Players to consider fading in NBA DFS for Thursday, April 22nd

In NBA DFS, there will always be some flashy names that may tempt you to pay up — even in an unfavorable matchup. Name value sometimes comes with reliability, but the trick to cashing in on your NBA lineups is to maximize the boom while operating under the salary cap. Sometimes, this means fading the chalk plays and spending elsewhere.

Here, we’ll break down three top NBA DFS fades for the game slate on Thursday, April 22nd.

Anthony Davis, Los Angeles Lakers ($9,400)

Davis is expected to suit up for the first time in months, but don’t get too excited from a fantasy perspective. Coach Frank Vogel said that AD will be limited to roughly 15 minutes in at least his first two games back, which means DFS players should hold off on adding him to their lineups especially with such a high price tag. In any other situation, he would be a no-brainer, but eating up over $9K of your salary cap for a guy who will play 15 minutes or less just doesn’t make any sense.

DeMar DeRozan, San Antonio Spurs, ($8,500)

DeRozan’s price tag has jumped up quite a bit in the last week or so, from $7,800 all the way to $8,500 in a matter of a few games. It might be tempting to pick him up tonight against a terrible Pistons team, but he’s underperformed the last couple outings against the Pacers and Heat. He only turned in 26.25 DKFP in the Spurs’ 87-107 loss to the Heat after coming off games where he put in 42.5, 50.5, and 39 DKFP, consecutively. His season average is 39.1 DKFP, but it seems to come with extreme highs and lows as he’s either scoring 40-plus, or down in the 20s. Either way, at that price tag, there should be plenty of other options who you can count on game after game.

Dorian Finney-Smith, Dallas Mavericks ($5,500)

Even at a lower price tag, Finney-Smith hasn’t been consistent through his last few games, only turning in 18.25 DKFP in the Mavs’ win over the Pistons on Wednesday. Dallas will be going up against a tough Lakers team which will be charged up with the limited return of Anthony Davis. Even if AD’s output is minimal on the court, he’ll definitely bring a much-needed boost to their confidence, especially on the defensive side. The Mavs have one of the league’s weakest defenses, so going up against a well-rested LA team who will probably come out swinging after losing to the Jazz on Monday, don’t expect a huge output from anyone on Dallas aside from Luka Doncic.