Portland Trail Blazers & Los Angeles Lakers
Spread: Lakers -5.5
Total: 227
Injuries:
Portland Trail Blazers:
CJ McCollum – Out
Jusuf Nurkic – Out
Dennis Smith Jr. – Probable (COVID)
Nassir Little – Probable (ankle)
Robert Covington – Out
Anfernee Simons – Out
Ben McLemore – Probable (COVID)
Los Angeles Lakers:
LeBron James – Probable (abdomen)
Anthony Davis – Out
Kent Bazmore – Questionable (COVID)
Avery Bradley – Questionable (head)
Trevor Ariza – Questionable (COVID)
*Please note that players not listed below are not necessarily a complete fade and any player listed can certainly be used as the MVP/Captain. These are merely suggestions for players to use when setting Showdown lineups.
MVP/CPT
LeBron James, PF (LAL) – James is in the midst of a five-game stretch that is as good as it gets as he is averaging 35.6 points, 9.6 rebounds, and 6.6 assists per game. That includes a triple-double followed by a double-double in his last two games as to say that James is locked in offensively would be an understatement as he has six straight games of at least 30 points. Over the last 10 days, James is averaging 65.3 DK points per game, and while I might have just jinxed things, this isn’t something I’m willing to over think.
Damian Lillard, PG (POR) – Lillard has been scoring at a pretty high level as of late, and his season average is up to 24.2 points per game as he has been locked in returning to action a few weeks ago. The more shorthanded Portland gets, the more Lillard steps up offensively and the matchup for a point guard doesn’t get much better tonight than facing the Lakers. It’s going to be a high scoring game; we should expect to see Lillard shoot past the 30-point mark.
Russell Westbrook PG (LAL) – For as good as Lillard’s matchup is going against Westbrook, the other side of that is pretty solid as well. I know that Westbrook has been turning the ball over a ton and he is only averaging 19.7 points per game this season in a down campaign, but he is still an elite player. It also doesn’t hurt that Westbrook is currently working on a streak of three straight triple-doubles.
Util
Norman Powell, SF (POR) – Powell has emerged as the number two scoring option in Portland these days and he is logging close to 40 minutes a night these days. While he is a one-dimensional player for who the majority of his value comes from his offensive production, it’s hard to top the level at which he is scoring as Powell is coming off a 32-point effort against Utah on Wednesday when he made 11 of 23 field goal attempts. That volume should be there once again tonight.
Malik Monk, PG/SG (LAL) – Monk finds himself back in the starting lineup and he is averaging around 35 minutes per game in his last three. Not only is Monk seeing the volume when it comes to field goal attempts, but he has also been efficient shooting 21 for 36 which is good for an average of 20 points per game. We also get Monk at a fair price tonight and his scoring proficiency isn’t exactly a surprise.
Larry Nance, PF/C (POR) – Once again, Nance gets the start at center tonight and he proven to be up to the task with Portland shorthanded in middle. We likely aren’t going to see nine assists out of Nance again like we got on Tuesday, but 14 points and nine rebounds wouldn’t be all that surprising with Nance generally scoring in double figures and being active on the boards.
Nassir Little, SF/PF (POR) – Little is coming off a down game on Tuesday when managed just two points on three field goal attempts, and he is listed on the Injury Report with an ankle injury, but in the game before that, Little went for 20 points and 10 rebounds. Portland is missing a few key pieces tonight, so my expectation is that the shot volume and playing time will be there once again for the forward.
Dart Throws
Tony Snell, SG/SF (POR) – No one ever said we were living in exciting times, but Snell is slated to see some real minutes tonight for Portland, and it’s very possible they come in the starting lineup. This is really about chasing the playing time as Snell is a capable veteran.
Avery Bradley, SG/SF (LAL) – Let’s assume that Bradley is good to go tonight and is once again in the starting lineup. That means we should get about 30 minutes of playing time from Bradley but the range of possible outcomes goes from 22 points to five points based on what we have seen over his last five games while taking anywhere between six and 14 shots.
Stanley Johnson, PF (LAL) – Johnson has been playing well in his three games since joining the Lakers as he hasn’t played less than 23 minutes averaging 7.7 points and three rebounds per game. Getting around 15 to 20 DK points for the price, and considering the playing time, isn’t the worst way to fill out your lineup.
Ben McLemore, SG (POR) – The thought process here is that McLemore is going to play tonight and be busy off the bench for Portland. With that being the case, the field goal attempts, and hopefully the points, will follow.