Let’s call last night a Wacky Wednesday and try to forget. The 76ers won a game! The Rockets, missing four of their best seven players, beat the Grizzlies. The Spurs lost to the Nets, with Mirza Teletovic the best player on the floor — 26 PTS, 16 REB. Congratulations to everyone who got the money at DraftKings, where the payouts are guaranteed no matter what occurs on the hardwood. My crystal ball is off to the shop for repairs, because it saw none of that coming.
Tomorrow night, we have an exclusive contest for all of you who have signed up at DK using a link from Sheridan Hoops. It’s “Beat the Pro” — all you have to do is finish ahead of Chris Sheridan and your entry fee will be refunded, in addition to whatever you win. Our publisher has decades of NBA experience in the real world; will all that knowledge translate to fantasy?
Plays of the Day
If you haven’t joined DK yet, click for a FREE entry (worth $2) to win as much as $5,000 in the $40K Layup, where 4,600 of 23,000 teams earn cash. They will match your initial deposit 100% (up to $600) with bonus money that gets added to your account as you play. High rollers can try tonight’s $65K Crossover — $27 to enter, maximum 2,730 teams, top 570 get paid and first prize is $10,000.
As usual on a night with fewer games, getting just one ‘right’ can be the key to winning. In fact, one player — Anthony Davis $11600 — is critical to Thursday fantasy contests. At that salary, you’re betting on him to be spectacular. On Nov. 22 in Utah, he hit 16 of 23 shots, grabbed 14 rebounds with a block and two steals. That produced 67 FPTS at DK. He had 62.75 in Portland five nights earlier on a 33-11-3-3-3 masterpiece. Anything less and he’s an overpay. Can AD single-handedly keep the Pelicans in this game? Yeah, maybe.
Stephen Curry $10200 (ankle) might be half a step slow and Klay Thompson $7300 (quad) also made the ‘questionable’ list on Tuesday before playing. Marreese Speights $4900 is already sizzling, and might be until David Lee (hamstring) returns. Now that Draymond Green $5600 is dealing with a sprained thumb, Speights moves into must-play territory and Harrison Barnes $5200 may also get more touches.
If Davis, Jrue Holiday $7200 and Tyreke Evans $7300 are all great and Omer Asik $4300 battles Andrew Bogut $6500 to a draw, this looks like the best game of the night. Ryan Anderson $5600 could also get hot, and John Salmons $3000 was a good pickup for New Orleans; he’s gaining minutes with Eric Gordon (shoulder) out.
In New York, Kyrie Irving $9300 should outplay Jose Calderon $5600, but there’s no reason both can’t pay their way. Kevin Love $8900 is by far the best big man on the floor, so LeBron James $11700 can again let his teammates take over. There are a few ways this one could turn out, including early garbage time if Carmelo Anthony $9000 has an off-night. Ideally for Knicks fans, Melo and Calderon get some help from Amar’e Stoudemire $5600 and Iman Shumpert $5500 to keep this competitive. The over/under lines remind us that it could be low-scoring.
Also be aware that using Davis or James means you need at least one extreme bargain to step up. Those are hard to come by with just three games on the calendar. Here’s tonight’s Short List:
| Pos | Premium | Midrange | Bargain |
| PG | Kyrie Irving $9300 | Jrue Holiday $7400 | C.J. Watson $3000 |
| SG | Klay Thompson $7300 | Wesley Matthews $6100 | Dion Waiters $3600 |
| SF | LeBron James $117000 | Harrison Barnes $5200 | John Salmons $3000 |
| PF | Anthony Davis $11600 | David West $6600 | Marreese Speights $4900 |
| C | Roy Hibbert $7100 | Robin Lopez $5800 | Omer Asik $4300 |
About seven teams in the West would have a good chance to win the East, including the Blazers. No way they lose at home to Indiana. LaMarcus Aldridge $9600, Damian Lillard $8700 and Wesley Matthews $6100 are great to play together if you think this one will be high-scoring and reasonably close. However, if Portland has it sewn up in the third quarter, their starters might be rested in the fourth. Ironically, the better the Pacers play, the more valuable LMA and his mates become. Roy Hibbert $7100 and David West $6600 have played just one game together all season, so don’t expect them to be completely in sync. C.J. Watson $3000 and C.J. Miles $3500 showed signs of improvement in their latest and are dirt cheap.
Good luck with all your teams. Hope to see you on the leaderboard.
The Fantasy Spin features DFS advice every day of the NBA season. Follow Kent Williams @SheridanFantasy for updates.