Basketball Daily Dose: Dose: World B. Westbrook
Monday offered us 10 games and we may have learned an ugly truth about Salah Mejri, Russell Westbrook is out of this world, the Hawks are peaking at the right time, the Bulls are reeling, and the Laker, Kings and Grizzlies are a mess. Follow me on Twitter!
Hawks 102, Bulls 100 – Paul Millsap had 11 points, 11 boards, six blocks, a steal and a 3-pointer and Al Horford double-doubled as the Hawks won for the 14th time in their last 17 games. The Hawks now sit a full game up on the Heat for the No. 3 seed in the East, but five games behind the Raptors for the No. 2 seed. They’ll try to keep winning in hopes staying third and coach Mike Budenholzer doesn’t plan on resting guys much the rest of the way. Jeff Teague scored 26, filled the stat sheet and hit four clutch free throws near the end, while Kent Bazemore had another rough night on 1-of-9 shooting. Tim Hardaway’s slump continued on 1-of-8 shooting and Dennis Schroder had 14 points in just 18 minutes. Outside of Millsap, Horford and Teague, the rest of this team is very unreliable in fantasy.
Editor’s Note: This is your chance to try FanDuel risk free! Sign up today and if you lose your first contest, you’ll be refunded the entry fee up to $10. Play now!
The Bulls are reeling, losers of four straight and falling to 2.5 games behind Detroit for the No 8 seed in the East. They’re also tied with the Wizards on the outside looking in. Pau Gasol, Derrick Rose and Jimmy Butler were all solid and Taj Gibson added nine points, 12 boards and four blocks in 31 minutes. Nikola Mirotic played just 17 minutes, Doug McDermott missed both shots in 20 minutes and Aaron Brooks had 16 points on 7-of-10 shooting in 23 minutes. They’re going to keep fighting for a playoff spot, but a closed-door meeting prior to last night’s game didn’t help them stop the bleeding. And it doesn’t get any easier tonight against the Pacers.
Heat 110, Nets 99 – Dwyane Wade had 30 points, nine assists, two steals and two blocks on 14-of-19 shooting and Josh Richardson added 16 points, five boards, three assists, two steals, a block and three 3-pointers as the starting point guard in the win. Goran Dragic was out with the flu, while Joe Johnson (1-of-8) and Luol Deng (4-of-11) struggled for the Heat. Hassan Whiteside overcame foul trouble and had a career-high 27 points, eight boards, a steal and a block on 12-of-16 shooting, and Justise Winslow had 13 points in 32 minutes. Wade, Richardson, Dragic and Whiteside are the Heat you can count on right now. Wade looked good despite a sore left hand/wrist, so keep an eye on that situation.
Brook Lopez had 26 points, four boards and a block, and Thaddeus Young came through with 20 points, nine boards and three steals on 10-of-12 shooting in the loss. Shane Larkin struggled with seven points, eight assists and three steals, hitting just 1-of-5 shots. He came in hot and should bounce back soon. Bojan Bogdanovic scored just nine points and not much else in 24 minutes, while Sean Kilpatrick added 14 points and not much else in 21 minutes off the bench. Bro-Lo, Young, Larkin, Bogdanovic and Kilpatrick are the Nets you want to use in fantasy, but you’ll also want to watch the news feed to find out who’s playing from night to night.
Thunder 119, Raptors 100 – Russell Westbrook had another triple-double with 26 points, 11 boards and 12 assists in the win. That makes 16 TDs on the season and only Magic Johnson (17 in 1988-89) has had more in the last 30 years. He also tied Michael Jordan for most TDs in a calendar month (7) and will look to break his record against the Pistons on Tuesday and Clippers on Thursday. Kevin Durant had 34 points, eight boards and eight assists, Serge Ibaka added 15 points, eight boards and two blocks, and Steven Adams had 10 points, nine boards and a block at center. Enes Kanter was quiet with seven points and nine boards, and Dion Waiters stayed relevant with 15 points and three 3-pointers. If you’re not using Westbrook in DFS every time out, you’re doing it wrong. The Thunder have now won eight straight.
Four Raptors starters scored in double figures, but none of them played all that well. Norman Powell got loose for a career-high 18 points with four rebounds, two blocks and four 3-pointers. Powell is averaging 15.3 points over his last three games and is someone you should think about adding if you’ve got injury woes. Patrick Patterson scored 13 off the bench, but the players you should be using right now are Jonas Valanciunas, Kyle Lowry, DeMar DeRozan and Powell, which is a pretty short list. Lowry had his bothersome right elbow drained after the game, but he says he’s going to continue to play through the pain. “This time of year you just play through it,” he said.
Spurs 101, Grizzlies 87 – The Spurs started Kyle Anderson, Boban Marjanovic and Andre Miller, yet still had enough to beat the Grizzlies. LaMarcus Aldridge returned from a rest and had 31 points, 13 boards and two blocks, Anderson added 13 points, seven assists, four steals, a block and a 3-pointer, and Boban added five points, nine boards and a block in 30 minutes. Patty Mills had 17 points, four assists and three 3-pointers off the bench, and Boris Diaw added 13 points, six boards and a block off the pine. Tony Parker, Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and David West were out for a rest, and Kawhi Leonard sat with his quad contusion. As usual, keep an eye on the Rotoworld news feed to find out who is in and who is out nightly for the Spurs, and start the replacements with caution going forward.
Vince Carter, of all people, led the Grizzlies with 14 points off the bench. JaMychal Green had 12 points and five boards, Matt Barnes had 11 points and nine rebounds, Jordan Farmar started at point guard, but had just nine points and two assists, and Tony Allen was quiet with four points in 17 minutes. This team is an injured mess and Lance Stephenson may be dead in the water, finishing with four points and six TOs in 21 minutes. Green, Barnes, Farmar and Allen are all worth a look, but I don’t really trust any Grizzlies right now. Zach Randolph was out with a sprained ankle and is day-to-day after missing his last two games. It’s a shame none of his teammates were able to step up.
Timberwolves 121, Suns 116 – Karl-Anthony Towns stepped up with 27 points, 10 boards and a full stat line, Ricky Rubio had a 17-7-11 double-double, and Andrew Wiggins hit 17-of-21 free throws and three 3-pointers for 32 points and three blocks. Gorgui Dieng just missed a double-double and Zach LaVine scored 15 in the win. The five Wolves’ starters are the players you want to use in fantasy here, as usual.
Brandon Knight (5 assists, 7 3-pointers) and Devin Booker (5 assists, 2 3-pointers) each scored 30 for the Suns, and Alex Len added 14 points, 13 rebounds and three steals in the loss. P.J. Tucker struggled with six points and six boards (he’ll bounce back) and Tyson Chandler started and had just two points, three rebounds and zero blocks in 19 minutes. Jon Leuer returned from an illness but failed to score in 11 minutes, while Mirza Teletovic had 19 points and three 3-pointers in 26 minutes off the bench. Knight, Booker, Tucker, Len and Teletovic are the only trustworthy Suns these days.
