The Clippers and Suns are featured in the first single-game slate of the new season, and there's a major factor at play in the form of the absences of the Clippers' two biggest stars, James Harden and Kawhi Leonard. That naturally not only narrows the already thin player pool, but the absences also have plenty of ripple effect in terms of how DFS rosters will be constructed.
With only one matchup, we're dealing with FanDuel's single-game contest rosters, comprised as follows:
MVP- (Garners points at 1.5x the normal rate)
Five Utility spots- (Garner points at normal rate)
With salaries also being different than in conventional FanDuel contests and top players inevitably headed for heavy roster rates, there are strategic elements particular to single-game lineups. Finding value plays for some of the Utility spots is key, as it enables you to roster a superstar in the MVP slot, where salaries for each player are 1.5x higher.
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Slate Overview
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Listed spreads/totals are from FanDuel Sportsbook and current as of Thursday, Nov. 6 @ 11:30 a.m. EST:
Los Angeles Clippers at Phoenix Suns (-2.5) (O/U: 224.5)
Even the confirmed absences of Harden and Leonard aren't enough to give the Suns much of a home-court advantage, but it naturally makes this a projected wire-to-wire affair. The total also takes a hit without the two superstars, considering they're averaging a combined 47.6 points per contest.
Injury Situations to Monitor
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James Harden, LAC (personal): OUT
In Harden's absence, Kris Dunn is likely to get a start at point guard, and Bradley Beal should also be in for a significant bump in usage and perhaps more ball-handling opportunities.
Kawhi Leonard, LAC (ankle): OUT
With Kawhi unavailable, Nicolas Batum or Bogdan Bogdanovic could enter the starting five, while the likes of Derrick Jones and John Collins could also see additional rebounding opportunities in the frontcourt.
Other notable injuries:
Dillon Brooks, PHO (groin): OUT
Jalen Green, PHO (hamstring): PROBABLE
Elite Players
The player with the highest MVP salary on Thursday's slate is Devin Booker ($20,700). James Harden ($20,100) and Kawhi Leonard ($19,200) sport the second- and third-highest salaries in that slot, but both players are already ruled out.
Booker has been outstanding over the Suns' first eight games, averaging a career-high 31.0 points (on career-best 51.6 percent shooting, including 43.1 percent), along with 7.0 assists and 3.9 rebounds. He's also averaging 44.5 standard FD points per contest, and with Dillon Brooks out again Thursday, Booker will also continue to see even more usage than usual.
Expected Chalk
With only one matchup, the likes of Ivica Zubac ($10,600), Mark Williams ($10,400) and Jalen Green ($9,600) should also be very popular.
Zubac dipped to a season-low 22.4 FD points in his most recent game Tuesday against the Thunder, but he's scored over 32 FD points in four contests and should be in line for a major increase in opportunity with Harden and Leonard out.
Williams has put a slow start behind him, scoring over 42 FD points in three of the last five games, delivering a double-double in each of those contests.
Green is set to make his season debut after overcoming his hamstring injury, although he could be on a minutes limit of some sort.
Key Values
The following players make for strong candidates for the Utility spots:
Grayson Allen, PHO ($8,800)
Allen will see Jalen Green make his season debut Thursday, but the former should still enjoy a solid role off the bench or perhaps even retain a starting role while the Suns ease Green back into action. Allen has been productive with his opportunities thus far, averaging a career-high 16.4 points, 5.0 assists, 3.6 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 30.7 FD points per contest. Allen has produced 32.3 FD points or more in five of his first eight games, and with Leonard not on the floor Thursday, he should encounter a bit less defensive resistance.
John Collins, LAC ($5,800)
Collins has been reasonably productive in his bench role thus far, putting up 12.6 points (56.7 percent shooting), 5.1 rebounds and 1.0 steals across 24.3 minutes per contest. The veteran big man, who enjoyed a resurgent campaign with the Jazz last season, has scored in double digits in six of seven games and has three tallies of 24.2 or more FanDuel points. He also has a 22.4 percent usage rate with Harden and Leonard off the floor, along with averages of 15.9 points, 7.9 rebounds, 2.0 steals, 2.0 blocks and 1.0 assists per 36 minutes in that scenario, and the Suns rank No. 24 in offensive efficiency surrendered to second-unit players (49.1) while allowing 37.9 percent three-point shooting in that split as well.
Bradley Beal, LAC ($4,400)
Beal should be a primary beneficiary of Harden and Leonard's absences Thursday, and at his salary, that could make him the best fantasy-point-per-dollar value overall. The veteran guard hasn't seen much action yet this season and received a rest day Tuesday, so he should have plenty of spring in his step while shouldering what should be a fairly robust workload. Beal has shot 48.0 percent, including 40.0 percent from behind the arc, early on this season, over four games, and he should be in line for an increase in the 20.3 minutes per contest he's averaged thus far.
ALSO CONSIDER: Derrick Jones, LAC ($3,800); Bogdan Bogdanovic, LAC ($3,400)
