This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Basketball series.
Sunday's NBA slate begins at 8 p.m. EDT and contains Rockets-Warriors Game 3, as well as Monday's Celtics-Cavaliers Game 4. Read on to see which players stand out as options to target and which ones should be avoided.
GUARD
Stephen Curry, GS vs. HOU ($39): The recent narrative hasn't been kind to Curry, but for as poorly as he played in the two games at Houston, he still averaged 39.1 fantasy points in those two games. That output is likely to rise with Curry benefitting from home cooking, plus he's four days further removed from his knee injury compared to the last time he took the court. You may not get Curry at this price again should he return to form, making this a prime buy-low opportunity.
Jaylen Brown, BOS at CLE ($22): Don't be scared off by Brown's poor Game 3 performance, as he had been rolling prior to that with at least 35.8 fantasy points in each of the previous three contests. Brown costs just $22, so the upside of getting an output similar to his recent successes easily outweighs the downside of a failure similar to the one he experienced Saturday.
Guard to Avoid:
Terry Rozier, BOS at CLE ($30): Rozier has averaged only 25.0 fantasy points over the past five games while topping out at 28.2 over that stretch. His chances of living up to a $30 valuation in enemy territory are slim, especially since he only scored a mere 20.6 fantasy points Saturday in Cleveland.
FORWARD
Al Horford, BOS at CLE ($31): Horford's awful Game 3 output should be considered an aberration, as he scored at least 32.0 fantasy points in each of his previous 11 contests and averaged 42.4 fantasy points in this series' first two games. Similarly to his teammate Brown, Horford's relatively affordable price and recent results prior to Game 3 make it worth betting on a bounce-back performance.
P.J. Tucker, HOU at GS ($13): Tucker's ability to space the floor while defending well both on the perimeter and interior makes him a key cog in Houston's game plan against this opponent. As a result, he's averaged 35:29 of playing time through this series' first two games, well above his season mark of 27:49. Tucker's taken full advantage of his extra opportunities with an average of 26.7 fantasy points in those two games, yet he remains extremely affordable at just $13.
Forward to Avoid:
Kevin Durant, GS vs. HOU ($48): For as well as Durant played in this series' first two games, he scored only 44.1 and 36.6 fantasy points. Given the firepower in Golden State's multifaceted offense, it's going to be tough for Durant to get enough looks to live up to his lofty valuation, even if he's converting at a high rate.
CENTER
Kevin Love, CLE vs. BOS ($31): Love has exposed Boston's lack of interior defense in this series, building on his success against Toronto in the conference semifinals en route to an average of 41.3 fantasy points over the past six games. At just $31, there's little reason to seek an alternative to Love given his combination of range and rebounding. This game being in Cleveland further solidifies Love's case.
Draymond Green, GS vs. HOU ($33): It's a testament to Green's well-rounded ability that he's averaged 34.3 fantasy points in this series despite scoring a combined 11 points in two games. Houston's defense has been content with letting Golden State's offense run through Green, so he should continue to have a high floor thanks to his contributions across the board. Green's also capable of exploding offensively if his shot is on, giving him a healthy ceiling as well.
Center to Avoid:
Clint Capela, HOU at GS ($33): It's hard to justify picking Capela over the two similarly-priced centers mentioned above, as those guys have outperformed expectations relative to price while he's averaging just 24.1 fantasy points so far in the conference finals. Houston's preferred to try to limit fast break opportunities against by relying on isolation from its perimeter threats more so than pick and rolls involving Capela, while Golden State's accurate shooting has limited rebound opportunities at the other end. If the game in Oakland is stylistically similar to the two in Houston, Capela's going to have a hard time getting things going.
