Fantasy Basketball Picks 12-1-14
These fantasy basketball picks will help you dominate tonight’s short slate!
K.J McDaniels had a breakout game on Saturday for the 76ers, while LeBron James had his worst outing of the season. Usual studs John Wall and Jeff Teague struggled while Gordon Hayward continued to stuff the stat sheet. Let’s kick off tonight’s short slate with some players you NEED to have exposure to tonight. Remember, studs and duds are determined based off of return on salary, not total points.
Studs: Gordon Hayward (43.5), K.J. McDaniels (44), JJ Barea (18.25), Blake Griffin (39)
Duds: Enes Kanter (6.25), LeBron James (30), Tyreke Evans (22.50), John Wall (27.25), Jef Teague (24.25)
Today’s Top Plays
Guard:
Chris Paul ($18,350) vs Minnesota – Paul makes for an easy top play at PG tonight. Not only does this game have the highest total (215.5), but Paul has the luxury of being matched up with either Zach LaVine or Mo Williams for most of the night. CP3 is averaging 43.1 FP per contest, and has at least 10 points and 7 assists in all but one game. Even if the Clippers run away with this one, I expect Paul to have a huge night.
Bradley Beal ($10,750) vs Miami – The Miami Heat struggle mightily against SG (29th in the NBA), and Beal has the requisite skills to take advantage of a great matchup. John Wall will be matched up with a good defender in Norris Cole for most of the evening, and Beal draws the cake matchup vs an aging Dwayne Wade. Beal has finally returned to the starting lineup, and has nice upside in this matchup at a decent price.
Cory Joseph ($5,650) at Philadelphia – Repeat after me: I will play Cory Joseph in every lineup this evening. Ok, now that we have that out of the way, the Spurs are at it again. Tony Parker and Tim Duncan will sit out this evening, and Joseph will likely draw the start at PG against the worst team in the NBA. Joseph has shown an ability to light up the scoreboard when given opportunity, and a chance to play big minutes against an awful team at near minimum salary makes him an auto-play on a short slate.
Forward:
Kawhi Leonard ($14,100) at Philadelphia - We all know how bad the Sixers are (28th vs SG, 29th vs SF), and with Parker and Duncan sitting tonight, Kawhi becomes the focal point of the Spurs offense. He will be relied on heavily tonight, and should be in line for his 5th double-double of the season in an ideal matchup. Don’t overthink this one.
Wilson Chandler ($11,350) at Utah- Chandler has been a stud, posting at least 21.75 FP in each of his last 10 games. The Jazz currently rank 26th at defending the SF position, and Chandler has shown the ability to contribute even without scoring, as evidenced by his 5.9 RPG. He is a safe bet to double his salary, with the potential for more in a game with the second-highest total (208).
Blake Griffin ($15,850) at Utah – Blake is my top overall option this evening. I already mentioned the high total, and when you take the matchup into account, he becomes a no-brainer play. Derrick Favors and the Jazz have struggled to defend big men down low, ranking 20th against PF on the season. Favors has especially struggled with athletic players on the block, and Griffin may be the most athletic 4 in the game.
Center:
Marcin Gortat ($12,450) vs Miami - I am literally giddy with anticipation of unleashing Gortat against the Miami frontcourt. This game does have the lowest total on the board at only 189.5, but given Miami’s struggles down low, Gortat could be in for a field day. His price is incredible given the upside in a matchup with the 22nd ranked team vs Centers. He is coming off of a 24/13 game against Anthony Davis and the Pelicans, and should be capable of nearing that level once again.