NBA Grind Down: Saturday, November 1st Page Three
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Phoenix at Utah
- Vegas Line – Phoenix -2, 203.5 Over/Under
- Phoenix Proj. Starters – Dragic-Bledsoe-Morris-Morris-Plumlee
- Utah Proj. Starters – Burke-Burks-Hayward-Kanter-Favors
| Phoenix | Utah | |||||||||||
 | Vegas Total | 203 |  | Vegas Total | 203 | |||||||
| Vegas Sprd | -2.0 | Vegas Sprd | 2.0 | |||||||||
| Team Proj. | 102.75 | Team Proj. | 100.75 | |||||||||
| Team Pace | 97.46 | Team Pace | 91.42 | |||||||||
| 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 | Goran Dragic | Eric Bledsoe | Marcus Morris | Markieff Morris | Miles Plumlee | Proj Starter | Trey Burke | Alec Burks | Gordon Hayward | Enes Kanter | Derrick Favors | |
| Opp. Season | 11 | 11 | 23 | 23 | 23 | Opp. Season | 25 | 25 | 21 | 21 | 12 | |
| Opp. Last 7 | 11 | 11 | 23 | 23 | 23 | Opp. Last 7 | 25 | 25 | 21 | 21 | 12 | |
Phoenix
Phoenix is coming off a very nice win at home against the Spurs after having a great second half. Led by Markieff Morris’ 20 points and 11 rebounds, the Suns were able to go to 2-0. Interestingly enough, the rest of the Suns’ starters really struggled last night as Bledsoe went 3-15 and Dragic had only 10 points and 2 assists.
Phoenix is a 2 point favorite in a game that Vegas is expecting to be around 202 points tonight. I expect the Suns to win and their guards to have a much better game tonight.
Prime Plays
Eric Bledsoe – He did not turn out the performance many of us expected last night, but I think we need to go right back to the well. He is underpriced for what he has shown he can do last season with a full compliment of minutes. The game should be high scoring and hopefully enough people will be off of Bledsoe as I think he is in for a great night.
Secondary Plays
Morris Brothers – I am putting them both here as I think you can use them based on how much salary you have left. Markieff should be the more consistent of the two, but Marcus showed us in game one that he can put points up in a hurry as well.
Utah
It has been a rough start for the Jazz as they have had to face the Rockets and the Mavs in their first two games of the season. They have come away with no wins and were crushed by the Mavs in their last time out. They have a lot of good young talent, but with young talent, comes inconsistent play and that is exactly what we have seen from the Jazz early.
Prime Plays
Derrick Favors – The Suns lack a big man and Favors has been a bright spot for the Jazz in the first two games. He should have his way inside against the Morris Twins and I expect a big game out of Favors who is very underpriced (FD).
L.A. Lakers at Golden State
- Vegas Line – Golden State -15, 210 Over/Under
- L.A. Lakers Proj. Starters – Lin-Bryant-Johnson-Boozer-Hill
- Golden State Proj. Starters – Curry-Thompson-Barnes-Green-Bogut
| L.A. Lakers | Golden State | |||||||||||
 | Vegas Total | 210 |  | Vegas Total | 210 | |||||||
| Vegas Sprd | 15.00 | Vegas Sprd | -15.00 | |||||||||
| Team Proj. | 97.5 | Team Proj. | 112.5 | |||||||||
| Team Pace | 97.02 | Team Pace | 104.74 | |||||||||
| 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 | Stephen Curry | Klay Thompson | Harrison Barnes | Draymond Green | Andrew Bogut | |
| Opp. Season | 2 | 2 | 6 | 6 | 4 | Opp. Season | 28 | 28 | 17 | 17 | 2 | |
| Opp. Last 7 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 6 | 4 | Opp. Last 7 | 28 | 28 | 17 | 17 | 2 | |
L.A. Lakers
Poor Kobe. The Lakers look bad and really have no ways to improve in sight. Kobe is trying to carry the team by himself, but the fact that Jeremy Lin and Jordan Hill are the next best players is a major problem. Now they will have a back to back matchup with the Warriors who will most likely stomp them out of the gym as Kobe’s legs will not allow him to carry the team close tonight. The picks in this game have a lot of risk attached to them, especially the Laker’s plays as they may not score a lot and then play limited minutes due to the game being out of hand. Vegas agrees as the Warriors are almost 17 point favorites.
Prime Plays
Kobe Bryant – I think he may be tired for the back to back, but that won’t stop me from throwing him into a gpp lineup as he is going to try to win games on his own. Don’t go crazy with him, but a 35+ point game is not out of the question for Kobe with the cast around him.
Secondary Plays
Jordan Hill – Another GPP only play due to his matchup with Bogut, Hill has been a bright spot for this Lakers squad. He is getting the minutes and doing some damage within those minutes.
Golden State
The Warriors are coming off an easy win against the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday. Their core squad is pretty much the exact same as last year which should be a good thing for Golden State. Curry looked great in the first game and gets a even better matchup today against Lin and the defenseless Lakers. Check the status of Lee prior to game time as he is questionable at the moment.
Prime Plays
Stephen Curry – As mentioned in the writeup, Curry has the best point guard matchup on the board tonight. Last year the Lakers were a bad defensive team and they went out and got a very poor defensive point guard to make them better. Curry could come close to a triple-double if this game does not get out of hand today.
Draymond Green – If David Lee sits again, Green is a great value play on the night.
Secondary Plays
Klay Thompson – A lot has been said about Kobe’s defense already this year as each season passes, he gets a bit slower. I expect the Warriors to score a lot of points and Klay should be able to get a lot of open looks.
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