NBA Matchup Breakdown: Wednesday 2/13

by RotoGrinders Last Updated 2013-02-13 20:00:07

The RotoGrinders NBA Matchup article will be available on the busier days of NBA action to supplement our daily research tools with match up notes and analysis. The focus is on the defense vs. position rankings and noting when to exploit or ignore those defensive rankings, as well as provide player notes regarding who is red hot right now and other intangible factors.

NOTES:

1) Defense vs. Position rankings are shown for the given team they are listed under. They are NOT opponent rankings.

2) Rankings shown against each position are from each team’s last 10 games played, not the entire season so they may differ from results shown on our cheat sheet or other tools.

Spurs vs. Cavaliers

• It will be difficult for anyone to get “Popped” tonight with a 7PM start time for the Spurs. If Parker plays against Cleveland, he will be playing in a juicy match-up.
• The Cavs have struggled inside and even though I doubt Duncan suits up, you should feel good about Tiago Splitter or even Boris Diaw against the 30th ranked D vs. PFs and 24th ranked D vs. Centers in the past 10 games.

Bobcats vs. Pacers

• The potential return of Danny Granger throws some serious question marks in the Pacers rotation. Can Paul George be as effective with the return of Granger and a move back to the SG slot? If Granger goes, I might avoid the whole mess despite a juicy match-up against the hapless Bobcats.
• Byron Mullens is on fire right now but will be tested by David West strong defense. I wouldn’t expect the same huge output from Mullens you’ve seen over his last 3.

Hawks vs. Magic

• Jameer Nelson and Jeff Teague should have a field day against each other, just based on match-ups. The two worst defenses vs. PGs in the last 10 games squaring off!
• Al Horford has sneakily been really, really good lately and draws a weak Magic interior D. He’s a great H2H and 50/50 player because of his consistency as well.

Bulls vs. Celtics

• The Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau is a Doc Rivers-disciple and the two have some awesome games against each other. Unfortunately, they are almost all extremely low scoring. Fantasy value will be at a premium here.
• There’s no lost love between Joakim Noah and Kevin Garnett, so throw out the rankings a bit and consider both these guys as viable options in a meaningful game.
• Nate Robinson once had some nice memories in the TD Garden. Those will be forgotten on Wednesday against lock-down on-ball defender Avery Bradley.

Wizards vs. Pistons

• Neither team defends the paint well, so a surging Greg Monroe or Nene Hilario play should return some solid value.
• The Pistons struggles against backcourts of late are undoubtedly due to the addition of Jose Calderon who doesn’t play defense period. John Wall should run him ragged on Wednesday night.

Nuggets vs. Nets

• Nuggets injury concerns are pretty crazy right now with Iggy, Chandler and Gallo sitting on Tuesday. Monitor their statuses but you might be able to find some great value in Corey Brewer against the 27th ranked D vs. SFs over the past 10 games.
• Deron Williams is due to sit out another game and the Nuggets 27th ranked D vs. PGs over the last 10 games offers a ton of value to Nets PGs. But it’s not C.J. Watson you should be targeting, instead look at rookie Tyshawn Taylor who played 34 minutes on Monday to Watson’s 18.

Raptors vs. Knicks

• The Knicks continue to excel defensively this season but their 20th ranking against PGs shouldn’t be ignored. Felton is clearly still a bit gimpy and while Kyle Lowry hasn’t been great this year he has some solid upside.
• Raptors played on Tuesday and then travel to NY on Wednesday. Not saying you should avoid anyone for that reason but anyone who has ever played basketball knows the first thing to go when you are tired is your defense.
• The Knicks only have 3-4 guys who should even be considered as fantasy options. Outside of that they play a big rotation of evenly distributed minutes. Melo, Felton, Chandler and Amar’e are the only guys I’d play in this current rotation.

Trailblazers vs. Hornets

• Blazers play in Miami on Tuesday then travel to New Orleans. Tough schedule for a team that plays a 7 man rotation.
• Damian Lillard and Greivis Vasquez have really stepped their defense up of late, which is great for their teams and terrible for fantasy output in this one.
• Both teams have been struggling against opposing small forwards. I still don’t think Batum is healthy but if you wanna take a shot in a GPP he has great upside potential.

76ers vs. Bucks

• The 76ers are a lost team right now. But that doesn’t make them untouchable for fantasy. Spencer Hawes and Lavoy Allen both offer great value in a juicy match-up against the Bucks on Wednesday.
• Nick Young playing shut down defense? Well something has the Sixers ranked 1st vs. SGs over their past 10 games and that should make you wary of Monta Ellis. I know he exploded the other night but the match-up and his “fender-bender” on Tuesday AM concern me.

Jazz vs. Timberwolves

• The Jazz are even worse against PGs than the #23 ranking implies over the last 10 games. Ricky Rubio has been on fire and should continue to put up big totals for a great price on most sites.
• Paul Millsap vs. the #25 ranked defense against Power Forwards? Don’t mind if I do. While Pekovic has his hands full with Big Al, look for Millsap to clean up the glass early and often against a soft Derrick Williams and Dante Cunningham.

Kings vs. Mavericks

• This one should be high scoring. But the Kings are worse on the road than they are at home somehow and don’t be surprised if Dallas runs away with it. With that said, Mayo and Nowitzki have great match-ups and are solid options.
• I’ve been pretty high on Isaiah Thomas lately but I think this might be a bad match-up for him, despite the Mavs rankings. There are very few guys as quick and fast as Thomas, but Darren Collison might be quicker and faster.

Rockets vs. Clippers

• Chris Paul who has been absolutely on fire since coming back from injury is an excellent play against Jeremy Lin and the Rockets 21st ranked D against PGs.
• Matt Barnes had an OK performance while drawing the start on Monday. Looks like Butler will be out again so look for Barnes to play big minutes and be a guy with tremendous upside to add to your lineup.