In the first half, neither the Clippers nor the Heat played defense – and the Clippers had the lead at half-time. In the second half, the Miami locked it down and pulled away. Considering the minutes they played the night before in Orlando, Blake Griffin/LAC and DeAndre Jordan/LAC put in commendable performances in defeat. In the late game, the Lakers went three-point crazy to build a big first half lead. James Harden/HOU led the Rockets back and it looked like they would cruise to victory. But the chronic hacking of Dwight Howard/HOU paid dividends. Poor execution by Houston and a three ball in the dying seconds from Steve Blake/LAL sealed a one-point win for the Lakers. Here is today’s Fantasy Spin.
Top Fantasy Performers
1) James Harden/HOU. He rallied the team, but the Lakers did a good job defending against him in the last two minutes. 9 of 24 FGA, 14 of 16 FTA, 9 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 steals, 2 blocks, 3 TO, 35 points.
2) Paul Millsap/ATL. Played a great all-around game for the Hawks. 10 of 15 FGA, 7 of 11 FTA, 10 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, 1 block, 0 TO, 29 points.
3) Blake Griffin/LAC. The one Clipper the Heat could not stop all night. 11 of 15 FGA, 4 of 5 FTA, 14 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 3 TO, 27 points.
4) Dwayne Wade/MIA. Wade was the MVP of the game. 13 of 22 FGA, 3 of 4 FTA, 4 rebounds, 7 assists, 3 steal, 1 block, 7 TO, 29 points.
5) Al Horford/ATL. The big man dominated inside as expected.10 of 21 FGA, 1 of 1 FTA, 9 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal, 4 blocks, 4 TO, 21 points.
Honorable mention:
Ty Lawson/DEN, Kyle Korver/ATL, DeAndre Jordan/LAC
Top Sleepers
1) Evan Fournier/DEN. His hot shooting off the bench kept the Nuggets in the game. 5 of 10 FGA, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block, 1 TO, 12 points.
2) DeMarre Carroll/ATL. A sleeper relative to his season so far, but I expected a rebound. 4 of 9 FGA, 1 of 1 FTA, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 0 TO, 10 points.
3) Jodie Meeks/LAL. Who knows which Lakers guard will step up on any given day. 6 of 9 FGA, 1 of 1 FTA, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 TO, 18 points.
4) Nate Robinson/DEN. 5 of 11 FGA, 1 of 2 FTA, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 2 TO, 15 points.
Biggest Busts
1) Pau Gasol/LAL. He wasn’t involved in the Lakers three-ball oriented offense last night, and his accuracy was off in any case. 1 of 10 FGA, 12 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 TO, 2 points.
2) LeBron James/MIA. He couldn’t hit the outside shot and was dissuaded from driving by the presence of Jordan/LAC under the bucket. 6 of 13 FGA, 5 of 9 FTA, 5 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 steal, 4 TO, 18 points.
3) Xavier Henry/LAL, He was invisible. 1 of 5 FGA, 1 of 2 FTA, 1 rebound, 1 assist, 1 steal, 3 TO, 3 points.
4) Chris Paul/LAC. I didn’t expect him to thrive against the Heat defense, but I was surprised the toll the Heat’s second half lockdown took on his numbers. 3 of 11 FGA, 5 of 5 FTA, 5 rebounds, 12 assists, 2 steals, 5 TO, 11 points.
5) Cartier Martin/ATL. He played 23 minutes and, apart from the steals, didn’t do much of anything. 0 of 7 FGA, 1 of 2 FTA, 3 rebounds, 3 steals, 0 TO, 1 point.
I entered five contests at DraftStreet last night. I don’t like using the same lineup in all my games for two reasons. One is that I think double-up and standard leagues require different approaches. Another is that I like diversity because it reduces the daily variance in the results. Yesterday my recommended lineup ended up scoring 209.00 DraftStreet points, only one point less than the score I predicted it would. This was enough to cash in double-up leagues, but it would have finished short of the money in almost all of the standard payout leagues.
Aside from James Harden/HOU and DeAndre Jordan/LAC I missed out on the top players last night, namely Dwayne Wade/MIA, Blake Griffin/LAC, Paul Millsap/ATL, and Al Horford/ATL. To do well in a large field GPP you needed at least three of the six.
My two biggest errors were 1) underestimating the game Blake Griffin/LAC was capable of against the Heat after playing 40 minutes the night before, and 2) investing in LeBron James/MIA. The conditions seemed right for LeBron to dominate the game, but he ended up producing his worst fantasy stat line of the season.
Among my actual lineups, my best finish by far was 12th in the $2/550-entry contest. Just a few more buckets by Harden would have put me close to the top five.
Sometimes it’s fun to see how “God” would have done:
Omniscient Mode: G – Harden/HOU, Korver/ATL, Wade/MIA, Fournier/DEN; F- Millsap/ATL, Griffin/LAC, Carroll/ATL; C- Jordan/LAC. 291.00 DraftStreet Points.
The highest actual score I saw was 267.50 in the 330-entry GPP by “popimpin”. He/she had four of the big six, plus the productive Kyle Korver/ATL, Randy Foye/DEN and Wesley Johnson/LAL. His/her only bust was Omri Casspi/HOU.
Friday NBA contests at DraftStreet
It’s a busy Friday night as usual in the NBA. No doubt there will be lots of high DraftStreet point totals put up by various players. On nights like these, we must hunt for the players most likely to have big games, and supplement them with solid bargain plays.
It is a great time to play the NBA leagues, as DraftStreet’s incredible voucher promotion continues for another week. All you have to do is enter NBA leagues through November 14th and work your way through vouchers of increasing value, the top one allowing an entry to a $109 contest.
If you like to shoot for a big prize in the big field contests, there is a $2/1,100-entry GPP and a $5/5500-entry GPP on offer, both with plenty of open spots. If you are a high-roller, you can try the $215/$6,000 GPP. I see six Double-Up GPPs in the lobby as I write, ranging from $5 to $215 to enter. Don’t forget the non-guarantee 10-entry and 20-entry contests – they are fast becoming my favorites. Look for “RobDudek” in several contests today as I work my way towards that $109 voucher.
Warriors and Spurs Battle for West Bragging Rights
A look at tonight’s games from a daily fantasy perspective. Dollar figures are DraftStreet prices. An asterisk (*) indicates a team is playing the their second game on back-to-back nights.
New York Knicks at Charlotte Bobcats (7pm EST)- Over/Under Total=191; Knicks 2.5
Without C Tyson Chandler/NYK, the Knicks should not be a road favorite here. F Carmelo Anthony/$16,994/NYK will be asked to shoulder the burden against a balanced Bobcats attack.
Toronto Raptors at Indiana Pacers (7pm EST)- Over/Under Total=187.5; Pacers -9
Considering the offense runs through G Lance Stephenson/$10,334/IND most of the time, his low DraftStreet price makes him a great value play against the Raptors.
Boston Celtics at Orlando Magic (7pm EST)- Over/Under Total=191.5; Magic -6
C Nikola Vucevic/$17,778/ORL will be a popular choice, coming off his monster game against the Clippers and facing a soft Celtics interior defense. F Kelly Olynyk/$7,343/BOS is a solid bargain play if he starts.
Cleveland Cavaliers at Philadelphia 76ers (7pm EST)- Over/Under Total=204.5; Cavs -3.5
Conditions are excellent for a G Kyrie Irving/$15,378/CLE breakout. G Michael Carter-Williams/$14,281/PHI is a better player in fantasy than in real life right now, and is well worth deploying today with the hope that he keeps his turnovers down.
Brooklyn Nets at Washington Wizards (7pm EST)- Over/Under Total=197; Nets -2.5
The Nets are wounded and the Wizards will seek to raise the tempo to tire out the Nets veterans.
Oklahoma City Thunder at Detroit Pistons (7:30pm EST)- Over/Under Total=196.5; Thunder -3
An intriguing contrast between the slashing style of OKC and the frontcourt game of the Pistons. If Detroit plays defense as well as they are capable of, they will win.
Utah Jazz at Chicago Bulls (8pm EST)- Over/Under Total=186; Bulls -12.5
The Bulls have had some tough matchups in the early going and I predict they will let their frustration loose and blow out the Jazz. Look for F Carlos Boozer/$13,424/CHI to bounce back.
Dallas Mavericks at Minnesota Timberwolves (8pm EST)- Over/Under Total=208.5; Wolves -4
I don’t think the Mavs can stop F Kevin Love/$22,467/MIN. I’m calling for 50+ DraftStreet points for the Wolves’ smooth big man.
Los Angeles Lakers* at New Orleans Pelicans (8pm EST)- Over/Under Total=200.5; Pelicans -9
The Lakers will see the improved F Anthony Davis/$19,111/NOP up close and may have nightmares afterwards. Will the three-point attack work again?
Golden State Warriors at San Antonio Spurs (8:30pm EST)- Over/Under Total=204; Spurs -5
Everyone will be monitoring G Stephen Curry’s/$16,938/GSW health. Speculative plays abound here but I don’t see this one as a high-scoring affair. I have plenty of other places to look for monster performances.
Denver Nuggets* at Phoenix Suns (9pm EST)- Over/Under Total=199.5; Suns -2.5
The Nuggets must travel and play the second of back-to-back. Look for more minutes from the bench. G Jordan Hamilton/$5,525/DEN is my top bargain play.
Sacramento Kings at Portland Trail Blazers (10pm EST)- Over/Under Total=203; Blazers -7
When will G Isaiah Thomas/$10,117/SAC start?
My lineup in the $2/$1,100-entry at DraftStreet (Subject to change; $99,437 spent of $100,000 max):
Stars Worth Starting: Carmelo Anthony/NYK, Eric Bledsoe/PHO, Kyrie Irving/CLE
Bargain Plays: Jordan Hamilton/DEN, Lance Stephenson/IND
Speculative Plays: Carlos Boozer/CHI, Anderson Varejao/CLE and Tristan Thompson/CLE.
Expected DraftStreet points: 235.00 (+/- 35.00)
The Fantasy Spin is here every day, around noon EST. Follow me @robdudek for breaking news and pre-game thoughts relevant to NBA daily fantasy.