Dan Titus Fantasy analyst Fri, October 30, 2026 at 5:44 PM UTC · 4 min read About Our Ads Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Yahoo Sports is giving fans another way to play fantasy basketball with Perfect 5, a free-to-play game featuring each week's NBA on Prime doubleheader. The rules are simple: pick five players, stay within a $15 budget and rack up fantasy points through scoring, rebounds, assists, defensive stats and 3-pointers.
Friday's slate features the Knicks at 76ers (7:30 p.m. ET) and Lakers at Warriors (10 p.m. ET). There's plenty of star power, but the key to building a competitive lineup is finding value at the $1 and $2 salary tiers.
I'm leaning into the Warriors' affordable options while paying up for two players with 45-plus fantasy-point upside. Here's my lineup:
Dončić is the most expensive and popular player on the board, but for good reason. He's averaging 36 points, 8.3 assists, 6.8 rebounds and 5.3 triples through the early portion of the season. That's an absurd amount of offensive production, and his 50.52-point projection leads Friday's slate. Golden State presents a favorable matchup for a player who can control the pace, get to the line and generate points through scoring and playmaking. It's an NBA Cup game and he'll surely want to bark at Yaxel Ledenborg again; we ride.
Embiid might be the best value among the premium players. He's projected for 44.24 fantasy points, the second-highest mark on the board, yet costs a dollar less than Dončić, Karl-Anthony Towns and Tyrese Maxey. His projected line of 21.5 points, 10 rebounds and 4.8 assists may seem ambitious, but he always seems to play harder against the Knicks. At just 18% rostered, Embiid offers an appealing combination of production and low ownership. As always, monitor his availability and potential minutes restriction before locking him in.
Lendeborg is dealing with a foot injury, but he wouldn't pass up a second chance to go toe-to-toe with Luka. He's projected for 38.79 fantasy points at just $2, with an expected line of 22.6 points, 9.2 rebounds and 4.0 assists. That's production you'd typically associate with a $4 player. His multi-category production gives him a strong fantasy profile, and his size can expose mismatches against the Lakers. The ownership is high, but I'm not fading this much value just to be different.
Podziemski is another $2 player who looks underpriced. He's projected for 34.15 fantasy points with 14.7 points, 4.6 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 1.3 steals. What I like most is the combination of affordable salary and modest ownership. Only 18% of entries have selected him, despite a projection that puts him in the neighborhood of several $4 players. I'm comfortable pairing him with Lendeborg because both can produce without relying exclusively on scoring. Adding a third Warrior comes with some risk, but the value is too good to pass up.
I initially wanted to avoid rostering three Warriors, but Green's updated projection of 31.22 fantasy points at just $2 is too good to pass up. He's projected for 6.8 assists, 5.5 rebounds and a block, giving him multiple ways to contribute without needing to score much (and he hasn't been averaging a mere 3 ppg on 3 attempts per game). At only 14% rostered, there's some leverage here, too. Having three Warriors in a five-player lineup comes with risk, but I'm willing to take it when the value is this good. With Green replacing Matisse Thybulle, my lineup now projects for 198.92 fantasy points, the highest possible combination on the board.
I'm right at the max. Using Yahoo's updated projections, the highest-scoring lineup comes in at 198.92 fantasy points , and that's exactly where my five land.
I initially considered Thybulle at $1 to avoid rostering three Warriors, but Green's projection jumped to 31.22 fantasy points, making the decision easier. The switch adds 11.32 projected points while using the full $15 budget.
There's some risk in having 60% of my lineup tied to Golden State, but Lendeborg, Podziemski and Green can all contribute without needing to dominate the scoring column. Plus, Green being 14% picked gives this otherwise popular lineup some differentiation.
You can start building your Perfect 5 roster for Friday's slate now, including going up against me in my Perfect 5 group. Good luck!
In Perfect 5, fans compete against the broader Yahoo Fantasy community. Those who finish in the top five each week earn points to use in the Yahoo Sports Shop. Fans can also create private groups to compete with friends or join public groups organized by NBA team allegiances. Season-long standings reward managers who consistently put together the best lineups throughout the year.
Source: Sports
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