Paul vs Westbrook, Griffin vs Durant.
Los Angeles Clippers at Oklahoma City Thunder (1:00 pm EST); over/under 213.5 ; Thunder -5. INJURIES: LAC: J.J. Redick (OUT) ; OKC: Kendrick Perkins (OUT) .
Steven Adams/OKC starts at center and while he’s busy dealing with DeAndre Jordan/LAC, I expect Blake Griffin/LAC to dominate in and around the paint. The Clippers don’t have anyone who can slow down Kevin Durant/OKC, so I expect great stat lines from both superstars. Chris Paul/LAC, will play, but the thumb has to be a concern.
Chicago Bulls at Miami Heat (3:30 pm EST); over/under 187.5; Heat -7.5. INJURIES: CHI: Jimmy Butler (Q) ; MIA: LeBron James (P).
LeBron/MIA will play with a mask – it’s not in his character to miss a prime time game. Dwayne Wade/MIA may be asked to take a more active role.
Orlando Magic at Toronto Raptors (6:00 pm EST); over/under 193 ; Raptors -11. INJURIES: ORL: Arron Afllalo (OUT); TOR: Nando De Colo (D).
The Raptors have not shown a propensity for blowing opponents out. Expect full use of DeMar DeRozan/TOR in this one.
Washington Wizards* at Cleveland Cavaliers (6:00 pm EST); over/under 195.5; Wizards -1. INJURIES: WAS: none ; CLE: C.J. Miles (OUT), Anderson Varejao (OUT), Dion Waiters (OUT) .
Sacramento Kings* at Denver Nuggets (8:00 pm EST); over/under 210 ; Nuggets -4.5. INJURIES: SAC: Reggie Evans (P), DeMarcus Cousins (Q) ; DEN: Ty Lawson (Q) .
Houston Rockets at Phoenix Suns (9:00 pm EST); over/under 214; Rockets -1.5. INJURIES: HOU: James Harden (Q) ; PNX: Leandro Barbosa (D), Eric Bledsoe (OUT)
Minnesota Timberwolves* at Portland Trail Blazers (9:00 pm EST); over/under 213.5; Blazers -4 . INJURIES: MIN: Nikola Pekovic (D), Kevin Martin (OUT), Ronny Turiaf (OUT); POR: Nicolas Batum (P), LaMarcus Aldridge (OUT), Meyers Leonard (OUT), Joel Freeland (OUT).
Kevin Love/MIN got to rest the last half of the fourth quarter and we may finally see the return of Nikola Pekovic/MIN. This should be a close one, with the winner of the Ricky Rubio/MIN-Damian Lillard/POR matchup likely winning the day.
Brooklyn Nets* at Los Angeles Lakers (9:00 pm EST); over/under 205 ; Nets -2.5. INJURIES: BKN: Marcus Thornton (Q), Kevin Garnett (Q) ; LAL: Xavier Henry (D), Kobe Bryant (OUT) , Steve Nash (D)
It will be interesting to see if Kent Bazemore/LAL makes the most of his playing time – he’ll be great value if he gets over 20 minutes. Pau Gasol/LAL will likely see his minutes bumped up – bad news for Chris Kaman/LAL.
My Lineup at DraftStreet
The following is my recommended lineup, subject to change, for the $2/$2,000 Standard Payout Early Bird at DraftStreet (closing at 1 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-$22,124, F-Blake Griffin/LAC-$20,489, C-DeAndre Jordan/LAC-$15,323, G-Victor Oladipo/ORL-$13,839, F-Serge Ibaka/OKC-$13,001, G-Kent Bazemore/LAL-$6,503, G-Darren Collison/LAC-$4,617, F-Chase Budinger/MIN-$3,930.
Others to consider: Damian Lillard/POR, Dwayne Wade/MIA, Goran Dragic/PNX, Kyrie Irving/CLE, DeMar DeRozan/TOR, Bradley Beal/WAS, J.J. Hickson/DEN, Patrick Patterson/TOR, Mo Williams/POR, Terrence Ross/TOR, Thabo Sefolosha/OKC.
Click on any of the links to take you to our daily fantasy partner, DraftStreet. I’ve tried many sites and my honest opinion is that DraftStreet is the most challenging, therefore the most fun. Help support the Fantasy Spin by spending your daily fantasy dollars at DraftStreet. The Fantasy Spin is up at Sheridan Hoops every day, around 1 PM EST. Follow me @robdudek for breaking news and pre-game thoughts relevant to NBA daily fantasy.