Fantasy Spin May 12, 2015

The two series that resume tonight are polar opposites. Points will be much harder to come by in Cleveland than in Houston.

The Bulls won the series opener to gain home-court advantage, until the Cavaliers prevailed in a very tough Game Four. LeBron James $11400 is amazing. He rolled his ankle in the third quarter on Sunday but stayed on the court and hit the winning jumper at the buzzer. His line — 25 PTS, 14 REB, 8 AST, 2 BLK, 1 STL — was marred by 8 TO, which may be a continuing problem. Kyrie Irving $7800 is even more banged-up than LBJ. His right foot has been a problem for three weeks and now he has left knee tendinitis. I know, everyone is tired and sore at this time of year, but Kyrie is no match for a relatively healthy Derrick Rose $8500 in terrific form.

DraftKings matches your first deposit 100% (up to $600) with bonus funds that convert to cash, plus you get a FREE entry in the $100K Sharpshooter — the top score earns $10,000 and 7,850 of 38,315 teams will get paid. Odds are even better in the $70K Crossover, normally a $27 buy-in. That contest has 605 guaranteed prizes ($10,000 for first) and only 2,957 teams.

The costly injury for Chicago is to Pau Gasol $7900 (hamstring), a game-time decision. If he can’t go, Taj Gibson $4600 — hampered by a sore shoulder — will presumably start again at PF. Nikola Mirotic $3900 was a disappointment on Sunday, getting only 18 minutes and missing eight of nine shots. Joakim Noah $5900 has not scored more than 11 points since March 15, a string of 24 games. He must be hurt too, but was forced to play 37 minutes on Sunday and is crucial again tonight.

Timofey Mozgov $5700 is improving and Tristan Thompson $5200 is doing his best to replace Kevin Love (shoulder) so the Cavs are competitive in the paint. J.R. Smith $5000 is the only bench player to consider for either team. Given the likelihood of a low score, you might want to pick just one player from this game and seven from the nightcap. (Today’s sample lineup uses a 6-2 split.) Jimmy Butler $8200 always makes the Short List and Rose is on fire, but Mozgov or Thompson are less expensive.

All the Rockets have to do is beat L.A. three straight times. James Harden $9600 is averaging about 25 points per game but was visibly upset with hie teammates as they got trounced in Game Four. I’m sure nobody — including his own players — liked the brilliant strategery of Kevin McHale to send DeAndre Jordan $8000 to the foul line 34 times. Maybe Chris Paul $8700 (hamstring) didn’t mind, as he got to spend much of his 26 minutes walking instead of sprinting.

Yes, they are at home with their backs to the wall, but Houston looks done after losing the last two by 33 and 25 points. Dwight Howard simply can’t be worse (fouled out in 18 minutes) — can he be good enough? Veterans Trevor Ariza $6100 and Jason Terry $4000 are decent value on a desperate team. The tandem of Terrence Jones $4300 and Josh Smith $5100 have disappeared — nobody can stop Blake Griffin $10400, who has elevated his game, averaging almost 25 points and 13 boards in the postseason.

Also in the Clippers’ favor is depth. They are getting contributions from J.J. Redick $5300, Jamal Crawford $5400 and Austin Rivers $4700 — any or all of whom can get hot. Their minutes are unlikely to be reduced, as Doc Rivers would love to get as much rest as possible for CP3.

Players in bold below are in all my lineups. The combinations at G and Util for the remaining $6400 are limited; Terry and Spencer Hawes $2400 (above left) is one example. Matthew Dellevedova $2700 with Corey Brewer $3700 or Pablo Prigioni $3100 also fits.

Pos	Premium	Midrange	Bargain
PG	Chris Paul $8700	Derrick Rose $8500	Austin Rivers $4700
SG	James Harden $9600	Jimmy Butler $8200	Jamal Crawford $5400
SF	LeBron James $11400	Trevor Ariza $6100	Mike Dunleavy $4800
PF	Blake Griffin $10400	T. Thompson $5200	Nikola Mirotic $3900
C	DeAndre Jordan $8000	Timofey Mozgov $5700	Spencer Hawes $2400