NBA Grind Down: Friday, January 24th - Page 2
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Milwaukee at Cleveland
- Vegas Line – No Lines Set for This Game Yet
- Milwaukee Proj. Starters – Knight-Antetokounmpo-Ilyasova-Henson-Sanders
- Cleveland Proj. Starters – Irving-Miles-Deng-Thompson-Varejao
Milwaukee
This is a battle of two terrible teams. It’s funny how DFS impacts how we watch games because before I played DFS, I would have never thought to watch this game. Just another reason to love daily fantasy sports. The Bucks will start John Henson at Center again tonight, but Larry Sanders will be available off the bench. With Drew’s wacky rotations, I will probably be avoiding Henson except for a GPP team or two.
- Brandon Knight – Knight has been out of our fantasy minds for the last few weeks because his price has gotten to a point where it’s hard to pay for him. But recently his price has come down a bit. He is still playing at an extremely high level and will benefit from having John Henson back at full strength. I love his matchup tonight against the Cavaliers who have been one of the worst teams in the league at defending PG’s. Look for Knight to fill up the stat sheet and have a great fantasy outing.
Cleveland
The Cavs are in an interesting position tonight. They are 8.5 point favorites, the total is only set at 194 points, and the Bucks are one of the slowest paced teams in the league. All three of those are less than favorable conditions for a perfect fantasy storm. That said, the Bucks have been extremely inept at defending big men this season.
- Anderson Varejao – Andy is one of those players that you have a hard time paying up for because he is a hustle player. He doesn’t score 30 points a night or have the most polished offensive game, but what he does have is a motor and a good basketball mind. He should continue to post his monster double-double tonight against the Bucks who are ranked 28th against Centers this season.
New Orleans at Detroit
- Vegas Line – Detroit -4, 202.5 Over/Under
- New Orleans Proj. Starters – Roberts-Gordon-Aminu-Davis-Withey
- Detroit Proj. Starters – Jennings-Caldwell-Pope-Smith-Monroe-Drummond
New Orleans
The Pelicans are somehow only 4 point underdogs to the Pistons tonight. The Pelicans are extremely short-handed and playing on the road. That says a lot about how bad the Pistons are. The Pistons really struggle to defend PG’s, SF’s, and Centers, but I think the two viable fantasy plays here are Anthony Davis and Tyreke Evans. Davis has great upside thanks to his ability to rack up blocks and steals and Evans is the main ball-handler when he is on the floor. He should be able to get to the rim easily in this one.
Detroit
The Pistons are facing a Pelicans team that has had some injuries to their frontcourt. These injuries have really taken a toll on their interior defense. While the Pelicans do have length with Davis, Stiemsma, and Ajinca, they do not have strength. I think Brandon Jennings and Josh Smith both make interesting GPP plays, but for cash games, I will be targeting Greg Monroe and Andre Drummond.
- Andre Drummond – Drummond has scored at least 29 fantasy points in 9 of his last 10 games. He is finally becoming a consistent option that you can count on. He should really have a big night against the much skinnier defenders of the Pelicans.
Charlotte at New York
- Vegas Line – New York -3.5, 186.5 Over/Under
- Charlotte Proj. Starters – Sessions-Henderson-Kidd-Gilchrist-McRoberts-Jefferson
- New York Proj. Starters – Felton-Smith-Shumpert-Anthony-Chandler
Charlotte
The Bobcats will be without Kemba Walker again tonight so continue to use Ramon Sessions on sites that have yet to adjust his price to his recent production. He has a somewhat limited upside, but he should be able to post around 20 FP’s once again. Other than sessions, there really aren’t any great options here. Al Jefferson has been red hot, but he will be matched up against a very tough defender in Chandler.
New York
The Knicks are falling apart at the seams right now. They can’t seem to play together to save their lives. That said, there are a couple of interesting plays here. Carmelo Anthony is always in play thanks to his ability to score the ball at will. I also like the price for Raymond Felton on a few of the sites.
- Tyson Chandler – Chandler makes this list for two reasons. 1. He is dirt cheap across the industry, you can take him for less than $6k on both FD and DK tonight. 2. He is playing major minutes right now with both Stoudemire and Martin out. Chandler is cheap and has nice upside against the Bobcats who have not defended the Center position well this season.
L.A.Clippers at Chicago
- Vegas Line – No Lines Set for This Game Yet
- L.A.Clippers Proj. Starters – Collison-Redick-Barnes-Griffin-Jordan
- Chicago Proj. Starters – Augustin-Butler-Dunleavy-Boozer-Noah
L.A.Clippers
The Clippers are 4 point favorites tonight against the Bulls. The total of this game is set at 194 points which is extremely low for a Clippers game. The Bulls play good defense and play at an incredibly slow both. Neither of which bode well for the Clipper’s fantasy value tonight. Blake Griffin is the one player that I will have some exposure too, the offense has been running through him and he has shown to be matchup-proof this season.
Chicago
The Bulls will have Carlos Boozer back tonight which is unfortunate for us Taj Gibson fans. He will head back to the bench and his fantasy value takes a huge hit with Boozer back. Kirk Hinrich has been ruled out of tonight’s game which means another start for D.J. Augustin who has come out of nowhere to have a great season thus far.
- D.J. Augustin – Augustin is a bit overpriced on a few sites, but I still think that he is a viable 30 FP a night option when he is given minutes. He played well in his start the other night and I think he tops that performance tonight against the Clippers.
- Joakim Noah – Noah has been playing at an extremely high level over the past few weeks and his price has taken a big increase. He’s still in play tonight though as the Clippers have given up the 4th most fantasy points to Centers this season. Look for Noah to fill up the stat sheet again tonight.
Memphis at Houston
- Vegas Line – Houston -5.5, 197.5 Over/Under
- Memphis Proj. Starters – Conley-Lee-Prince-Randolph-Gasol
- Houston Proj. Starters – Beverley-Harden-Parsons-Jones-Howard
Memphis
The Grizzlies travel to Houston to take on the Rockets. These two teams play very different styles of basketball and when this happens, you typically give a nice fantasy boost to the slower paced team because they will likely see a few extra possessions than their season average.
- Zach Randolph – Randolph’s fantasy value hasn’t been hit at all with Gasol back in the lineup. He continues to post monster double-doubles and until he cools off, treat him as a top PF option. The Rockets have been awful at defending PF’s this season and if Jones can’t start, that would help Randolph’s value even more.
Houston
The Rockets are in a less than favorable position tonight. The Grizzlies love to slow the ball down and establish their pace of play. That said, if Terrence Jones sits out again tonight, bump up Chandler Parsons, Dwight Howard, and Donatas Motiejunas. If Jones does play, the Rockets have too many weapons offensively to single out just one. There are better matchups on the board.