NBA Grind Down: Sunday, December 14th
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 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
Golden State at New Orleans
- Vegas Line – Golden State -5.5, 206 Over/Under
- Golden State Proj. Starters – Curry-Thompson-Barnes-Green-Ezeli
- New Orleans Proj. Starters – Holiday-Evans-Babbitt-Davis-Asik
| Golden State | New Orleans | |||||||||||
 | Vegas Total | 206 |  | Vegas Total | 206 | |||||||
| Vegas Sprd | -5.5 | Vegas Sprd | 5.5 | |||||||||
| Team Proj. | 105.8 | Team Proj. | 100.3 | |||||||||
| Team Pace | 100.30 | Team Pace | 94.71 | |||||||||
| 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 | Stephen Curry | Klay Thompson | Harrison Barnes | Draymond Green | Festus Ezeli | Proj Starter | Jrue Holiday | Tyreke Evans | Luke Babbitt | Anthony Davis | Omer Asik | |
| Opp. Season | 17 | 7 | 30 | 10 | 13 | Opp. Season | 21 | 26 | 10 | 23 | 1 | |
| Opp. Last 7 | 6 | 17 | 25 | 20 | 1 | Opp. Last 7 | 7 | 25 | 29 | 10 | 5 | |
Golden State
Golden State is arguably the best team in the league and as long as that back court can stay healthy, could do some big things this year. This game on paper looked like it could have been a real fun one to watch, but may not showcase all the studs possible. The total has come down 7 points already to 207 and the Warriors are 5’ point favorites.
Elite Plays
Stephen Curry – The Hornets are just middle of the road at defending the point guard position and Curry really can’t be defended by anyone this year. He is coming off one of his signature 29 point, 8 assist games and should put up similar numbers tonight.
Klay Thompson – There are a few decent SG plays today, but Klay comes at a bit of a discount. He has shown a lot of consistency this year. In his last 6 games he has been under 33 points only once and has been over 37 four times.
Secondary Plays
Draymond Green – Green did not want to get lost in the shuffle and he has not. He is playing great basketball recently and the injuries to the front court of the Warriors just ensures a full compliment of minutes today.
New Orleans
When I first saw this game on the slate a few days ago, I was pretty excited for the write up. It is pretty disappointing if Davis does not play and at the time I am writing this, he is questionable to play. I can see them keeping him out of this game for precautionary reasons which does open up some value plays tonight.
Elite Plays
Ryan Anderson – If Davis is out, the guy who benefits most is likely Anderson. He is coming off a monster performance on Friday where he put up 30 points in 41 minutes.
Tyreke Evans – The other huge beneficiary of a Davis injury would be Evans. He will be relied upon to carry more offensive load and he has shown the capabilities this year. Although Klay Thompson is a good defender, the Warriors are ranked 27th against the shooting guard position this year.
Secondary Plays
Jrue Holiday – I wanted to write up Holiday here as well as I think he is a decent mid-level play today. I will be most likely trying to get the high priced PGs due to the value other places, but I think he could have a decent game against Curry’s defense.
Chicago at Miami
- Vegas Line – Chicago -4, 196 Over/Under
- Chicago Proj. Starters – Rose-Butler-Dunleavy-Gasol-Gibson
- Miami Proj. Starters – Cole-Wade-Deng-Williams-Bosh
| Chicago | Miami | |||||||||||
 | Vegas Total | 196 |  | Vegas Total | 196 | |||||||
| Vegas Sprd | -4.0 | Vegas Sprd | 4.0 | |||||||||
| Team Proj. | 100.0 | Team Proj. | 96.0 | |||||||||
| Team Pace | 96.14 | Team Pace | 91.50 | |||||||||
| 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 | Derrick Rose | Jimmy Butler | Mike Dunleavy | Pau Gasol | Taj Gibson | Proj Starter | Norris Cole | Dwyane Wade | Luol Deng | Shawne Williams | Chris Bosh | |
| Opp. Season | 15 | 30 | 6 | 1 | 28 | Opp. Season | 27 | 4 | 25 | 7 | 22 | |
| Opp. Last 7 | 11 | 18 | 3 | 16 | 22 | Opp. Last 7 | 26 | 1 | 1 | 25 | 8 | |
Chicago
The Bulls just continue to win games and now it looks like Derrick Rose may be starting to feel comfortable taking over games. The Bulls are always hit by the injury bug and tonight is no different. It looks like Joakim Noah may sit again which opens up one of our favorite PF plays in Taj. The Bulls are small -4 point favorites with a total of 194.
Elite Plays
Taj Gibson – You know the drill by now, if a big man is out, the Bulls just have another step up. Taj is a great cash game play today.
Pau Gasol – If you find your value in other forms, Gasol is continued to be one of the top PF plays of the year. The absence of Noah would guarantee the minutes, but it does not seem as if Gasol needs it. He seems to have almost a 40 point floor at this point and should bounce back from the 30 point performance last game.
Secondary Plays
Derrick Rose – A buy low play, especially in certain places, as he looks to be attacking more and more each game.
Miami
Miami is coming off a decent win against an injured and bad Jazz squad. They will have a much tougher time tonight as the Bulls come into town. Noah’s injury allows for Bosh to become a bit of a better play, but not a whole lot as Taj and Nikola have provided great defense off the bench. They will all get a tough time on the offensive end tonight as the Bulls are one of the best defensive teams in the NBA.
Elite Plays
Luol Deng – The revenge game for Deng is tonight and is coming at a great time as he has put up some decent performances lately. Couple that together with the fact that Dunleavy is the worst defender on the Bulls starting line and you have a decent play.
Secondary Plays
Chris Bosh – If the Heat are going to stay in this game, it will need to have a big game from Bosh tonight. I am not sure if it will happen so I would not trust him in cash games with his price tag, but he has had some very big performances this year.
Utah at Washington
- Vegas Line – Washington -11, 195 Over/Under
- Utah Proj. Starters – Burke-Burks-Hayward-Kanter-Gobert
- Washington Proj. Starters – Wall-Beal-Pierce-Humphries-Gortat
| Utah | Washington | |||||||||||
 | Vegas Total | 195 |  | Vegas Total | 195 | |||||||
| Vegas Sprd | 11.0 | Vegas Sprd | -11.0 | |||||||||
| Team Proj. | 92.0 | Team Proj. | 103.0 | |||||||||
| Team Pace | 92.75 | Team Pace | 96.00 | |||||||||
| 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 | Trey Burke | Alec Burks | Gordon Hayward | Enes Kanter | Rudy Gobert | Proj Starter | John Wall | Brad Beal | Paul Pierce | Kris Humphries | Marcin Gortat | |
| Opp. Season | 3 | 3 | 23 | 2 | 8 | Opp. Season | 16 | 8 | 15 | 28 | 2 | |
| Opp. Last 7 | 19 | 9 | 23 | 3 | 25 | Opp. Last 7 | 3 | 23 | 20 | 24 | 11 | |
Utah
Utah comes into this game against the surging Wizards with a record of 6-17. They are huge underdogs today and will be even bigger ones if news comes out that Derrick Favos is sitting this one out. If Favors does sit, it will open up a bit of value on this team, but if he plays, the Jazz are projected to score the least amount of points on the slate.
Elite Plays
Rudy Gobert – IF Favors does not play, Gobert makes a nice value play. Gobert stepped up on Friday with 9 points, 11 rebounds and 5 blocks in only 28 minutes. He would get at least 28 minutes again if Favors is out.
Secondary Plays
Enes Kanter – He has been playing well as of late and had a season high 37 minutes of Friday with the Favors injury. He gets a bit of a value bump if Favors is out as well.
Washington
The Wizards are coming off their biggest win of the season against the Clippers and now get a cake matchup with the Jazz. The Wizards are 11 point favorites making them the most likely candidate for the blowout tonight. This takes a little value off of Wall, especially with his high price.
Elite Plays
Bradley Beal – He is still cheaper than I think he will be in a few weeks and he is getting all the minutes he can handle now. He has had 34+ minutes in the last 4 games and is coming off his best performance of the season. This may be the last few times to buy low on him.
Secondary Plays
John Wall – He has been amazing this year and is always a top play candidate. The problem today is, tonight, I would rather pay up for Curry or Westbrook if I was buying high. Also, I do believe that if Beal is playing well, he is going to steal some shots and opportunities away from Wall. He could still put up a monster game, but is in the secondary section due to these problems.
L.A. Lakers at Minnesota
- Vegas Line – L.A. Lakers -3, 212.5 Over/Under
- L.A. Lakers Proj. Starters – Price-Bryant-Johnson-Davis-Hill
- Minnesota Proj. Starters – laVine-Brewer-Wiggins-Young-Dieng
| L.A. Lakers | Minnesota | |||||||||||
 | Vegas Total | 212 |  | Vegas Total | 212 | |||||||
| Vegas Sprd | -3.0 | Vegas Sprd | 3.0 | |||||||||
| Team Proj. | 107.8 | Team Proj. | 104.8 | |||||||||
| Team Pace | 97.64 | Team Pace | 98.94 | |||||||||
| 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 | Ronnie Price | Kobe Bryant | Wesley Johnson | Ed Davis | Jordan Hill | Proj Starter | Zach laVine | Corey Brewer | Andrew Wiggins | Thaddeus Young | Gorgui Dieng | |
| Opp. Season | 20 | 28 | 27 | 22 | 12 | Opp. Season | 30 | 11 | 20 | 27 | 19 | |
| Opp. Last 7 | 30 | 6 | 28 | 2 | 19 | Opp. Last 7 | 16 | 10 | 10 | 30 | 2 | |
L.A. Lakers
The Lakers are coming of a big win for the team this year as they have been tough to come by. Swaggy P thinks he is good again which means we could jump on a buy-low gpp play today as if his confidence is high, that means he will shoot more than ever. This is a perfect set-up to play some Lakers as they take on another bad team in the TWolves. This game has the highest total of the day at 213 and the Lakers are small 3 point favorites.
Elite Plays
Kobe Bryant – The Lakers are actually road favorites in the highest total game of the evening. Couple this with the fact that Minnesota is the 29th worst team against the shooting guard position and Bryant makes a high ceiling play today.
Secondary Plays
Nick Young – A GPP play for Young could be perfect for today as he is cheap and will be launching up shots.
Minnesota
Minnesota has been hit by the injury bug as well and a few different guys have stepped up in their absences. The Lakers have a lot of wholes in their defense and on paper this should be a real high scoring, fast-paced game.
Elite Plays
Zach LaVine – If you want to look for value and the point guard position, it looks like Mo may miss another game. Make sure to check the news as he has a questionable tag at the moment, but LaVine would have one of the best PG matchups on the board.
Corey Brewer – Brewer’s price has seemed to be at a point where he can easily hit value each and every night with the minutes he is getting. He makes for one of my favorite SF plays of the night factoring in price and matchup.
Secondary Plays
None
Phoenix at Oklahoma City
- Vegas Line – Oklahoma City -6.5, 209.5 Over/Under
- Phoenix Proj. Starters – Dragic-Bledsoe-Tucker-Morris-Plumlee
- Oklahoma City Proj. Starters – Westbrook-Roberson-Garnett-Ibaka-Adams
| Phoenix | Oklahoma City | |||||||||||
 | Vegas Total | 209 |  | Vegas Total | 209 | |||||||
| Vegas Sprd | 6.5 | Vegas Sprd | -6.5 | |||||||||
| Team Proj. | 101.5 | Team Proj. | 108.0 | |||||||||
| Team Pace | 98.88 | Team Pace | 94.65 | |||||||||
| 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 | P.J. Tucker | Markieff Morris | Miles Plumlee | Proj Starter | Russell Westbrook | Andre Roberson | Kevin Garnett | Serge Ibaka | Steven Adams | |
| Opp. Season | 8 | 13 | 5 | 9 | 17 | Opp. Season | 11 | 22 | 4 | 16 | 25 | |
| Opp. Last 7 | 2 | 26 | 15 | 13 | 14 | Opp. Last 7 | 9 | 13 | 14 | 22 | 29 | |
Phoenix
Phoenix has struggled a lot recently and have lost 4 in a row. It may be tough to avoid their 5 straight loss and Westbrook is playing out of his mind right now. The return of the Thomas may take a bit of value from Dragic and Bledsoe and they are priced up from the time he was out which makes it difficult to play them. The game should be up and down as the total is 209. Even though the total is so high, I really do not like a lot of the Suns as they have been struggling so much as of late.
Elite Plays
None
Secondary Plays
Goran Dragic – Dragic’s price has not gone up as much as Bledsoe’s. Again, it may be hard to pay for a mid-priced point guard tonight, but I think he should be safe for cash games.
Oklahoma City
It is no surprise that the return of Durant and Westbrook has really put a spark into this Thunder squad. What I am a bit surprised about is the continued minutes limit on Durant. The limit basically takes him out of consideration as he is priced at an elite level. The Thunder are decent sized favorites tonight and should put up a nice number.
Elite Plays
Russell Westbrook – I am going to try to do everything to get this guy in my cash and GPP lineups tonight. The value across the board should allow it as he has been on a complete heater since coming back. He has scored over 41 in his last 5 games and should continue it again in a great matchup against the Suns.
Secondary Plays
None