Rise & Grind: Wednesday, February 25th
Welcome to the RotoGrinders cup o’morning joe. Start your day off right here, as we sort through yesterday’s happenings and take a peek at the upcoming DFS day.
In Case You Missed It
The Mamba is Not Impressed – Even though Kobe Bryant is out for the season, the Lakers can still win a game here or there. On Monday, the Lakers defeated the Celtics in overtime and a few of the players celebrated wildly on the court. I’m sure these teammates are just looking for Kobe’s acceptance. He likes to win, right? Let’s see if he enjoyed the celebration when he was shown the clip on Jimmy Kimmel Live. Hmmm, I really can’t tell by that reaction. I think Kobe was impressed by the win. Hopefully this is the beginning of rebuilding relationships with teammates he may have alienated this year.
Derrick Rose Injury – The Chicago Bulls announced last night that Derrick Rose will undergo surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his knee. This is really bad news for Rose and I genuinely feel bad for him. He seems to have the worst luck with injuries. I feel like I need to do something to support Derrick in this trying time. As a sign of support for Derrick, I purchased a Derrick Rose playoff jersey. It is really comfortable. You should consider getting one also.
Big Winners -With so many big winners on Monday, I missed the fact that Grinder drolson22 won the Baller on FanDuel. It appears “the doctor” took notice and was determined to get his mention in this space. Drolsen22 followed up his Baller win by taking down the Slam. last night. So there you go fellas, if you want a mention in this space, you just have to keep winning. A few other Grinders also had notable wins. Mirage8888 locked up the final FanDuel WFHC spot and Stinger88 won the 3-Ball on DraftKings. For the rest of Tuesday’s tournament links, check this thread in the forums.
The Rondo Experiment – From time to time, I like to check in on NBA trades and see how they are working out. As you probably know, Dallas gave up quite a bit to bring in Rajon Rondo. Last night, during the third quarter, coach Rick Carlisle called a play which Rondo appeared to ignore. Carlisle promptly called a timeout and he and Rondo had a discussion about the play. I found a clip (to the right) and I’m trying to read lips here. According to the beat writers, Carlisle said something like, “you can sit down”. I’m not a very good lip reader, but I think Rondo says, “Thank you”. He must have been tired, because he did in fact sit for the final 20 minutes of the game. These two appear to be getting along great.
On the Menu Tonight
On the Pitch – UCL action continues on DraftKings today with a two-game slate featuring Arsenal vs. Monaco and Atletico Madrid vs. Bayer Leverkusen. Grinder ernestkiko has his thoughts here and BuffloSoldier gives his opinions here.
On the Ice – With only three games on the schedule, the NHL will have to serve as an appetizer rather than the main DFS course. This slate features Pittsburgh at Washington, which is a great game to watch but not to target in DFS. The other two options are Calgary at New Jersey and Ottawa at Anaheim. jmbwngfn will have his thoughts in the NHL Daily Plays article later today. It’s worth a read if you are considering playing tonight.
College Basketball – The NCAA offers up a very enticing slate tonight as teams continue to battle for a spot in March Madness. Grinders are also battling for a spot in the DraftKings March Mania bracket. If you want to play in tonight’s $20 qualifier, you better reserve a spot now ,as it is already 138/206 at the time of this writing. DraftKings and FanDuel both have plenty of other large GPPs for this massive 13-game slate. Varncass will have you covered here at RotoGrinders with his CBB Grind Down.
NBA Action – It’s hump day in the association, which means a twelve-game slate. Fantasy goodness will abound tonight with only two games featuring an over/under of less than 195. Notorious has his initial thoughts in the First Look and the usual NBA offerings will be available later today. Be sure to check back for The Starting Five, Six Pack, GPP Plays, NBA Grind Down, and of course three hours of NBA analysis on GrindersLive starting at 3:30 PM EST.
#NarrativeStreet- To hold you over until the other articles are ready, let’s dive into some narratives for tonight. Both Jimmer Fredette and Joakim Noah get the #BirthdayGame bump, with Noah obviously getting the larger bump since he actually sees the court. Also, if you really want to stretch the narratives, Kurt Rambis has a birthday today. He is an assistant coach for the Knicks. I think this means you can play all Knicks with confidence. On the #RevengeGame front, the obvious frontrunner is Michael Carter-Williams, as Milwaukee hosts Philadelphia. The other narrative to watch tonight is Kevin Garnett making his return to Minnesota and facing his good buddy Paul Pierce. Hopefully, Pierce still has something left in the tank and isn’t seriously injured after last night, so the fans can watch a vintage Garnett versus Pierce battle.
With that Grinders, I bid thee adieu until tomorrow. I hope you enjoyed the column. Let me know in the comments if there is anything you would like to see here in the future.