NBA Daily Grind Down: Monday 4/1

by Derek Farnsworth (Notorious) Last Updated 2013-04-01 18:37:57

The RotoGrinders NBA Grind Down article will give you an in-depth analysis into the NBA schedule each night. This article will break down the defense vs. position rankings for every single game and give you analysis on where you can exploit these matchups.

While matchups are a major factor in daily fantasy basketball, there are plenty of other factors to consider such as injuries, minutes, and salaries. 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.

Happy April Fools Day everyone! I thought I would pull a prank and not post the Grind Down today until a little later. Got ya! It had nothing to do with the fact that MLB started today and I was trying to make about 50 different teams over there on Starstreet. Had nothing to do with that at all. Anywho, let’s get to today’s matchups:

NOTES:

1) Defense vs. Position rankings are how well a team defends against a certain position. The ranking is for the team that it is listed under, NOT the opponent.
2) Rankings are as follows: 30 is the worst defense against a position, 1 is the best.
3) Last 10 Game Data is collected at the start of each week. It will be updated each Sunday for the upcoming week.

Detroit @ Toronto – 7:00 pm EDT

• Detroit’s defense is terrible, but their interior defense got a big boost now that Drummond is back. I wouldn’t probably stay away from the bigs of the Raptors, but I think Rudy Gay and Kyle Lowry are both solid plays today against this defense.
• The Raptors have really been struggling to defend big men lately and this could be a monster night for Andre Drummond. While he is still on a minutes cap, he has put up two very solid games in a row and I expect a third tonight. Greg Monroe is also a decent option as those two have been playing pretty well together.

Cleveland @ Atlanta – 7:30 pm EDT

• Kyrie came out of nowhere and played for the Cavs last night. If he plays again tonight, that really helps the Cavs chances of staying in the game. For the Hawks, everything will depend on if Al Horford plays, if he is out again, then I think Josh Smith and Ivan Johnson are both great plays. Also, Jeff Teague should be a bit cheaper than usual and has a solid matchup.
• For the Cavs, there really isn’t much to love outside of Kyrie Irving. Tristan Thompson has not been playing well lately, but I suppose you can probably get him at a much cheaper cost tonight.

Orlando @ Houston – 8:00 pm EDT

• This game would have blowout written all over it, but the fact that both James Harden and Chandler Parsons are questionable make things much more interesting. If one or both of them are out, then I would stack up on the remaining Rockets. Greg Smtih, Carlos Delfino, and Jeremy Lin would all see a major boost.
• It looks like Jameer Nelson is going to be out again so that gives both Beno Udrih and E’Twaun Moore a bump in value even though Moore really struggled on Saturday. After those two, I still like Harkless and Tobias Harris, both of them are seeing a ton of minutes.

Charlotte @ Milwaukee – 8:00 pm EDT

• Charlotte’s defense is awful, everyone knows this. It’s a hard balance to find though between taking players against them and being worried about a blowout. If you think this one will be close, then get Monta Ellis, Brandon Jennings, and Larry Sanders all in your lineup.
• For the Bobcats, I really don’t like the way they are playing right now and the coach has no reason to play any specific player a lot of minutes. I’m staying away.

Boston @ Minnesota – 8:00 pm EDT

• The Celtics got smoked by the Knicks last night and now have to travel to Minnesota, this is a tough spot for them so look for the young guys to pick up most of the minutes. I like the way Jeff Green has been playing, he has a great matchup and should play a lot of minutes if it is close. Avery Bradley also makes a decent value play against Rubio.
• For the T-Wolves, it looks like Nikola Pekovic is a game time decision so keep your eye on him. I love Ricky Rubio, but not tonight against Bradley. I would steer clear for the most part unless you find out that Pek is playing.

San Antonio @ Memphis – 8:00 pm EDT

• Looks like the Spurs are pulling a Miami Heat who pulled a Spurs last night. They are resting both Duncan and Leonard so watch out for a blowout in this one. On paper, Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol both have solid matchups, but I’m not sure how many minutes they are going to play.
• With Duncan and Leonard out, time to load up on the Spurs bench players. Then again, it is against the Grizzlies and their defense is solid.

Portland @ Utah – 9:00 pm EDT

• The Blazers are an average team against every position basically so it’s really take your pick. When it comes to the Jazz, I rarely pick anyone outside of their big guys and I would do the same tonight. Jefferson, Millsap, and Favors are all decent plays.
• The Jazz struggle against PG’s and PF’s. Damian Lillard makes a solid play tonight but you will have to check the status of LaMarcus Aldridge injury before taking him.

Indiana @ L.A.Clippers – 10:30 pm EDT

• Both of these teams have good defenses and I could see this one being very low scoring. My advice is to only take a player from either of these two teams if they are extremely underpriced.