Immanuel Quickley tallied nine points (3-of-4 FGs, 2-of-2 FTs), one rebound, two assists and one 3-pointer in 15 minutes Saturday vs. the Pacers.
Quickley made his return to the rotation Saturday night, and with Dennis Smith Jr. and Frank Ntilikina both sidelined due to injury he was the backup point guard. The rookie out of Kentucky turned the ball over three times, but he looks like New York’s best option behind starter Elfrid Payton. DSJ and Ntilikina may have a lot of DNP-CDs in their futures once cleared to play, thanks to Quickley.
Elfrid Payton finished Saturday’s win over the Pacers with 19 points (8-of-17 FGs, 3-of-4 FTs), eight rebounds and five assists in 34 minutes.
Payton has made the Knicks’ starting point guard job his own through the team’s first six games. The negative: this hasn’t translated when it comes to fantasy value. Payton is still ranked well outside of the top-200 in both 8- and 9-cat formats. For that reason, it makes sense that he’s rostered in just 49% of Yahoo leagues. If you have a dire need to address at the point guard spot, especially in deeper leagues, Payton is worth taking a gamble on. But don’t expect too much from a production standpoint.
Mitchell Robinson accounted for 16 points, nine rebounds, one assist and two blocks in 29 minutes Saturday vs. Indiana.
While foul trouble was an issue for Robinson for much of his first two seasons in the NBA, through six games this season he’s been better in that area. He’s committed no more than four fouls in any game, and Robinson’s averaging a career-best 27.6 minutes per game as a result. Fantasy managers who went “all-in” on Robinson in their drafts are reaping the rewards, as he’s threatening top-50 status in 9-cat.
Myles Turner shot 3-of-9 from three in Saturday’s loss to the Knicks, tallying 17 points (7-of-15 FGs), four rebounds and one blocked shot.
The good news for Turner is that, after shooting 4-of-22 from three in Indiana’s first five games, he put forth a better account of himself from distance. The bad news: the four rebounds are the fewest that he’s had in a game this season, and the one blocked shot matched his season low. However, even with his perimeter shooting struggles Turner (Yahoo ADP: 20) is still a top-15 player in both 8- and 9-cat formats.
Darius Garland had a forgettable shooting night, going 3-of-14 including 0-of-3 from deep for just eight points and two assists on Saturday.
The Cavs knocked off the Hawks, but Garland didn't contribute much as he struggled to make shots and had a team-high five turnovers. It was easily his worst game of the season and the first time in six games that he didn't score at least 10 points. Aside from Friday night, Garland has looked great, averaging 19 points and 7.2 assists through six contests. He should be rostered in all leagues.
Justin Holiday shot 4-of-5 from three in Saturday’s loss to the Knicks, posting a line of 12 points, one rebounds, two assists, one steal and one blocked shot.
Holiday may still be coming off the bench in the aftermath of T.J. Warren’s foot injury, but he has provided greater fantasy value than younger brother Aaron (who replaced Warren). Aaron shot 0-of-6 from the field Saturday night, going scoreless with two rebounds, one assist and one blocked shot in 26 minutes. As long as Justin Holiday continues to hit the high-20s in minutes, there’s an opportunity for fantasy managers to receive solid value. He’s currently rostered in just 9% of Yahoo leagues.
Collin Sexton scored 27 points on Saturday, making 10-of-18 shots, 5-of-5 free throws and two triples in 36 minutes.
It wasn't the "Sexland" show on Saturday as Darius Garland struggled. But Sexton put the Cavs on his back, pushing the Cavs to a 96-91 win over the Hawks. He lacked in rebounds (two) and assists (three), but did have three swipes on the night. If he can pick it up in those two categories, he could end up providing top-40 value, which wouldn't be bad considering his ADP was 81.6 in Yahoo leagues.
John Collins was quiet in the Hawks loss to Cavs on Saturday, managing just 10 points, four rebounds, three assists and one block in 34 minutes.
Collins has now gone for 30, 20 and 10 points in his last three contests, in that order. By that logic, he's going scoreless in the next game. Now, that's not likely, but this is the inconsistency Collins' fantasy managers were worried about when they drafted him. He was also outplayed by Clint Capela who went for 16 & 16, though they play different positions. Point being, Collins needs to be more consistent if he wants to take his game to the next level, and for his sake, if he wants to get paid next offseason.
Terrence Ross played 31 minutes off the bench in Saturday’s loss to Oklahoma City, accounting for 26 points (9-of-21 FGs, 4-of-5 FTs), six rebounds, two assists, one steal and four 3-pointers.
With Evan Fournier (back spasms) sidelined more was asked of Ross offensively, even though he remained in his usual sixth-man role. Ross tied for the team lead in field goal attempts with Nikola Vucevic, and those two were responsible for eight of the Magic’s 10 3-pointers. Pinpointed as a points and 3-pointers option the last couple seasons, Ross has proven to be more than that through the first two weeks of the season. Threatening top-50 status in both 8- and 9-cat formats, he should be rostered in more than just 57% of Yahoo leagues.
Markelle Fultz shot just 5-of-16 from the field in Saturday’s loss to Oklahoma City, finishing with 12 points, three rebounds, eight assists, one steal and one 3-pointer in 35 minutes.
While Fultz has posted solid numbers to start the season, he’s hit a cold stretch of sorts recently. In Orlando’s last three games, he’s shot just 30.2% from the field and 2-of-7 from beyond the arc. Shooting is what has lowered Fultz’s fantasy ceiling thus far, as he’s making just over 40% of his shots from the field while making 0.7 3-pointers per game. If he can get that part of his game in order, Fultz would be a lock for top-100 status regardless of format.
Michael Carter-Williams accounted for four points (2-of-11 FGs), nine rebounds and one assist in 31 minutes Saturday vs. Orklahoma City.
Carter-Williams received the starting nod Saturday night, as Evan Fournier was ruled out due to back spasms. MCW didn’t shoot the ball well, missing all four of his 3-point attempts, but he was solid defensively and as a rebounder. Carter-Williams doesn’t offer much in the way of fantasy value, and that’s unlikely to change even if Fournier were to be sidelined for an extended period of time.
Gary Clark shot 0-of-2 from three in Saturday’s loss to the Thunder, going scoreless with six rebounds, one assist and three steals in 18 minutes.
Chuma Okeke will be out for an extended period of time due to a bone bruise in his knee, which moves Clark into the backup power forward role. The rebounding and steals numbers are nice, but that alone won’t make him a worthwhile fantasy option. Leave him on the waiver wire.
George Hill shot 7-of-12 from the field and 1-of-1 from the foul line in Saturday’s win over the Magic, finishing with 18 points, one rebound, five assists, two steals and three 3-pointers in 28 minutes.
To put Hill in the same category as Chris Paul would be a bit much, but the veteran point guard seems to have been reinvigorated playing alongside Oklahoma City’s young talent. He’s been a top-100 player in both 8- and 9-cat formats thus far, and yet he’s rostered in just 25% of Yahoo leagues. Fantasy managers need to grab Hill off of the waiver wire as soon as possible in order to take advantage of his current production.
Theo Maledon played 19 minutes off the bench in Saturday’s win over Orlando, tallying 12 points (5-of-7 FGs, 1-of-1 FTs), three rebounds, four assists, one steal and one 3-pointer.
After scoring no more than seven points in any of his first four NBA games, Maledon took a step in the right direction Saturday night. The five made field goals more than doubled his previous high (two), and he also established a new career-high in assists. Maledon isn’t worth rostering right now, as he’s well outside of the top-300 in both 8- and 9-cat formats. However, given Oklahoma City’s youth movement, he is worth tracking for later this season.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander shot just 5-of-17 from the field in Saturday’s win over Orlando, but he finished with 16 points, five rebounds, seven assists, one steal and two 3-pointers in 35 minutes.
Gilgeous-Alexander had a tough time inside of the arc, as he made just one of eight 2-point attempts on the night. Some credit should be given to Orlando for its work defensively, but that didn’t keep SGA from having an impact in other areas. In addition to the seven assists, a number that he’s hit in three of the last four games, Gilgeous-Alexander was responsible for just one turnover (a season-low). That statistical category is the reason why he’s ranked outside of the top-100 in 9-cat, but sitting inside of the top-75 in 8-cat (punting turnovers).
Hamidou Diallo shot 5-of-9 from the field and 1-of-2 from the foul line in Saturday’s win over the Magic, finishing with 12 points, eight rebounds and one 3-pointer in 19 minutes.
Diallo seems to like this particular matchup, as in two games against the Magic he’s accounted for 25 points and 16 rebounds. He isn’t a player worth rostering in any format however, as the consistency just hasn’t been there.
Gordon got a ton of shots up replacing James Harden (ankle) in the starting lineup. He only made three out of the 12 shots from 3-point range he took, but racked up two steals and a block, too. Despite making the injury report for a sore knee, he logged 33 minutes.
Buddy Hield hit 6-of-17 FGs and 5-of-12 3-pointers for 17 points, four rebounds, two assists and one steal with three turnovers in Saturday's loss to the Rockets.
Hield cooled off as the game wore on, but he wasn't afraid to shoot at any point, regardless of how the previous look faired. He isn't shooting the ball as well as he did a year ago, but the season's still early. His confidence is still there, and he should bounce back fine.
Robinson III hit 2-of-7 FGs and just 1-of-3 3-pointers for five points, three rebounds and two assists with no turnovers on Saturday in a loss to the Rockets.
Robinson III was slated for more minutes with Haliburton sidelined, but he didn't do a whole lot in 21 minutes. If Haliburton remains out, GR3 is still worth a look at least as a low-end value player who can make threes without turning the ball over. He's a better option than Kyle Guy, who head coach Luke Walton said was also slated for a heavier workload. Guy posted no stats, missing all three shots he took in six minutes on Saturday.
De'Aaron Fox hit 8-of-19 FGs (no 3-pointers), 7-of-10 FTs for 23 points, four assists, two rebounds, two steals and a block with three turnovers in a loss to the Rockets.
Fox kept the Kings competitive until the fourth quarter, matching John Wall's competitiveness driving to the rim coast-to-coast. His assist totals were low mostly due to his teammates' poor shooting night from the field. He'll have to improve his shooting efficiency and turnover rate if he wants to take a leap in into the top-tier point guards discussion, but he's been solid this year so far.