Wolves Desperate to Climb Back into the Race
Orlando Magic at Washington Wizards (7:00 pm EST); over/under 197.5 ; Wizards -9.5 . INJURIES: ORL: Arron Afflalo (OUT); WAS: Nene Hilario (OUT), Kevin Seraphin (OUT).
With Hilario/WAS out, expect Marcin Gortat/WAS to get extra minutes and that makes him a solid value play. Afflalo/ORL is a key cog in the Magic attack and without him, they may struggle to put points on the board.
Toronto Raptors at Cleveland Cavaliers (7:00 pm EST); over/under 194 ; Raptors -3.5 . INJURIES: TOR: none; CLE: Anderson Varejao (OUT), Dion Waiters (OUT), C.J. Miles (OUT).
A rematch. I like both Kyle Lowry/TOR and DeMar DeRozan/TOR in what should be a close game all the way. Spencer Hawes/CLE is an interesting sleeper as he matches up well against the Raptors defense.
Los Angeles Lakers at Indiana Pacers (7:00 pm EST); over/under 206 ; Pacers -13.5 . INJURIES: LAL: Nick Young (OUT), Kobe Bryant (OUT); IND: Lavoy Allen (Q), Evan Turner (P), Andrew Bynum (OUT).
The Lakers are nearly back to full strength (minus Steve Blake/GSW) and the Pacers are yet to integrate their new acquisitions. I think this game will be closer than the line suggests, which means Paul George/IND and Lance Stephenson/IND will get heavy minutes.
Chicago Bulls at Atlanta Hawks (7:30 pm EST); over/under 186.5; Bulls -1.5 . INJURIES: CHI: Jimmy Butler (Q); ATL: Gustavo Ayon (OUT), Paul Millsap (OUT), Pero Antic (OUT).
The Hawks are on the short list of teams most negatively affected by injuries this season. The daily fantasy implications are that a bunch of cheap players end up in leading roles, notably Mike Scott/ATL, Lou Williams/ATL and Elton Brand/ATL.
Portland Trail Blazers at Denver Nuggets (9:00 pm EST); over/under 214.5 ; Blazers -2.5 . INJURIES: POR: Joel Freeman (OUT), Joel Freeland (OUT), Meyers Leonard (OUT); DEN: Ty Lawson (D), Darrell Arthur (D).
The Nuggets desperately need Ty Lawson/DEN back. Damian Lillard/POR is worth a look in this one.
Minnesota Timberwolves at Phoenix Suns (9:00 pm EST); over/under 213 ; Suns -3 . INJURIES: MIN: Nikola Pekovic (Q), Kevin Martin (OUT), Ronny Turiaf (OUT); PNX: Leandro Barbosa (D), Eric Bledsoe (OUT).
The specter of the Pekovic/MIN injury is still hanging over the Wolves. Without him Kevin Love/MIN has to do all the work and as much as that is good for his fantasy stats, it makes Minnesota vulnerable to a team able to implement a solid defensive scheme.
Houston Rockets at Sacramento Kings (10:00 pm EST); over/under 213 ; Rockets -4 . INJURIES: HOU: none; SAC: Jimmer Fredette (OUT).
My Lineup at DraftStreet
The following is my recommended lineup, subject to change, for the $11/$10,000 Standard Payout GPP at DraftStreet (closing at 7 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:
C- Joakim Noah/CHi-$19,244, G-Kyle Lowry/TOR-$16,063, G-Lance Stephenson/IND-$13,991, F-Trevor Ariza/WAS-$13,909, F-DeMarre Carroll/ATL-$11,055, F-Gerald Green/PNX-$10,777, G-George Hill/IND-$7,470, F-Patrick Patterson/TOR-$7,211.
Others to consider: Paul George/IND, John Wall/WAS, Goran Dragic/PNX, Ricky Rubio/MIN, DeMar DeRozan/TOR, David West/IND, Bradley Beal/WAS, Tristan Thompson/CLE, Roy Hibbert/IND, Kyle Korver/ATL, P.J. Tucker/PNX, Channing Frye/PNX, Mo Williams/POR.
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 2 PM EST. Follow me @robdudek for breaking news and pre-game thoughts relevant to NBA daily fantasy.