The Clippers handled the Sixers as expected, but instead of an up tempo game we saw a more pedestrian effort as far as scoring was concerned. The Magic continued to scuffle as they lost to Memphis. Portland put in a solid road effort to beat Utah, while the Mavericks suffered a disappointing defeat to the new look Kings. Monday illustrated the importance of selecting players from games you think will be high scoring. The Wizards lost to the Nuggets by a point and the Bobcats beat the Warriors by 4 points. As far as total points scored goes, these games were very different: 149 points scored in the first game, compared to 226 in the later. Monster stat lines disproportionately come from high scoring games. Today we have eight NBA games on the schedule. Here is today’s Fantasy Spin, in which I roll out a new daily feature.
Top performers
1) DeMarcus Cousins/SAC. Top healthy fantasy center. 10 of 17 FGA, 12 of 14 FTA, 19 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals, 1 block, 9 TO, 32 points.
2) Stephen Curry/GSW. His shooting spree wasn’t quite enough.
3) Chris Paul/LAC. Tremendously consistent.
4) Derrick Williams/SAC.
5) Isaiah Thomas/SAC. We’ll be seeing his name on this list much more often now that his minutes will increase.
Honorable mention: none.
Top Sleepers
1) Andrew Nicholson/ORL. A rising player who can contribute stats across the board. 8 of 12 FGA, 1 of 1 FTA, 11 rebounds, 4 blocks, 1 TO, 19 points.
2) Trevor Booker/WAS. Moved into the starting lineup in place of Martell Webster/WAS.
3) Jon Leuer/MEM.
4) Kemba Walker/CHA.
5) Josh McRoberts/CHA.
Biggest Busts
1) Spencer Hawes/PHI. Didn’t have a great matchup against the Clippers. A rare poor game from the perimeter-oriented center. 1 of 6 FGA, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 TO, 2 points.
2) DeJuan Blair/DAL. Since he play limited minutes, a mediocre stat line is always a risk.
3) E’Twaun Moore/ORL.
4) Shawn Marion/DAL. Seems to be returning to expected performance.
5) Jamal Crawford/LAC.
Tuesday NBA contests at DraftStreet
My focus tonight will be the $5/$7,500 GPP with room for 1650 entrants. For those with higher budgets, the $55/$10,000 GPP with a $2,400 prize for first place. If you have a tight budget and still want to participate in the DraftStreet Basketball Championship, there is a $2 satellite award $22 vouchers for an upcoming qualifier.
Don’t forget our weekly Friday freeroll. It’s a chance to win vouchers for DraftStreet contests at no risk to you. Click on any text link, register and set your lineup before the Friday night deadline.
Heat travel to Indiana for East Bragging Rights
A look at tonight’s action from a daily fantasy perspective. An asterisk (*) indicates a team playing the second of back-to-back games:
Miami Heat at Indiana Pacers (7:00 pm EST), Over/Under 190.5; Pacers -3
I think the total points line is a too high. It’s tough to pick any individual players because both defenses are so good. Indiana is at home and has more depth, so I’d lean towards some of their cheaper players, such as David West/IND and George Hill/IND.
New York Knicks at Cleveland Cavaliers (7:00 pm EST), Over/Under 188.5; Cavs -2.5
The Knicks bombed on Sunday and face a recovering Cavaliers team. As long as Kyrie Irving/CLE plays well, I expect this one to be close to the end. Carmelo Anthony/NYK is a great lineup anchor here.
San Antonio Spurs at Toronto Raptors (7:00 pm EST), Over/Under 198; Spurs -7.5
The Raptors return from the west coast and face a team with much more depth and experience. They won’t yet have Greivis Vazsquez/TOR in the lineup and so that opens up major minutes for the likes of Tyson Ross/TOR. Amir Johnson/TOR comes off a career game, but should be avoided in this matchup. Tim Duncan/SAS and Tony Parker/SAS are safe Spurs choices.
Minnesota Timberwolves at Detroit Pistons (7:30 pm EST), Over/Under 205; Pistons -1
Kevin Love/MIN is back and he’ll be needed against the bruising Pistons. Detroit has been brilliant at times, mundane at others. This isn’t the best matchup for Andre Drummond/DET.
Boston Celtics at Brooklyn Nets (7:30 pm EST), Over/Under 194; Nets -2
Another Atlantic division game, this time with the wrong side being favored. The Nets are almost wholly dependent on Brook Lopez/BKN playing well. The Celtics feature a balanced attack led by Jordan Crawford/BOS. Jeff Green/BOS is a good speculative play.
Oklahoma City Thunder at Atlanta Hawks (7:30 pm EST), Over/Under 203; Thunder -4.5
The Thunder don’t have many weaknesses at the moment. Kevin Durant/OKC is an expensive but worthy anchor and Russell Westbrook/OKC seems back to full health and can be relied on. Al Horford/ATL should have a good game, but I would avoid the notoriously inconsistent Paul Millsap/ATL.
Milwaukee Bucks at Chicago Bulls (8:00 pm EST), Over/Under 182.5 ; Bulls -7.5
The Bulls are tough to beat at home and have too much talent for the Bucks to handle unless Milwaukee shoots the lights out or the Bulls shooters turn cold. I like Taj Gibson/CHI and Joakim Noah/CHI here.
Phoenix Suns at Los Angeles Lakers (10:30 pm EST), Over/Under 206; Lakers -3
Kobe, chapter two takes to the floor. I suspect the Lakers will still be in a muddle offensively. Goran Dragic/PHO could have a monster game.
Injuries Relevant for Tonight’s Games
The new featured rolled out today is a player injury status list for teams in action tonight. The key: (P) Probable, (Q) Questionable, (D) Doubtful, (GT) Game time decision, (OUT) Out (of course).
Heat: Dwayne Wade (P), Michael Beasley (Q),
Pacers: Danny Granger (OUT)
Knicks: Kenyon Martin (GT), Tyson Chandler (OUT)
Spurs: Tiago Splitter (OUT)
Raptors: Tyler Hansbrough (P), Greivis Vasquez(OUT), John Salmons (OUT), Patrick Patterson(OUT)
Wolves: Kevin Love (P)
Pistons: Rodney Stuckey (Q), Will Bynum (OUT) Chauncey Billups (OUT)
Celtics: Kelly Olynyk (OUT); Rajon Rondo (OUT)
Nets: Paul Pierce (Q), Deron Williams (P), Andrei Kirikenko (OUT), Jason Terry (OUT),
Thunder: Thabo Sefolosha (OUT),
Hawks: Gustavo Ayon(D)
Bucks: Gary Neal (D), Caron Butler (OUT), Larry Sanders (OUT); Zaza Pachulia (OUT),
Bulls: Mike James (P), Luol Deng (OUT), , Jimmy Butler (OUT)
Lakers: Pau Gasol (P), Jordan Farmar (OUT), Steve Nash (OUT)
My recommended lineup in the $5/$1,650 GPP at DraftStreet ($99,776 salary spent of $100,000 max):
Stars Worth Starting: Kevin Durant/OKC, Brook Lopez/BKN, Joakim Noah/CHI
Bargain Plays: Terrence Ross/TOR, Kirk Hinrich/CHI
Speculative Plays: Tristan Thompson/CLE, Taj Gibson/CHI, Jarrett Jack/CLE
Estimated DraftStreet points: 215.00 (+/- 45.00)
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.