ESPN's basketball daily cheat sheet is your pregame destination before you lock in daily fantasy and betting decisions for that night's games. Here you'll find our top insights for the slate, including players to target for your daily fantasy rosters, along with game-by-game injury reports.
What you need to know for Wednesday
Tonight is another busy night in the Association, with 10 games on tap.
Three of those games feature two teams with winning records, starting with the Denver Nuggets at the surprising Memphis Grizzlies. While Nikola Jokic of the Nuggets is always on the MVP watch list, the Grizzlies currently feature contenders for both Rookie of the Year in Cameron Boozer and Most Improved Player in Ty Jerome. The winner of this matchup will likely have new supporting evidence for their futures award candidates.
The Golden State Warriors take their eight-game winning streak on the road tonight to face the Houston Rockets. Both teams sport identical 8-3 records, but the Rockets still enter the game as strong 6.5 point favorites. Should they be?
Finally, the last game of the night features the Portland Trail Blazers hosting the Oklahoma CIty Thunder for the second straight night. The Thunder are road favorites, but the Trail Blazers won the first matchup by 20. How should we expect the matchups to play out in the rematch?
These and many other storylines will be on display tonight. As always, we'll dig deeper into the matchups to identify some fantasy streaming options and betting angles of interest.
Fantasy stream team
Players available in at least 50% of leagues
Day'Ron Sharpe, C, Brooklyn Nets (18.6%)
Sharpe has turned in an almost stunning uptick in assists of late, with 27 assists in his last three contests after notching only 13 assists in the previous seven. Sharpe turned in his first career triple-double last week against the Atlanta Hawks with 13 assists, 12 points and 10 rebounds. Sharpe also is riding a four-game streak with at least one blocked shot and has averaged 1.7 BPG and 1.0 SPG in the last week.
Jared McCain, SG/PG, Oklahoma City Thunder (35.5%)
McCain has stepped into an impact scoring role for the Thunder in the face of all of their injuries. He has scored at least 19 points in three straight games, averaging 20.3 PPG in that span. Tonight he plays in Portland for the second straight night, and in the first game he scored 21 points with 3 rebounds and 3 assists in 31 minutes of action.
Jamal Shead, PG, Toronto Raptors (14.3%)
Shead has had back-to-back big games as the starting point guard for the Raptors with Immanuel Quickley (questionable, hamstring), Scottie Barnes (out, hamstring) and Kawhi Leonard (out, knee) all sidelined. In those two games, Shead turned in back-to-back double-doubles with averages of 15.0 PPG and 13.5 APG. Quickley has the chance to return on Wednesday, which could eat into Shead's usage, but the absence of the other two stars would likely leave Shead enough opportunity to still post a fantasy-worthy stat line tonight.
Jakob Poeltl, C, Toronto Raptors (43.1%)
Poeltl seems to be fully recovered from the shoulder injury that helped contribute to his slow start to the season. He has played 31 minutes in back-to-back games, averaging 18.5 PPG, 9.5 RPG and 4.5 "stocks" (steals and blocks) in those contests. Poeltl is a fantasy-starting caliber center that is starting to play like it.
Dre's bets to make on Wednesday
Odds by DraftKings
and subject to change.
New York Knicks -4.5 vs. Cleveland Cavaliers (-108)
This rematch of the Eastern Conference Finals features two teams going in opposite directions of late. The Knicks, after a slow start to the season, have won four straight games by at least 12 points each with an average margin of victory of 21.8 PPG. One of those wins was in their last matchup against the Cavaliers, in Cleveland, which the Knicks won by 12. The Cavaliers, on the other hand, have lost four of their last five games to fall under .500 on the season. Their two most recent games have each been 12-point losses.
Ty Jerome OVER 21.5 points (-118)
Jerome had a three-game stretch in late October where he battled back issues and played in his only back-to-back of the season and only averaged 12.5 PPG in two games while sitting out the third. Outside of those games, Jerome has scored at least 21 points in every game while averaging 30.7 PPG. Jerome is not on the injury report and tonight's game is not the second of a back-to-back, so I expect him to play up to the level he has established when healthy this season.
Golden State Warriors +6.5 at Houston Rockets (-105)
On the season, the Warriors (8-3 with +9.2 point average scoring margin) and Rockets (8-3 with +9.1 point scoring margin) have played at almost identical levels. But the Warriors enter the game on an eight-game winning streak, and over the last eight games for each team the Warriors have played better ball. The Warriors started their winning streak with three straight wins over the Nuggets, Timberwolves and Lakers by a combined 42 points and have won their most recent three games by a combined 78 points. The Rockets enter the game having lost two of their last three, and have been more up-and-down of late. With their respective levels, I would take the Warriors with the points even with the game in Houston.
Jared McCain 14+ points (-105)
McCain has started two of the last three games for the Thunder with Jalen Williams and Cason Wallace sidelined. He has scored at least 19 points in all three of those games, averaging 20.3 PPG in that span. One of those games was against tonight's opponents, the Trail Blazers, and in that game McCain dropped 21 points in 31 minutes.
Projections and Injury Reports
Basketball Power Index by ESPN Analytics. Injury aggregation by Rotowire.com. Odds provided by DraftKings Sportsbook
Washington Wizards at Indiana Pacers
7 p.m. ET
Line: Wizards +2.5 (-110) | Pacers -2.5 (-110)
Money line: Wizards +120 | Pacers -142
Total: 227.5 (-115 O, -105 U)
BPI Projection: Pacers by 0.7, straight up 52%, 227.3 total points.
Injury Report:
Wizards: Justin Champagnie (OUT); Jamir Watkins (OUT); Tristan Vukcevic (OUT); Reece Beekman (OUT)
Pacers: Ben Sheppard (OUT); Johnny Furphy (OUT); T.J. McConnell (GTD); Tyrese Haliburton (OUT)
Cleveland Cavaliers at New York Knicks
7 p.m. ET
Line: Cavaliers +4.5 (-112) | Knicks -4.5 (-108)
Money line: Cavaliers +151 | Knicks -180
Total: 222.5 (-110 O, -110 U)
BPI Projection: Knicks by 5, straight up 65%, 222.8 total points.
Injury Report:
Cavaliers: Jaylon Tyson (GTD); Sam Merrill (OUT)
Knicks: Josh Hart (GTD)
Boston Celtics at Toronto Raptors
7 p.m. ET
Line: Celtics -6.5 (-102) | Raptors +6.5 (-118)
Money line: Celtics -243 | Raptors +200
Total: 216.5 (-110 O, -110 U)
BPI Projection: Celtics by 10, straight up 78%, 219.1 total points.
Injury Report:
Celtics: None reported
Raptors: Collin Murray-Boyles (GTD); Immanuel Quickley (GTD); Trayce Jackson-Davis (GTD); Scottie Barnes (OUT); Kawhi Leonard (OUT)
San Antonio Spurs at Chicago Bulls
8 p.m. ET
Line: Spurs -15.5 (-105) | Bulls +15.5 (-116)
Money line: Spurs -1200 | Bulls +750
Total: 238.5 (-106 O, -114 U)
BPI Projection: Spurs by 16, straight up 89%, 237.1 total points.
Injury Report:
Spurs: Devin Vassell (GTD); Tobias Harris (OUT); Jayden Quaintance (OUT)
Bulls: Norman Powell (GTD); Zach Collins (GTD)
Denver Nuggets at Memphis Grizzlies
8 p.m. ET
Line: Nuggets -3.5 (-114) | Grizzlies +3.5 (-106)
Money line: Nuggets -167 | Grizzlies +140
Total: 230.5 (-110 O, -110 U)
BPI Projection: Nuggets by 2.9, straight up 59%, 232.5 total points.
Injury Report:
Nuggets: Julian Strawther (OUT)
Grizzlies: Isaiah Stewart (GTD); Quinten Post (OUT); Scotty Pippen Jr. (OUT); Richie Saunders (OUT)
Los Angeles Lakers at Milwaukee Bucks
8 p.m. ET
Line: Lakers -14.5 (-106) | Bucks +14.5 (-114)
Money line: Lakers -750 | Bucks +530
Total: 228.5 (-115 O, -105 U)
BPI Projection: Lakers by 14.1, straight up 86%, 230.9 total points.
Injury Report:
Lakers: Quentin Grimes (GTD)
Bucks: Tyler Herro (GTD)
Brooklyn Nets at New Orleans Pelicans
8 p.m. ET
Line: Nets +3.5 (-107) | Pelicans -3.5 (-113)
Money line: Nets +136 | Pelicans -162
Total: 229.5 (-110 O, -110 U)
BPI Projection: Pelicans by 2.6, straight up 58%, 233.0 total points.
Injury Report:
Nets: Egor Demin (GTD); Nolan Traore (GTD)
Pelicans: Trey Murphy III (GTD); Trendon Watford (OUT); Yves Missi (OUT)
Orlando Magic at Utah Jazz
9 p.m. ET
Line: Magic -3.5 (-110) | Jazz +3.5 (-110)
Money line: Magic -155 | Jazz +131
Total: 214.5 (-110 O, -110 U)
BPI Projection: Magic by 3.6, straight up 61%, 225.5 total points.
Injury Report:
Magic: Tristan da Silva (GTD); Jalen Suggs (OUT); Jonathan Isaac (OUT); Izaiyah Nelson (OUT); Noah Penda (OUT); Paolo Banchero (OUT)
Jazz: Keyonte George (GTD); Lauri Markkanen (GTD); Jusuf Nurkic (OUT); Jaren Jackson Jr. (OUT)
Golden State Warriors at Houston Rockets
9:30 p.m. ET
Line: Warriors +6.5 (-105) | Rockets -6.5 (-115)
Money line: Warriors +205 | Rockets -249
Total: 220.5 (-110 O, -110 U)
BPI Projection: Rockets by 5.6, straight up 67%, 223.8 total points.
Injury Report:
Warriors: Jimmy Butler III (OUT); Kristaps Porzingis (OUT); Will Richard (GTD); Gary Payton II (OUT); Brandon Williams (OUT); Moses Moody (OUT)
Rockets: Clint Capela (OUT); Steven Adams (OUT)
Oklahoma City Thunder at Portland Trail Blazers
10 p.m. ET
Line: Thunder -1.5 (-103) | Blazers +1.5 (-117)
Money line: Thunder -113 | Blazers -105
Total: 225.5 (-107 O, -113 U)
BPI Projection: Thunder by 1.6, straight up 55%, 220.0 total points.
Injury Report:
Thunder: Chet Holmgren (OUT); Cason Wallace (OUT); Jalen Williams (OFS); Jaylin Williams (GTD); Thomas Sorber (OUT)
Blazers: Vit Krejci (OUT); Shaedon Sharpe (OUT); Ja Morant (OUT)