Every so often, the fuzzy old crystal ball offers a brief, clear glimpse into the future. Saturday was one of those nights. My picks won four of five games, and the other result was just as close as predicted. It certainly paid off in daily leagues, where I entered seven teams for a total of $14, and though none of them won, six finished in the money for a nifty $104 profit.
Speaking of which, my DraftStreet Diary is no longer a standalone feature. To that small-but-loyal group of readers, don’t worry — it’s become part of the daily Spin. As always, we’ll begin by giving you the highlights and lowlights from every NBA game last night, with news you can use in traditional Roto, Head-to-Head and Points leagues, followed by previews of what might happen today. Now there’s a bonus page with my DS picks.
February 9 Game Recaps
DEN @ CLE: We told you the Nuggets could win on the road. Eight players scored in double figures, with Danilo Gallinari (18 PTS, 9 REB, 2 STL, 2 BLK) leading the way to their ninth straight victory. The Cavs played very well in a back-to-back; Kyrie Irving (26 PTS, 7 AST, 6 REB) was brilliant as usual. The surprise was Alonzo Gee (20) hitting all eight shots, including three triples. Wayne Ellington (13 PTS, 5 REB in 23 minutes) has become a key bench player with some value in deeper leagues, but Marreese Speights had a rough night (5 PTS on 1-10 shooting) because JaVale McGee (13 PTS, 4 REB, 4 BLK) was fired up on D, altering a bunch of the shots he didn’t swat. Dion Waiters (3 PTS, 1-for-6) also struggled to escape the attention of Andre Iguodala (14 PTS, 7 AST, 4 REB) who is worth even more in real life than fantasy.
GSW @ DAL: The Warriors and their fans will try to forget this disastrous road trip by Tuesday. It wasn’t hard to imagine them getting blown out, as it was a fourth game in five nights and they gave a maximum effort in Memphis on Friday. Dallas was fully rested, at home and relatively healthy. Dirk Nowitzki (15 PTS, 6 REB) was slightly off-target, missing nine FG attempts and three free throws, but Shawn Marion (26 PTS, 11 REB, 2 STL) picked him up and the backcourt was sharp. O.J. Mayo (19 PTS, 9 AST, 3 REB) and Darren Collison (18 PTS, 8 AST, 4 REB) combined for five 3-pointers and harassed an exhausted Stephen Curry (18 PTS, 7 REB, 4 AST) into five turnovers. Jarrett Jack (shoulder) missed his third game and Andrew Bogut sits out in back-to-back situations to avoid stressing his ankle.
CHA @ PHI: The injury-ravaged Sixers will be in trouble against better teams, but they held off Charlotte. Lavoy Allen was a man on a mission, grabbing a career-high 22 rebounds, 11 at the offensive end, and scoring 14 points. Jrue Holiday (20 PTS, 7 AST, 3 REB) and Spencer Hawes (17 PTS, 9 REB, 3 AST) also played well, and while Evan Turner missed ten more shots, that was better than his brutal 9-37 in the previous four games and a double-double (16 PTS, 10 REB, 4 AST) was encouraging. Picked up on a 10-day contract, Jeremy Pargo (12 PTS, 6 AST, 4 REB) played a solid 29 minutes as the sixth man. The Bobcats were tired and shot less than 31%, with Ramon Sessions (20) and Byron Mullens (16) their top scorers.