Fantasy Spin January 24, 2015

There were “too many” superstars to choose from in daily action on Friday — though Klay Thompson outperformed all eight of those $10000+ salary guys with the greatest quarter in NBA history. Tonight, the pendulum swings the other way.

We have only five games to choose from, none of them likely to be preserved in a time capsule. What might have been an exciting, high-scoring affair in Portland is now a matter of survival, as LaMarcus Aldridge (thumb) will be out for weeks and Nicolas Batum (wrist) is extremely doubtful.

Damian Lillard $9400 and Wesley Matthews $6100 are the last two Trail Blazers standing. Chris Kaman $4500 is questionable with a leg bruise and no match for Marcin Gortat $5500 even when perfectly healthy and rested, so Meyers Leonard $3300 might have to play big minutes. If John Wall $9200 and Bradley Beal $6300 focus on D, the Wizards can grind out a road win with their frontcourt advantage. Nene Hilario $5400 is way too good for Thomas Robinson $4200. If it’s a shooting match, all four starting guards are playable and Paul Pierce $4600 could have another big night.

Plays of the Day

Open a new DraftKings account and get a FREE entry for the $60K Layup — the top score earns $5,000 and 7,600 of 34,500 teams receive cash prizes. They will match your initial deposit 100% ($5 to $600) with bonus funds that convert to cash as you play.

The Fantasy Basketball World Championship has a million dollar first prize, to be awarded March 23. There are only 40 seats in the Final; finish first in a Qualifier to win a spot, including a 5-day VIP trip to Las Vegas (worth $55,000) plus $7,000 in cash, even for last place! Join a Super Satellite contest tonight for just $2.00 where you can get into an upcoming $20 Qualifier by finishing first or second among a mere 23 teams.

The $2.7 MILLION January Jam costs $100 per team, but you can win tickets for $5, $2 or even a quarter. The $500,000 NBA Slam Dunk goes Wednesday, with a top prize of $100,000.

If you’re following the tepid battle for the 7th and 8th place in the East, you already know that the Pistons have momentum. They also have Andre Drummond $8300 and Greg Monroe $8400 going against Zaza Pachulia $5300 and Ersan Ilyasova $3700, which suggests complete dominance in the paint and a lot of midrange jumpers for the Bucks. Unless Brandon Knight $7700 outplays Brandon Jennings $7900 and Giannis Antetokuonmpo $5300 is superb, Detroit could win easily. They scored 128 points in regulation against the Magic on Wednesday, so the low over/under line is puzzling. Milwaukee’s bench scorers like O.J. Mayo $4200 and Jared Dudley $3500 might be playing catchup all night.

Another improving team in the East that’s flying under the radar of many fans is the Hornets. Though they were crushed in Cleveland last night, while the Knicks were surprising the Magic, Charlotte should bounce back at home tonight. A high score is improbable; Kemba Walker $9000 and Al Jefferson $7200 have returned from their injuries but are not yet in peak form. Carmelo Anthony $8800 played 42 minutes on Friday and won’t be ridden as hard in this road back-to-back. Jose Calderon $4800 (knee) is doubtful, so there may be a Pablo Prigioni $3700 sighting. Jason Smith $3900 has been on a mini-roll with 19 points last night, but Amar’e Stoudemire $4200 (rest) didn’t play and is expected back.

Mismatch of the day is well-rested Memphis (favored by 17) hosting the tired 76ers. Before you load up on Marc Gasol $8500 and Zach Randolph $8000, consider that they won’t have to play at maximum intensity for their usual minutes. In fact, it’s a good night for Dave Joerger to get his second (and third) unit some exercise. Don’t be shocked if Kosta Koufos $3200, Nick Calathes $3000 and Jon Leuer $3000 play a lot in the second half.

Brooklyn just got destroyed by the Clippers 123-84 for their ninth loss in 11 games. They have lost Mirza Teletovic (lungs) for the season and Deron Williams (rib) remains out. Meanwhile, the Jazz just won a road game, without Derrick Favors (personal) in the lineup. Yet I smell an upset, because the Nets might dedicate this one to Mirza. Twin towers Enes Kanter $6600 and Rudy Gobert $6400 beat up on the smaller Bucks, but Brook Lopez $6000 and Mason Plumlee $6000 will be harder to dominate. Rookie Dante Exum $3200 took over from Trey Burke $5000 as the starting PG on Thursday and is still a great price; just not sure he can handle Jarrett Jack $6000 when the latter is focused. This is just a hunch — I do like Gordon Hayward $7800 better than Joe Johnson $5800 at this stage of their respective careers and won’t be surprised if Utah wins.

Pos	Premium	Midrange	Bargain
PG	Damian Lillard $9400	Jarrett Jack $6000	Dante Exum $3200
SG	Wesley Matthews $6100	G. Antetokounmpo $5300	O.J. Mayo $4200
SF	Carmelo Anthony $8800	Gordon Hayward $7800	Paul Pierce $4600
PF	Greg Monroe $8400	Zach Randolph $8000	Thomas Robinson $4200
C	Andre Drummond $83000	Marcin Gortat $5500	Meyers Leonard $3300