Fantasy Basketball Picks 11-21-14
These fantasy basketball picks are the perfect combination of opportunity, value and upside!
There were some memorable performances on Wednesday night, unfortunately some of them for the wrong reasons. Chandler Parsons and Iman Shumpert burned a lot of players, as well as Anthony Bennett. John Wall was solid, but not incredible, and James Harden took care of business. Value play Bojan Bogdanovic had a great game at a cheap salary. Remember, studs and duds are determined based off of return on salary, not total points.
Studs: John Wall (40.25), Eric Bledsoe (34.00), Bojan Bogdanovic (28.75), James Harden (41.00), Tobias Harris (32.75), Gorgui Dieng (33)
Duds: Iman Shumpert (8), Chandler Parsons (16.75), Anthony Bennett (10.75), Steven Adams (8.50)
Today’s Top Plays
Guard:
Stephen Curry ($19,400) vs Utah – After a few disappointing games (at least by Curry’s standards), Curry was back at it against the Lakers, posting a 30/15/4 line that was good for 62.75 FP….in 30 minutes. Trey Burke and Utah currently sit at 23rd in the NBA against opposing PG, and Curry will have his way tonight. In a game with a high total (209), I want plenty of exposure, and it starts at the top.
Eric Bledsoe ($13,400) at Detroit –This was an easy one. The 76ers are last in the NBA against SG (and SF), and Bledsoe has played 30+ minutes in four straight games now. He makes for a great GPP play, as he can fill up all areas of the stat sheet.
Alec Burks ($10,800) at Golden State – I already highlighted the high total in this one, and Golden State is 20th in the league against SG. Klay Thompson is a decent defender, but Burks is finally showing signs of breaking out. He is coming off of back-to-back double-doubles (10/10/3, 20/14/3), and is in a great spot tonight in what should be a high-paced game. This price is just simply too good to pass up. I’ll be rostering Burks in as many lineups as possible.
Bradley Beal ($10,650) vs Cleveland – Beal returned from a wrist injury and looked phenomenal, posting a 21/3/3 line in just 26 minutes. The Wizards will need all the help they can get if they are going to keep up with their “rival” LeBron James tonight. It remains to be seen how many minutes he will play, but if he approaches 30, he should easily pay off this price tag in a good matchup against either Shawn Marion or Dion Waiters.
Aaron Brooks ($6,400) at Portland - Brooks is a very volatile player, and has had some big letdown games in great spots. However, with Derrick Rose’s status up in the air and Kirk Hinrich now questionable with a chest contusion, Brooks may be forced into a ton of minutes tonight. If both of those guys sit out, Brooks will be in all of my lineups.
Forward:
Anthony Davis ($22,400) at Denver - I’ll make this one easy on you. Davis is scoring 53.8 FP per game. He also hasn’t turned the ball over a single time in his past three games. Denver ranks 22nd against PF and 25th against C this season. They have been an ideal target for opposing big men for quite some time, and Davis will dominate this frontcourt, regardless of who Brian Shaw throws at him. Look for Davis to once again be the high scorer on the night. If you aren’t playing him tonight, you’re just trying to be different for the sake of being different.
Paul Millsap ($16,000) vs Detroit – After his 50 FP performance against the Lakers, Millsap has now hit that plateau twice in his last 4 games (66.25 against UTA). Detroit is in the bottom 10 in the NBA against both PF and C, and Millsap should have no trouble getting it going down low against Greg Monroe and Andre Drummond. His price jumped up quickly, but for good reason. He has enormous upside, and the matchup is solid.
Kawhi Leonard ($13,400) at Minnesota – This one is likely to get ugly, and a lot of that may hang on the shoulders of the young Finals MVP. Andrew Wiggins is now the only healthy starter for Minnesota after Kevin Martin was ruled out indefinitely with a fractrue in his hand. If this game turns into a blowout, Kawhi is the only core player for San Antonio that will still see minutes. At this price, he could hit 3X value, and that is more than enough to justify playing the young superstar.
Zach Randolph ($14,300) vs Boston - Yet another team that struggles against big men is a target this evening. The Boston Celtics sit dead last at defending PF, and Randolph is one of the most consistent in the game. He is an excellent cash game target tonight with GPP upside. Two of his last three outings resulted in enormous rebounding totals (22 vs DET, 18 vs TOR), and he is in a great spot to do the same tonight.
Center:
Gorgui Dieng ($11,650) vs San Antonio – The Wolves were already short-handed, and now that Kevin Martin is out, there is a serious lack of scoring ability on this roster. Dieng was never much of a scorer, and will be matched up with the likes of Boris Diaw, Tim Duncan and Aron Baynes tonight down low. The matchup isn’t ideal, but the Spurs haven’t been the lock down defense we have seen in years past. Dieng contributes in every category, as evidenced by his 5 steals against the Knicks. He is also a tremendous shot-blocker who can alter shots in the paint. He is a high-upside play that will likely remain a popular one.
Marreese Speights ($7,750) vs Utah- Here is a very interesting player for you down low. I already touched on the high total, and Speights has been tremendous off the bench recently. In just 50 minutes over his past 3 games, he has compiled 45 points, 24 rebounds, 2 assists, and 3 blocks. The minutes aren’t there, but the production is great. If the Warriors jump out to a big lead, Speights could return a huge value tonight.