Which players should you build around, and which players should you fade in Monday's daily fantasy action? Our experts have the answers.
Today's panel includes ESPN Fantasy's Joe Kaiser, Renee Miller and Kyle Soppe.
Players to build around
Renee Miller -- Zach Randolph, Memphis Grizzlies
I know this is a weird pick on this huge and delightful slate, but it is because of the plethora of PG and C options available tonight in the $8,000+ salary range that I'm drawn back to Randolph over and over. He gets a massive pace bump with Brooklyn tonight, not to mention the league's best DvP matchup in terms of fantasy points allowed. For his part, he is shooting well, with double-digit points in nine of the last 10 games and frequently racking up more than 10 rebounds as well. I think that his low salary at a position where I don't find a lot to love makes Randolph hard to pass by.
Kyle Soppe - Nicolas Batum, Charlotte Hornets
I expect there to be plenty of value on the board tonight (can I interest you in some Shaun Livingston, Langston Galloway or Frank Kaminsky?), so I will have room for either two elite options of four tier-two options. In going with the latter, I like starting my spending spree with a versatile player in Batum who has at least seven rebounds or seven assists in 10 of his last 11 games (averaging 14.1 rebounds-plus-assists over that stretch). That type of run is nothing new for Batum, but the recent uptick in scoring is real and it's spectacular.
A career-high 41.9 percent of Batum's shots are coming from within 16 feet of the basket, allowing his point totals to stabilize while his distance shooting is rounding into form (he's making 2.7 triples per game at a 52.2 percent clip over his last nine games). Combine those trends with the fact that Batum has been considerably more efficient against losing teams this season (17.4 percent more points and 36.1 percent more rebounds per game) and that the Sixers are allowing 113.5 points since Joel Embiid first missed a game with this knee injury, and you've got a player who should be considered for both cash and tournament lineups tonight.
Joe Kaiser -- Nerlens Noel, Philadelphia 76ers
Jahlil Okafor still hasn't officially been traded, but that appears to be coming soon as the center didn't take the team plane to Charlotte for tonight's game. Enter Noel, the stat-stuffing big man who can produce big numbers when given the playing time. He should get plenty of minutes tonight without Okafor or the injured Embiid, just two days after going for 19 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assists, 4 steals and a block in 32 minutes against Miami. Noel is a bargain that's hard to pass up on Monday.
Players to fade
Renee Miller -- LaMarcus Aldridge, San Antonio Spurs
This serves more as a warning for all Spurs tonight, who are at risk for rest on the second half of a road back-to-back and playing in what Vegas has as a relatively low scoring, slow-paced game tonight. The Pacers are a moderate matchup for opposing forwards, and Aldridge is a steady contributor whom I love most nights, but my strong preference is to save at the position tonight so I have enough salary cap to roster the stud point guards and centers I want.
Kyle Soppe -- Paul George, Indiana Pacers
This all changes should the Spurs decide to rest Kawhi Leonard on the second night of a back-to-back, but after a disappointing loss in New York yesterday, I'm betting on Leonard suiting up for this one. Yes, George is a great player, but for me, there are too many red flags to justify rostering him in this spot. The troubling aspect of his game in this matchup is the lack of aggression. He continues to settle (his usage percentage inside of eight feet has declined each season for his entire career) and that not only affects his scoring (fewer easy buckets and fewer free throw attempts) but also his ability to create for others (no more than four assists in eight of his last nine games). His rebounding totals have been a bit hit-or-miss this season, a potential problem against the fifth -est team in terms of rebounding rate.
Yes, I know it is tempting to try to get a piece of a rare mano-a-mano matchup that involves not one, but two players with two first names, but we are looking at a loaded slate and there are better places to spend up. Goofy stat of the day: PG is like you or I... not a fan of Mondays. In nine Monday contests this season, he is averaging 19.8 points (down 14.7 percent from his average over the other six days of the week) and shooting 40.5 percent from the field and 26.8 percent from 3-point range.
Joe Kaiser -- DeAndre Jordan, Los Angeles Clippers
If you remove the huge 28-point, 15-rebound performance against the Knicks, Jordan has done very little on the offensive end over the last two weeks. In fact, he hasn't reached double-digits in scoring in six of his last seven games. Add to that the difficult matchup against Rudy Gobert, and it's difficult to imagine Jordan -- priced between $6,500 and $7,700 on DraftKings and FanDuel -- scoring enough to reach his salary value on either site. Even if he manages to grab 15 rebounds, he'll need to score over 10 points and block a shot or two to be worth the salary.