RADIO
There is an eight-game slate Monday and last night ended in terrible fashion. Neither the Trail Blazers or Lakers were good enough to keep their games close, but Portland, at the very least has the excuse of playing the same team twice and not playing well. The Lakers, however, are in deep water and sinking. If Kyle Kuzma is going to be your most important player, start counting the losses now. Until the Lakers have anyone other than Dennis Schroder or Kyle Kuzma controlling the ball and pace, they won't win a game against anyone.
It was one thing when Los Angeles was struggling and had LeBron James, it's another now that they literally have no players that are able to score 20 points a night. Luckily they don't play again till Tuesday, but that game versus the Pelicans is a recipe for disaster. You have multiple players that will be playing out of vengeance, against Montrezl Harrell. The Lakers need more than luck for the next few weeks.
MonkeyKnifeFight.com continues to be ahead of the curve with their canceling of contests amid postponements, so don't worry about wasting money on a player or game that might not play. As always, you can find me in the NBA Chat Room or @HalfCourtJester on Twitter with any questions, especially since lines and players are subject to change throughout the day.
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SAC @ CLE
De'Aaron Fox (SAC) MORE 23.5 Points - Collin Sexton (CLE) MORE 22.5 Points
Both of these guards are capable of passing, but thats's only if they can't get their shot off. De'Aaron Fox scored 16 points Saturday against the 76ers, but a blowout kept his stats in check. That won't be the case against the Cavaliers, and both backcourts are set to be the primary sources of production. When Fox lines up against Darius Garland and Collin Sexton for most of the night, getting to the paint and open shots on the perimeter will come easier than expected.
Collin Sexton's middle name is "Points." (It's not. It's Darnell.) And if Sexton doesn't do anything all game, he'll still try and keep up alongside the top scorer in the game. Since Cleveland has found their playmaker in Darius Garland, Sexton will still see high-usage games, but as a scorer, not necessarily the lead point guard. The Cavaliers know what they have in their backcourt and they aren't going to abandon it for just nothing. It's been like this for a while, but Sexton does the scoring, and Garland does the ball-handling. That's the dynamic of this offense.
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CHA @ SAS
DeMar DeRozan (SAS) MORE 21.5 Points - Terry Rozier (CHA) MORE 20.5
If there is one consistency in the Spurs offense, it's DeMar DeRozan. He might be the only player on the team that is able to get to his spots, and there hasn't been a game where he has passed up scoring at the rim when he can. Since frontcourts have been making a mockery of the Hornets bigs for some time now, it's only fair to give that same respect to DeRozan. He won't be the only one finishing possessions, but there's a great chance he will be the most successful.
Since LaMelo Ball is done for the season, the Hornets offense is about to see a major shakeup. Gordon Hayward and Terry Rozier have been able to have a few bad games because there was support. Now, every game they don't perform, Charlotte will see another loss. Rozier is guaranteed more shots for the rest of the season and the only way to really beat the Spurs is by hitting shots. Since he's likely to take close to 25 attempts, those odds, if anything, favor him.
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IND @ MIL
Khris Middleton (MIL) MORE 22.5 Points - Malcolm Brogdon (IND) MORE 20.5
There's no doubt in anyone's mind who becomes the primary focus if Giannis Antetokounmpo misses time. Khris Middleton hasn't had an efficient season so far and few multi-game slumps have resulted in losses, but lately he has been playing much better next to Jrue Holiday. With these two as the lead tandem for Milwaukee, there's a lot of reason to believe Middleton is on pace for closer to 23-24 points tonight.
The Bucks defense is going to see the biggest impact with Antetokounmpo out, so both Malcolm Brogdon and Domantas Sabonis have high upside now that they don't have to play against the league's most feared two-way player. Without Antetokounmpo's presence, the floor is going to seem much wider and both teams should have more shot attempts than normal.
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BOS @ MEM
Jaylen Brown (BOS) MORE 25.5 Points - Ja Morant (MEM) LESS 18.5
Since returning from an injury in mid-January, tonight's game could mark the longest streak Ja Morant has gone without scoring 20 points. The Celtics backcourt is the ideal backcourt to produce against, but getting open shots hasn't been the problem. He's simply missing. Missing open three's, missing layups, and not even looking to take mid-range jumpers is not the path you like to see him taking when he already isn't scoring efficiently.
Jaylen Brown had a career-game last night and was shooting better than he ever has before. There's reason to think why he repeats, and there's just as many reasons why he won't hit a shot. Regardless, the Celtics offense relies on two people. Three, if Jayson Tatum and Brown are struggling. Waiting for later and hoping Brown's projected points drop is only going to help his case. There's about a million different stats you could use to explain why Brown will have an off-night, but that would ignore his consistently high usage lately compared to early March.
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