NBA Grind Down: Monday, December 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 NFL 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
Milwaukee at Charlotte
- Vegas Line – No Lines Set for This Game Yet
- Milwaukee Proj. Starters – Knight-Antetokounmpo-Butler-Udoh-Henson
- Charlotte Proj. Starters – Walker-Henderson-Tolliver-McRoberts-Jefferson
Milwaukee
While this game does have the lowest total of the night (185), that doesn’t mean that there aren’t any viable value plays. I don’t think either team has the ability to blow the other team out so I expect this one to be fairly close throughout. For the Bucks, the minutes are back to being in question. Caron Butler made his first appearance back in the lineup and played a whopping 40 minutes. There just isn’t enough production to go around as Butler, Giannis, Mayo, and Middleton are all competing for minutes. John Henson is a GTD, but if he gives it a go, continue playing him as a great fantasy option.
- Brandon Knight – Knight is really a site-specific play tonight, but he is still underpriced on a couple of sites including a 5.3k price tag on FanDuel. He has been on fire lately and has really padded all areas of the stat sheet. Continue using him with confidence on sites where his price hasn’t gone up.
Charlotte
The Bobcats are in an interesting position tonight. They are playing at home, they are decent favorites, and they are facing a Bucks team that ranks in the bottom 14 against SF’s, PF’s, and Centers. The problem is that the Bobcats only really have two reliable fantasy options. Josh McRoberts and Anthony Tolliver both make decent value plays, but with so many games on the schedule, you can find much better options if value is what you are looking for. Kemba Walker plays well at home, but Brandon Knight is an excellent defender and I think he’s a bit overpriced for his matchup.
- Al Jefferson – Al has really turned up his game over the last couple of weeks and seems to be a lock to top 30 FP’s each night. I love the matchup against the Bucks who are giving up the most fantasy points of any team to opposing Centers this season. He’s worth the price tonight.
Detroit at Cleveland
- Vegas Line – Cleveland -1, 201 Over/Under
- Detroit Proj. Starters – Jennings-Stuckey-Smith-Monroe-Drummond
- Cleveland Proj. Starters – Irving-Waiters-Gee-Thompson-Bynum
Detroit
The Pistons travel to Cleveland to take on the Cavs in what is expected to be an extremely close, fairly high scoring game. I always love seeing a Vegas line that has neither team favored by much and a high total. The Cavs have only defended one position well on the season and that’s the Center position. I still think Andre Drummond is in play though because his FP’s don’t come from his ability to create shots for himself. He’s a very athletic hustler that gets rebounds, dunks, and blocks.
- Brandon Jennings – The Cavs have really struggled to defend PG’s this season. It seems like PG’s always have their best games of the season against the Cavs. I think Jennings makes a nice play in both GPP’s and cash games tonight. His assists have picked up and he is finally knocking down jumpers.
- Josh Smith – Smith is one of the most talented players in the league and it seems like he can just turn on a switch and become a great player. His run over his last few games has been incredible and I think it should continue tonight against the Cavs who are ranked dead last against SF’s this season.
Cleveland
The Cavs are in a great spot tonight. The Pistons have been one of the worst defenses this season and both of these teams have started to push the pace over the last couple of weeks. They are playing at home where they have been much better than they have on the road. The Pistons rank 20th against PG’s and 27th against Centers. Those are the two positions to target here.
- Kyrie Irving – Kyrie has scored over 40 FP’s in 4 of his last 6 games and has a great matchup against Jennings who has never been known as a defender. I think both of these PG’s will go at each other and they should both post big numbers. I’m giving Kyrie a slight edge over Jennings though.
- Andrew Bynum – Bynum is one of my favorite plays at Center tonight because he is dirt cheap across the board. With his low price tag, he really only needs around 20 FP’s to be worth taking. I like the matchup and think he should see big minutes against the big frontcourt of the Pistons.
New York at Orlando
- Vegas Line – Orlando -1, 191.5 Over/Under
- New York Proj. Starters – Udrih-Shumpert-Smith-Anthony-Chandler
- Orlando Proj. Starters – Nelson-Oladipo-Afflalo-Davis-Vucevic
New York
This is another game that is expected to be close. The total is a bit low, but the Knicks have a few different fantasy options tonight. The Knicks are going to start both Andrea Bargnani and Tyson Chandler tonight and while I think it hurts both of their value a little, I also think it hurts the value of Carmelo Anthony because I think his rebounding numbers are going to take a hit. I think tonight is the night to pass on Carmelo. J.R. Smith makes an interesting GPP play, but is too inconsistent to play in cash games.
- Beno Udrih – Udrih is the only Knicks player that I will have any exposure to in cash games tonight and he’s actually one of my favorite value plays. With Felton close to returning, Udrih is going to want to play well to fight for minutes going forward. As soon as you hear that Felton is out, get Beno in your lineups. If Felton does make a return to the lineup, avoid them both.
Orlando
The Magic have a tough matchup against the Knicks. The Knicks are ranked in the top 17 against every position, including top 7 rankings against PG’s, PF’s, and Centers. Not only that, but with the Magic finally healthy, there are a lot of players fighting for minutes. Jameer Nelson is probably the only play that I would consider here, but I like other options in his price range. Tobias Harris carries some value on sites where he is close to minimum salary. However, fading the Magic tonight looks like the best way to go.
Indiana at Brooklyn
- Vegas Line – Indiana -6, 193 Over/Under
- Indiana Proj. Starters – Hill-Stephenson-George-West-Hibbert
- Brooklyn Proj. Starters – Williams-Johnson-Pierce-Garnett-Blatche
Indiana
The Pacers travel to Brooklyn to take on a very disappointing Nets team who just can’t seem to catch a break. Brook Lopez is now out for the year. That is really going to hurt their interior presence on both ends of the floor and I am targeting both of the bigs of the Pacers in this one. The Nets have a combo of Garnett, Blatche, Teletovic, and Evans to defend these talented Pacers’ bigs. Don’t be afraid to use one or both of them tonight. Additionally, George Hill makes an interesting value play, he can easily top 25 FP’s when he is aggressive offensively.
- Paul George – In addition to the bigs, I really like George tonight. He has a nice matchup and the Nets have been very turnover prone this year. This could be one of those nights where George gets 3 steals and 3 blocks which gives his fantasy total a huge boost. He’s one of my favorite overall plays tonight.
Brooklyn
The Nets have a tough, tough matchup tonight. The Pacers own one of the best defenses in the league and the Nets have been involved in blowouts on a number of occasions this year. I don’t mind the matchup for Deron Williams, but I think he is over-priced considering his recent spike. With Lopez out, you could go the route of Andray Blatche or Mirza Teletovic. I think they both make solid value plays, but they still have a below average matchup.
Atlanta at Miami
- Vegas Line – Miami -8, 205.5 Over/Under
- Atlanta Proj. Starters – Teague-Korver-Carroll-Millsap-Horford
- Miami Proj. Starters – Chalmers-Wade-James-Battier-Bosh
Atlanta
The Hawks travel to Miami to take on the two-time defending champs. This game is teetering on the edge of having blowout potential. When the line is in this range, I like to look at the team that is favored and the Heat have blown out a lot of teams this season. I’m not going to completely avoid this game because of it, but I think it’s worth noting. The Heat rank in the top 10 against every position defensively except for Center and that’s the only position to target here.
- Al Horford – Horford has been one of the best Centers this season from a fantasy production standpoint and he is the only Hawks’ player with a favorable matchup. The Heat are ranked 19th against Center this season and Horford should be able to get some easy buckets and pad his rebound total.
Miami
The Heat are big favorites tonight, but the matchup is a good one. The Hawks are an uptempo team that ranks below average against every position this season except for PF. Since the Heat don’t really have a PF, that doesn’t matter. With a large slate of games tonight, I don’t think I will be paying up for either LeBron James or Dwyane Wade. I don’t mind their matchups, but there are options that I like better. Chris Bosh is worth a look though, he has scored over 35 FP’s in 3 of his last 4 games.