Fantasy Spin March 25, 2015

It’s superstar Wednesday in the NBA. Russell Westbrook $13200 took it easy last night, playing only 30 minutes, while DeMarcus Cousins $9600 was in beast mode (33 PTS, 17 REB). Both face tougher opposition this evening but are always playable.

James Harden $11500 and Anthony Davis $11200 will be on the same court in a must-watch game; the Rockets’ star scored 44 on Monday and the Brow has been resting since Sunday, when he had 26 points and 12 boards in a tough loss to the Clippers.

Hard to believe LeBron James $10100 gets fifth billing after his latest — 28 PTS, 10 REB, 6 AST, 5 STL — but he’s playing in Memphis, not Milwaukee. We can’t use all five, and it’s tricky to afford even two of the high-salaried fantasy megastars.

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The best approach is to decide who to build around, then shop for value at every other position. Also, with 13 games to choose from, you can safely ignore entire teams that have poor matchups, difficult schedules or a number of key injuries, like the Trail Blazers.

At PG, Chris Paul $9900 costs $3300 less than Westbrook and can do whatever he wants to the Knicks. Damian Lillard $7600 was great last night (as predicted) but Utah keeps scoring low. Zach LaVine $5100 is a possibility if Ricky Rubio $7500 (ankle) misses another game, and perhaps C.J. McCollum $3500 can come close to repeating his career-high 23 points, especially if Portland is trailing.

Second choice to Harden at SG is Eric Bledsoe $8200, because Sacramento is a terrible defensive team at the best of times. Jimmy Butler $8000 will be covering DeMar DeRozan $7700, so I’m not keen on either tonight. Eric Gordon $5800 is a better value and at a rock-bottom price, Jason Terry $3000 will start at PG for Houston. JET is a good pickup in deep Roto and Head-to-Head leagues too, as Patrick Beverley (wrist) is out indefinitely.

After King James, Kawhi Leonard $8100 is the standout at SF, where a remarkable array of talent is on the injury list. More affordable and coming off the game of his life, Danilo Gallinari $6100 is a solid play against the road-weary 76ers. Chase Budinger $4100 has been playing big minutes for the shorthanded Timberwolves if you want to go cheap; the Lakers are in all-out tank mode.

I’m betting on Davis at PF because the Pelicans are desperate. They might lose a fourth straight game, but it won’t be from a lack of effort and if it’s close, he may play 40+ minutes. Pau Gasol $8700 is too skilled for the Toronto bigs, and Blake Griffin $8900 will be unstoppable in New York, but there’s a decent chance of the second unit finishing that game. Don’t overlook Derrick Favors $8100 with LaMarcus Aldridge (hand) doubtful for the visitors. Nobody leaps out as an extreme bargain; Robert Covington $4500 makes the Short List because he hit five 3-pointers last night and it should be wide open in Denver.

If he’s in the mood, DMC is the best fantasy center, though he’s certainly not the only good one. DeAndre Jordan $8300, Rudy Gobert $8200 and Enes Kanter $7200 are all in terrific form. You can even save money there with Roy Hibbert $5300, who has been much more aggressive the last three games, and on the theory that almost every C puts up big numbers against Philly, Jusuf Nurkic $4200 could be the best bang for the buck.

Putting it all together depends on where you start. Some variation of stars-and-scubs is called for; the most extreme would be to use six bargains around two monsters. My sample lineup (above left) assumes a huge game from AD, adds Bledsoe and Favors, uses two Nuggets that look like good value and fills with the best I can afford. All that may change before contests close at 7:00 Eastern — especially at this time of year, breaking news about players resting can alter the landscape.

Pos	Premium	Midrange	Bargain
PG	R. Westbrook $13200	Chris Paul $9900	Zach LaVine $5100
SG	James Harden $11500	Eric Bledsoe $8200	Jason Terry $3000
SF	LeBron James $10100	Kawhi Leonard $8100	Chase Budinger $4100
PF	Anthony Davis $11200	Derrick Favors $8100	R. Covington $4500
C	D. Cousins $9600	Enes Kanter $7200	Jusuf Nurkic $4200