Thunder On Course For Top Seed
Brooklyn Nets* at Chicago Bulls (8:00 pm EST); over/under 185 ; Bulls -3.5. INJURIES: BKN: Kevin Garnett (Q) ; CHI: Carlos Boozer (Q).
Joakim Noah/CHI is only one of two fantasy NBA studs in action tonight and, as such, is nearly a “must-start”. Taj Gibson/CHI is worth a look if Boozer/CHI sits, and I like Jimmy Butler’s/CHI combination of multi-category production and low price. My top sleeper of the night is Mirza Teletovic/BKN who the Nets will probably need to hit three pointers to stay with the Bulls.
Oklahoma City Thunder at Los Angeles Lakers (10:30 pm EST); over/under 205.5 ; Thunder -11.5. INJURIES: OKC: Russell Westbrook (OUT) ; LAL: Steve Blake (P), Pau Gasol, Steve Nash, Jordan Farmar, Nick Young, Jodie Meeks, Kobe Bryant, Xavier Henry (all OUT).
The number of healthy Lakers is dwindling, with Steve Nash/LAL ruled out and Steve Blake/LAL likely to play with elbow concerns. On paper they should be no match for the Thunder. To stay close, Chris Kaman/LAL and Kendall Marshall/LAL must have very good games. Rostering seven Thunder, including three bench players, is a solid strategy tonight.
My Lineup at DraftStreet
The following is my recommended lineup, subject to change, for the $2/$5,000 Standard Payout GPP at DraftStreet (closing at 8 pm EST). You are required to have three guards, three forwards, one center and one wildcard/utility player for a legal eight-player lineup in DraftStreet NBA contests:
F-Kevin Durant/OKC-$22,784, C-Joakim Noah/CHI-$18,101, F-Serge Ibaka/OKC-$15,088, G-Kendall Marshall/LAL-$11,566, G-Reggie Jackson/OKC-$11,288, G-Jimmy Butler/CHI-$11,115, G-Derek Fisher/OKC-$5,051, F-Nick Collison/OKC-$4,960
Others to consider: Taj Gibson/CHI, Chris Kaman/LAL, Deron Williams/BKN, Kirk Hinrich/CHI, Thabo Sefolosha/OKC, Mirza Teletovic/BKN, Jeremy Lamb/OKC, Kendrick Perkins/OKC.
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