NBA Grind Down Wednesday, November 19th - Page Three
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L.A. Lakers at Houston
- Vegas Line – Houston -13, 209.5 Over/Under
- L.A. Lakers Proj. Starters – Lin-Bryant-Johnson-Boozer-Hill
- Houston Proj. Starters – Beverley-Harden-Ariza-Motiejunas-Howard
| L.A. Lakers | Houston | |||||||||||
 | Vegas Total | 209 |  | Vegas Total | 209 | |||||||
| Vegas Sprd | 13.0 | Vegas Sprd | -13.0 | |||||||||
| Team Proj. | 98.25 | Team Proj. | 111.25 | |||||||||
| Team Pace | 97.88 | Team Pace | 96.96 | |||||||||
| Matchup – Opponent DvP Ranks and Projected Starters | Matchup – Opponent DvP Ranks and Projected Starters | |||||||||||
| DvP Rks | PG | SG | SF | PF | C | DvP Rks | PG | SG | SF | PF | C | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Proj Starter | Jeremy Lin | Kobe Bryant | Wesley Johnson | Carlos Boozer | Jordan Hill | Proj Starter | Patrick Beverley | James Harden | Trevor Ariza | Donatas Motiejunas | Dwight Howard | |
| Opp. Season | 6 | 10 | 14 | 10 | 20 | Opp. Season | 30 | 23 | 11 | 25 | 10 | |
| Opp. Last 7 | 8 | 17 | 12 | 8 | 28 | Opp. Last 7 | 23 | 11 | 24 | 25 | 12 | |
L.A. Lakers
The Lakers picked up their second win of the season last night against the Hawks. While they have to feel good about that win, I don’t like their chances to pick up another one tonight against the Rockets. The Lakers have been competitive in games against bad defensive teams, but they have really struggled against elite defenses. The Rockets own an elite defense, ranking 1st in defensive efficiency and 5th in rebounding differential. This game could get out of hand early.
Elite Plays
None
Secondary Plays
Kobe Bryant (FD: $9400, DK: $8800 / MPG: 35 / Usage Rate: 37.3)
Bryant makes an interesting tournament play tonight thanks to his extremely high usage rate of 37.3. It also doesn’t hurt that he is using that high usage rate to put up shots as often as possible. He draws a tough matchup against Trevor Ariza though and this is the second half of a back-to-back.
Carlos Boozer (FD: $6300, DK: $6300 / MPG: 28 / Usage Rate: 22.1)
Boozer is finally starting to play well (at least on the offensive end of the floor). He has topped 25 fantasy points in five of his last seven games and draws a decent matchup against Donatas Motiejunas. He’s certainly not a must play though as there are ten other games on the schedule tonight.
Houston
Once again, we are faced with a dilemma when it comes to the Rockets. They have arguably the best matchup on the board, but they are 13-point favorites in a game that could get out of hand relatively quickly. The Lakers are ranked dead last in defensive efficiency and points allowed per game. The only question is how many minutes the starters are going to play. Blowouts are very hard to predict though, so for our purposes, I will not factor that in.
Elite Plays
James Harden (FD: $10100, DK: $10300 / MPG: 37 / Usage Rate: 30.7)
Everyone is talking about the numbers that Anthony Davis is putting up, but how about the numbers that Harden is putting up? On the season, he is averaging 24, points 6 rebounds, 7 assists, and 2 steals per game. He has one of the highest usage rates in the NBA and draws a prime matchup against the Lakers who treat defense as if it were optional. It’s hard to see Harden having a bad game, even if the Rockets do turn this into a blowout.
Dwight Howard (FD: $9100, DK: $9500 / MPG: 34 / Usage Rate: 26.5)
These two teams faced each other on opening night and Kobe and Dwight got into it. I’ll give Round 1 to Dwight as he elbowed Kobe in the face twice and his team came away with the win. I’m going to have to give the edge to Dwight again tonight in Round 2. While the Lakers have actually defended centers fairly well this season, Howard should be a monster on the glass.
Secondary Plays
Trevor Ariza (FD: $6200, DK: $6400 / MPG: 35 / Usage Rate: 17.6)
Ariza is often the forgotten one in daily fantasy sports. He’s basically the third or fourth option offensively, but that’s not a bad thing to be on the Rockets. He is averaging 15 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists per game this season. He’ll likely be defended by Kobe Bryant (terrific matchup), as the Lakers will likely put Wesley Johnson on Harden.
Donatas Motiejunas (FD: $5100, DK: $4500 / MPG: 22 / Usage Rate: 14.5)
Terrence Jones has been ruled out for tonight’s game, which means Motiejunas will draw another start at PF. Over his last five starts, he is averaging 8 points, 7 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block, and 1 steal per game. He should be able to replicate, and possibly add to that stat line tonight against the Lakers.
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