The Charlotte Hornets and Indiana Pacers will try to stave off elimination from the Eastern Conference play-in tournament on Tuesday.
Indiana's path to victory on its home floor runs through Domantas Sabonis, who has been on triple-double watch for most of May.
Charlotte's biggest strength is its outside shooting, which makes many of its guards appealing from a daily fantasy basketball perspective.
Outside of Sabonis, there won't be much value in the big men of this matchup unless Cody Zeller or Bismack Biyombo turn in a career performance in a difficult contest.
Hornets vs. Pacers Odds
Odds via FanDuel Sportsbook.
Spread: Indiana (-3)
Over/Under: 227
Money Line: Indiana (-146; bet $146 to win $100); Charlotte (+124; bet $100 to win $124)
Game Information
Start Time: 6:30 p.m. ET
TV: TNT
Live Stream: TNTDrama.com or TNT app
Daily Fantasy Tips
Build Around Sabonis
Since his return to the court on May 1, Sabonis has turned in five 25-point performances and earned three triple-doubles.
The increase in assist totals is due to Malcolm Brogdon's absence in the Indiana lineup. He hasn't played since April 29 and is considered as a game-time decision for Tuesday.
Pacers head coach Nate Bjorkgren outlined the process the 28-year-old will go through to see if he can participate on Tuesday, per J. Michael of the Indianapolis Star.
"Malcolm was on the floor again going through his one-on-one contact stuff, shooting workouts, weight-room training you name it," he said. "It'll be a game-time decision there after his pregame warmup."
Brogdon recorded five or more assists in eight of his last 12 games before going out with a sore right hamstring. Even if he does recover in time for Tuesday, teammate Sabonis could get a share of the assists if the guard needs to work his way back into a game rhythm.
The Gonzaga product should have the highest points and rebounds combination in the matchup since he had a pair of 22-point double-doubles in three regular-season meetings versus the Hornets.
Miles Bridges, P.J. Washington and Zeller were the leading rebounders for the Hornets in the three matchups, but only Zeller (on January 27) earned more than 10 boards.
In seven of his last nine games, Sabonis earned 13 or more rebounds, and if he keeps up at his current pace, he will outpace Zeller, Biymobo or any other Charlotte player who attacks the glass.
Put Trust in Charlotte's 3-Point Shooters
Charlotte only shoots five-hundredths of a percent better from three-point range than Indiana, but it has more consistent contributors who record 37.5 percent or above.
Bridges is the best healthy shooter on both rosters who plays a significant amount of minutes. He is a 40 percent shooter and averages 29.3 minutes per game.
The 23-year-old could be valuable in DFS lineups, and he might be a profitable player to look toward with prop bets. Over 2.5 three-pointers made for him sits at +142.
The Michigan State product attempted 21 three-pointers in the last two games, and he has 18 games with three or more triples.
Devonte' Graham is another high-volume shooter to look at in DFS contests. He comes at an inexpensive salary of $6,400 in FanDuel's Tuesday main contest.
Bradley Beal, Caris LeVert and Terry Rozier are the only other shooting guards with higher salaries, but Graham has the ability to outperform each when it comes to three-point shooting.
The 26-year-old knocked down eight triples on Saturday and Sunday against the New York Knicks and Washington Wizards. Seven days ago, he lit up the Denver Nuggets defense for seven three-pointers.
Charlotte took 2,666 three-point shots in the regular season, so there should be no concern about Graham, Bridges or others stealing opportunities from their teammates.
As long as they stay out of foul trouble, the Hornets' top shooters will try to keep pace with Indiana from downtown.
Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90.
Statistics obtained from Basketball Reference.
