NBA Grind Down: Wednesday, April 23rd
Welcome to the RotoGrinders NBA Grind Down Article. Each day, we’ll break down all of the matchups with a focus on defense vs. position stats. The Grind Down shows you Vegas lines, defense stats and projected starting lineups for each and every game.
The analysis should point you in the right direction, but it is still up to you to decipher the information and make your own selections. Use this article to help you gain a better understanding of the matchups for the coming week and build from there. We have everything you could possibly need on our Daily Research console for you to be a successful daily fantasy player!
Note: Any Fantasy Point Average Listed Uses FanDuel Scoring. For more info on FanDuel’s NBA Scoring System, check out the scoring systems section of our FanDuel Review
Click ‘Stat Chart’ Buttons Below for Pop-Ups of Essential Game-Specific Statistics including Defense vs. Position and Pace
Charlotte at Miami
- Vegas Line – Miami -10.5, 186 Over/Under
- Charlotte Proj. Starters – Walker-Henderson-Kidd-Gilchrist-McRoberts-Jefferson
- Miami Proj. Starters – Chalmers-Wade-James-Haslem-Bosh
Charlotte
This is one of my least favorite series to target for DFS because not only do both of these teams own a top 10 defense and play at a slow pace, but each game in this series has the potential to turn into a blowout, especially not that Al Jefferson status is in doubt. It sounds like Jefferson will be a game-time decision and he is probably safe to avoid even if he does suit up. If Jefferson has to sit, that would give a nice fantasy boost to Josh McRoberts, but I think avoiding the Bobcats completely is the best route to take here.
Miami
The Heat played well in Game 1 after seemingly toying with the Bobcats for much of the first 3 quarters. They are 10.5 point favorites here and the total is set at only 186 points. With the big three of the Heat all healthy, it really hurts their individual fantasy value, especially against a team like the Bobcats that play at a very slow pace. LeBron James only put up 36 FP’s in Game 1 and with a 10 point spread, I’m not going to be paying up for him in Game 2. The same can be said for Dwyane Wade. If the Heat get up big, Wade will likely see limited minutes.
- Chris Bosh – Bosh is the one play that I don’t mind targeting here. His price is cheap across the industry and it’s a nice that doesn’t have many options at Center outside of Dwight Howard. The Bobcats were ranked 20th against Centers this season and Bosh played well in the second half of Game 1. Plus, he may have a hobbled Jefferson defending him.
Dallas at San Antonio
- Vegas Line – San Antonio -8, 198 Over/Under
- Dallas Proj. Starters – Calderon-Ellis-Marion-Nowitzki-Dalembert
- San Antonio Proj. Starters – Parker-Green-Leonard-Duncan-Splitter
Dallas
The Mavericks had Game 1 in their pocket and then just gave it away to the Spurs in the 4th quarter. I was expecting this to be a great series, but hopefully that doesn’t shatter their confidence throughout the rest of this series. The Mavs come into this game as 8 point underdogs. The real story of Game 1 for the Mavericks was the impressive play of Devin Harris off the bench. He scored 27 fantasy points in 32 minutes of play and really took over the PG spot from Jose Calderon. That is a situation to monitor as the series goes on. Monta Ellis and Shawn Marion both make decent tournament plays, but Dirk is really the only Mavs’ player that I will be using in cash games.
- Dirk Nowitzki – Dirk had an off night in Game 1, but the most promising stat was that he played 42 minutes. If that continues in this series, he is going to have a few monster fantasy performances. Expect Dirk to get it going in Game 2 and put up a much better fantasy outing.
San Antonio
The Spurs made a furious 4th quarter rally to steal Game 1 from the Mavs and will look to take charge of this series with a win tonight. The Spurs are 8 point favorite and the total is set at 198 points which means the Spurs are one of the better teams to target tonight for fantasy purposes. If you look at the Mavs’ DvP rankings, they have been pretty average defensively all season long. Kawhi Leonard makes a nice tournament play and Manu Ginobili is one of the best value plays available after his 27 FP outing in Game 1.
- Tim Duncan – Just like Dirk, I expect a much better fantasy performance out of Duncan in Game 2. While Duncan did score 34 FP’s, I expect him to average around 40 in this series. Duncan was excited for a bigger workload coming into the playoffs and Dirk Nowitzki just can’t handle him on the block down low. Duncan is probably my top dollar for dollar play tonight.
- Tony Parker – Parker played well in Game 1 with 38 FP’s. While I don’t expect a repeat performance out of him, I like his matchup against both Calderon and Harris. Parker is one of the most clutch players in the NBA that really steps his game up during the playoffs. If the price is right, use him in all leagues tonight.
Portland at Houston
- Vegas Line – Houston -6, 214.5 Over/Under
- Portland Proj. Starters – Lillard-Matthews-Batum-Aldridge-Lopez
- Houston Proj. Starters – Beverley-Harden-Parsons-Jones-Howard
Portland
The Blazers picked up a huge win in OT in Game 1 and it looks like we may see quite a few games come down to the wire between these two teams. Game 1 was a fantasy gold mine and I expect that to be the case throughout the series. With only 3 games on the schedule, don’t be afraid to take a few players from each team. Other than Aldridge, Damian Lillard and Nicolas Batum are my two favorite plays here. Both played well in Game 1 and make nice plays again in Game 2.
- LaMarcus Aldridge – Hopefully you took my advice when I told you to take Aldridge in Game 1. He ended up with 72 fantasy points. There is no one on the Rockets (with the exception of Dwight Howard) that can defend him and Terrence Jones just looks lost on the defensive end of the floor. Aldridge can post up as well as knock down open jumpers. He even hit 2 threes last game. Expect another 25+ point and 15+ rebound performance from him in Game 2.
Houston
The Rockets are 6 point favorites here in what should be the highest scoring game of the night. As predicted, Harden struggled in Game 1. While he put up 40 FP’s, he missed 20 shots from the field which absolutely killed his value on efficiency sites. I think he plays better in Game 2, but he still has to deal with pesky defenders in Batum and Matthews. I’ll be using Harden as a GPP-only play in Game 2. Chandler Parsons and Patrick Beverley both played well in Game 1 and both make nice targets again in Game 2. Terrence Jones should probably be avoided as he sat down the stretch which could be the case again tonight.
- Dwight Howard – Howard came into this series with great numbers against the Blazers and he continued that dominance in Game 1. Howard posted 55 FP’s and could have had plenty more if he could have shot better from the field as he only shot 9/21. Howard is my top play here and he should be targeted in all leagues if you can afford him.