Indiana Pacers at Oklahoma City Thunder (-16) (O/U: 226.5)
Despite the pair of double-digit favorites, we may still be in for a largely competitive slate Friday, considering the Cavaliers have been known to play down to the caliber of competition at times. Meanwhile, projected totals are fairly encouraging as well despite the pair of sub-220-point figures, considering we have three games with totals well north of 233 points.
Injury Situations to Monitor
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Cade Cunningham, DET (illness): QUESTIONABLE
If Cunningham is sidelined again Thursday, Daniss Jenkins could be set for another spot start, while Jaren Duren and Tobias Harris would be the likeliest players to see increased usage.
Ja Morant, MEM (elbow): OUT
In Morant's absence, Cam Spencer and Vince Williams are likely to handle the majority, if not all, the point-guard minutes.
Derrick White, BOS (rest): OUT
In White's absence, Baylor Scheierman and Anfernee Simons are likely to see all the run at shooting guard.
Other notable injuries:
Darius Garland, CLE (toe): OUT
Jalen Williams, OKC (hamstring): OUT
Santi Aldama, MEM (knee): OUT
Ajay Mitchell, OKC (hip): OUT
Isaiah Hartenstein, OKC (calf): OUT
Keegan Murray, SAC (ankle): OUT
Zaccharie Risacher, ATL (knee): OUT
Bennedict Mathurin, IND (thumb): OUT
Kristaps Porzingis, ATL (Achilles): OUT
Aaron Wiggins, OKC (groin): QUESTIONABLE
Elite Players
We have three players with five-figure salaries on Friday's slate – Shai Gilgeous-Alexander ($11,000), Jalen Johnson ($10,600) and Cade Cunningham ($10,500).
SGA went off for 65.9 FD points against the Bucks his last time on the floor Wednesday, his fifth game over 44 FD points in the last six contests. Despite his significant upside, there is some blowout risk against the Pacers on Friday.
Johnson bounced back from a trio of subpar games to score 57.2 and 61 FD points in the last two contests, although he does have a tough defensive matchup overall against the Suns on Friday.
Cunningham's status will bear monitoring given his questionable status and his absence Wednesday, and if he does suit up, he does draw a tough matchup against the Rockets.
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Expected Chalk
Other likely chalk plays include:
Jaylen Brown, BOS ($9,900)
Brown will take the floor without Derrick White on Friday and has scored 47.2 to 56.2 FD points in his last three games, factors that should make him very popular.
Alperen Sengun, HOU ($9,800)
Sengun will be an integral part of a marquee matchup against the Pistons and has eclipsed 46 FD points in four straight, which should hep ensure he's on plenty of rosters.
Amen Thompson, HOU ($8,600)
Thompson has scored over 42 FD points in three straight and has flashed upside north of 50 FD points this season, which make him very popular at his salary.
Evan Mobley, CLE ($8,500)
Mobley is averaging 41.4 FD points across his last 12 games and has eclipsed 51 FD points on three occasions in that span, which should lead to a high roster rate at his salary.
Pascal Siakam, IND ($8,400)
Siakam is averaging 43.2 FD points over his last five games, a stretch where he's shooting 45.7 percent from three-point range.
Key Values
Jarrett Allen, CLE vs. SAC ($6,300)
The Kings have been targetable with centers all season, putting Allen into our sights Friday. Sacramento checks into the night allowing a Western Conference-high 60.2 FD points per game to centers on the season, along with an NBA-high 30.1 offensive efficiency rating to the position. The Kings also rank in the bottom 10 in rebounds surrendered per road game (55.1), and Sacramento has conceded an NBA-high 57.3 points in the paint in that split while Allen is scoring 74.2 percent of his points in that part of the floor.. Additionally, Allen is averaging 31.1 FD points in his last 11 games and has exceeded 41 FD points on three occasions in the sample, affording him plenty of upside at his salary.
Mark Williams, PHO at ATL ($5,900)
Williams had an atypical outing against the 76ers last time out in which he attempted only three shots, but he still managed to produce four points and nine rebounds in only 18 minutes. Additionally, the big man came into the night having averaged 31.1 FD points in his previous seven games on the strength of 12.3 points, 8.7 rebounds, 1.0 assists and 2.0 blocks across 25.9 minutes per contest. The Hawks make for good potential facilitators for another solid performance along those lines, as Atlanta is allowing 55.5 FD points per game to centers in the last 30 games, along with the sixth-most rebounds per home game (55.7) on the season. The Hawks are also ranked just outside the bottom 10 with 52.6 points in the paint per home game allowed, while Williams scores 75.9 percent of his points in that part of the floor.
Jock Landale, MEM vs. NOP ($5,200)
Landale is the third big man that has a chance to serve as a rewarding fantasy-point-per-dollar play Friday, as the Pelicans are yet another team that has struggled with interior and low-post defense all season. New Orleans is surrendering the fifth-most FD points per game to centers on the season (58.7), along with the fifth-most rebounds per contest overall (55.5). New Orleans also gives up the third-most points in the paint per game (54.0), while 54.9 percent of Landale's scoring emanates from that part of the floor. Landale also spaces the floor effectively (39.8 percent three-point shooting), and New Orleans gives up the third-most made three-pointers per road game (14.7).
ALSO CONSIDER: Cedric Coward, MEM vs. NOP ($5,900); Saddiq Bey, NOP at MEM ($5,400); Anfernee Simons, BOS at BKN ($4,600)
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