Friday was a rough night at the DFS office. That’s the NBA, where “huh?” happens. The ‘unstoppable’ DMC Express got derailed, causing every one of my lineups to crash and burn. The Wizards may have kidnapped by aliens and replaced with clones who had never played basketball.
Saturday’s eight games include a lot of tired teams. The hardest road back-to-back is for Golden State, who lost to the desperate Thunder in a fantastic game and must regroup in Houston. James Harden $10700 is difficult to stop in the best of circumstances, but don’t count the Warriors out. Klay Thompson $7300 had 32 on Friday and Harden is not great defensively. Andrew Bogut $4800 was rested but is healthy and ready to battle Dwight Howard $7900 in the paint. Be careful with Marreese Speights $4400; his impressive line (20 PTS, 7 REB, 4 AST) came in a spot start — congrats if you used him — and he’ll come off the bench tonight.
The Blazers don’t have an easy 24 hours either, heading to Memphis after a tough defeat in San Antonio. Assuming Mike Conley $7800 (ankle) misses another game, Beno Udrih $3000 (15 PTS, 5 AST in 29 minutes) is a cheap plug-and-play. Used as a sixth man, Jeff Green $4300 was outstanding — 21 PTS, 5 REB in 31 minutes — as the Grizz won in Orlando. You know what to expect from Portland: lots of Damian Lillard $9600 and LaMarcus Aldridge $9900. The aging Chris Kaman $4700 and inexperienced Meyers Leonard $3300 are in a timeshare at C, so I really like Marc Gasol $8300.
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Atlanta barely broke a sweat in Toronto, employing 13 players, or Al Horford $6700 might have been truly spectacular. His 22 points on 8-8 shooting, plus 5 REB and 5 AST in just 28 minutes, is great on paper but was even more impressive on the floor. Jeff Teague $8500 (13 PTS, 9 AST, 5 REB) was needed for only 25 minutes. Meanwhile, the Bulls toyed with the Celtics, but they are hurting and went with a very short rotation. Derrick Rose $6500 (29 PTS, 10 REB) was the star, Pau Gasol $9300 (20 PTS, 11 REB) was solid and Jimmy Butler $8400 broke out of a funk — 22 PTS, 5 AST, 4 REB, 6 STL. Taj Gibson $5400 will get another start for Joakim Noah (ankle) and both teams will be pumped for this playoff preview.
With Rudy Gay $8000 (knee) sidelined, the Kings are in trouble against the Clippers. Hounded by Miami’s defense last night, DeMarcus Cousins $11200 was held to 17 points and turned it over eight times. L.A. also lost — on their home court to the fired-up Cavaliers — but they have too many weapons for Sacramento. Even if you call Chris Paul $9800 and Darren Collison $7100 a wash, which is quite a stretch, who is going to stop Blake Griffin $9800? This could be too easy for the visitors, with garbage time a distinct possibility.
Detroit won a tough one on the road and return home to face the surprising 76ers, who romped by 15 over the injury-ravaged Pelicans. Michael Carter-Williams $8600 was very good (22 PTS, 7 AST, 6 REB, 3 STL) and Brandon Jennings $8100 was superb, hitting eight triples among his 37 points. Nerlens Noel $4900 double-doubled (17 & 11) with five blocks in perhaps his best game as a pro, and Andre Drummond $8700 (16 & 16) woke up after a few quiet games.
Even though it’s the third game in four nights for Denver, they should have enough left in the tank to beat the T-Wolves, who were no match in Phoenix. Mo Williams $5800 (26 PTS, 5 AST) is the main offensive threat for Minnesota; rookie Andrew Wiggins $6900 is improving but may be ill. Newest Nugget Jameer Nelson $4000 was turned loose for 28 minutes off the bench and had a decent game against his former team (14 PTS, 7 REB, 4 AST) while J.J. Hickson $4500 double-doubled (13 & 14) in relief of freshman Jusuf Nurkic $5800, who got schooled by professor Tyson Chandler.
Busy watching the Raptors get systematically destroyed by the Hawks, I have no idea what really happened to the Wizards, who got blown out of their own gym. Something must have inspired the Nets to snap a 7-game losing streak. Jarrett Jack $6200 and Brook Lopez $6600 shrugged off swirling trade rumors, each scoring 26 points. Washington simply cannot be worse in Brooklyn tonight. In fact, they might come out with a vengeance, but I’m not going to bet on it. This game is hands-off.
Off a 2-point loss at home, Indiana must travel to Charlotte. The Hornets are well-rested, but if Kemba Walker (knee) can’t go, they are not very good. Gary Neal (hamstring) and Gerald Henderson (flu) are also less than 100%. Brian Roberts $3000 is the probable starter at PG if Walker does not play, but he’s dealing with a tender elbow. Do not expect a high score. When speculative bargains like Bismack Biyombo $4200 and P.J. Hairston $3000 are the ‘best’ plays, look elsewhere.
| Pos | Premium | Midrange | Bargain |
| PG | Chris Paul $9800 | Derrick Rose $6500 | Beno Udrih $3000 |
| SG | James Harden $10700 | Klay Thompson $7300 | P.J. Hairston $3000 |
| SF | Draymond Green $8100 | Wilson Chandler $5700 | Jeff Green $4300 |
| PF | Blake Griffin $9800 | Zach Randolph $7400 | Nerlens Noel $4900 |
| C | Marc Gasol $8300 | Al Horford $6700 | B. Biyombo $4200 |
The Fantasy Spin features DFS advice every day of the NBA season. Follow Kent Williams @SheridanFantasy for updates.