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NBA Grind Down: Sunday, November 16th

by Ryan138 Last Updated 2014-11-20 15:32:44

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.

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Click ‘Stat Chart’ Buttons Below for Pop-Ups of Essential Game-Specific Statistics including Defense vs. Position and Pace

Denver at New York

Denver New York
denvernba Vegas Total 201 newyorknba Vegas Total 201
Vegas Sprd 1.0 Vegas Sprd -1.0
Team Proj. 100.3 Team Proj. 101.3
Team Pace 101.50 Team Pace 91.19
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 Ty Lawson Arron Afflalo Wilson Chandler Kenneth Faried Timofey Mozgov Proj Starter Shane Larkin Tim Hardaway Carmelo Anthony Jason Smith Samuel Dalembert
Opp. Season 12 17 4 25 4 Opp. Season 18 1 26 24 26
Opp. Last 7 5 26 3 15 8 Opp. Last 7 26 16 7 16 30

Denver

Today is one of those rough Sunday slates for the NBA with only 4 games on tap and more importantly, one starting at 1 PM Eastern time, while the other three are night games. I would highly suggest a late-swap site if you are going to play NBA today, as NBA always has a few surprises for us in terms of lineup changes.

This early game pits two struggling squads against each other at the Garden. The Nuggets are 2-6 on the year and are coming off a win against the lowly Pacers. This Nuggets team continues to play very little defense, as they are allowing the 27th most points in the league (108.1 per game.)

Prime Plays

Ty Lawson – The only Nugget that is getting any sort of consistent minutes seems to be Lawson. With that said, he has not exactly produced like has in years passed, but is averaging 15.9 points and 7.9 assists per game. He has a great matchup today if Shumpert sits, as the Knicks have no good defensive point guards.

Secondary Plays

Aaron Afflalo – He is more of a GPP play today, as his price is low and can go off at times. He is coming off a 17-point performance in only 21 minutes against the Pacers. If his shot is falling, he should easily hit value today.

New York

The Knicks are also struggling this year and have a 2-8 record with a terrible 1-5 home record. I still do not understand Melo’s position on staying with this crappy team, but now he gets to pay for it. As Anthony tries his best to pull a Kobe and win each game on his own, he has literally no help around him. Shumpert looks like he may sit today after getting injured on Friday, which takes away the only other productive player for this team. The bright spot here is Carmelo is going to want to put on a show against his former squad and the Knicks are one-point favorites in a game with a 201 total.

Prime Plays

Carmelo Anthony – Melo is coming off a great 46-point performance against Utah where his squad was still unable to get a W. They have now lost seven games in a row and I think Anthony will do everything in his power to not make that eight. The offense will go through him as the only option of the team, and I don’t think 25-30 shots is out of the question for him today.

Secondary Plays

Tim Hardaway Jr. – If Shumpert sits today, look for Hardaway to possibly get the start. If he does, he makes a great value play today, as he produced well when given extra minutes earlier this season.

Milwaukee at Miami

Milwaukee Miami
milwaukeenba Vegas Total 198 miaminba Vegas Total 198
Vegas Sprd 10.0 Vegas Sprd -10.0
Team Proj. 94.3 Team Proj. 104.3
Team Pace 96.15 Team Pace 93.03
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 Brandon Knight Jared Dudley Jabari Parker Ersan Ilyasova Larry Sanders Proj Starter Norris Cole Dwyane Wade Luol Deng Shawne Williams Chris Bosh
Opp. Season 10 28 27 2 24 Opp. Season 6 9 12 17 29
Opp. Last 7 24 19 27 11 20 Opp. Last 7 13 11 10 9 17

Milwaukee

Another bad team is on the slate today with Milwaukee taking on the Heat. One of the bigger surprises of the season is not the fact that the Bucks are bad, but the fact that they have actually improved a lot on the defensive end. They are 3rd in the league in points allowed this year, as they give up only 93.6 a game. The problem is they cannot score the ball either and are at the bottom of the league offensively with 91.9 points per game. They will now have to travel to Miami, which should make for a tough game for the Bucks to bring home a win.

Prime Plays

Brandon Knight – With the minutes and rotation that Kidd is using, it is tough to play anyone on this team not named Knight. He is the only one getting 30+ minutes per night on a consistent basis and is the only real offensive threat this team has.

Secondary Plays

None

Miami

Miami started the season off very well and then guess what happened? Wade gets hurt. I was surprised he lasted as long as he did without sitting out games and I think Miami’s decent season is going to rely on whether or not Wade can play enough games. The Heat were struggling with him in the lineup a bit and are looking to win only their 3rd game in seven tries tonight. Check twitter closer to game time, because a lot changes tonight depending on the status of a few Heat players.

Prime Plays

Chris Bosh – He has been fantastic this season, as he is cementing himself as a true star in the league this year. He is averaging 20+ points and 9 rebounds per game and should have his way inside with this Bucks interior defense.

Shawne Williams – Dependent on the status of guys like Wade and McRoberts. If they are both out again, he will get a bunch of minutes, and he is coming off his best offensive performance of the season.

Secondary Plays

Mario Chalmers – Another Wade dependent play is Chalmers. He came off the bench in their last game, but played a whopping 40 minutes. I am not sure if that will happen again, but he will get 30+ most likely, as Ennis does not look like a player that should be stealing many of Chalmers’ minutes.

Houston at Oklahoma City

Houston Oklahoma City
houstonnba Vegas Total 193 oklahomacitynba Vegas Total 193
Vegas Sprd -6.0 Vegas Sprd 6.0
Team Proj. 99.5 Team Proj. 93.5
Team Pace 97.66 Team Pace 93.94
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 Patrick Beverley James Harden Trevor Ariza Donatas Motiejunas Dwight Howard Proj Starter Reggie Jackson Jeremy Lamb Lance Thomas Serge Ibaka Steven Adams
Opp. Season 25 13 9 8 22 Opp. Season 4 10 22 10 15
Opp. Last 7 21 4 15 7 24 Opp. Last 7 1 27 22 2 23

Houston

Well, this game would have been fun to see if not for all the injuries to the Thunder. It would have between two of the best teams in the NBA, but instead we have the 7-1 Rockets against the 3-7 Thunder. Much of the Rockets’ success this year is due to being one of the top defensive teams in the league. They will look to bring that shutdown defense into Oklahoma today, and this game has a total set at 195’ and the Rockets as 6-point favorites. It looks like Beverely is back for the Rockets, but no word on Terrence Jones yet.

Prime Plays

James Harden – Harden has really played well against his former team and seems to get up for these games. He is playing on another level this year, as he is averaging 26.2 points, but what is more interesting is the 6+ assists and rebounds he is averaging per game. He may be expensive, but could easily be a top scoring option of the day.

Secondary Plays

Donatas Motiejunas – There are a lot of stars tonight in real good spots, so you are going to need some value options to round out your lineup. He is getting more minutes than Papanikolau and has played 30+ three games in a row now. He may not go crazy, but should play well enough to hit value.

Oklahoma City

This Oklahoma squad continues to fight night in and night out, but just simply does not have the talent to win in the NBA right now. A positive about the team is that they seem to have a pretty set rotation right now and we know where the minutes will be coming from. As it looks like Perry Jones and Andre Roberson will be out again Sunday, that should give us a few good cheaper plays.

Prime Plays

Anthony Morrow – Morrow is exactly what I was talking about in the writeup. He is cheap across the industry and is coming off getting 36 minutes last game. He is the guy that is looked upon to score in the second unit and he put up 15 shots last game. If he can find his rhythm in this game, I can see him scoring 20-25 real points.

Secondary Plays

Jeremy Lamb – Where as Reggie’s price has gotten real high and may have a tough matchup against Beverley tonight, Lamb’s price has still not gotten out of hand. He had a great game last time out with 45 minutes and 24 points. He should be able to pay off his price today, as he is needed to be a scorer for this team.

Golden State at L.A. Lakers

Golden State L.A. Lakers
goldenstatenba Vegas Total 211 lalakersnba Vegas Total 211
Vegas Sprd -8.0 Vegas Sprd 8.0
Team Proj. 109.5 Team Proj. 101.5
Team Pace 102.24 Team Pace 97.77
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 Andrew Bogut Proj Starter Jeremy Lin Kobe Bryant Wesley Johnson Carlos Boozer Jordan Hill
Opp. Season 29 23 6 27 10 Opp. Season 27 16 1 18 2
Opp. Last 7 14 22 4 23 14 Opp. Last 7 29 12 5 14 12

Golden State

This will be a game I will be interested in watching tonight, as I think if it stays close could see some of the biggest fantasy performances of the day. The Warriors, at this point, look like they could be one of the best teams in the NBA all year long and are doing it without David Lee. They do not only win, but seem to just blow teams out on a nightly basis and are averaging 105.6 points per game. They have the best matchup of the slate, as they are 8-point favorites with a total of 211 and crushed the Lakers earlier this month by 23.

Prime Plays

Stephen Curry – It seems I get to write him up every Sunday this year. He has the best matchup of any player today – Jeremy Lin should get exploited badly tonight. In the first matchup between these two, Curry had 31 points and 10 assists. Klay Thompson – Klay and Curry are making up the top backcourt in the league at this point in the season. Klay has scored 24.3 points and 3 assists/rebounds this year. Kobe is not the same player and will look to expend most of his energy on the offensive end tonight. Klay should get a ton of open looks, and he scored 41 when these two teams met prior.

Secondary Plays

Harrison Barnes – With Green’s price getting a bit high (he is still in play if he is cheap), Barnes has taken his place as a decent cheap option in this lineup. He has had some very good games recently and seems to be gaining confidence quickly this year.

L.A. Lakers

This season should be laughable for the Lakers and it is too bad for Kobe. They are overmatched almost every night they take the floor, and that continues in a big way tonight.

Prime Plays

Kobe Bryant – He is shooting a terrible percentage, especially recently, but he will almost guaranteed throw up about 25-30 shots tonight. There is just literally no one on the floor that can take shots away from him and he will try to win the game single handily.

Jeremy Lin – He is cheap and is really the only other decently consistent play on the Lakers. He gets a ton of minutes and has a good matchup against Curry, whom point guards have a lot of success against.

Secondary Plays

None

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.