NBA Grind Down: Thursday, March 13th

by Derek Farnsworth (Notorious) Last Updated 2014-03-13 19:56:33

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: Any Fantasy Point Average Listed Uses FanDuel Scoring. For more info on FanDuel’s NBA 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

Houston at Chicago

Vegas Line – Houston -2.5, 194 Over/Under
Houston Proj. Starters – Beverley-Harden-Parsons-Jones-Howard
Chicago Proj. Starters – Hinrich-Butler-Dunleavy-Boozer-Noah

Houston

There are only 3 games on the schedule tonight and with many grinders taking the night off, we will keep the Grind Down short and simple today. The Rockets have a very tough matchup against the Bulls who own a top 3 defense this season. The total is set at 194 points for this game which is extremely low for a Rockets’ game. The Bulls are ranked 8th or better against all positions on the floor in terms of fantasy points allowed. That said, with only 3 games, it will be hard to avoid the Rockets completely. Patrick Beverley is cheap across the industry and makes a decent punt option.

Dwight Howard – Even though this is a tough matchup against Noah, Dwight has played well against the Bulls in the past. In his previous 3 meetings against the Bulls, Dwight is averaging 16 points, 13 rebounds, and 2.5 blocks. I think the Bulls will be able to slow Harden down and Dwight has the ability to rack up fantasy points in areas other than scoring. He’s the preferred play over spending up for Harden.

Chicago

The Bulls like to slow the pace of play down, but a matchup against the Rockets should give them a few possessions more than their season average. The Rockets have defended the PG and Center positions well thanks to the stellar defense of Patrick Beverley and Dwight Howard, but they have really been subpar at defending the other 3 positions. Carlos Boozer has been in a terrible slump, but his price on a few sites is too low to pass up.

D.J. Augustin – Augustin has topped 30 minutes in 4 straight games. When he has seen extended minutes, he has been a terrific fantasy option. Augustin should be able to find some success against the second unit of the Rockets and is probably the best value on the Bulls tonight.

Jimmy Butler – Butler has scored over 30 FP’s in 5 of his last 7 games and has an excellent matchup against the Rockets who are ranked 22nd against the SG position this season. Coach Thib loves to give his run players into the ground with minutes and Butler should see 40+ tonight.

Milwaukee at Atlanta

Vegas Line – Atlanta -9.5, 209.5 Over/Under
Milwaukee Proj. Starters – Knight-Wolters-Middleton-Henson-Pachulia
Atlanta Proj. Starters – Teague-Korver-Carroll-Millsap-Antic

Milwaukee

The Bucks are 9.5 points underdogs tonight, but this game should be both fast-paced and high scoring. The total is set at 209.5 points and the Hawks have really struggled defensively over the past month. The Hawks are now ranked below average against all five positions in terms of fantasy points allowed. Ersan Ilyasova is expected to be back in the starting lineup tonight which hurts both John Henson and Jeff Adrien. Nate Wolters makes a nice punt play, he is still close to minimum salary across the industry and is seeing around 30 minutes of playing time per game.

Brandon Knight – Knight is the one Bucks’ player that you can count on 35+ minutes from on a nightly basis. Coach Drew likes to mix up his rotations, but Knight always sees big minutes. He has a nice matchup against the Hawks who have really dropped in the defensive rankings. Knight can fill up the stat sheet and makes a solid play tonight.

Atlanta

The Hawks have a very favorable matchup tonight against the Bucks. The Bucks have played with a quicker pace recently and they have struggled all season long on the defensive end of the floor. Brandon Knight has been solid at point, but the Bucks are ranked 18th or worse against the other four positions on the floor. Kyle Korver is coming off of a big game against the Jazz and should get some open looks tonight. DeMarre Carroll is priced very fairly on most sites and he’s been a consistent fantasy option lately.

Paul Millsap – Millsap has a terrific matchup against the Bucks who are ranked 25th against PF’s this season. Not only that, but the Bucks are the 6th worst rebounding team in the league. Millsap is back to playing a full complement of minutes and should be targeted in ALL leagues tonight.

Pero Antic – Antic is a great punt option tonight against the Bucks. He is very cheap on most sites and has scored 22 and 25 FP’s in his last two games. He will draw another start at Center against this weak Bucks’ front-court.

L.A.Lakers at Oklahoma City

Vegas Line – Oklahoma City -16, 228.5 Over/Under
L.A.Lakers Proj. Starters – Marshall-Meeks-Bazemore-Johnson-Gasol
Oklahoma City Proj. Starters – Westbrook-Jackson-Durant-Ibaka-Adams

L.A.Lakers

These two teams played on Sunday in L.A. and it actually turned out to be a very good game. The Lakers pulled off the upset on the back of Jodie Meeks 42 points. Tonight’s game will be played in OKC and all signs point to this game being a polar opposite from the last meeting. The Thunder are 16 point favorites. Pau Gasol scored 38 points the other day, but he’s the one Lakers’ player that scares me in a potential blowout.

Ryan Kelly – Kelly has started the last two games and has put up 35+ in each of them. He’s still very cheap on almost every site and has great upside. As long as he is seeing big minutes, he should easily cover his value tonight.

Jodie Meeks – Meeks was on fire against this Thunder team the other day and makes a solid play again tonight. SG can be a tough position to fill on short slate nights and Meeks should be a lock for 20+ fantasy points.

Oklahoma City

The Thunder have a terrific matchup against the Lakers and even though this game will likely be a blowout, I don’t think you can afford to avoid the Thunder. The Lakers are ranked 29th or 30th against all five positions on the floor. The big 3 of the Thunder are all in play as well as Caron Butler. Butler is averaging 27 minutes per game as a member of the Thunder and should be able to hit value in that amount of playing time.

Russell Westbrook – I definitely like Durant in this matchup, but the advantage of taking Westbrook is that he will see close to his usual minutes even in a blowout. Westbrook is still only playing 30 minutes per game and he could end up playing close to that many minutes by the end of the 3rd.

Serge Ibaka – Ibaka had a monster game against the Lakers the other day and ended up with 48 FP’s. The Lakers are the worst rebounding team in the league and are awful defensively. That’s a great combination for Ibaks.