The Oklahoma City Thunder have a long way to go if they are going to close the gap on the top two teams in the Western Conference standings but right now they are focused on winning one game at a time and they have to feel a lot better about their current position than the Houston Rockets at this point. Oklahoma City will host the Rockets as part of an absolutely loaded schedule for Friday night and while there are plenty of options to choose from when it comes to NBA fantasy for daily leagues there is no doubt that the clash between two of the NBA’s highest scoring teams will be on our radar. Here is some important NBA fantasy advice to consider for Friday’s action.
Weak Defense To Target: Brooklyn Nets
Brooklyn has won just four of its 20 road games so far this season and they will be in tough again on Friday night when they match up with a Dallas Mavericks team that has remained in the Western Conference playoff picture thanks to its strong play at home. The Nets have allowed an average of 103.1 points per game this season to rank 21st in the NBA in scoring defense and that makes it worth targeting them by using players from Dallas. Chandler Parsons has been on fire of late, averaging 24.3 points, 6.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 3.8 three-point shots per game over the last week of action and he is available at a very reasonable price. Meanwhile, Wesley Matthews and JJ Barea have each put up decent numbers of late so don’t be shy to target them as potential value options for Friday’s NBA fantasy leagues.
Player Who’s Hot Right Now: Kemba Walker, Charlotte Hornets
The Hornets have played .500 basketball over their last 10 games but Walker has been absolutely outstanding for them over that stretch as one of the hottest players in the NBA right now. That includes an outstanding stretch over the last seven days in which he has averaged 26.3 points, 5.8 assists, 5.5 rebounds, 2.5 steals and 1.8 three-point shots per game and there isn’t any reason to expect him to slow down when Charlotte visits the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday night.
Injuries, Rest Create Opportunities For… Devin Booker, Wesley Johnson
The Phoenix Suns have been in a free fall since December but if there is any silver lining of late it is that they finally appear ready to give their young players more minutes. 2015 first round pick Devin Booker has averaged 37.5 minutes per game over the last week of action and he has rewarded the Suns by averaging 16.8 points, 4.5 assists, 2.5 rebounds and 1.8 three-point shots per game over that span. Booker should continue to play big minutes as Phoenix give him every opportunity to prove himself so bank on him as a strong value option for Friday night’s NBA action.
Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Clippers are have been doing just fine without Blake Griffin in the lineup but one player whose numbers have benefited of late is Wesley Johnson, who has made the most of the extra minutes. He’s averaging 24.3 minutes per game this month after playing just 18.9 minutes per game last month. Johnson has averaged 11.0 points, 3.5 steals, 3.0 rebounds and 3.0 three-point shots over his last two games so he could be a strong sleeper option for the Clippers when they host the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday night.
Highest Scoring Game Of The Night: HOU @ OKC
The Thunder and Rockets rank second and fourth respectively in scoring this season with a combined average of 214.0 points per game so there is no doubt that this should be the feature game in terms of offense. Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook have been dominant from a fantasy perspective all season but Dion Waiters has also been good enough of late that he is worth taking a chance on as a value play for Friday’s game. Meanwhile, James Harden is the obvious fantasy superstar on Houston’s roster but Trevor Ariza has really heated up of late so consider using him as another decent value play for Friday in order to take advantage of the matchup.
