Stephen Curry/GSW was unstoppable and led the Warriors to a win over a full-strength Heat squad in Miami. The Philadelphia 76ers continued to impress with another road win on the strength of great games from Thaddeus Young/PHI and Evan Turner/PHI. Carmelo Anthony/NYK returned and to everyone’s surprise the Knicks bested the Spurs. In the nightcap, Portland blasted the Bobcats by 30 points. Tonight the action begins at 7 PM EST with the Raptors visiting the Wizards and continues through to the Jazz against the beleaguered Lakers. Here is today’s Fantasy Spin.
Fantasy Boom and Bust
Top Performers:
Stephen Curry/GSW. Even a good defensive team like the Heat can’t contain Curry when he is on his game. 13 of 22 FGA, 2 of 3 FTA, 2 rebounds, 12 assists, 4 steals, 4 TO, 36 points.
Thaddeus Young/PHI. Despite the rise of his daily fantasy salary, he hasn’t let daily fantasy players in a long time.
Anderson Varejao/CLE. 25 boards! With no Nikola Vucevic/ORL, the Magic interior was ripe for exploitation.
DeMarcus Cousins/SAC. Performed about as expected.
David Lee/GSW.
Sleepers:
Iman Shumpert/NYK. Melo played well, but Shumpert was the difference maker. 10 of 13 FGA, 1 of 1 FTA, 6 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 steals, 2 TO, 27 points.
Marco Belinelli/SAS. Aside from him and Manu Ginobili/SAS, the Spurs were off their game.
Ed Davis/MEM.
Kris Humphries/BOS.
Chris Douglas-Roberts/CHA.
Disappointments:
Boris Diaw/SAS. 1 rebound, 2 TO, 0 points (less than 11 minutes played).
Khris Middleton/MIL.
Tony Allen/MEM.
Brandon Knight/MIL.
Andrew Bogut/GSW.
Friday at DraftStreet
If you’ve been waiting for a chance to play for your share of $500,000 in the DraftStreet Basketball Championship, qualifier #13 begins at 7 PM EST. There is room for 100 entries and it costs $215 to enter. For those on a more modest budget, there are three large multi-entry GPPs tonight, a $55/$8,000 GPP, an $11/$6,000 GPP, and a $5/$5,000 GPP. There are also twelve double-up GPPs in the lobby to choose from.
After a week hiatus, our weekly freeroll returns tomorrow. Click on any DraftStreet text link, register and set your lineup before the league starts. It’s a chance to win cash with no risk to you.
Surging Raptors Visit D.C.
Toronto Raptors at Washington Wizards (7:00 pm EST); over/under 193; Wizards -3. INJURIES: TOR: none; WAS: Al Harrington (OUT).
Kyle Lowry/TOR has emerged as Toronto’s leader and is now priced as an all-star. It should be an interesting battle between him an Wizards star John Wall/WAS. The inexpensive DeMar DeRozan/TOR and the bargain play Terrence Ross/TOR are better value.
New Orleans Pelicans at Boston Celtics* (7:30 pm EST); over/under 199.5; Pelicans -3. INJURIES: NOP: Jason Smith (OUT) ; BOS: Rajon Rondo (OUT).
The hope is that the winter storm in the Northeast won’t affect the scheduling of this game. The Celtics should be underdogs to the now healthy Pelicans. Boston’s soft interior will have trouble handling Anthony Davis/NOP and Tyreke Evans/NOP.
Golden State Warriors* at Atlanta Hawks (7:30 pm EST); over/under 205.5; Warriors -2.5. INJURIES: GSW: Jermaine O’neal (OUT) ; ATL: Al Horford (OUT).
The Warriors are coming off a big win in Miami but have the home and fatigue disadvantage tonight. Despite the Hawks having those edges, I like the Golden State regulars to carry the day and all of them are playable. I like Andre Iguodala/GSW in particular.
New York Knicks* at Houston Rockets (8:00 pm EST); over/under 207.5; Rockets -11. INJURIES: NYK: Raymond Felton (OUT), Pablo Prigioni (OUT) ; HOU: Greg Smith (OUT), Patrick Beverley (OUT) .
I’m going to take a chance on James Harden/HOU, as conditions are right for a big game against what should be a tired Knicks team.
Los Angeles Clippers at Dallas Mavericks (8:30 pm EST); over/under 204; Clippers -1.5. INJURIES: LAC: J.J. Redick/LAC ; DAL: Dirk Nowitzki (GT),Devin Harris (OUT) .
If Nowitzki/DAL doesn’t play, Monta Ellis/DAL will be asked to pick up the scoring slack. Jose Calderon/DAL and Vince Carter/DAL will also benefit from more minutes and opportunities.
Memphis Grizzlies* at Denver Nuggets (9:00 pm EST); over/under 191; Nuggets -3.5. INJURIES: MEM: Marc Gasol (OUT) ; DEN: Andre Miller (OUT), JaVale McGee (OUT).
Utah Jazz* at Los Angeles Lakers (10:30 pm EST); over/under 197.5; Lakers -3.5. INJURIES: UTA: ; LAL: Wes Johnson (P), Xavier Henry (OUT), Jordan Farmar (OUT), Steve Blake (OUT), Kobe Bryant (OUT), Steve Nash (OUT) .
Based on recent form (they’ve lost six straight), it’s hard to fathom why the Lakers are the betting favorites here. The Lakers have so little talent depth, that the Jazz should overcome the fatigue disadvantage. The injuries continue to mount, with Jordan Farmar/LAL joining a long list of Lakers guards on the sidelines. For Los Angeles to win, either Pau Gasol/LAL, Nick Young/LAL or Jodie Meeks/LAL will have to come up with something special. New point guard Kendall Marshall/LAL is a very interesting speculative/value play.
My Lineup
The following is my recommended lineup, subject to change, for the $5/$5,000 multi-entry GPP at DraftStreet ($99,975 spent of $100,000 max):
Stars Worth Starting: Anthony Davis/NOP, James Harden /HOU, Pau Gasol/LAL
Bargain Plays: Alec Burks/UTA, Andre Iguodala/GSW
Speculative Plays: Terrence Ross/TOR, Jamal Crawford/LAC, Terrence Jones/HOU.
Estimated DraftStreet Points: 205 (+- 60)
The Fantasy Spin is here every day, around 1 PM EST. Follow me @robdudek for breaking news and pre-game thoughts relevant to NBA daily fantasy.