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FanDuel NBA Daily Picks: Fantasy Basketball Lineup For February 27

By Brendan Galella

Feb 25, 2017; Dallas, TX, USA; Dallas Mavericks center Nerlens Noel (3) argues a call during the second half against the New Orleans Pelicans at the American Airlines Center. The Mavericks defeated the Pelicans 96-83. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 25, 2017; Dallas, TX, USA; Dallas Mavericks center Nerlens Noel (3) argues a call during the second half against the New Orleans Pelicans at the American Airlines Center. The Mavericks defeated the Pelicans 96-83. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports /
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Feb 25, 2017; Dallas, TX, USA; Dallas Mavericks center Nerlens Noel (3) argues a call during the second half against the New Orleans Pelicans at the American Airlines Center. The Mavericks defeated the Pelicans 96-83. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 25, 2017; Dallas, TX, USA; Dallas Mavericks center Nerlens Noel (3) argues a call during the second half against the New Orleans Pelicans at the American Airlines Center. The Mavericks defeated the Pelicans 96-83. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports /

A shift to Dallas may provide Nerlens Noel the one missing ingredient in his game to maximize his value in FanDuel NBA leagues: consistent minutes.

A logjam in the frontcourt in Philadelphia severely impacted the contributions of Nerlens Noel as a FanDuel NBA prospect this season.

Noel was the only player in the league to total at least 100 blocks and 100 steals in each of the past two seasons, but with the emergence of rookies Joel Embiid, Dario Saric, his minutes became severely limited for the 76ers.

The 22-year-old was pushed out of the rotation, with his minutes dropping to 19.8 per game, 9.5 fewer than a year ago.

With his value significantly diminished, Dallas landed the 6-foot-11 forward by sending Andrew Bogut (a player likely to be bought out of his contract), Justin Anderson and a 2017 first-round draft selection.

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The draft pick carries a top-18 protection and will likely translate into a pair of second-round picks for Philadelphia, while the Mavericks received Noel and an immediate impact.

In his debut, Noel punctuated a 96-83 victory over New Orleans by intercepting a pass and sending down a two-handed jam in transition.

Noel finished the game with 10 rebounds, nine points, a block and a steal in 29 minutes.

During his first 29 appearances of the season with Philadelphia, Noel spent 29 or more minutes on the floor just three times.

Dallas has experienced its most success by starting Dirk Nowitzki at center and Harrison Barnes at power forward, a tactic the team employed even when facing the Pelicans duo of DeMarcus Cousins and Anthony Davis, meaning Noel could continue to play off the bench the rest of the year.

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Even if coach Rick Carlisle envisions Noel as the starting center the team long term, he will likely still see plenty of minutes off the bench for the Mavericks over the 24 remaining games.

No matter when Noel enters the game, he is likely to pile up plenty of impressive stat lines for FanDuel NBA league play.

The former Kentucky star is averaging 10.2 points, 7.6 rebounds, 1.7 steals, 1.6 blocks and 1.6 assists per game.

Only Giannis Antetokounmpo is averaging at least 1.5 blocks and 1.5 steals per game this season, but could be joined by Noel as long as he receives a significant increase of time on the floor.

After one appearance, Noel has given his new team plenty of reasons to carve out a spot in the rotation for him.