NBA Grind Down: Sat, Nov 2
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
Cleveland at Indiana
| Cleveland | Indiana | |||||||||||
 | Vegas Pts | 190.5 |  | Vegas | 190.5 | |||||||
| Spread | -2.5 | Spread | ||||||||||
| Pace | 94.95 | Pace | 92.84 | |||||||||
| Opponent Defense vs. Position | Opponent Defense vs. Position | |||||||||||
| DvP Rks | PG | SG | SF | PF | C | DvP Rks | PG | SG | SF | PF | C | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | 3 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 6 | Season | 28 | 21 | 26 | 26 | 14 | |
| Last10 | 2 | 18 | 27 | 3 | 5 | Last10 | 19 | 15 | 20 | 21 | 12 | |
| Irving-Waiters-Clark-Thompson-Varejao | Hill-Stephenson-George-West-Hibbert | |||||||||||
Cleveland
The Cavs take on the Pacers tonight and if you take a quick look at the Pacers defensive rankings, you will quickly see that they are one of the best defenses in the league. Not only do they have solid defenders at every position, but they play at a slow pace which really hurts the fantasy value of their opponents. With Kyrie Irving losing production to Jarrett Jack and considering the bad matchup, I’m avoiding all Cavs tonight.
Indiana
The Pacers are off to a hot start this season, even if they have only beaten the Magic and the Pelicans. They have a nice match-up against the Cavs tonight who have given up big games to PG’s, SF’s, and PF’s this season. Looking a little further into the matchup, I expect the Cavs defensive rankings against big men to get better, both Varejao and Thompson are good defenders.
Players to Target
- Paul George – George is off to a great start this season averaging 28 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists per game. He’s one of the few players in the league that is just as likely to get 5 blocks and steals as he is to get 20 points. He fills up the stat sheet and has a favorable matchup against the Cavs.
Chicago at Philadelphia
| Chicago | Philadelphia | |||||||||||
 | Vegas Pts |  | Vegas | |||||||||
| Spread | Spread | 9.5 | ||||||||||
| Pace | 91.97 | Pace | 93.31 | |||||||||
| Opponent Defense vs. Position | Opponent Defense vs. Position | |||||||||||
| DvP Rks | PG | SG | SF | PF | C | DvP Rks | PG | SG | SF | PF | C | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | 21 | 6 | 16 | 13 | 23 | Season | 7 | 3 | 12 | 4 | 21 | |
| Last10 | 12 | 13 | 13 | 30 | 2 | Last10 | 5 | 22 | 21 | 1 | 30 | |
| Rose-Butler-Deng-Boozer-Noah | Carter-Williams-Anderson-Turner-Young-Hawes | |||||||||||
Chicago
Derrick Rose has gotten off to a rocky start. It’s not at all surprising considering the fact that he didn’t play a single game last season, but his 28% shooting from the floor makes me want to give him a few more games before targeting him. Luol Deng has a tough matchup with Evan Turner and Carlos Boozer has a tough matchup with Thaddeus Young.
Players to Target
- Jimmy Butler – Butler has played great in the Bulls first two games and is still very affordable on sites across the board. He may not be a popular name yet, but he will quickly become a big name by any serious DFS player. He has great defense, a nice 3-point shot, and can attack the rim.
- Joakim Noah – The Sixers struggled against opposing Centers last season and are already ranked 23rd against opposing Centers this season. And there is one common denominator: Spencer Hawes. While Hawes has a good offensive game, he is very slow and not a great defender. Noah received a full complement of minutes so don’t worry about any restrictions with him.
Philadelphia
The Sixers are 2-0 after a very nice comeback win against the Wizards. The main story from the Sixers this season has been Michael Carter-Williams or MCW as I will refer to him (much easier to type). MCW is a spark plug, but he’s a young rookie with no experience. He is going to have some inconsistencies this season, but he’s going to be in play every night if the price is right.
Players to Target
- Thaddeus Young – The worst defender on the Bulls starting five has to be Carlos Boozer. Thaddeus is a dominant big man in the post, the Sixers just need to do a better job of getting him the ball. The Sixers are playing at a much faster pace this season and Young has shown that he can run the floor and finish at the rim.
Charlotte at New Orleans
| Charlotte | New Orleans | |||||||||||
 | Vegas Pts | 190.5 |  | Vegas | 190.5 | |||||||
| Spread | 2.5 | Spread | -4.0 | |||||||||
| Pace | 94.03 | Pace | 90.86 | |||||||||
| Opponent Defense vs. Position | Opponent Defense vs. Position | |||||||||||
| DvP Rks | PG | SG | SF | PF | C | DvP Rks | PG | SG | SF | PF | C | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | 15 | 17 | 24 | 11 | 17 | Season | 19 | 29 | 30 | 30 | 24 | |
| Last10 | 26 | 5 | 18 | 28 | 10 | Last10 | 11 | 24 | 12 | 5 | 21 | |
| Walker-Henderson-Kidd-Gilchrist-McRoberts-Jefferson | Holiday-Gordon-Evans-Davis-Smith | |||||||||||
Charlotte
The Bobcats are coming off of their first win of the season, they really played well last night against the Cavs. But young teams tend to play much better at home than they do on the road so I think they should have a hard time keeping up that same energy tonight against the Pelicans. Keep your eye out for an update on Al Jefferson, if he is out again, get Josh McRoberts in your lineup. While he didn’t have a huge game last night, he is a nice passing big that can spread the floor.
Players to Target
- Michael Kidd-Gilchrist – We now have an MKG and an MCW. Confusing I know. MKG has a nice matchup tonight and his bread and butter is being a great hustle player. He doesn’t depend on his offensive game for his fantasy points, but he can break out with a nice offensive production night every so often.
New Orleans
With the Pelicans this season, it’s all about two names: The BROW aka Anthony Davis and Jrue Holiday. With Holiday at the point, the Pelicans are playing with a much quicker tempo this season. That’s not only good for the players on the Pelicans, but keep that in mind going forward for their opponents. I think Jrue will focus his energy on the defensive side of the floor guarding Kemba, so I’m looking at the BROW to have a big game.
Players to Target
- Anthony Davis – Davis is averaging 23 points, 14 rebounds, and 3 blocks per game this season. This is going to be his breakout year and the fact that he has played an average of 38 minutes per game this year is one of the most promising stats. Last season, he had a tough time breaking 25 minutes per game. Keep playing him as a top fantasy option.
Memphis at Dallas
| Memphis | Dallas | |||||||||||
 | Vegas Pts | 188.0 |  | Vegas | 188.0 | |||||||
| Spread | -7.5 | Spread | ||||||||||
| Pace | 91.15 | Pace | 96.25 | |||||||||
| Opponent Defense vs. Position | Opponent Defense vs. Position | |||||||||||
| DvP Rks | PG | SG | SF | PF | C | DvP Rks | PG | SG | SF | PF | C | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | 13 | 30 | 23 | 22 | 18 | Season | 6 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 1 | |
| Last10 | 13 | 29 | 19 | 13 | 14 | Last10 | 16 | 6 | 25 | 9 | 4 | |
| Conley-Allen-Pondexter-Randolph-Gasol | Calderon-Ellis-Marion-Nowitzki-Dalembert | |||||||||||
Memphis
The Grizzlies and the Mavericks both are in a back to back situation. The Grizzlies are a tough team to predict from a fantasy perspective because they are one of the lowest scoring teams in the league and they have so many options offensively that it’s hard to predict how they will perform each night. However, if you look at the individual matchups, there is one player that really sticks out.
Players to Target
- Zach Randolph – Z-Bo should be licking his chops with this matchup tonight against Dirk Nowitzki. While he will have a tough time guarding Dirk on the perimeter, Dirk will have an even tougher time guarding Z-Bo underneath. I think we could see him turn back the clock and put up a 20 and 10 game.
Dallas
Through two games, the Mavericks have really picked up their pace of play. They are averaging 96 possessions per 48 minutes which is a pretty uptempo offense. The addition of Monta Ellis and his style of play often does that to a team’s pace. The problem with the Mavericks is their matchup tonight. The Grizzlies have a top 3 defense and are good at defending every single position. Avoid any Mavericks players not named Dirk Nowitzki and make sure to steer clear of Monta Eliis unless you are taking a shot on him in a GPP. Tony Allen is one of the best on ball defenders in the NBA.
Toronto at Milwaukee
| Toronto | Milwaukee | |||||||||||
 | Vegas Pts | 195.5 |  | Vegas | 195.5 | |||||||
| Spread | 3.0 | Spread | 2.0 | |||||||||
| Pace | 92.94 | Pace | 97.32 | |||||||||
| Opponent Defense vs. Position | Opponent Defense vs. Position | |||||||||||
| DvP Rks | PG | SG | SF | PF | C | DvP Rks | PG | SG | SF | PF | C | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | 10 | 15 | 22 | 16 | 30 | Season | 9 | 25 | 2 | 18 | 16 | |
| Last10 | 6 | 17 | 30 | 7 | 28 | Last10 | 14 | 12 | 6 | 11 | 15 | |
| Lowry-DeRozan-Gay-Johnson-Valanciunas | Knight-Mayo-Butler-Ilyasova-Sanders | |||||||||||
Toronto
This should be a sneaky game for fantasy production. Vegas has the total set at 195 and the line is only 3. It should be a close, high scoring game. The Bucks have been the worst team in the league so far against opposing Centers so look for Jonas Valanciunas to put up some good numbers.
Players to Target
- Rudy Gay – Gay is averaging 16 points and 6 rebounds this season. Not enough for him to pay off his price the first two games, but I expect those numbers to increase as the season goes on and I love the matchup for him tonight. He will be locked up with O.J. Mayo who seems to take a break anytime the Bucks are on defense. Look for Gay to get going in this one, I think he can top the 35 fantasy point mark.
Milwaukee
The Bucks are going to be awful this season. Their two best players Larry Sanders and Ersan Ilyasova have gotten off to terrible starts and the team just can’t get any rhythm on offense. I think O.J. Mayo will put up a lot of shots tonight and could make a decent play, but don’t take him on any sites that negate for missed shots.
Players to Target
- Gary Neal – This pick hinges on the health of Brandon Knight. If Knight is out again, then use Neal just like you did last night. He would fill in as the starting PG and make a nice play against Lowry and the Raptors. He is a great scorer and should get some open looks.