As part of ESPN Fantasy's efforts to provide daily fantasy gamers intel on whom to target in DFS, our fantasy basketball experts are here to show you which players they are building their teams around and which sleepers they are taking fliers on. Today's panel features picks from Renee Miller, Tom Carpenter, Cynthia Frelund and Dailyfantasybootcamp.com's Al Zeidenfeld.
Building blocks
Renee Miller -- Damian Lillard, PG, Portland Trail Blazers
With all the (non-Warriors) stars playing tonight, I find myself coming back to Lillard over and over again. Whether because of tough matchups (Russell Westbrook, Chris Paul) or inconsistent usage/rest (Kyle Lowry), I have the most faith in Lillard at the point guard slot tonight. His price is especially appealing on FanDuel, but he's usable against the Kings, a team that has been a top-5 fantasy matchup for PGs all season long, on both sites. Lillard's recent game logs leave a lot to be desired, but as the Trail Blazers prepare for the playoffs, I think he has a couple huge games in him, tonight being one of them.
Al Zeidenfeld -- Kevin Durant, SF, Oklahoma City Thunder
An early look at this slate has me chasing in a lot of different directions at a bunch of positions but small forward is as straightforward as it gets. With Kawhi Leonard looking like he will sit out another game tonight, Durant is a clear-cut top play at the position and on the day. The positional scarcity leaves me wanting to take the 50-plus fantasy points and let my opponents figure out how they're going to make them up with a whole host of questionable options at the SF spot. There will be more than enough value everywhere else on the board and avoiding Durant in what should be a closely contested game with a high expected total seems like a big mistake.
Cynthia Frelund -- J.J. Barea, PG, Dallas Mavericks
This one should be a popular pick tonight and for good reason. Despite the Nuggets being just a few notches below average against PGs on the season, Deron Williams has already been ruled out, meaning more opportunity for Barea and Raymond Felton. Both are worth considering but Barea should get the start (and he’s less expensive on FD), giving him the edge. Barea’s past two games stats (with Williams out): 29.5 minutes, 17.5 points, 4.5 assists, and 3 rebounds. This game also has the third-highest total points projected per Vegas and the closest spread.
Tom Carpenter -- Rajon Rondo, PG, Sacramento Kings
He popped off 25 points, 12 assists, eight rebounds and three steals last week against the Timberwolves when DeMarcus Cousins sat out. Boogie is expected to rest again Monday, which bodes well for Rondo’s upside tonight against the Portland Trail Blazers, who have been vulnerable to DFS production by point guards and against whom he has posted a pair of nice lines this season (15 points, 11 dimes and 9 points, 15 dimes), even with Cousins being active for those tilts.
Sleepers
Renee Miller -- Ricky Rubio, PG, Minnesota Timberwolves
With a full slate of good, high scoring games tonight, as well as numerous PG and C options to spend up on, I expect Rubio to go a bit overlooked. He makes for a nice mid-range option with a reasonable floor and the upside of scoring between 45-50 fantasy points in four of his past eight games. Tonight he'll face the Phoenix Suns, the No. 1 fantasy matchup for opposing PGs. The Timberwolves have the second highest team total per Vegas tonight, and Rubio could be the best value on the team.
Al Zeidenfeld -- Ricky Rubio, PG, Minnesota Timberwolves
The number of point guards in positive matchups should keep the numbers down on a lot of them, but Rubio really stands out based on recent performance, price matchup and how the rest of the puzzle pieces fit together. All that being said, I fully expect Westbrook, CP3, Lillard, Lowry, Isaiah Thomas and Derrick Rose to be more highly owned than him, as well as some low-end options that are in play tonight for value. There's a very real chance that Rubio could be had at less than 10 percent owned in tournaments (but I'd be comfortable with him at 25 percent) and all things considered, I think that's a great point for investment in your tournament portfolio of players today.
Cynthia Frelund – Kyle Lowry, PG, Toronto Raptors
There are lots of great PGs to choose from tonight at every price point. Lowry is about the same price as Damian Lillard on FD, and Lillard gets the Kings (who play at the fastest pace in the NBA) in the game with the most projected points. However Portland is favored by more than 11 points in that matchup. The Raptors host the Thunder in what is forecasted to be a close game with the fifth-highest total on the night. OKC ranks in the bottom-third in the NBA against PGs and Lowry is a PG whose usage is over 27 percent and on a motivated team. His last nine-game averages: 38 minutes, 21.9 points, 6.6 assists and 4.9 rebounds.
Tom Carpenter -- D.J. Augustin, PG, Denver Nuggets
The veteran guard has been crushing it of late -- 20 points, eight dimes, five 3-pointers Friday against the Los Angeles Lakers and 18 points, 10 dimes, three 3-pointers Sunday against the Clippers -- and has an ideal matchup tonight against the Dallas Mavericks, who have given up the most DFS points to point guards and the most 3-pointers per game over the past three weeks. They also won’t have Deron Williams back in the mix. Look for Augustin to continue rolling.