NBA Grind Down: Friday, December 6th - Page 2
All stat chart buttons below open in an in-screen popup window and include stat tables for all games on the given page of the Grind Down Article
Golden State at Houston
- Vegas Line – No Lines Set for This Game Yet
- Golden State Proj. Starters – Curry-Thompson-Barnes-Lee-Bogut
- Houston Proj. Starters – Beverley-Harden-Parsons-Jones-Howard
Golden State
The Warriors and Rockets should be one of, if not the highest scoring game of the night. Vegas has the total for this game set at 212 points so expect there to be some fireworks in this one. The Rockets have been one of the worst teams defensively and I don’t think you should rule out any of the starters for the Warriors tonight. While Harrison Barnes has the worst DvP rank against him, the Rockets could be without Chandler Parsons which would make that a mute point anyway.
- Stephen Curry – Curry is my favorite PG on the board tonight. You are going to have to pay for him, but he could very well be worth it. While Beverley is known as a solid defender, the Rockets do not play good team defense and Curry should have no problem finding open shots, especially in transition. I could see Curry dropping a 40-bomb on this defense tonight.
- David Lee – It’s hard to ever go wrong with Lee. He is one of the most consistent fantasy players that you can find. He’s almost a lock to get you 17 and 10 every night. I love the matchup against the Rockets and think he is one of the better cash game plays out there tonight.
Houston
The Rockets are the league’s highest scoring team and that’s not going to change after tonight’s game. Both of these teams are going to push the tempo and I wouldn’t be surprised to see this game end up being 115-110 or something in that range. The Warriors have defended SG’s and SF’s well on the season, but a lot of that has to do with Andre Iguodala who will not be playing tonight. I think you can still roll with James Harden in this one, he’s very inconsistent, but should play well here. Dwight Howard is another name that I am mixed on, I’m still not going to use him in cash games, but think he makes a nice GPP play. Chandler Parsons is a GTD tonight, so make sure to check your injury news closer to tipoff for an update on him.
- Patrick Beverley – Beverley has scored over 25 fantasy points in each of his last 3 games and should see plenty of minutes tonight as he will be tasked with guarding Stephen Curry. While he may exhaust some energy on defense, he will have a very favorable matchup on offense. Look for Beverley to fill up the stat sheet once again and keep his 25+ FP streak going.
Oklahoma City at New Orleans
- Vegas Line – Oklahoma City -4.5, 207.5 Over/Under
- Oklahoma City Proj. Starters – Westbrook-Sefolosha-Durant-Ibaka-Perkins
- New Orleans Proj. Starters – Holiday-Gordon-Aminu-Anderson-Smith
Oklahoma City
The Thunder and Pelicans have both been making an effort to push the ball lately and you can see that by the high over/under that Vegas has set for this game. The Pelicans rank below average against every position except for SF and that’s thanks to the defense of Aminu. While he does have great defense, Durant has better offense and is matchup-proof so don’t shy away from Durant if you were thinking about using him. Russell Westbrook is a GTD tonight, if he ends up sitting, give a huge bump to Reggie Jackson and bump up Durant as well.
- Serge Ibaka – I see this as a very favorable matchup for Ibaka. While he may have a tough time defending Anderson on the perimeter, he is going to be all over the offensive glass and Anderson is going to have a tough time defending him down low. If the price is right on Ibaka, don’t be afraid to pull the trigger on him.
New Orleans
The Pelicans (I still write Hornets every time) have really had some players step up since Anthony Davis went down with his injury. Ryan Anderson, Jason Smith, and Al-Farouq Aminu have all been fantasy studs over the past few games. Their prices have come up on a couple of sites, but I think all three of them are still in play on sites that haven’t updated their prices. The Thunder rank in the bottom 5 against PG’s, SG’s, and PF’s this season.
- Eric Gordon – I really like Jrue Holiday here as well, but his price has gone up too much for my liking. Instead, I will take the much cheaper Gordon who has similar upside as Holiday. Gordon has really been playing well lately and has become one of the go to options offensively.
- Jason Smith – His price is still affordable across the board. While the Thunder have been very good against Centers this season, his spike in minutes more than makes up for his bad matchup. He remains one of the better value plays.
Toronto at Phoenix
- Vegas Line – Phoenix -4.5, 200.5 Over/Under
- Toronto Proj. Starters – Lowry-DeRozan-Gay-Hansbrough-Valanciunas
- Phoenix Proj. Starters – Bledsoe-Dragic-Tucker-Frye-Plumlee
Toronto
The Raptors travel to Phoenix to take on the Suns tonight. Vegas has this game as a close one which is always nice to see from a fantasy perspective. The Suns have been very average defensively this season, in fact, they are ranked between 8th and 15th against every single position. That means that no individual matchup necessarily stands out, but none should be completely avoided either. Tyler Hansbrough makes an interesting value play if he gets the start again and Jonas Valanciunas remains a nice value option at Center.
- Kyle Lowry – My favorite play here has to be Lowry. He has really played well over the last few weeks and is starting to fill up the stat sheet like he did when he was in Houston. His price is still affordable across the board and he is facing Dragic who used to be his teammate in Houston.
Phoenix
The Suns are a team that I will be fading tonight. The Raptors are a very solid team defensively and the Suns have been very inconsistent lately. The addition of Eric Bledsoe back in the lineup has hurt Dragic’s fantasy value and the offense as a whole is still getting used to that backcourt combo. While Frye has been a nice value play over the last couple of weeks, his price is now too high to warrant any value. For me, the Suns are just too tough to predict and there are better options elsewhere.
Utah at Portland
- Vegas Line – Portland -11.5, 199 Over/Under
- Utah Proj. Starters – Burke-Hayward-Jefferson-Favors-Kanter
- Portland Proj. Starters – Lillard-Matthews-Batum-Aldridge-Lopez
Utah
The Jazz are notorious (no pun intended) for being in blowouts this season and they are taking on a red hot Blazers team. While the Jazz have been much more competitive with Trey Burke at point, the line in this game scares me off of any big name players. I think Burke has some value, but there aren’t any other viable fantasy options here. Both Derrick Favors and Gordon Hayward have tough matchups.
Portland
I usually love to target the Blazers at home, but like I mentioned above, I think this one turns into a blowout. The Jazz have been an awful team on the road this season and this Blazers team has been red hot. If you are going to target one player from this game, the matchup lines up well for Nicolas Batum. The Jazz are ranked 28th against opposing SF’s and he always has great upside.
L.A.Lakers at Sacramento
- Vegas Line – Sacramento -3.5, 204 Over/Under
- L.A.Lakers Proj. Starters – Blake-Meeks-Johnson-Hill-Gasol
- Sacramento Proj. Starters – Vasquez-McLemore-Williams-Thompson-Cousins
L.A.Lakers
Last game of the night features two teams that are out of the playoff picture, at least as of now. The Lakers have been hit hard by the injury bug this season and now will be without Jordan Farmar for the next month. This opens up more minutes for Steve Blake and Jodie Meeks. The matchup against the Kings is a good one, the Kings are ranked in the bottom 10 against PG’s, PF’s and Centers. Those would usually be the three positions that I would like to target, but Jordan Hill is not seeing big minutes and is too risky to roll out in cash games.
- Pau Gasol – Pau has been playing big minutes lately and the offense has been running through him. Pau is a frustrating fantasy player because he can go on hot and cold streaks during the same game. I like his price and matchup across the board though and label him as a fantastic cash game play.
- Steve Blake – Blake would have been on my radar even if Farmar was playing and now that he has been ruled out, I rank Blake even higher. This Kings team has not defended PG’s well and Blake has been a double-double machine this season. I think he posts a great stat line tonight and tops 30 FP’s. And yes, you can hold me to it.
Sacramento
The Kings have played well at home this season. Vegas has them as 3.5 point favorites in this one so expect them to be competitive here. The Lakers defense, as we all know, is not very good. They rank in the bottom 5 against PG’s, SG’s, PF’s, and Centers on the season so don’t be afraid to take a chance on a Kings player or two tonight. Isaiah Thomas continues to be a nice value play and I like Derrick Williams as an under the radar GPP play.
- DeMarcus Cousins – This is the obvious pick here. Cousins is one of the few players in the league that can put up 40+ fantasy points on any given night and you have to love the matchup against the Lakers. There is always risk with taking Cousins, but the reward is certainly there too.