NBA Grind Down: Tuesday, January 21st

by Derek Farnsworth (Notorious) Last Updated 2014-01-21 20:35:29

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 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

Orlando at Brooklyn

• Vegas Line – No Lines Set for This Game Yet
• Orlando Proj. Starters – Nelson-Oladipo-Afflalo-Harris-Davis
• Brooklyn Proj. Starters – Williams-Anderson-Johnson-Pierce-Garnett

Orlando

The Magic take on a Nets team that has really found it’s groove. The Nets are 9 point favorites in this one with the total set at 195 points. Both of these teams play at a pace that is below the league average. While the Nets were a great team to pick on earlier in the season, they have really turned it up on the defensive end of the floor. They are ranked in the top 7 against all five positions on the floor over the last 15 days.

While this is a tough matchup, the Magic will be without Nikola Vucevic once again tonight which means added minutes for both Glen Davis and Tobias Harris. Jameer Nelson makes an interesting play at PG tonight, but I would like the matchup more if Deron Williams was starting. Shaun Livingston has the length to cause problems for Nelson. Victor Oladipo continues to make a strong case for a GPP play. His ability to fill up the stat sheet gives him a nice upside for the price.

• Glen Davis – Davis has been the model of consistency over the past few weeks. He’s scored over 20 fantasy points in each of his last 10 games and has scored over 30 fantasy points in 5 of those 10 games. With Vucevic out again, Davis continues to make a strong play for cash games.

Brooklyn

The Nets have won 7 of their last 8 games and have finally found some success on the defensive end of the floor. They are big favorites against the Magic tonight and with the way that the Magic played on their last road trip, I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Nets get up big here. Deron Williams is back for the Nets, but he is coming off of the bench and will remain fairly irrelevant in the fantasy world until he is inserted back in that starting lineup.

The Magic have really struggled defensively without Vucevic manning the middle down low. If you look at their DvP rankings over the last 15 days, they are ranked in the bottom 8 against every position on the floor except for PG’s. Andray Blatche makes an interesting play at Center, he is one of the best FP’s per minute players in the league. He is instant offense off the bench.

• Joe Johnson – Johnson has been on fire over the last couple of weeks. I was worried about his value with D-Will back in the fold, but with D-Will coming off the bench, Johnson is responsible for making plays right from the tip. Johnson makes a solid play on sites that still have him listed at an affordable price.

Boston at Miami

• Vegas Line – No Lines Set for This Game Yet
• Boston Proj. Starters – Rondo-Bradley-Green-Sullinger-Humphries
• Miami Proj. Starters – Chalmers-Wade-James-Battier-Bosh

Boston

The Celtics and Heat have had quite a few memorable games over the past few years, but this one has a different feeling to it. Without Garnett and Pierce, this is no longer a rivalry. The Celtics are 9.5 point underdogs tonight and will only get 20-25 minutes from their All-Star PG as Rajon Rondo is still on his minutes restriction. Jerryd Bayless has been ruled out of tonight’s game, so look for both Avery Bradley and Phil Pressey to see big minutes tonight.

The Heat’s defense hasn’t been great recently. They gave up a 70 point half to the Hawks last night. That said, it’s hard to count on the Heat struggling on defense because when they are locked in, they are one of the best defenses in the league. Jeff Green has a nice track record against the Heat and makes a solid GPP play.

• Jared Sullinger – Sully makes a solid play tonight. He will be matched up with either Bosh or Battier and he has a big advantage either way. Sullinger should be able to use his body to attack the glass and post some solid numbers offensively. My only concern with Sully is the potential blowout.

Miami

The question all season long for the Heat has been whether or not Dwyane Wade will play. He sat out yesterday’s game, so you would think that he would give it a go tonight. However, there are no guarantees with Wade, so make sure to check the injury news throughout the day. If Wade does happen to sit out, continue to use Ray Allen as a solid value play at SG.

The Celtics defense has really struggled over the last 15 days. If you look at the DvP rankings, they are ranked 16th or worse against every position on the floor over that time frame. If Wade sits, LeBron James and Chris Bosh receive a nice boost, but if he plays, I think all 3 options are a bit overpriced for this matchup.

• Mario Chalmers – Chalmers is back in the lineup and even though he got in some foul trouble yesterday, he played a good number of minutes and responded well. Chalmers’ price across the board is depressed and now is the perfect time to buy low on him.

Sacramento at New Orleans

• Vegas Line – No Lines Set for This Game Yet
• Sacramento Proj. Starters – Thomas-Thornton-Gay-Thompson-Cousins
• New Orleans Proj. Starters – Roberts-Gordon-Aminu-Davis-Stiemsma

Sacramento

The Kings started out as 3 point underdogs when the line opened and now are 1 point favorites. That means that people like the Kings in this one. The total for this game is set at 205 points which is the second highest total on the schedule tonight. I expect both teams to look to push the pace.

The Pelicans have been an awful team defensively over the past month or so. They haven’t been great at defending any position and have really struggled to defend the paint as they are ranked 26th and 21st against opposing PF’s and Centers. Rudy Gay makes a decent play at SF tonight, but he will be defended by Aminu who is a very solid perimeter defender. Jason Thompson is also in play, he is cheap across the board and has topped 16 FP’s in 7 of his last 8 games.

• Isaiah Thomas – Thomas has topped 35 fantasy points in 5 of his last 8 games and has a great chance of topping that mark again tonight. The Pelicans are missing their best on ball defender in Jrue Holiday and Thomas will look to push the tempo and create some easy shots in transition.

• DeMarcus Cousins – With only 5 games on the schedule tonight, Cousins is easily the top play at Center tonight. I think he will be worth his high price tag in this one. While the Pelicans have length down low with Davis and Ajinca, they do not have strength. Cousins should be able to power his way down low and this could be a 20 rebound night for Boogie.

New Orleans

The Pelicans have a solid matchup tonight against the Kings. This game is expected to be high scoring and the Kings do not have a shut down defense. The Kings are ranked 21st or worse against PG’s, SG’s, SF’s, and PF’s. There are quite a few options on the Pelicans tonight. Brian Roberts makes a nice punt option at the PG position, he has been playing around 30 minutes per game as the starter and has been a decent fantasy option. Al-Farouq Aminu is also in play, he is playing big minutes with all of the injuries. Same goes for Eric Gordon, he has really picked up his play ever since Jrue Holiday went down with his injury.

• Tyreke Evans – Evans is a very streaky player. His price has come down across the board and he has now played well in back to back games. With Jrue out, I expect Evans to top 30 minutes in this game and when he is on the floor, he is the primary ball handler.

• Anthony Davis – Davis is one of those players that you love to take because of his incredible upside. He is averaging close to double-digit fantasy points in blocks and steals alone. His length makes him a problem on both ends of the floor. He should post some solid numbers against Thompson and the Kings.

Portland at Oklahoma City

• Vegas Line – No Lines Set for This Game Yet
• Portland Proj. Starters – Lillard-Matthews-Batum-Aldridge-Lopez
• Oklahoma City Proj. Starters – Jackson-Sefolosha-Durant-Ibaka-Perkins

Portland

The Blazers are coming off of a big loss to the Rockets last night and come into tonight’s game against the Thunder as 6 point underdogs. That line seems a bit high to me and I wouldn’t be surprised at all to see the Blazers come away from this game with a win. This game has a total of 215 points which is easily the highest of the night. There should be plenty of fantasy points to go around here.

The Thunder have struggled to defend PG’s, SG’s, and PF’s this season and have really defended SF’s and Centers well. That makes my job easy. Give a nice fantasy boost to Damian Lillard, Wesley Matthews, and LaMarcus Aldridge.

• Damian Lillard – Lillard has a nice matchup tonight against Jackson who has really been struggling defensively. While Jackson is great at forcing a few steals per game, he is not a great defender and is often out of position. You can’t play that kind of defense on Lillard, he will make you pay. Lillard should be in for a big game tonight.

• LaMarcus Aldridge – Aldridge put up 27 and 20 last night against the Rockets. While that matchup was extremely favorable for him without Terrence Jones in the lineup, those are still some impressive numbers. The Thunder have not defended PF’s well this season and Aldridge should have another big night offensively.

Oklahoma City

The Thunder have a great matchup against the Blazers whose defense has really taken a big hit now that they have become a fast-paced team. The Blazers rank 18th or worse against every position except for PF’s over the last 15 days. The Thunder are expected to be the highest scoring team on the board tonight, so don’t be afraid to take a few of them.

Kevin Durant is the top overall option tonight, but I’m not sure that I will be paying that incredibly high price tag. Durant is quite a bit more expensive than the other studs tonight and taking him really hurts the rest of your lineup. I don’t think you should necessarily avoid him, but his price is high enough, that fading him could really work in your favor. Jeremy Lamb is a nice value play off the bench.

• Reggie Jackson – Jackson has been very inconsistent as the starting PG of the Thunder, but he has nice upside and a nice matchup against the Blazers who are ranked 25th at defending the PG position this season. Jackson has topped 30 fantasy points in 3 of his last 8 games and has a good chance of reaching that mark tonight.

Minnesota at Utah

• Vegas Line – No Lines Set for This Game Yet
• Minnesota Proj. Starters – Rubio-Martin-Brewer-Love-Pekovic
• Utah Proj. Starters – Burke-Burks-Jefferson-Williams-Favors

Minnesota

The Wolves faced this same Jazz team the other night and this game was over by halftime. The Wolves were up by more than 20 in this first half. Hopefully this game will be a little different as the Jazz will be playing at home in front of their crowd. Vegas seems to agree with me as the Wolves are only 4 point favorites tonight.

The Jazz have struggled to defend PG’s, SF’s, and Centers this season, but this is a case where I am going to stray away from the DvP rankings. Ricky Rubio has not been playing well and seems to have no confidence in his shot. I will be avoiding him again tonight. Corey Brewer is in the same boat, he has had way too many bad outings to be trusted in cash games. I’d rather take Kevin Martin over either of them.

• Nikola Pekovic – Pek really played well against the Jazz the other night and I don’t see that changing tonight. He outmuscles everyone down low and should do so again tonight. Look for Pek to continue his nice run with another big double-double.

• Kevin Love – Love put up 48 fantasy points in only 29 minutes against the Jazz the other night. He should really be able to exploit his matchup against Marvin Williams. He has a nice size and strength advantage over him and I wouldn’t be surprised to see Love post 30 points and 15 rebounds. I’d rather save a few bucks and take Love over Durant tonight.

Utah

The Jazz have a nice matchup against the Wolves. I’m expecting them to play much better than they did the other night. The Wolves are a fast-paced team which really benefits the Jazz players. Gordon Hayward is expected to make his return tonight, but I would still tread lightly as he could easily tweak his injury or even be a late scratch. I will be avoiding Hayward, Burks, and Jefferson just because I don’t know what their minutes are going to look like. Derrick Favors makes a nice play though, he has been playing good basketball lately. Update: Favors is a GTD decision tonight

• Trey Burke – Burke has great upside tonight against Rubio. He has really played well at home this season and should continue that tonight. Burke has scored over 30 fantasy points in 4 of his last 5 and I’m expecting him to top that mark again tonight.