Nobody saw that coming. On his home court in a must-win scenario, the fearsome Beard was shot down by a baby-faced assassin. MVP Stephen Curry $10500 hit seven of nine 3-point shots while the entire Rockets team went 5-for-25 from deep.
It’s all over in the West. Even if James Harden $10500 atones for a horrible night (3-16) and Houston wins Game Four to salvage some pride, the Warriors are up 3-0 and no NBA team has ever squandered that advantage.
The East is just as lopsided. Have some sympathy for Atlanta, with Kyle Korver (ankle) now out for the year and DeMarre Carroll $6700 (knee) hobbling on one good leg, trying to stop a bigger, stronger man on a mission.
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LeBron James $11400 has put the Cavaliers on his back. Despite the absence of Kevin Love (shoulder) and the injury woes of Kyrie Irving $6800 (knee) they are heading home up 2-0 and appear poised to sweep. The King has meshed so well with his makeshift supporting cast that there’s no reason to rush Kyrie back into action.
Matthew Dellavedova $3500 is filling in capably at PG, Tristan Thompson $6300 owns the glass and Timofey Mozgov $4900 has been a pleasant surprise. Iman Shumpert $5000 is also worth considering, and in the unlikely event that Cleveland falls behind, J.R. Smith $5200 and James Jones $2100 can fire away off the bench.
The unfortunate Hawks have been overwhelmed. Jeff Teague $7500 and Al Horford $7700 (knee) are not the problem; it’s a strangely ineffective Paul Millsap $7800 and the plague of injuries. Kent Bazemore $2500 will probably start at SG, with Dennis Schroder $4700 certain to get more than 12 minutes off the bench and Mike Scott $2200 also deserving of more run. Even Shelvin Mack $2000 appeared (after two weeks off) when Game Two was out of hand.
Lineup construction for Su-Mo contests depends on your expectations for Harden. I see him attacking the rim more and getting to the line instead of settling for errant jumpers. Using him, James and Curry eats up 62.8% of the salary cap, forcing us to find five bargains. Most of the remaining cap room goes to center, where Festus Ezeli $2300 isn’t really a viable option despite thriving last night in garbage time.
Obviously Draymond Green $7900 is the best PF and Dwight Howard $8800 (knee) deserves to be the top-priced C, but there are affordable compromises. It’s a virtual tossup between Mozgov and Andrew Bogut $5000 in the middle. Delly and Bazemore should outperform their salaries and I’m hopeful that Scott will be at least a break-even play. Plugging Andre Iguodala $4400 into the F spot is not ideal, but Josh Smith $5500 is too costly and the cheaper options are completely unproductive.
If you think Harden and his mates are toast and Game Four will be another Golden State blowout, use Green at PF instead. That $2600 in savings can upgrade one or two other positions.
| Pos | Premium | Midrange | Bargain |
| PG | Stephen Curry $10500 | Jeff Teague $7500 | M. Dellavedova $3500 |
| SG | James Harden $10500 | Klay Thompson $6800 | Kent Bazemore $2300 |
| SF | LeBron James $11400 | Trevor Ariza $6600 | Josh Smith $5700 |
| PF | Draymond Green $7900 | Terrence Jones $4600 | Mike Scott $2200 |
| C | Dwight Howard $8800 | Al Horford $7700 | Andrew Bogut $5000 |
The Fantasy Spin features DFS advice every day of the NBA season. Follow Kent Williams @SheridanFantasy for updates.