Summer League Preview: Monday, July 16th
We’re down to the Summer League semi-finals featuring the Cavs, Lakers, Grizzlies and Blazers. Given that these teams all played yesterday and Cleveland/Memphis are playing their third game in three days, it’s not a lock that we’ll see these teams roll out regular rotations. Make sure to tune into the Court Report at 7:30 PM ET where I’ll touch on any news that has dropped during the day and it’s likely we’ll have at least a little notice as to the CLE/LAL starting lineups, which will help. Let’s get into the preview for these two games, and make sure to check out my projections/projected minutes for this slate which are usable with LHQ/Lineup Builder. You can derive my thoughts on the slate based on those numbers, but we’ll get into a quick preview here..
Let’s take a quick look at Monday’s schedule and then touch on our content offerings (including updated Player Projections and Projected Minutes) in the 2018 Summer League Special for the remainder of the NBA’s Vegas getaway.
Cleveland vs. LA Lakers
Josh Hart played again yesterday and it sounded like he had talked his way into being a part of this team throughout the action, so it seems like we can expect him to suit up here. He’s been the best player on the court for the most part which isn’t surprising given that he was seeing heavy rotation minutes at times last year, so this level of competition should allow him to show off some unpolished parts of his game. He hasn’t been shy about getting his shot off and is doing a little more facilitating compared to the regular season, so he’s once again worth the cap to secure what will very likely be the Lakers top overall producer tonight. Svi Mykhailiuk has had a very productive trip to Vegas and continues to see minutes in the mid 20s while being one of the offensive focal points for LA. I don’t love the $/point value he offers at $6.7K, but if his shot is falling again he could prove to be a worthwhile target. I’ll very likely be underweight on him. Jeff Ayres played 27 minutes yesterday and figures to continue to benefit from Moritz Wagner’s absence, so despite his price tag creeping over $6K, he’s still squarely on the radar at a thin C spot. Nick King, Alex Caruso and Johnathan Williams are also on the DFS radar for tonight – Williams is a solid value target under $5K. Xavier Rathen-Mayes hasn’t been able to find enough court time to make him a viable DFS target quite yet, but his per-minute upside makes him a nice GPP target in the event that he sees a little extra run. He has some NBA experience under his belt and can contribute in a variety of ways.
On the Cleveland side, I’m still expecting Cedi Osman and Ante Zizic to rest, which leaves us with a handful of viable Cleveland targets. Collin Sexton is on the radar, but he’s below Josh Hart and Wade Baldwin for me which may lead to me omitting Sexton from my LHQ builds. Jamel Artis, John Holland, Billy Preston and Scoochie Smith all have appeal in the mid-range. Artis has being seeing minutes in the high-20s since Osman/Zizic started sitting, while Holland finally burst out offensively last night. I’ll be a little heavier on Artis compared to Holland at this stage. As for Preston, he figures to draw some post-LeBron hype as an exciting player to watch in Cleveland, and it’s started with a few nice summer showings. He’s still only seeing minutes in the low-20s, but is priced at a level where he can still hit value with that type of run. Scoochie Smith saw 27 minutes yesterday against Toronto, and while I don’t expect him to hit that mark again, he’s still on the value radar due to the lack of guard depth the Cavs are currently running out.
Memphis vs. Portland
Dominate your DFS contests for the Summer League!
- To read this full article, you need to purchase the Summer League Special package.
- Gain a huge edge in your DFS contests with in-depth analysis, projections, and more.