An overnight windstorm knocked out our internet access (and many of our TV channels) for 36 hours. Man, it was like the Dark Ages. I feel bad about there being no Tuesday Spin; this one is both late and abbreviated.
Catching Up
Among the things I missed was Monday’s triple-OT classic: Dirk Nowitzki’s 40 and Al Jefferson with 28 and 26 among many great fantasy lines.
Can’t believe the Thunder were held to 25 points in a half, by anybody. The Clippers are on a roll and Nick Young’s 19 was a pleasant surprise.
It was good to see Ryan Anderson back: 26 points, 16 rebounds. Richard Hamilton (22 PTS, 5 AST, 5 REB) may also be getting up to speed.
Ivan Johnson (21 PTS & 8 REB) is a good pickup with Zaza Pachulia shut down. So is James Johnson (18 in 32 minutes off the bench) if he was dropped. Ty Lawson and Arron Afflalo are pretty good right now.
Kevin Seraphin (21 PTS, 13 REB, 5 BLK) is a keeper candidate, averaging 16.2, 7.7 and 2.1 in 10 April games and getting better instead of tired.
Nate Robinson (30) and Klay Thompson (29) don’t need to have a conscience. George Hill should be owned everywhere and Jason Smith may be the best Hornets big man.
Starter minutes for hot backups don’t automatically translate into production. Gerald Green, Jordan Williams, Anthony Randolph and Michael Beasley were all disappointing.
Last night I missed the Knicks and Celtics. Since then, I’ve seen the highlights of an amazing game. Paul Pierce’s 43 and Carmelo Anthony’s triple-double were just the beginning of some juicy fantasy lines; J.R. Smith and Steve Novak each scored 25, hitting 15 triples between them.
Tony Parker was terrific (29 PTS, 14 AST) in beating the Lakers and Rudy Gay (28 PTS, 9 REB) had another good game.
Tonight’s Tips
Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade are out against the Raptors. That could mean big nights for Terrel Harris, Udonis Haslem and maybe even Mike Miller. It could also mean 40+ for Bron.
I like the Bucks backcourt, rested, against the Wizards. Don’t like the Sixers in their third game in as many nights, but Cleveland is horrible. A good game to avoid.
Kris Humphries and MarShon Brooks may have good nights again, as Deron Williams is out. The Knicks should win, but it will be hard to match last night’s level of intensity.
Everybody is hurt in the Orlando-Boston game; Kevin Garnett is a good play. Nolan Smith (33 minutes off the bench on Monday) is another good pickup if Raymond Felton is shut down. Nicolas Batum is iffy and Jamal Crawford out for the Blazers.
Kyrie Irving and Amare Stoudemire may return soon. Kobe Bryant is a definite maybe for Friday.
Normally, the Spin is here every day by 8:00 EDT except for Sunday, when we post by noon. Tomorrow will be back to normal. Follow me on Twitter for updates.
DraftStreet Survivors
| Sure Things | Over $14,000 |
| C. Anthony | $19,112 |
| L. James | $22,217 |
| A. Jefferson | $18,618 |
| C. Paul | $16,658 |
| Bargains | Under $9,000 |
| U. Haslem | $6,532 |
| M. Harris | $5,151 |
| S. Novak | $5,581 |
| N. Young | $6,325 |
| Hunches | $9,000 to $14,000 |
| K. Seraphin | $13,228 |
| A. Afflalo | $12,246 |
| M. Brooks | $11,957 |
| J.R. Smith | $11,509 |
Monday was a close-but-no-cigar night, and internet issues prevented me from playing on Tuesday. Back online, I’m entering three teams in tonight’s $5 Guaranteed Prize Pool league.
LeBron James costs more than $22,000 from the $100,000 salary cap, but he’s being asked to beat Toronto single-handedly. There aren’t a lot of great choices at C, so I’m keying on Al Jefferson despite his high salary. That means filling with some bargain guards and hoping for the best.
Good luck with all your teams tonight. If you still haven’t tried Draft Street, it’s always free to join and you can get started by playing in free leagues.