Which players should you build around and which players should you fade in DFS as we tip off Thursday's NBA action? Our experts have the answers.
Today's panel includes ESPN Fantasy's Joe Kaiser, Andre Snellings and Kyle Soppe, plus DFS expert Renee Miller.
Players to build around
Joe Kaiser -- Donovan Mitchell, Utah Jazz
On the season, Mitchell is averaging right around 28 minutes and 14 shots a game, and the Jazz are relying on the rookie lottery pick to be one of their main scorers while Rudy Gobert is out. Mitchell is up to the challenge and tonight he has a great matchup against the Clippers, which have given up more DFS points to shooting guards than any other team in the past 10 games. Expect Utah to feed Mitchell all night long.
Andre Snellings -- Dario Saric, Philadelphia 76ers
Saric is often forgotten in the buzz generated by Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid, but he proved last season that he could be a consistent 20-10 guy when called upon. He's been getting more minutes lately and is showing that he still has it, as exemplified by his 24 points and eight rebounds on Wednesday. Embiid is expected to sit the second half of a back-to-back on Thursday, which should open things up for Saric to have another big game.
Kyle Soppe -- Justin Holiday, Chicago Bulls
Investing in the Bulls isn't for the faint of heart, but you're not going to win anything without sticking your neck out a bit, right? Holiday is averaging nearly 35 minutes per game in the past two weeks, and given that there really aren't many other options in Chicago these days, Holiday comes with a high ceiling tonight against a Nuggets team that ranks 27th in true shooting percentage against. I'm buying the scoring upside at this price point and with multiple steals in five of his last eight games, there is the potential Holiday adds value at the defensive end against one of the five most turnover-prone offenses in basketball. We saw Holiday explode on Tuesday night in a plus matchup and I see more of the same against another vulnerable opponent.
Renee Miller -- Jerryd Bayless, Point Guard, Philadelphia 76ers
Philly is set to be without Embiid and probably T.J. McConnell tonight, opening the door for the incredible value of Bayless to shine through. He's played more than 20 minutes in each of the last four games, though his usage and production have varied all season. Boston isn't an enviable matchup, but the $3,000 range salary lets you do a lot with the rest of your lineups tonight.
Players to avoid
Joe Kaiser -- John Henson, Milwaukee Bucks
Henson has consistently scored between 20-30 DFS points since getting a bigger role and stepping into the starting lineup this season, but he isn't a great value tonight for two reasons. For one, his salary has risen into the mid $5,000s, which means he needs to reach the high 20s to reach his salary value, and on top of that he gives up a lot of size in the matchup against Blazers big man Jusuf Nurkic. For those reasons, I'm looking elsewhere at center on Thursday.
Andre Snellings -- DeAndre Jordan, LA Clippers
This is an incredibly difficult call, because Jordan projects to a much larger role in general with Blake Griffin out. As such, I expect his value to go up significantly in the coming weeks. However, the Jazz are dominant against opposing centers, even with Rudy Gobert out. They have given up the second-fewest fantasy points to opposing centers all season, as well as in the last five games, and they are just coming off a shut-down of Nikola Jokic to the tune of only seven points and six rebounds on 3-of-7 from the field on Tuesday.
Kyle Soppe -- Lou Williams, LA Clippers
I get it. I didn't pick him Monday (42 points), either. But you know what you can't do tonight? You can't get a single one of those points you missed out on earlier this week. Not a one. On DraftKings, his price is up 12.3 percent from Monday, something that feels a bit much given that Williams' big game came against the Lakers (second-fastest offense) and not the Jazz (26th). With fewer possessions, a microwave scorer like Sweet Lou will have fewer opportunities to find a rhythm, and if he doesn't get scorching hot, he is going to have a difficult time paying off this price tag: it was only a month ago that it took him not one, not two, but three games to score a total of 40 points. Could Williams stay hot? Sure, but this price point is too high for me to find out.
Renee Miller -- Lou Williams, Guard, LA Clippers
Let's face it: The Clippers have enjoyed a pretty easy stretch of schedule for Williams to explode into fantasy superstardom over the past week. His salary has leaped into a $7,000-8,000 range that I can't justify vs. the slow-paced and defensive-minded Utah Jazz tonight. I love Williams and don't think his increased production in the wake of several crucial injuries is a fluke -- I remember what he did last year for a long stretch with the Lakers -- but even on a five-game slate, I'm unwilling to pay this price. I'd much rather take advantage of the shorthanded Clippers with Wesley Johnson or even Sam Dekker to allow more flexibility with the rest of my squad.