Zion Williamson had a strong showing vs. the Hornets on Friday in a losing effort, scoring 26 points on 12-of-22 shooting with eight rebounds, three assists and three turnovers in 34 minutes.
He's just incredible to watch. There was a sequence in the second quarter when Zion missed a layup, but outmuscled several Hornets for two offensive boards (link below). He may not live up to his ADP until the defensive stats show up consistently, but for fantasy managers punting FT% and turnovers he's flirting with top-50 9-cat numbers of 21.9 points, 8.1 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.3 steals on 55.7% from the field.
Jarrett Allen handed out a season-high six assists on Friday, scoring 12 points with six boards, one steal and one block in a loss to the Grizzlies.
Allen had eight dimes during a game in the Orlando bubble, and he's finally cemented himself as the Nets' starting center ahead of DeAndre Jordan (four points, five boards in 17 minutes). Coming off a short-handed win vs. the Sixers, Brooklyn just couldn't muster enough to beat Memphis without Kyrie Irving (personal) and Kevin Durant (health and safety protocols). With or without those stars in the lineup, Allen is cruising as a mid-round value.
J.J. Redick (right knee contusion) finally got himself going on Friday vs. the Hornets with 17 points, one rebound, one assist and four triples in 19 minutes.
That's much better, but still not enough to move the needle too much for fantasy managers. Redick will just be relieved to see his jumper working again after hitting a total of three triples in his last seven games.
Josh Hart came out of nowhere for a season-high 19 points vs. the Hornets on Friday, shooting 6-of-8 from the field and 3-of-4 from the line with eight rebounds, two assists, one steal and four triples in 27 minutes.
Hart's minutes have been consistent this season as the sixth man but his fantasy production has not been -- he's now averaging 8.4 points, 8.6 rebounds, 1.2 dimes, 0.9 steals and 1.2 triples in 28.2 minutes. He's just a late-round option right now but could catapult into the top-100 if a starter ever needs to miss time.
Derrick Favors (knee soreness) played 23 minutes vs. the Bucks on Friday with four points, six rebounds, one assist and one block.
Favors, who has strictly been used as a backup behind Rudy Gobert this season, actually got some burn alongside Gobert tonight. That may have had something to do with Joe Ingles' (Achilles soreness) absence, and it's not going to be something we see every night. Favors is strictly a deep-league asset but would offer a ton of upside if Gobert ever needs to miss a game.
Miles Bridges matched his season-high of 20 points vs. the Pelicans on Friday, hitting 8-of-11 from the field with four rebounds, one assist, four triples and two turnovers in 30 minutes.
This was a great matchup for Bridges because of the athleticism of the Pelicans. Bridges had a couple dunks that shook the arena tonight and hit a triple with 2:30 left in the game which put the Hornets up by seven. He had scored a total of 19 points in his previous four games though, so we'll need to see him string some good games together before getting too excited.
Mo Bamba suffered a "mild back strain" in the fourth quarter of Friday's blowout loss to the Rockets, exiting with 12 points, seven rebounds and two 3-pointers in 13 minutes.
Bamba just returned after a lengthy recovery from COVID-19, so it's disappointing to see him quickly suffer another health setback. Even though the strain is 'mild' it's hard to envision him playing vs. the Mavs on Saturday. He looked good in limited action tonight, at least, so keep him on your radar in any fantasy setting.
Gary Clark earned another start on Friday, but finished scoreless with four rebounds and one block in 31 minutes.
The Magic were playing without Aaron Gordon as a precaution tonight, which opened up 25 minutes in the rotation. Clark missed his three shot attempts, all from deep, and coughed up two turnovers along the way. Gordon is due back on Saturday, and even as a fill-in starter Clark doesn't offer much beyond DFS punt value.
James Ennis (calf) started Friday's game and picked up six points (2-of-7 FGs, 2-of-2 FTs), three boards, two assists and one steal in 20 minutes.
This was Ennis' second game of the season after logging 16 minutes on Wednesday, and he started because both Aaron Gordon (injury management; hamstring) and Evan Fournier (back spasms) were unavailable. It's likely that Ennis will assume a starting role anyway, bumping Dwayne Bacon to the second unit, but his 3-and-D game doesn't typically lend itself to fantasy value.
The Magic are hopeful that Aaron Gordon (left hamstring injury management) won't be required to miss more games during back-to-back sets this season.
Orlando has limited Gordon to 25 minutes per game and this DNP-CD was the latest reminder that his hamstring is an ongoing concern. While it's nice to hear head coach Steve Clifford's optimism about Gordon playing in consecutive games, we'll need to see his minutes ramp up before believing the ailment is behind him. It won't take long to test Clifford's theory, either, with a back-to-back set looming on Jan. 15/16. For now, fantasy GMs can expect to get him back vs. Dallas on Saturday.
Terry Rozier only hit 5-of-15 shots and 1-of-2 free throws in Friday's win over the Pelicans, finishing with 15 points, five assists, four rebounds, three steals, one block and four triples in 35 minutes.
He left a lot of meat on the bone with the poor shooting but his fantasy managers will be content. To make their night even better, coach James Borrego said before the game that he's going to be looking to find more minutes for the trio of Rozier, Devonte' Graham and LaMelo Ball. “It’s a very dynamic lineup,” he said.
Dillon Brooks shot 10-of-19 from the field for a team-high 24 points on Friday, going 2-of-7 from deep with four rebounds and one turnover in 28 minutes.
Brooks matched the season-high 24 points he scored vs. Brooklyn on Dec. 28, so it's a shame he won't see them again this season. He came in shooting 12-of-41 (29.3 percent) in his previous three games, so at least his shots were falling in tonight's victory. He's also had multiple steals in all but three games this season, and is averaging 2.4 triples, both critical developments in both reality and fantasy. He's hovering around top-100 value in 9-cat and should stay there if he can improve his 37.9% shooting.
De'Anthony Melton scored a season-high 14 points on Friday, making 6-of-10 shots with two 3-pointers, five rebounds, one assist, one steal and one block.
Melton did his damage in 22 minutes, and his shot has come around with a combined 10-of-17 field goals (58.8%) in his past two games. He's quietly averaging 3.0 assists, 1.3 steals and 1.3 blocks, and as usual we'd love to see the 22-year-old guard get more playing time -- his per-minute fantasy potential is tantalizing. As things stand, though, he's just a low-end play for defensive stats in 12-team leagues.
Taurean Prince scored a season-high 16 points on Friday, adding four rebounds, one steal and one block in 24 minutes.
Prince shot 4-of-13 from the field and 7-of-7 from the line, also his best mark of the season. The bad news is that even without Kevin Durant (health and safety protocols), Prince's minutes continue to hover in the mid-20s. Joe Harris scored 13 points on 6-of-9 shooting in 28 minutes off the bench, while Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot had three points in 18 minutes, and Prince's outlook is dim while those guys are healthy.
Ish Smith scored eight points (3-of-6 FGs, 2-of-2 FTs) with three rebounds, one assist, three steals and one turnover in 17 minutes vs. Boston on Friday.
Raul Neto was getting the bulk of the backup PG minutes earlier this season but Smith is starting to gain some ground. It will be interesting to see which way coach Scott Brooks goes on Saturday with Russell Westbrook (rest) likely to sit, but it would be very hard to stream either of these guys with confidence with so much usage flowing through Bradley Beal. Neto played just six minutes Friday with two points and one assist.
KJ Martin (COVID-protocol) made his NBA debut on Friday with seven points, one rebound and one steal in five minutes.
Garbage time enabled Martin to take the court, and he made the most of it with 3-of-3 shooting and a made triple. It's great to see him healthy but he has a steep climb to fantasy relevance.
James Harden scored 15 points for the second straight game on Friday, making 6-of-13 shots with three 3-pointers, 13 assists, five rebounds and one block in 31 minutes.
John Wall added 14 points and four dimes tonight, and Harden's minutes were a team-high in a blowout 132-90 win vs. the Magic. "Teams are doing things to make it hard on [Harden offensively]," Rockets coach Stephen Silas said before the game. "They're trapping him, crowding him. He's making the right plays." Harden has three straight games with double-digit assists, and it's only a matter of time before he erupts in the scoring column. His trade demand has yet to become a full-blown disaster for Houston, too, so fantasy managers should count their blessings.
Ben McLemore (conditioning) sank 5-of-5 three-pointers in his season debut vs. the Magic on Friday, scoring 15 points with three boards, two assists and one steal in just 16 minutes.
McLemore missed the start of the season for COVID-19 reasons, followed by a lengthy effort to regain his conditioning, but you couldn't tell watching him tonight. There were extra minutes available due to Danuel House's ongoing absence with back spasms, plus the lopsided score, so take it with a grain of salt. House is reportedly on the mend and could return as soon as Sunday vs. the Lakers, but either way McLemore is just a deep-league specialist for 3-pointers.
David Nwaba finished Friday's easy home win with six points, two rebounds and one block in 23 minutes vs. Orlando.
Nwaba started alongside the usual crew of John Wall, James Harden, P.J. Tucker and Christian Wood. However, he's likely to cede the starting job to Danuel House (back spasms), and even as a fill-in starter he's offering precious little for fantasy purposes with low usage and limited defensive stats. There are more appealing options on any waiver wire.
DeMarcus Cousins shifted back to a bench role on Friday, posting six points (1-of-7 FGs, 4-of-5 FTs), five rebounds, four assists and one steal in 17 minutes of action.
In his first start of the season on Wednesday, Cousins chipped in nine points, 14 rebounds, four blocks and two steals in 23 minutes. That came in the absence of Christian Wood (sore left knee), of course, and with Wood back the veteran predictably saw his role shrink. Cousins' numbers on Wednesday at least reminded fantasy GMs why they've held him through a brutal start this season, with minutes in the teens most nights.