NBA Fantasy: Yahoo DFS for Oct. 25

LaMelo Ball will look to hit the ground running as a top play in Yahoo DFS tonight.

After an exciting Opening Night, we’re set for our first full-fledged NBA slate of the season on Wednesday night with 12 games on tap. The massive player pool gives us no shortage of flexibility with regard to salary, and we’ll look to hone in on the best combinations of upside and value.

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

LaMelo Ball, CHA vs. ATL ($44): We’re banking on highly talented players who missed big chunks of last season due to injury returning to full strength. Ball is the first such example after the versatile Hornets point guard looked good in preseason with averages of 15.3 points, 4.8 assists, 4.3 rebounds and 1.0 steals. Ball’s troublesome ankle seems to be in fine shape, and a matchup against Trae Young and a Hawks squad he scored 37.9 and 55.7 Yahoo points against in two games last season could help him get off to a momentous start in the new season.

Tyler Herro, MIA vs. DET ($24): Herro should once again be an integral component of the defending Eastern Conference champion’s success this season. During the 2022-23 campaign, he averaged over 20 points for the second straight year while also posting new career highs in rebounds (5.4) and assists (4.2). Herro had tallies of 29, 31.2 and 48.6 Yahoo points versus the Pistons last season, and Detroit finished the season ranked No. 24 in offensive efficiency rating allowed to two-guards (24.7) while conceding 36.5% 3-point shooting to the position as well.

ALSO CONSIDER: Paul George, LAC vs. POR ($47)

Guard to Avoid

Spencer Dinwiddie, BKN vs. CLE ($29): Dinwiddie proved to be a good fit in Brooklyn after being traded from the Mavericks last season. But the combination of his salary, the matchup and the fact he’ll apparently be ceding primary ballhandling duties to Ben Simmons to open the season make him a wait-and-see candidate in my mind. The Cavs were extremely tough defensively on backcourt players last season and allowed the second-lowest offensive efficiency rating to two-guards specifically (20.7) while also surrendering just 44.6% shooting to the position. Dinwiddie could certainly still put together a solid score, but the fact that his assist numbers are likely to take a notable hit makes him less appealing at a $29 salary.

Forwards

Kawhi Leonard, LAC vs. POR ($41): Leonard is the second star who will be coming back from injury that could be worth the investment on Wednesday. The perennial All-Star, who appeared to be in strong form during his limited preseason appearances, has said he feels completely healthy after once again dealing with knee issues during the postseason last spring. Leonard is likely to operate at power forward to start the season against the Blazers, who ranked in the bottom 10 with 46.5 Yahoo points per game allowed to the position a year ago. Leonard also finished with 39 and 43.6 Yahoo points in two encounters with Portland last season.

Kyle Kuzma, WAS at IND ($28): The Wizards have been made over this offseason, and Kuzma should have even more on his plate as a result. The floor-spacing big man enjoyed a career-best campaign in 2022-23, posting new highs in points (21.2) and assists (3.7) in the process. Kuzma’s shooting efficiency remains suboptimal, but the sheer amount of opportunities he should see, and the matchup against a Pacers team that allowed an NBA-high 28.9 offensive efficiency rating to PFs and the fourth-most Yahoo points (47.0) to fours a season ago, makes for a great way for Kuzma to start the new campaign.

ALSO CONSIDER: Victor Wembanyama, SA vs. DAL ($29)

Forward to Avoid

Kyle Anderson, MIN at TOR ($23): Anderson is certainly capable of contributing across the stat sheet, but his salary is a bit elevated for his bench role. It will be difficult to gauge how much time he’ll see right out of the gate in the new season. The versatile veteran will also be matched up against a Raptors team that ranked in the top 10 in offensive efficiency allowed to second-unit players a season ago.

Centers

Myles Turner, IND vs. WAS ($28): Turner is back for yet another go-around as the Pacers’ starting center, and he’s always capable of heavily supplementing his fantasy production with multiple blocks. He’ll draw a good matchup in that regard to open the season as the Wizards allowed the sixth-most rejections per game (2.3) to centers last season, along with 54.3 Yahoo points per contest. Turner can also offer plenty on the scoring (including from distance) and rebounding front and he notably had a 55 Yahoo-point barrage against the Wizards in the second game of the season a year ago.

Jonas Valanciunas, NOP at MEM ($25): Valanciunas is about as steady as they come at center, and he’ll be facing an undermanned Grizzlies frontcourt to open the season with Xavier Tillman, not Steven Adams (knee), patrolling the paint. Although the return of Zion Williamson will certainly lead to a usage hit for Valanciunas, he should still be able to capitalize on the advantageous one-on-one matchup a good amount. 

ALSO CONSIDER: Bam Adebayo, MIA vs. DET ($27)

Center to Avoid

James Wiseman, DET at MIA ($19): Wiseman’s stock took a hit this preseason with the one-time Warriors first-round pick putting together some lackluster performances. He’ll be backing up Jalen Duren to start the season, and a matchup against a Heat team that was very tough on centers overall – one he scored under 16 Yahoo points on two occasions last season – doesn’t inspire enough confidence to roster him over other lower-salaried centers in better matchups and with more projected minutes (Ivica Zubac, Mark Williams, Daniel Gafford).