PG: Cole Anthony: Russell Westbrook is a weak defender and tonight presents a pretty good pace boost for Orlando. The Lakers are a bottom-eight team at defending point guards. Anthony is the prioritized scorer and he’s been shooting nearly 44 percent from the field in 4 of his last 5 games and he shoots over 37 percent from downtown. Anthony isn’t afraid to follow his own shots and bang on the boards against bigger opponents. He’s pulled down 6.1 rebounds per game. On the scoring front, he’s taken 20 or more shots in 3 of his last 5 outings and is scoring over 20 points per game.
SG Cade Cunningham: With Jerami Grant, the Pistons top scoring option and shooter on the shelf for an indefinite amount of time, the No. 1 overall draft pick will now take the reins of the team’s offense. With Grant and Kelly Olynyk off the floor, Cunningham see’s an over five percent usage bump and he should go from taking 15-16 shots per game to around 19-20 shots per game until Grant returns. He’s improved his shot as well, shooting 40 percent or better from the floor in 4 of his last 5 games. Cunningham also logs 1.4 swipes per outing and grabs 6.2 rebounds per game. The Nets linger in the bottom 10 at guarding guards.
SF: Kevin Durant: Let’s go to the other side of the matchup because with James Harden out today, Durant will handle the overwhelming majority of the Nets offense. Just with Harden out of the mix, Durant’s usage rises to nearly 36 percent and let’s not forget that the Nets are still without Joe Harris as well. Detroit ranks in the middle of the road at defending power forwards, but their best defender Grant is out and that should make the matchup even easier because the Pistons don’t have the size or strength to stop Durant from producing in the post. He’s hit the 30-point mark in 2 of his last 4 games and he’s been shooting 53 percent from the floor for the season.
PF: Kristaps Porzingis: The Thunder are the weakest team in the league at defending power forwards and Luka Doncic will sit for tonight’s game meaning Porzingis becomes the prioritized scorer in Dallas. Porzingis has shot the ball better in recent games shooting over 46 percent from the field or better in 3 of his last 4 contests. He’s posted two double-doubles in his last four games and he’s swatting away 1.4 shots per outing. We should see him take 18-22 shots in this contest and the Thunder can’t size up against him and he’ll have his way with them all over the court.
C: Jusuf Nurkic: The Blazers guards are hurt and even if Damian Lillard does play, it doesn’t change the fact that Karl-Anthony Towns is a poor defender making Nurkic’s matchup strong. We know CJ McCollum won’t be around so that does benefit Nurkic as well making his floor a bit safer. He’s scoring 13.3 points per game and grabbing 10.2 rebounds per game. The Timberwolves are a bottom-five team in the league at defending centers and the pace is on the Blazers side for this matchup Nurkic has taken 13 or more shots in both of his last 2 contests. He’s also blocked shots in three of his last five games.