Each day, we'll provide you with the players to target in your daily leagues, from the high-priced studs to the solid midrange values to the cheaper, riskier players with upside.
In general, you want to use safer options in your cash games and rely on some riskier, high-upside options in your bigger tournaments. If you can average at least five points per $1,000 of salary, you'll typically end up with at least some cash in your pocket.
Note: We're sending out these Insider tips early in the day, and a lot can change after these are posted. Be sure to follow this Twitter list of NBA reporters, bloggers and announcers for late-breaking injury updates and lineup changes.
Point guard
High-priced stud
Kemba Walker, Charlotte Hornets (DraftKings: $8,400, FanDuel: $8,300) @ MIA: Stephen Curry is still sidelined, which means we don't find your traditional elite, five-figure option at the position on Sunday. But the golden child's absence doesn't preclude us from getting excited over Walker's remarkable workload ever since Game 2 of this hard-fought series with the Heat. With 124 shots lofted over the past five games, it's reasonable to project Walker for the highest usage rate and busiest offensive profile of all guards Sunday. Walker's rich role supports the highest projected floor and ceiling among point guards, giving Walker the edge for deployment in cash games over Damian Lillard (DraftKings: $8,600, FanDuel: $8,300). On such a limited slate we're certainly still interested in tourney shares of Lillard's similarly active offensive duties, as 37 minutes and 20 field goal attempts are entirely reasonable expectations.
Cheap with upside
Shaun Livingston, Golden State Warriors (DraftKings: $5,100, FanDuel: $4,500) vs. POR: We're netting one fantasy point per minute from Livingston as the starter in place of Curry over the final games of the Rockets series. Due heavy minutes against a smaller backcourt, Livingston's efficient post game could shine.
George Hill, Indiana Pacers (DraftKings: $4,700, FanDuel: $4,700) @ TOR: Similar to the basement in my house in Philly, the ceiling isn't so high with Hill, but we can still mine for value in the stability of steady minutes. Hill has played at least 31 minutes in each game of the series and has met cost in three straight, suggesting he's one of the safer pivot plays from the pricier options above.
Shooting guard
High-priced studs
Klay Thompson, Golden State Warriors (DraftKings: $8,200, FanDuel: $7,800) vs. POR: The Raptors' DeMar DeRozan (DraftKings: $7,100, FanDuel: $6,800) enjoyed a stellar regular season but is averaging just 15.8 points on 32.1 percent from the field in the playoffs so far, so we're fading him for more bankable shares of Thompson. The world's second-best shooter, meanwhile, shot a video-game-like 58.1 percent from 3-point range against Portland during the regular season. In each of those four games against the Blazers, the winning team tallied at least 128 points, so claiming multiple shares of this impressive offensive contest could prove prudent.
Dwyane Wade, Miami Heat (DraftKings: $8,000, FanDuel: $7,800) vs. CHA: A true usage hog -- in the most complimentary fashion -- Wade can be reasonably projected for a Westbrookian usage rate around 35 percent, a clip he's matched multiple times in this series already. Thompson and Wade are essentially the Lillard and Walker of the shooting guard market, in that they represent the safest and most coveted outcome spectrums at their respective positions.
Solid value
C.J. McCollum, Portland Trail Blazers (DraftKings: $6,800, FanDuel: $7,100) @ GS: Assist production helps McCollum differentiate from the middle tier at the position on Sunday, as it offsets some of the shot-dependency most 2-guards assume. We can find rare cost certainty in McCollum's combo-guard production profile, thus real interest in cash on Sunday.
Cheap with upside
Allen Crabbe, Portland Trail Blazers (DraftKings: $2,700, FanDuel: $3,700) @ GS: The final three games of the Clippers series saw Crabbe average 28.6 minutes. Cheap minutes is the selling point while toggling between punt shares of Gerald Henderson (DraftKings: $3,000, FanDuel: $3,700) and his busier scoring role is a savvy savings agenda. The best plan for this shallow position might just be to at least pay up for McCollum's asking price.
Small forward
High-priced stud
Paul George, Indiana Pacers (DraftKings: $10,100, FanDuel: $9,500) @ TOR: My projections have George set for 40 minutes and a usage rate nearing 30 percent, a clip often reserved for ball-dominant point guards. Up to 27.5 points per game in this riveting and contentious series, George is the obvious chalk play at the wing.
Cheap with upside
Andre Iguodala, Golden State Warriors (DraftKings: $4,900, FanDuel: $4,500) vs. POR: In the best pace and point climate of the slate, we'll want to find multiple paths to securing shares of these two rosters. Iggy makes for a sound investment thanks to Curry's absence, as he averaged 28 fantasy points on DraftKings during the regular season with Curry sidelined but just 19.6 with him active. On the other side of the matchup, Maurice Harkless (DraftKings: $4,500, FanDuel: $5,200) has become a valuable 3-and-D weapon for the Blazers, as he scored in double-digits in all but one game in Round 1.
Power forward
High-priced stud
Draymond Green, Golden State Warriors (DraftKings: $10,200, FanDuel: $9,000) vs. POR: Green enjoyed a 15 percent boost in per-game fantasy output when Curry was sidelined during the regular season. With a triple-double skill set driving a high projected floor and ceiling, Green is the clear chalk option at power forward.
Solid values
Luol Deng, Miami Heat (DraftKings: $6,500, FanDuel: $6,600) vs. CHA: Deng has thrived on the glass ever since Chris Bosh was sidelined, as he went from 4.6 boards with him active this season to 8.4 with Bosh on the bench. Deng has averaged 19.7 points in this series, 7.4 more than in the regular season, thus he's an ideal option on FanDuel given eligibility at power forward on that marketplace.
Myles Turner, Indiana Pacers (DraftKings: $5,500, FanDuel: $5,700) @ TOR: There simply aren't many high-ceiling bargains found on such a limited playoff Sunday slate, thus my heavy interest in securing shares of Turner across both platforms. With Turner earning more minutes and increased usage as the team's complementary offensive weapon to George over the past four games of the series, he's an ideal tournament ticket Sunday.
Cheap with upside
Marvin Williams, Charlotte Hornets (DraftKings: $4,800, FanDuel: $4,900) @ MIA: Williams has totaled 29 points on 63 percent shooting in his best two games in this series and tallied just two points while missing 28 of 29 attempts in the other four games. Sounds appealing, right? Well, the punt market at power forward is decidedly thin, so I'm willing to assume Williams' variant profile for tournaments.
Center
Solid value
Mason Plumlee, Portland Trail Blazers (DraftKings: $6,900, FanDuel: $6,300) @ GS:
With a similar, if not superior, production pattern to Miami's Hassan Whiteside (DraftKings: $7,900, FanDuel: $8,000), building around shares of Plumlee's playoff breakout could prove profitable. I can dig tournament interest in Whiteside and even Jonas Valanciunas (DraftKings: $6,700, FanDuel: $6,200), as both can produce huge games on the glass, but Plumlee seems set for the strongest cash ingredients.
Cheap with upside
Al Jefferson, Charlotte Hornets (DraftKings: $5,000, FanDuel: $5,800) @ MIA: After a quiet Game 1, Big Al has averaged nearly 14 shots per game over the past five and has exceeded value four times over this span. On the same rotation, yet serving an entirely different function as the team's stretch big, Frank Kaminsky (DraftKings: $3,600, FanDuel: $3,800) comes at punt pricing and has at least 25 minutes in each of the past four games and is a fine candidate to top six-times value.