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NBA Grind Down: Saturday & Sunday, May 2nd & 3rd

by Emac (emac) Last Updated 2015-05-05 23:05:24

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: Fantasy point averages listed use FanDuel scoring. For more info on FanDuel’s NBA scoring system, check out the scoring systems section of our FanDuel review.

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San Antonio at L.A. Clippers – 8:00 PM ET

San Antonio L.A. Clippers
sanantonionba Vegas Total 204 laclippersnba Vegas Total 204
Vegas Sprd 2.5 Vegas Sprd -2.5
Team Proj. 100.8 Team Proj. 103.3
Team Pace 97.38 Team Pace 97.38
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 Tony Parker Danny Green Kawhi Leonard Tim Duncan Tiago Splitter Proj Starter Chris Paul JJ Redick Matt Barnes Blake Griffin DeAndre Jordan
Opp. Season 2 16 28 18 7 Opp. Season 13 1 1 24 14
Opp. Last 7 Opp. Last 7 15 1 3 16 12

San Antonio

Well, this one is indeed for all of the marbles and should be one heck of a game to watch… well for those of you who will not be tuning into see Professors Pacquiao and Mayweather conduct a class in the Sweet Science of Pugilism.

Las Vegas has the home team Clippers favored against the defending champion Spurs by a single bucket. The chessmatch between Doc Gooden and Coach Pop should be one to behold tonight. We have seen a variety of Spurs try their hand at guarding Chris Paul, but nobody has been able to effectively cancel The Blake Show.

Opponent Breakdown (L.A. Clippers)
Points Allowed Per Game: 100.1 (Rank: 16)
Defensive Efficiency Rank: 15
Rebounding Differential Rank: 16

Elite Plays

Boris Diaw (FD: $5200, DK: $5300 / MPG: 24 / Usage Rate: 18.1)

My boy Boris continues to be one of the better values in the playoffs because he is locked into his 22-25 minutes per game. That cannot be said for most other players at his price point. With just two games to choose from on DraftKings, he is a key part of my strategy for this game set. On FanDuel, there are other ways to go, however, I have him on about 50% of my lineups there.

Tim Duncan (FD: $8000, DK: $8200 / MPG: 29 / Usage Rate: 22.4)

Old man value is boring, but the fantasy points count just the same as the flashy plays. This one is win or go home, so there will be no minutes cap for Timmy or any of the veteran Spurs as they posse up for one last hurrah.

Kawhi Leonard (FD: $8700, DK: $8600 / MPG: 32 / Usage Rate: 23)

With the dearth of other options, it is going to be very hard to not take Kawhi today, if only for the block. He has not been worthy of his salary in this series, however, he is still the top SF on the board.

Secondary Plays

Manu Ginobili (FD: $3900, DK: $4500 / MPG: 23 / Usage Rate: 23.6)

Tony Parker (FD: $3900, DK: $5200 / MPG: 28 / Usage Rate: 24.0)

Patrick Mills (FD: $3900, DK: $3000 / MPG: 16/ Usage Rate: 21.4)

Marco Belinelli (FD: $3900, DK: $2900 / MPG: 21 / Usage Rate: 17.9)

L.A. Clippers

With the slightest of edges going to the home team, this one is too close to call in my opinion. Personally I am pulling for the Spurs, but I am counting on the Clippers for a more potent fantasy night lead by Blake Griffin. The Clippers should be riding high after the big Game 6 victory in San Antonio… can they keep Lady Luck by their side?

Opponent Breakdown (San Antonio)
Points Allowed Per Game: 96.9 (Rank: 3)
Defensive Efficiency Rank: 3
Rebounding Differential Rank: 9

Elite Plays

Blake Griffin (FD: $10500, DK: $10200 / MPG: 35 / Usage Rate: 28.1)

The Blake Show is the best option in this game set, bar none. He continually is flirting with 60 fantasy points and to use a baseball comparison, not using him on this short slate is like fading Troy Tulowitzki, in Coors Field against a rookie southpaw. Capiche?

Chris Paul (FD: $11000, DK: $10000 / MPG: 35 / Usage Rate: 23.6)

My biggest fear today is that I am not using CP3 nearly enough. I have been doing everything I can to go with Blake Griffin and Tim Duncan… then adding in Kawhi and rounding things off with a cheap Spurs’ SG and one of the Memphis discount PGs.

Paul is always a force to be reckoned with when the game season is on the line… however, he has averaged 21.1 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 8.9 apg and 1.7 spg which is great, but not when you factor in his price and the cost of missing out on Blake.

Secondary Plays

DeAndre Jordan (FD: $8900, DK: $8000 / MPG: 34 / Usage Rate: 13.4)

Washington at Atlanta – 1:00 PM ET

Washington Atlanta
washingtonnba Vegas Total atlantanba Vegas Total
Vegas Sprd Vegas Sprd
Team Proj. Team Proj.
Team Pace 96.92 Team Pace 95.35
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 John Wall Bradley Beal Paul Pierce Nene Hilario Marcin Gortat Proj Starter Jeff Teague Kyle Korver DeMarre Carroll Paul Millsap Al Horford
Opp. Season 16 12 10 12 11 Opp. Season 11 5 4 3 3
Opp. Last 7 12 6 7 7 6 Opp. Last 7 8 2 16 2 16

Washington

Please Note: This game is currently not included in the DraftKings game set.

The Wizards have had six days off, which should do wonders for their banged-up veteran core. John Wall was electric in the Toronto series as he willed the unimaginative Randy Wittman offensive (and I mean that it offends me) juggernaut to a first round sweep.

There will be no brooms for Washington in this series, but they are poised to steal a game if they come into Atlanta focused tomorrow and ready to catch the weary Hawks off guard.

Opponent Breakdown (Atlanta)
Points Allowed Per Game: 97.1 (Rank: 5)
Defensive Efficiency Rank: 7
Rebounding Differential Rank: 27

Elite Plays

John Wall (FD: $8900 / MPG: 35 / Usage Rate: 27.9)

Wall is an outstanding play and he should be nice and rested after getting the last six days off to heal up. He was tremendous in the series against Toronto and we should see more of the same against the Hawks on Sunday.

Nene Hilario (FD: $4500 / MPG: 26 / Usage Rate: 20.1)

Another player who should benefit from resting up, Hilario’s value at $4500 is what gets him the bump into the elite tier for this game set. On FanDuel, we have to roster two power forwards, and going with Hilario unlocks so many options at the other positions. He should be able to flirt with a double-double against the Hawks’ frontcourt Sunday.

Marcin Gortat (FD: $7300 / MPG: 30 / Usage Rate: 17.4)

As we saw in the Toronto series, the Wizards are not afraid to lean on Gortat as their secondary offensive option. In the last three game of the series, he posted 44.7, 52.1, and 34.1 FanDuel points. A 40-burger is definitely on the menu Sunday.

Secondary Plays

Bradley Beal (FD: $6800 / MPG: 33 / Usage Rate: 21.1)

Atlanta

Well, that escalated quickly. Unfortunately they had to play extra games against the Brooklyn Nets, however, their 41-point third quarter outburst on Friday night should serve as a reminder that these are not your fathers’s Atlanta Hawks. While the tough Washington defense keeps any of the Hawks from being must plays, their starting five and uber sixth man Dennis Schroder are all definitely key cogs in any fantasy roster for this game set.

Opponent Breakdown (Washington)
Points Allowed Per Game: 97.8 (Rank: 9)
Defensive Efficiency Rank: 5
Rebounding Differential Rank: 3

Elite Plays

None, the Wizards have a tough defense and they have been resting for several days after sweeping the Toronto Raptors while the Hawks had to play two extra games against the Nets.

Secondary Plays

Jeff Teague (FD: $6500 / MPG: 30 / Usage Rate: 26.1)

Paul Millsap (FD: $8500 / MPG: 33 / Usage Rate: 21.5)

Al Horford (FD: $7100 / MPG: 30 / Usage Rate: 21.1)

Kyle Korver (FD: $5600 / MPG: 33 / Usage Rate: 14.2)

DeMarre Carroll (FD: $6100 / MPG: 31 / Usage Rate: 15.7)

Memphis at Golden State – 3:30 PM ET

Memphis Golden State
memphisnba Vegas Total 197 goldenstatenba Vegas Total 197
Vegas Sprd 10.0 Vegas Sprd -10.0
Team Proj. 93.5 Team Proj. 103.5
Team Pace 94.74 Team Pace 94.64
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 Nick Calathes Courtney Lee Tony Allen Zach Randolph Marc Gasol Proj Starter Stephen Curry Klay Thompson Harrison Barnes Draymond Green Andrew Bogut
Opp. Season 6 6 13 22 16 Opp. Season 7 7 7 4 2
Opp. Last 7 1 15 1 14 4 Opp. Last 7 11 5 6 9 3

Memphis

It will be interesting to see how the Grizzlies decide to attack the Warriors. Conventional thinking would have them utilizing their double post offense with Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph alternating looks on the low block… however, with Golden State countering with Andrew Bogut and DPOY runner-up Draymond Green, that plan seems doomed almost from the start. This will likely push the game back out to the perimeter, so do not be afraid of utilizing Courtney Lee, who will be overlooked by most gamers.

While the Grizzlies are not likely to be swept, it is hard to envision them winning more than one game in this series… unless they get hot from outside.

Opponent Breakdown (Golden State)
Points Allowed Per Game: 99.9 (Rank: 15)
Defensive Efficiency Rank: 1
Rebounding Differential Rank: 12

Elite Plays

None, this is too tough of a matchup to consider Marc Gasol an elite option. If Mike Conley is out once again, look to Nick Calathes, Courtney Lee and Beno Udrih as fine discount options.

Secondary Plays

Marc Gasol (FD: $8400, DK: $9000 / MPG: 32 / Usage Rate: 24.1)

Golden State

The Warriors are double-digit favorites in Game 1 and should be able to handle Memphis in five this series. They have been off for a week, so with that kind of time for the Splash Brothers to hone their shots, I will pity the Grizzlies fans come Sunday. The Memphis backcourt is no match for Curry and Thompson and they should be able to really spread things out for their BIGs to find some space in the paint.

Opponent Breakdown (Memphis)
Points Allowed Per Game: 95.1 (Rank: 2)
Defensive Efficiency Rank: 4
Rebounding Differential Rank: 13

Elite Plays

Stephen Curry (FD: $10300, DK: $10800 / MPG: 32 / Usage Rate: 30.0)

With a week off between games, the Warriors should be fresh and ready to go. In three games against the Grizzlies this season, Curry posted 24.0 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 8.0 apg, 2.7 spg and 4 treys per contest. Even if Mike Conley does play in Game 1, Memphis does not have anyone that can contain Curry.

Secondary Plays

Draymond Green (FD: $8200, DK: $8400 / MPG: 32 / Usage Rate: 17.9)

Klay Thompson (FD: $7400, DK: $7600 / MPG: 32 / Usage Rate: 28.1)

About the Author

emac
Emac (emac)

Emac won the 2007 Fantasy Baseball grand prize (trip for two to the MLB All-Star game) in the Roto format on ESPN. He won again in 2008, this time in the H2H format. You can check out his ESPN Fantasy Experience here. Emac finished in the top ten for the DraftKings inaugural $1,000,000 Chase for the Crown promotion and also won the first ever MLB King’s Crown ($5k top prize) on DailyJoust.