The Sacramento Kings took advantage of the absence of Eric Bledsoe/PHO and rallied late in the fourth quarter to beat the visiting Suns. It was a key win after the demolition suffered at the hands of the Grizzlies in their last home game, during which most of the starters were benched. The Heat and the Rockets easily handled the visiting Hawks and Celtics respectively. Their star players’ minutes were reduced, much to the chagrin of fantasy players counting on the numbers of Dwight Howard/HOU, James Harden/HOU and LeBron James/MIA. Here is today’s Fantasy Spin.
Top Fantasy Performers
1) DeMarcus Cousins/SAC. Led the Kings back from the edge of defeat. 9 of 18 FGA, 9 of 15 FTA, 12 rebounds, 3 assists, 4 steals, 2 blocks, 4 TO, 27 points.
2) John Wall/WAS. A great game against a tough opponent. 5 of 17 FGA, 4 of 4 FTA, 5 rebounds, 16 assists, 2 steals, 1 block, 1 TO, 14 points.
3) Terrence Jones/HOU. One of the biggest early season success stories. 10 of 12 FGA, 3 of 4 FTA, 9 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 blocks, 1 TO, 24 points.
4) Kevin Love/MIN. A sub-par game and still made this list. 8 of 17 FGA, 5 of 9 FTA, 11 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 TO, 25 points.
5) Andre Drummond/DET. Laying claim to being the Pistons’ best player. 6 of 7 FGA, 1 of 5 FTA, 11 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, 3 blocks, 3 TO, 13 points.
Honorable mention: Bradley Beal/WAS, Nene Hilario/WAS, Dwight Howard/HOU
Top Sleepers
1) Gerald Green/PHO. Without Bledsoe in the Suns lineup, Green became the main offensive weapon. 6 of 13 FGA, 7 of 8 FTA, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, 2 blocks, 2 TO, 23 points.
2) Mike Scott/ATL. Solid minutes off the bench. 6 of 10 FGA, 2 of 2 FTA, 10 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 2 TO, 15 points.
3) Pablo Prigioni/NYK. 3 of 5 FGA, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, 1 block, 0 TO, 8 points.
4) Channing Frye/PHO. 7 of 13 FGA, 9 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block, 1 TO, 17 points.
5) Archie Goodwin/PHO. 7 of 10 FGA, 1 of 2 FTA, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, 1 TO, 16 points
Biggest Busts
1) Markieff Morris/PHO. Reliable player off the bench this season until last night. 3 of 4 FTA, 0 TO, 3 points.
2) Al Horford/ATL. The Hawks could not get traction against the Miami defense. 5 of 9 FGA, 2 of 4 FTA, 7 rebounds, 2 assists, 7 TO, 12 points.
3) LeBron James/MIA. 6 of 13 FGA, 1 of 3 FTA, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal, 3 TO, 13 points.
4) Jeff Teague/ATL. 4 of 13 FGA, 2 rebounds, 7 assists, 3 TO, 9 points.
5) Brandon Jennings/DET. 1 of 3 FGA, 7 assists, 1 block, 1 TO, 2 points.
The limited schedule and the poor fantasy stat lines from many marquee performers resulted in low scoring across all DraftStreet leagues. My teams had no success despite the lowered standards. Simply put, it was an exceptional set of NBA games, unlikely to be repeated soon.
My recommended team had a few bullseyes, namely Terrence Jones/HOU, J.J. Barea/MIN and Bradley Beal/WAS, but overall the tally was below expectation, just 175.75 DraftStreet points. That score would have been just outside of the money in standard payout leagues last night, but well within the top half of double-up leagues. The median score in the large $2/1,100 entry contest was a paltry 153.12.
Wednesday NBA contests at DraftStreet
For those interested in the standard payout contests, DraftStreet is offering larger than usual multi-entry guarantees. The $2/1,100 entry caught my eye right away. For the high rollers, there is a $420 GPP with room for 25 entries. There are nine double-up GPPs in the NBA lobby at DraftStreet as I speak. A heavy schedule of NBA games today means you have an abundance of talent to choose from.
The DraftStreet Basketball Championship qualifier comes early this week, in the form of a $55 multi-entry GPP with room for 350 entries. The winner gets a spot in the main event and 31 others get a cash payout.
Don’t forget the weekly freeroll on Friday. Click on any DraftStreet text link to register and set your lineups for a chance to win vouchers to DraftStreet contests.
Four Western Powers Battle
A look at today’s games from a daily fantasy perspective. Dollar figures are DraftStreet prices. An asterisk (*) indicates that the team is playing the second of back-to-back games.
Brooklyn Nets at Charlotte Bobcats (7:00pm EST)- Over/Under Total=189; Nets -2.5
If the Nets can’t win this one, it will only go from bad to worse in Brooklyn. It’s time for Paul Pierce/$11,738/BKN to step it up.
Washington Wizards* at Cleveland Cavaliers (7:00pm EST)- Over/Under Total=192; Cavs -3
Expect a big game from Kyrie Irving/$15,912/CLE, as Cleveland has precious little else in the point scoring department. Tristan Thompson/$13,852/CLE has impressed on the boards all season.
Indiana Pacers at New York Knicks (7:00pm EST)- Over/Under Total=186.5; Pacers -6
The Pacers look to regroup after being wiped out in Chicago to end their undefeated streak. They take on a struggling Knicks team with few offensive threats apart from Carmelo Anthony/$18,718/NYK.
Miami Heat* at Orlando Magic (7:00pm EST)- Over/Under Total=198.5; Heat -7.5
The Heat are firmly in lock down mode and so it is a huge risk taking any Magic players tonight. Big man Nikola Vucevic/$16,823/ORL is the best bet for a big game.
Toronto Raptors at Philadelphia 76ers (7:00pm EST)- Over/Under Total=203.5; Raptors -3.5
The Raptors have the athletes to match up with the Sixers and should win easily with their experience advantage. Interim point guard Tony Wroten/$12,532/PHI has shown flashes of brilliance along with inconsistency. Jonas Valanciunas/$10,212/TOR is an excellent value play.
Detroit Pistons* at Atlanta Hawks* (7:30pm EST)- Over/Under Total=204; Hawks -4.5
Ride the hot hand: that means Andre Drummond/$16,033/DET in this game.
Portland Trail Blazers at Milwaukee Bucks (8:00pm EST)- Over/Under Total= 196; Blazers -5
Portland continues their victory tour against the depleted Bucks. Damian Lillard/$15,525/POR has confirmed his place among the top 10 point guards in the league and Mo Williams/$11,423/POR might be the best bench player in the league right now. Because big man LaMarcus Aldridge/$17,326/POR can step out and nail the mid-range jumped, the Portland offense has become difficult to contain.
Los Angeles Clippers at Minnesota Timberwolves* (8:00pm EST)- Over/Under Total=213; Wolves -1
The Wolves return home for a rematch against the Clippers after a surprise defeat in Washington. This is the game I’ll be watching with the most interest tonight.
Utah Jazz at New Orleans Pelicans (8:00pm EST)- Over/Under Total=194.5; Pelicans -10.5
The Pelicans were the victims of the Jazz’s only win this season, but they now have the home court advantage. Anthony Davis/$22,904/NOP is a risky play only because of possible blowout conditions.
Boston Celtics* at San Antonio Spurs (8:30pm EST)- Over/Under Total=192; Spurs -14.5
The Spurs have had a lot of time off and should be at full strength. Jordan Crawford/$12,635/BOS let me down last night; let’s see if he can bounce back.
Sacramento Kings* at Phoenix Suns* (9:00pm EST)- Over/Under Total=195.5; Suns -5.5
The second leg of a home-and-home set. The key question for the Suns is the availability of Eric Bledsoe/$16,393/PHO.
Houston Rockets* at Dallas Mavericks (9:30pm EST)- Over/Under Total=214;Mavs -3.5
A likely shootout, and the Rockets don’t have anyone who matches up well on defense against Dirk Nowitzki/$14,823/DAL.
Memphis Grizzlies at Golden State Warriors (10:30pm EST)- Over/Under Total=191; Warriors -4
The Warriors, likely without Stephen Curry/$17,465/GSW, will have to be on their game to beat the surging Grizzlies. Look for Klay Thompson/$13,256/GSW and David Lee/$15,179/GSW to be the main shooters and it will be interesting how much of the point guard duties Andre Iguodala/$15,143/GSW will be given. Memphis duo Marc Gasol/$16,635/MEM and Zach Randolph/$14,385/MEM are in form.
My lineup in today’s $2/1,100-entry GPP at DraftStreet (subject to change; spent $99,857 of $100,000 max):
Stars Worth Starting: Andre Drummond/DET, Zach Randolph/MEM
Bargain Plays: Gerald Green/PHO (if he starts), Jonas Valanciunas/TOR, Martell Webster/WAS (if he starts)
Speculative Plays: Evan Turner/PHI, Klay Thompson/GSW, DeMar DeRozan/TOR
Notes: Green and Webster will lose a lot of value if Eric Bledsoe/PHO and Trevor Ariza/WAS play. Bledsoe is listed as “questionable”.
Expected DraftStreet points: 220.00 (+/40.00)
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.