NBA Grind Down: Sunday, April 13th Page Two
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Minnesota at Sacramento
- Vegas Line – No Lines Set for This Game Yet
- Minnesota Proj. Starters – Rubio-Hummel-Brewer-Love-Dieng
- Sacramento Proj. Starters – McCallum-McLemore-Gay-Evans-Cousins
Minnesota
I’m so confused with the Wolves right now I don’t even know where to start with them. Let’s get the injuries out of the way first. Pekovic and Martin are doubtful, with Love being questionable. Budinger and Muhammed will continue to sit. That means more minutes for Robbie Hummel who has been impressively uninspiring in his increased role of late. It also means more of the Corey Brewer show, and after his 51 point (not fantasy point, real points) explosion on Friday I can’t really make an argument against playing him. But the options here are really entirely different based on Love’s status, so pay close attention to that.
- Corey Brewer – He’s the one guy I’d probably still roster even if Love plays. The 51 points won’t happen again, but he has 19 steals over his last 4 games which is a ton of fantasy goodness.
- Gorgui Dieng – I love Dieng if Love doesn’t play and only like him if he does. He had 20 rebounds on Friday with Love out but that ceiling drops to about 15 or so boards if Love dresses.
Sacramento
The Kings aren’t quitting on their season despite it being over long ago and this game should be fast-paced and high-scoring. I love the whole game for fantasy value, but on the Kings side the matchups are sound pretty much across the board. Isaiah Thomas is expected to sit again tonight, but return in the season finale so this may be the swan song for Ray McCallum.
- Ray McCallum – I’m a sucker for the guy who had one hell of a run in Thomas’ absence and gets one last turn to run the show and play huge minutes. His price is way up but not to a point where his 45 FP upside isn’t useful.
- DeMarcus Cousins – He had a huge 32 and 12 line against the Clips on Saturday, marking his 4th consecutive game with over 50 FP. He’s probably my top play of the day regardless of price.
Memphis at L.A.Lakers
- Vegas Line – No Lines Set for This Game Yet
- Memphis Proj. Starters – Conley-Lee-Prince-Randolph-Gasol
- L.A.Lakers Proj. Starters – Marshall-Meeks-Johnson-Hill-Sacre
Memphis
So Memphis got the 76ers on Friday and the Lakers on Sunday. Hell of an uphill battle for a team still fighting for the 8 seed in the Western Conference. This one could turn ugly fast, but at least it’s in LA so you could see the Memphis starters play in some of the 4th. There’s no need to discuss how bad the Lakers defense is, and the only injury note for Memphis is that Tayshaun Prince is questionable. If Prince sits, James Johnson would likely draw another start.
- Zach Randolph – You know ZBO is going to be all-out against the Lakers frontcourt on Sunday and that should mean big time production. He wasn’t great against the Sixers but somehow the Lakers D and style of play has made Philly look like a defensive juggernaut lately.
- James Johnson – Don’t look now but Johnson has 31, 21 and 21 FP over his last 3 games in bigger minutes. He has always been productive when given enough run and gets a huge boost if Tayshaun sits again on Sunday.
L.A.Lakers
The Lakers should struggle to find space against the suffocating Memphis defense but with the pace they like to push there is always value to be had with LAL. Jordan Hill continues to be an animal when he starts and again topped 40 FP on Friday. Also worth noting is that Nick Young has now taken 15, 19 and 20 shots over the last 3 games. When D’Antoni is letting Swaggy P chuck, his ceiling is through the roof. I don’t love any of their players for cash games tonight but if you can find anyone for a good price you should at least consider it since they’re so short-handed.