After an eventful Thursday night of playoff action that saw the Knicks and Timberwolves the latest teams to move on to the semifinal round, we have another trio of Game 6 showdowns on tap Friday. The Magic, Cavaliers and Lakers can all punch their second-round tickets Friday, but there are numerous injuries that could impact each of the three games.
Slate Overview
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Listed spreads/totals are from FanDuel Sportsbook and current as of Friday, May 1 at 11:00 a.m. EDT:
- Detroit Pistons (-3.5) at Orlando Magic (O/U: 209.5)
- Cleveland Cavaliers (-4.5) at Toronto Raptors (O/U: 218.5)
- Los Angeles Lakers at Houston Rockets (-3.5) (O/U: 205.5)
All three potential elimination games are unsurprisingly sporting very narrow spreads, and each is also expected to be see defense take center stage to varying degree. Going by projected totals, the Cavaliers-Raptors clash appears to have the most upside, especially when considering three of the games in the series have finished with totals of 230 points or higher.
Injury Situations to Monitor
For all the latest updates, visit RotoWire's NBA Injury News page and our comprehensive NBA Injury Report.
Kevin Durant, HOU (ankle): DOUBTFUL
In Durant's likely absence, Tari Eason will likely remain in the starting five, while the rest of the first unit will see an increase in opportunity.
Brandon Ingram, TOR (heel): QUESTIONABLE
If Ingram is sidelined after exiting Game 5 early, Ja'Kobe Walter might draw a start at shooting guard, while Scottie Barnes and RJ Barrett will see bumps in usage.
Tobias Harris, DET (ankle): QUESTIONABLE
If Harris sits out, Javonte Green and Ronald Holland will likely see the majority of minutes at power forward.
Franz Wagner, ORL (calf): OUT
In Wagner's absence, Jamal Cain and Tristan da Silva will likely share the small forward minutes, while Desmond Bane and Paolo Banchero will be among the biggest beneficiaries in terms of additional opportunity.
Additional injuries to monitor:
Luka Doncic, LAL (hamstring): OUT
Immanuel Quickley, TOR (hamstring): OUT
Elite Players
We have one player with a five-figure salary on Friday's slate – Cade Cunningham ($10,500).
Cunningham is averaging 46.5 FD points over the first five games of the series via 32.6 points, 7.0 assists and 5.8 rebounds over 40.2 minutes per contest. He's averaging 23.0 field-goal and 10.4 free-throw attempts per contest as well, and if Harris is sidelined Friday, Cunningham could be even more involved as the Pistons try to avoid elimination again.
Go to RotoWire's NBA Daily Starting Lineups and NBA News for up-to-the-minute information!
Expected Chalk
Other likely chalk plays include:
LeBron James, LAL ($9,800)
James will continue to operate without Luka Doncic again Friday, and he's scored over 43 FD points in four of the first five games of the series.
Scottie Barnes, TOR ($9,700)
Barnes is already averaging 51.4 FD points over the last four games of the series, and he'd be even more popular if Brandon Ingram is sidelined Friday.
Alperen Sengun, HOU ($9,600)
Sengun has totals of 57.7 and 70.2 FD points in the series and is averaging 48.5 per contest overall over the five games, which should lock in a high roster rate Friday.
Paolo Banchero, ORL ($9,200)
Banchero will see even more usage than usual with Franz Wagner out, and the former is already averaging 49.6 FD points over the first five games of the series.
Donovan Mitchell, CLE ($8,800)
Mitchell has seen his production dip over the last three games, but his corresponding salary reduction and 50+ FD-point upside should ensure his popularity.
Key Values
Jabari Smith, HOU vs. LAL ($6,600)
Smith has been a critical component of the Rockets' attack throughout the series, which has seen four absences and counting from Kevin Durant to date. The versatile forward has averaged 35.4 FD points across 42.0 minutes per contest in the first five games while shooting 40.0 percent from three-point range. Smith has gotten to the line on 14 occasions over the last two games as well and converted those opportunities at an 85.7 percent clip, and he's recorded over 33 FD points in four of the five contests to date. With another Durant absence expected Friday and Houston once again facing elimination, Smith is right back in play at a still very reasonable salary.
Reed Sheppard, HOU vs. LAL ($6,300)
Sheppard is another member of the Rockets that's benefited from Durant's absence, as the second-year guard averaged 15.3 points, 5.3 assists, 1.7 rebounds, 3.0 steals and 34.0 FD points across 36.7 minutes per contest in Games 3-5 with his star teammate sidelined. Sheppard also recorded 32.2 FD points in 36 minutes back in Game 1 when Durant also sat because of a knee injury, making Game 2, when Sheppard saw just 11 minutes, his only clunker of the series. While he does carry an ugly 37.8 percent success rate from the floor for the series overall, it's also worth noting that was largely the byproduct of his Game 1 and Game 3 struggles – Sheppard has 45.8 percent, including 42.9 percent from behind the arc, in the last pair of contests.
Wendell Carter, ORL vs. DET ($5,700)
Carter hasn't had the easiest on-paper matchup in the series by any stretch, but to his credit, the veteran big man has managed to persevere and still deliver solid results. Carter is averaging 32.8 FD points over the first five games, eclipsing 35 FD points on three occasions along the way. He even has a pair of double-doubles within the sample, and he's shooting an impressive 52.8 percent overall despite struggling from deep (25.0 percent). Foul trouble has been an issue in three of the games thus far, but at his sub-$6K salary and with Orlando once again trying to close out Detroit, he makes for a viable option after averaging 36.5 FD points in the first two home games of the series.
ALSO CONSIDER: Collin Murray-Boyles, TOR vs. CLE ($6,100); Tari Eason, HOU vs. LAL ($6,000)
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