2 min read • March 11, 2022
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By Eric Romoff
The NBA is in the throes of the stretch run and they have a huge 10-game slate in store for us today. The amount of games on the board today only increases the impact of player availability and injury status in DFS. In addition to the regular research I do heading into any slate, there are several players that I am prioritizing and that I am fading based on their SIC score or that of their teammates and opponents.
Of all the games tonight, the one between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Miami Heat is arguably the most impacted by injury issues. Miami enters with a SIC score of 84.9, while the Cavaliers are just north of 70. While the Heat have several players carrying injury designations, they are only expected to be without small forward Jimmy Butler. This clears the way for Max Strus ($3,700) to be one of the better value plays on the board and for Caleb Martin ($4,000) to flirt with the near-40 point upside he’s flashed in the instances where Butler was unavailable.
Another player who will be impacted by the shortened rotation for the Heat is someone who recently returned from injury himself, Victor Oladipo. Oladipo has been on a minutes restriction in the first two games he’s played all season, but the absence of Butler and there being no setbacks in his progression could mean tonight is the night where Oladipo sees a full complement of work. This play is really only viable on FanDuel where Oladipo’s price tag is all the way down to $4,000.
On the Cavalier side of the ball, we have a team with a long list of players ruled out for tonight’s action. The absences of Collin Sexton, Ricky Rubio and Caris LeVert mean there will be several rotation players seeing expanded opportunities. My favorite of the lot is Isaac Okoro ($4,000), who has seen his minutes increase consistently over recent games. There is certainly a risk to playing Okoro, but that amount of opportunity at such a low price simply offers too much upside to pass up.
The other player of note who will be missing tonight‘s game is Jarret Allen. This obviously opens up the door for Evan Mobley to get as much run as he can handle in the Cavaliers frontcourt. While Mobley makes for a steady cash game option, I think the bigger impact of the Allen injury is the soft matchup for Bam Adebayo. Adebayo should be able to have his way with the undersized rookie, which puts his ceiling game in play for the low cost of $8,600.
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