Congratulations to “Gph106” who scored a whopping 313 fantasy points (he even used Randy Foye!) for a very impressive win in our Friday Freeroll and the $100 first prize. The next highest total among 427 entries was 285; my team finished in the middle of the pack. Details later this morning — plus my picks for tonight — in the DraftStreet Diary.
December 28 Games
MIA @ DET: For the second straight game, Will Bynum (25 PTS, 10 AST) sparked the Pistons. Generously listed at six feet, Will the Thrill dominated the second and fourth quarters to make up for the absence of Rodney Stuckey (ankle). Charlie Villanueva (18 PTS, 6 REB) was also a factor, as Detroit’s reserves outscored Miami’s 64-20. The Heat really missed suspended Dwyane Wade, though LeBron James (35 PTS, 6 REB, 5 AST, 6 STL) and Chris Bosh (28 PTS, 9 REB, 3 BLK) did everything possible.
DEN @ DAL: The Danilo Gallinari show was amazing. A career-high 39 points (7-11 from downtown) helped the Nuggets cruise to a 21-point road win. Kenneth Faried (19 REB, 11 PTS, 4 STL) cleaned the glass and Andre Iguodala (20 PTS, 8 REB, 4 AST) also contributed. Dallas was clearly tired; O.J. Mayo (15) was their leading scorer but committed six turnovers. Dirk Nowitzki missed eight of ten FG attempts in just 18 minutes off the bench, and one night after going for 33, Darren Collison (10 PTS, 4 AST) returned to earth.
ORL @ WAS: The Wizards came from behind to win for the first time in nine games. Their newest guard to own in deep fantasy leagues is Garrett Temple (13 PTS, 6 AST, 6 REB), who took over for ineffective Shelvin Mack. The best one to own is Jordan Crawford (27 PTS, 6 REB, 6 AST) who is the sixth man after all. Nene was terrific — 23 PTS, 11 REB, 4 AST in 29 minutes — and Kevin Seraphin (17 PTS, 6 REB, 4 BLK) also impressed. Arron Afflalo had 26 and J.J. Redick 23 (with five 3-pointers) in the losing cause; the Magic are still winless since Glen Davis (shoulder) got hurt.
ATL @ CLE: Kyrie Irving (28 PTS, 6 REB, 5 AST, 4 STL) kept the shorthanded Cavs in the game for three quarters, to no avail. On a night I expected Josh Smith to have his way, he struggled (2-of-12 shooting, 5 TO) and missed the fourth quarter with a sore hip. Jeff Teague (a career-high 27 PTS, 8 AST) was the unlikely hero and Louis Williams (16 PTS, 5 REB, 4 AST) made his third straight start at SG. Cavs rookie Tyler Zeller had a rough beginning, but hung in there (12 PTS, 7 REB) and has gained valuable experience. Dion Waiters had nice numbers (18 PTS, 6 REB, 4 AST, 3 STL) though he went 0-7 in the second half.