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NBA Grind Down: Sunday, December 6th

by Ryan138 Last Updated 2015-12-08 16:03:33

Welcome to the RotoGrinders NBA Grind Down. In this all-encompassing preview of today’s NBA action, every game will be broken down statistically, with several key elements highlighted in our charts.

Vegas lines are broken down to show projected team totals, to give you an idea of who is favored to win, and often more importantly, how many points they’re expected to score. We also provide pace numbers, so you can spot a game that might have a few extra possessions and more opportunities for fantasy points.

We also provide position-by-position matchup rankings for every team, to give you an idea of the players who will be in better situations to succeed. Using Defense versus Position data, every projected starter is listed along with his opponent’s rank in points allowed to players of his position. These color-coded charts will help you spot the best matchups of the night at a glance.

Every game is also broken down by our NBA experts, providing an overview of the game and a selection of players to consider from each contest.

Note: As always, if you want to try a new DFS site, be sure to click through a RotoGrinders link and use our DraftKings promo code and FanDuel promo code to receive the best perks in the industry.

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Phoenix at Memphis – 03:30 PM

Phoenix Memphis
phoenixnba Vegas Total 204 memphisnba Vegas Total 204
Vegas Sprd 5.5 Vegas Sprd -5.5
Team Proj. 99.3 Team Proj. 104.8
Team Pace 102.26 Team Pace 97.01
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 Eric Bledsoe Brandon Knight P.J. Tucker Markieff Morris Alex Len Proj Starter Mike Conley Tony Allen Jeff Green Zach Randolph Marc Gasol
Opp. Season 18 11 20 24 6 Opp. Season 27 23 26 6 5
Opp. Last 7 18 11 28 18 19 Opp. Season 25 23 20 4 5

Phoenix (Record: 8-12, Away 3-7)

Memphis Grizzlies Defense
Points Allowed Per Game: 99.7 (12 of 30)
Defensive Efficiency: 102.6 (21 of 30)
Rebounding Differential: -1.9 (20 of 30)
Fantasy Points Allowed Per Game: 194.9 (13 of 30)

Memphis has not been the defensively stout team that we have been used to over the last few years. They are out of the top ten in the league in points/fantasy points allowed as well as defensive efficiency and rebounding differential. This is a pace down game for the Suns, yet this game does have a high 204 total with the Suns having just a 99.8 team total. Tyson Chandler has missed the last four games and Markieff Morris came back off the bench to play 28 minutes on Friday. Alex Len has done nothing as a starter since he has only been allowed 15 minutes in each of the last two. He is too risky of an option against Marc Gasol today. Jon Leuer received another start on Friday and played 23 minutes while putting up only 16 fantasy points. He is also a risky option. Brandon Knight and Eric Bledsoe have been carrying this offense recently and are the two guys guaranteed a full complement of minutes in this game. Both are great options as the Grizzlies have struggled defensively against the guard positions so far this year.

Elite Plays

Brandon Knight
FD: $7,900 — PG
DK: $7,800 — PG
Usage: 26.3

Eric Bledsoe
FD: $8,800 — SG
DK: $8,300 — SG
Usage: 27.6

Secondary Plays

None

Memphis (Record: 11-9, Home 6-4)

Phoenix Suns Defense
Points Allowed Per Game: 105.8 (27 of 30)
Defensive Efficiency: 103.6 (24 of 30)
Rebounding Differential: 1.1 (12 of 30)
Fantasy Points Allowed Per Game: 201.0 (19 of 30)

This will be a nice pace up game for the Memphis Grizzlies as the Suns play at a 102.2 pace and are allowing over 105 points per game. The Grizzlies have a very high 104.8 team total, which puts a number of the Grizzlies into play today.

Marc Gasol is in a great spot against this Suns team, especially if Tyson Chandler continues to sit. He should have his way inside and is a great play in all formats. Conley is a good spot for a cheap a mid-level price as the Suns are a middle of the league defensive team against the point guard position. Lastly, Jeff Green is a solid, cheap small forward in this matchup that should allow him a number of extra shots in order to meet or exceed value.

Elite Plays

Marc Gasol
FD: $8,100 — C
DK: $7,300 — C
Usage: 21.7

Mike Conley
FD: $6,700 — PG
DK: $6,700 — PG
Usage: 23.4

Secondary Plays

Jeff Green
FD: $5,00 — SF
DK: $5,900 — SF
Usage: 17.7

Golden State at Brooklyn – 06:00 PM

Golden State Brooklyn
goldenstatenba Vegas Total 209 brooklynnba Vegas Total 209
Vegas Sprd -10.0 Vegas Sprd 10.0
Team Proj. 109.5 Team Proj. 99.5
Team Pace 101.37 Team Pace 98.74
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 Stephen Curry Klay Thompson Brandon Rush Draymond Green Festus Ezeli Proj Starter Jarrett Jack Rondae Hollis-Jefferson Joe Johnson Thaddeus Young Brook Lopez
Opp. Season 26 25 25 1 23 Opp. Season 19 7 11 12 9
Opp. Last 7 15 21 11 5 18 Opp. Season 11 9 29 15 12

Golden State (Record: 21-0, Away 11-0)

Brooklyn Nets Defense
Points Allowed Per Game: 101.9 (19 of 30)
Defensive Efficiency: 102.6 (21 of 30)
Rebounding Differential: 1.4 (10 of 30)
Fantasy Points Allowed Per Game: 204.4 (24 of 30)

A record like the Nets have is usually a result of not playing good defense. Brooklyn has not so far this year and come into this game as 11 point underdogs at home. The Warriors are projected to score 109.5 points today, which is the second highest team total on the board.

Stephen Curry is playing at a ridiculously high level at the moment and he has a great matchup as the Nets are the 17th ranked defense against point guards with Jarret Jack at the helm. The blowout is in play here today, but Curry has shown he can put up a huge performance in just three quarters of work. Draymond Green is also in play as he has been over 30 fantasy points in each of his last six games. Klay Thompson has been playing better recently and is a secondary play since his price has dropped considerably across the industry.

Elite Plays

Stephen Curry
FD: $11,100 — PG
DK: $10,700 — PG
Usage: 32.5

Secondary Plays

Draymond Green
FD: $8,100 — PF
DK: $8,000 — PF
Usage: 19.2

Klay Thompson
FD: $5,900 — SG
DK: $6,300 — SG
Usage: 21.5

Brooklyn (Record: 5-14, Home 4-3)

Golden State Defense
Points Allowed Per Game: 99.9 (14 of 30)
Defensive Efficiency: 97.0 (5 of 30)
Rebounding Differential: +4.4 (4 of 30)
Fantasy Points Allowed Per Game: 192.12 (9 of 30)

Golden State continues to play good defense, even with their pace of play being high. They are in the top ten in the league in fantasy points allowed, rebounding differential and defensive efficiency. With the blowout clearly in play today against a bad Brooklyn squad, avoiding the Nets may not be a bad idea.

Elite Plays

None

Secondary Plays

None

L.A. Lakers at Detroit – 06:00 PM

L.A. Lakers Detroit
lalakersnba Vegas Total 197 detroitnba Vegas Total 197
Vegas Sprd 9.0 Vegas Sprd -9.0
Team Proj. 94.0 Team Proj. 103.0
Team Pace 99.38 Team Pace 97.71
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 D’Angelo Russell Jordan Clarkson Kobe Bryant Julius Randle Roy Hibbert Proj Starter Reggie Jackson Kentavious Caldwell-Pope Marcus Morris Ersan Ilyasova Andre Drummond
Opp. Season 5 17 3 21 10 Opp. Season 30 15 19 25 25
Opp. Last 7 9 24 2 19 29 Opp. Season 30 12 10 29 13

L.A. Lakers (Record: 3-16, Away 2-10)

Detroit Pistons Defense
Points Allowed Per Game: 97.9 (9 of 30)
Defensive Efficiency: 99.9 (10 of 30)
Rebounding Differential: 3.6 (6 of 30)
Fantasy Points Allowed Per Game: 191.3 (8 of 30)

The Pistons have been a solid defensive team to start the season. They are ranked in the top ten in the league in points/fantasy points allowed as well as defensive efficiency and rebounding differential. This Lakers squad is in a very tough spot and unless you want to play a priced down Kobe at DK, they all have a lot of risk attached. Overall, the Lakers are a safe team to avoid in this matchup as they have by far the lowest team total on the board at only 94 projected points.

Elite Plays

None

Secondary Plays

None

Detroit (Record: 11-9, Home 7-2)

Los Angeles Lakers Defense
Points Allowed Per Game: 105.7 (26 of 30)
Defensive Efficiency: 106.8 (29 of 30)
Rebounding Differential: -3.6 (25 of 30)
Fantasy Points Allowed Per Game: 211.5 (28 of 30)

While the Lakers have a tough matchup, the Pistons step into one of the best matchups on the board. The Lakers have been terrible on the defensive end and are in the bottom third of the league in the above four defensive categories. The Pistons have a projected team total of 103 and should be able to have their way against the poor Lakers defense.

Andre Drummond is an elite play tonight at the center position and has huge upside against the Lakers. Drummond had a 17/17 game against the Lakers in their first meeting and similar numbers should be expected today. Reggie Jackson is another premier play and a great GPP option. He has shown to have big upside, as evidenced by recent games of. 31, 60.6 and 51 in his last three. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope is getting 35+ minutes a game, but does not have a high ceiling. He is a secondary punt play at the shooting guard position. Marcus Morris is another Piston playing a ton of minutes and makes a solid mid-level play. Lastly, Ersan Ilyasova has actually put up 18+ in his last three games. He is cheap, but we all know the risk attached to him and he doesn’t have the upside he has shown in years past.

Elite Plays

Andre Drummond
FD: $9,600 — C
DK: $9,300 — C
Usage: 23.9

Reggie Jackson
FD: $7,900 — PG
DK: $7,700 — PG
Usage: 31.0

Secondary Plays

Marcus Morris
FD: $6,300 — SF
DK: $6,400 — SF
Usage: 18.5

Ersan Ilyasova
FD: $4,400 — PF
DK: $4,600 — PF
Usage: 16.8

Dallas at Washington – 06:00 PM

Dallas Washington
dallasnba Vegas Total 208 washingtonnba Vegas Total 208
Vegas Sprd -2.0 Vegas Sprd 2.0
Team Proj. 105.0 Team Proj. 103.0
Team Pace 99.16 Team Pace 101.72
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 Deron Williams Wesley Matthews Chandler Parsons Dirk Nowitzki Zaza Pachulia Proj Starter John Wall Bradley Beal Otto Porter Jared Dudley
Opp. Season 10 28 30 11 4 Opp. Season 20 6 5 26 7
Opp. Last 7 14 30 17 6 1 Opp. Season 27 14 6 2 17

Dallas (Record: 11-9, Away 6-6)

Washington Wizards Defense
Points Allowed Per Game: 104.1 (25 of 30)
Defensive Efficiency: 102.0 (20 of 30)
Rebounding Differential: -3.7 (26 of 30)
Fantasy Points Allowed Per Game: 201.9 (21 of 30)

The Wizards have not been a good defensive team to start the year. They are in the bottom third in points allowed, defensive efficiency, rebounding differential and fantasy points allowed. This game should be played at a very fast pace as the total is set at 210.5 and both teams are projected to score 103+ points.

The problem with the Mavericks is not their pace of play, but the fact that they spread the ball around a lot and seem to switch off who gets the 40 point fantasy night. Deron Williams and Zaza Pachulia are good examples of this as both seem to switch between 20 and 40-point nights and both make decent secondary plays. Dirk Nowitzki has been playing great basketball over the last couple of games and has a great matchup against the depleted inside defense of the Wizards. Wes Mathews is also worth a mention as he is extremely cheap for someone who is playing 35+ minutes per game.

Elite Plays

Dirk Nowitzki
FD: $7,000 — PF
DK: $6,900 — PF
Usage: 21.3

Secondary Plays

Deron Williams
FD: $6,900 — PG
DK: $6,600 — PG
Usage: 21.5

Wesley Matthews
FD: $4,800 — SG
DK: $4,800 — SG
Usage: 17.1

Zaza Pachulia
FD: $6,600 — C
DK: $6,300 — C
Usage: 16.5

Washington (Record: 8-9, Home 4-5)

Dallas Mavericks Defense
Points Allowed Per Game: 100.5 (16 of 30)
Defensive Efficiency: 100.1 (11 of 30)
Rebounding Differential: -2.5 (22 of 30)
Fantasy Points Allowed Per Game: 195.6 (13 of 30)

The Mavericks are an average defensive squad this year, yet the pace of this game should be extremely high and the Wizards are projected to score a team total of 103 points tonight as just two point favorites. This should be a well fought, high scoring game, which makes many players, solid fantasy options.

Injuries have been a big problem for the Wizards as Marcin Gortat will miss today’s game and they could continue to be without Kris Humphries, Nene and Drew Gooden. As we saw in the last game, the Wizards guards are going to get all the usage. John Wall and Bradley Beal are both elite plays at their positions. The matchup is great and the ball should be in both of their hands the majority of the time. Otto Porter will also see the floor for close to 35 minutes, if the injuries continue, and is a player that has shown big upside in the past. Jared Dudley also gets a mention as a deep punt. He has disappointed a lot of people recently, but will see the floor a ton and is dirt cheap.

Elite Plays

John Wall
FD: $8,900 — PG
DK: $8,700 — PG
Usage: 28.5

Bradley Beal
FD: $7,500 — SG
DK: $7,200 — PG
Usage: 23.8

Secondary Plays

Otto Porter
FD: $5,100 — SF
DK: $5,500 — SF
Usage: 15.4

Jared Dudley
FD: $3,500 — SF
DK: $4,200 — SF
Usage: 12.6

Sacramento at Oklahoma City – 07:00 PM

Sacramento Oklahoma City
sacramentonba Vegas Total 220 oklahomacitynba Vegas Total 220
Vegas Sprd 11.0 Vegas Sprd -11.0
Team Proj. 104.5 Team Proj. 115.5
Team Pace 102.27 Team Pace 100.52
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 Rajon Rondo Ben McLemore Rudy Gay Omri Casspi DeMarcus Cousins Proj Starter Russell Westbrook Andre Roberson Kevin Durant Serge Ibaka Steven Adams
Opp. Season 14 19 10 17 8 Opp. Season 22 29 21 27 27
Opp. Last 7 21 5 3 30 28 Opp. Season 23 29 18 17 25

Sacramento (Record: 7-14, Away 2-7)

Oklahoma City Thunder Defense
Points Allowed Per Game: 103.0 (24 of 30)
Defensive Efficiency: 100.6 (14 of 30)
Rebounding Differential: 7.1 (1 of 30)
Fantasy Points Allowed Per Game: 196.9 (15 of 30)

Oklahoma City has been a mediocre defense this year. That leads us into another game that should be played at a very high pace and is very high scoring. The Kings have a projected team total of 104.5 points tonight, yet are subject to a blowout as they are playing a back to back and are 11-point underdogs.

DeMarcus Cousins is having a monster year and is an elite play any time he takes the floor. Rajon Rondo has turned over a new leaf here with the Kings and is also an elite play against Westbrook and the 22nd ranked point guard defense of the Thunder. Rudy Gay has not shown the upside he has in the past this year and has not reached value for his price in over six games. If Omri Casspi continues to start he is a solid option at the SF position for a cheap price.

Elite Plays

DeMarcus Cousins
FD: $10,300 — C
DK: $10,900 – PF
Usage: 34.1

Rajon Rondo
FD: $8,000 — PG
DK: $8,800 — PG
Usage: 22.4

Secondary Plays

Omri Casspi
FD: $4,200 — SF
DK: $4,700 — SF
Usage: 16.8

Darren Collison
FD: $5,000 — PG
DK: $4,600 — PG
Usage: 21.3

Oklahoma City (Record: 11-8, Home 8-3)

Sacramento Defense
Points Allowed Per Game: 108.8 (29 of 30)
Defensive Efficiency: 106.2 (26 of 30)
Rebounding Differential: +1.0 (14 of 30)
Fantasy Points Allowed Per Game: 212.92 (29 of 30)

The Kings have been a solid team to attack offensively for a number of years and this season is no different. They are in the bottom third of the league in a number of defensive categories including giving up 108.8 points per game. This game features the highest over/under of the day at 218.5 and the Thunder have the highest team total of the day at 115.5.

Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook both struggled in their last game, but we can chalk that up to playing a slow paced, solid defensive team in the Heat. This matchup is the exact opposite as they take on the Kings. Both players are elite plays in this matchup as the Thunder are projected to score a team total of over 115 points. After the two stars on this team, the production really drops down, but because of the pace of this game, Serge Ibaka deserves a mention as a secondary play only.

Elite Plays

Russell Westbrook
FD: $10,800 — PG
DK: $10,400 — PG
Usage: 36.9

Kevin Durant
FD: $10,400— SF
DK: $10,200 — SF
Usage: 28.7

Secondary Plays

Serge Ibaka
FD: $6,200 — PF
DK: $6,100 — PF
Usage: 17.3

About the Author

Ryan138
Ryan138

Ryan (Ryan138) is from Chicago and has been playing fantasy sports for over 10 years. He has been playing daily fantasy sports for over 2 years since he was introduced to Daily Joust in late 2010. In the last year, Ryan has risen into the Top 100 of the RotoGrinders leaderboards by playing at DraftDay, DraftKings and FanDuel in all the major sports.