NBA Grind Down: Wednesday, May 20th
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 NBA Scoring System, check out the scoring systems section of our FanDuel Review.
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Cleveland at Atlanta – Wednesday, 8:30 PM ET
- Vegas Line – Atlanta -1, 197 Over/Under
- Cleveland Proj. Starters – Irving-Shumpert-James-Thompson-Mozgov
- Atlanta Proj. Starters – Teague-Korver-Carroll-Millsap-Horford
| Cleveland | Atlanta | |||||||||||
 | Vegas Total | 197 |  | Vegas Total | 197 | |||||||
| Vegas Sprd | 1.0 | Vegas Sprd | -1.0 | |||||||||
| Team Proj. | 98.0 | Team Proj. | 99.0 | |||||||||
| Team Pace | 92.90 | Team Pace | 96.79 | |||||||||
| 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 | Kyrie Irving | Iman Shumpert | LeBron James | Tristan Thompson | Timofey Mozgov | Proj Starter | Jeff Teague | Kyle Korver | DeMarre Carroll | Paul Millsap | Al Horford | |
| Opp. Season | 15 | 17 | 10 | 12 | 5 | Opp. Season | 10 | 21 | 20 | 9 | 9 | |
| Opp. Last 7 | 3 | 8 | 3 | 2 | 3 | Opp. Last 7 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 2 | |
Cleveland
The Cavaliers may be in the Eastern Conference Finals, but it hasn’t come without a price. They lost Kevin Love in the first round against the Celtics, Iman Shumpert was injured in the early part of the Bulls’ series, and now Kyrie Irving is coming into this series at less than 100%. They head to Atlanta to take on a Hawks’ team that has done enough to win, but they’ve done it in uninspiring fashion. The LeBronaliers are 1-point underdogs tonight with their team total set at 98 points.
Opponent Breakdown (Atlanta)
Points Allowed Per Game: 97.2 (Rank: 5)
Defensive Efficiency Rank: 7
Rebounding Differential Rank: 27
Elite Plays
LeBron James (FD: $11700, DK: $11400 / MPG: 36 / Usage Rate: 32.5)
With Kevin Love out and Kyrie Irving at less than 100%, James has been forced to take over offensively. He managed to carry his team to a win in the last series, but the Hawks have been better defensively this season than the Bulls. James is going to need some help offensively or the Cavaliers could fall short of their NBA Championship dreams. James is obviously in play tonight, but again, I’d rather target Curry in an uptempo game at a cheaper price point.
Iman Shumpert (FD: $4800, DK: $5200 / MPG: 25 / Usage Rate: 17.2)
Shumpert is one of the top value plays in this two-game slate. He played well in the final two games of the Bulls’ series, scoring at least 32 fantasy points in each. He has played at least 32 minutes in each of his last four games and he should push for 35+ minutes tonight in Game 1 against the Hawks. He’s a low-risk, medium-reward option at shooting guard tonight.
Secondary Plays
Tristan Thompson (FD: $5400, DK: $5800 / MPG: 27 / Usage Rate: 13.9)
Timofey Mozgov (FD: $4800, DK: $4900 / MPG: 26 / Usage Rate: 16.1)
J.R. Smith (FD: $4800, DK: $4800 / MPG: 30 / Usage Rate: 19.1)
Atlanta
The Hawks were 0.1 seconds away from an overtime in Game 6 that could have changed the entire landscape of their series against the Wizards. They haven’t exactly played well in the postseason, but hey they’ve done enough to get to the Eastern Conference Finals. They open up as 1-point favorites tonight against the Cavaliers with their team total set at 99 points.
Opponent Breakdown (Cleveland)
Points Allowed Per Game: 98.5 (Rank: 12)
Defensive Efficiency Rank: 20
Rebounding Differential Rank: 8
Elite Plays
Al Horford (FD: $7900, DK: $7900 / MPG: 31 / Usage Rate: 22.3)
I always have a hard time deciding between Al Horford and Paul Millsap. In the first series, Millsap was the more consistent fantasy option, but then against the Wizards, Horford was the more consistent fantasy option. I’m giving the edge to Horford here, as he is a bit cheaper than Millsap on both FanDuel and DraftKings. Horford finally saw his minutes increase in the last series and he should push for 35+ minutes a game against the Cavaliers.
Jeff Teague (FD: $7200, DK: $7300 / MPG: 31 / Usage Rate: 24.9)
If the Hawks have any chance of beating the Cavaliers, they are going to need a big series from Jeff Teague. He has played well at times this postseason, but he has also disappeared at times. He draws a favorable matchup against a hobbled Kyrie Irving, who is not an elite defender even when he is 100% healthy. I like the price point of Teague and think he makes a great complimentary piece to Stephen Curry at point guard.
DeMarre Carroll (FD: $6800, DK: $6900 / MPG: 31 / Usage Rate: 16.6)
Carroll was hobbled for a few games in the Wizards’ series, but he finished with 36 and 40 fantasy points in the final two games. He looks like he is close to 100% healthy, which the Hawks need, as he will be tasked with defending LeBron James. Carroll should push for 40 minutes per game in this series. He’s a strong play at small forward, as he has the ability to fill up all areas of the stat sheet. He doesn’t rely on scoring as much as some of the other small forward options, namely Trevor Ariza.
Secondary Plays
Paul Millsap (FD: $8800, DK: $8200 / MPG: 33 / Usage Rate: 23.6)
Kyle Korver (FD: $5800, DK: $5400 / MPG: 33 / Usage Rate: 14.2)
Dennis Schroder (FD: $4400, DK: $4600 / MPG: 20 / Usage Rate: 27)