As expected, most of the games last night were tightly contested. The exception was the Heat’s relatively easy victory over the Orlando Magic. The audience witnessed the first NBA start for Victor Oladipo/ORL, and saw the best and worst of him. The rookie filled the stat sheet, but also turned the ball over far too many times to be a successful point guard. In the nightcap, the Grizzlies prevailed in overtime over the Curry-less Warriors. Here is today’s Fantasy Spin.
Top Fantasy Performers
1) Paul George/IND. Dominated the second half, leading the Pacers back to an eventual overtime win. 12 of 26 FGA, 9 of 12 FTA, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 5 steals, 2 blocks, 1 TO, 35 points.
2) Anthony Davis/NOP. Always dominates the paint when he’s on his game. 9 of 12 FGA, 4 of 6 FTA, 9 rebounds, 4 assists, 8 blocks, 1 TO, 22 points.
3) Dirk Nowitzki/DAL. He was exceptional in one of the highest scoring games of the year. 13 of 20 FGA, 7 of 7 FTA, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 1 TO, 35 points.
4) Monta Ellis/DAL. 13 of 18 FGA, 9 of 12 FTA, 2 rebounds, 8 assists, 2 steals, 3 TO, 37 points.
5) Carmelo Anthony/NYK. Valiant effort against the top defense in the league. 10 of 28 FGA, 10 of 10 FTA, 18 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks, 4 TO, 30 points.
Honorable mention: Chandler Parsons/HOU, Chris Paul/LAC, Dwight Howard/HOU
Top Sleepers
1) Terrence Ross/TOR. Notoriously inconsistent. Does best in wide open games. 7 of 11 FGA, 7 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 0 TO, 17 points.
2) DeMarre Carroll/ATL. The Hawks’ best player last night. 3 of 6 FGA, 4 of 6 FTA, 12 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks, 0 TO, 11 points.
3) Nene Hilario/WAS. An integral part of the Wizards’ domination of the paint. 10 of 16 FGA, 4 of 4 FTA, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 1 TO, 24 points.
4) Kawhi Leonard/SAS. 7 of 14 FGA, 1 of 2 FTA, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 5 steals, 1 block, 0 TO, 16 points.
5) Kevin Martin/MIN. A nice bounce back game in a losing cause. 11 of 21 FGA, 3 of 3 TA, 10 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, 2 TO, 28 points.
Biggest Busts
1) Jeremy Lin/HOU. 0 of 5 FGA, 1 of 2 FTA, 1 rebound, 4 assists, 1 block, 0 TO, 1 point.
2) Tristan Thompson/CLE. The Cavs needed him on the boards. o of 5 FGA, 2 of 2 FTA, 4 rebounds, 2 TO, 2 points.
3) Eric Gordon/NOP. 3 of 13 FGA, 3 of 4 FTA, 1 rebound, 1 TO, 9 points.
4) Nikola Vucevic/ORL. Wasn’t able to do much inside. 2 of 7 FGA, 2 of 2 FTA, 6 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 TO, 6 points.
5) Vitor Faverani/BOS. Relegated to the bench once again. 0 for 1 FGA, 0 TO (2 minutes played)
There were plenty of fat stat lines in last night’s heavy NBA schedule, resulting in high scoring lineups at DraftStreet. I bricked on a couple of my picks, most notably on Jonas Valanciunas/TOR, which was enough to put me just above middle of the pack. Gerald Green/PHO had a brilliant first half against the Kings, but was ineffective and forgotten in the second. Evan Turner/PHI was the Sixers’ best player, while DeMar DeRozan/TOR and Klay Thompson/GSW filled the bucket but did little else to help their fantasy teams.
Overall, the recommended lineup scored 199.50 DraftStreet points, a little below expectation.
Thursday NBA contests at DraftStreet
Since there are only two NBA games tonight, profits and losses in DraftStreet leagues will be decided by the performances of the sleepers. DraftStreet is offering its normal assortment of contests, including the now standard $2/550-entry GPP and double-up leagues for up to 110 entrants.
There is no DraftStreet Basketball Championship qualifier today, but I suspect we will see one tomorrow. Don’t forget the weekly freeroll taking place tomorrow. Click on any DraftStreet text link to register and set your lineups for a chance to win vouchers to DraftStreet contests.
Clippers travel to Oklahoma
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.
Los Angeles Clippers* at Oklahoma City Thunder (8:00pm EST)- Over/Under Total=211; Thunder -5.5
The Clippers secured a well-earned road win over the Timberwolves last night. The bench players outplayed their counterparts and their starters held onto the lead in crunch time. Needless to say, the rested Thunder will try to keep the tempo high and will rely on Russell Westbrook/OKC to do that. The high-priced Kevin Durant/OKC is a riskier play, but a good anchor for your double-up teams. The Clippers will need Blake Griffin/LAC and J.J. Redick/LAC to fill the bucket; Chris Paul/LAC is also a safe play.
Chicago Bulls at Denver Nuggets (10:30pm EST)- Over/Under Total=198; Bulls -1
The Bulls strategy will be to dominate with their half-court game, which means that Joakim Noah/CHI and Carlos Boozer/CHI will be the keys to their success. The wildcard for the Nuggets is J.J. Hickson/DEN. He is coming off a great game in outplaying Serge Ibaka/OKC and will be relied upon to get rebounds for the Nuggets.
My lineup in today’s $5/330-entry GPP at DraftStreet (subject to change; spent $99,601 of $100,000 max):
Stars Worth Starting: Kevin Durant/OKC, Blake Griffin/LAC, Russell Westbrook/OKC
Bargain Plays: Thabo Sefolosha/OKC, Mike Dunleavy/CHI
Speculative Plays: J.J. Hickson/DEN, Jeremy Lamb/OKC, Reggie Jackson/OKC
Notes: I am going OKC-heavy because I believe this game will be a shootout ultimately won by the Thunder. In a shootout, Blake Griffin/LAC is the most likely Clipper to put up monster numbers and the $2,700 salary savings over Chris Paul/LAC is significant.
Expected DraftStreet points: 215.00 (+/30.00)
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.