Tyrese Haliburton shot 5-of-7 from the field in Tuesday’s win over the Nuggets, scoring 13 points with three rebounds, six assists, three steals and three 3-pointers in 25 minutes.
Haliburton was excellent Tuesday night, even knocking down a 3-pointers from a range rarely visited by players not named Curry, Lillard or Young. The rookie guard played well enough down the stretch that Luke Walton left him on the court to close things out, with Marvin Bagley (23 minutes) losing out on playing time as a result. Will there a come a point this season when Walton decides to move Haliburton into the starting lineup? That’s a tough question to answer, especially when it comes to figuring out who would sit. But at the very least, Haliburton is playing well enough to be trusted to finish games.
Richaun Holmes tallied 20 points, five rebounds, three assists, two steals and one blocked shot in 32 minutes Tuesday vs. Denver.
After scoring a total of 25 points in Sacramento’s first three games, Holmes fell five shy of that number Tuesday night. Even with the lack of consistent scoring, the defensive production is what locks Holmes into top-100 territory in both 8- and 9-cat formats. He’s currently a top-75 player in both, and outside of injury there’s no reason to believe that he won’t continue on that path. Holmes’ production most impacts Hassan Whiteside, who played just 13 minutes off the bench and finished with six points and five rebounds. Currently rostered in 91% of Yahoo leagues, Whiteside isn’t in a good spot when it comes to his fantasy prospects.
Marvin Bagley shot 6-of-12 from the field and 4-of-6 from the foul line in Tuesday’s win over the Nuggets, tallying 18 points, two rebounds, one assist, one steal and two 3-pointers in 23 minutes.
Bagley wasn’t on the court as the Kings closed out Denver, due in large part to the excellence of rookie guard Tyrese Haliburton. But he has played well to start this season, hitting double figures in each of the Kings’ four games. Bagley finishing with just two rebounds wasn’t great, but he shot 50% from the field and drained a season-high two 3-pointers. Bagley’s well outside of the top-200 in both 8- and 9-cat formats, due in large part to the lack of consistent defensive production. But it would be wise to hang onto him, especially if Bagley can hit the high-20s in minutes per game.
Harrison Barnes played 33 minutes in Tuesday’s win over the Nuggets, finishing with 13 points (5-of-16 FGs), six rebounds, eight assists and three 3-pointers.
Barnes tends to be overlooked, but his versatility makes him a valuable member of the Kings starting lineup. Tuesday night he was most valuable as a facilitator, with the eight assists representing a new career-high. Barnes is ranked just outside of the top-100 in both 8- and 9-cat formats, and he should be rostered in more than just 56% of Yahoo leagues.
Starting for the injured Jamal Murray, Monte Morris scored 24 points (10-of-15 FGs, 2-of-2 FTs) with one rebound, four assists, two steals and two 3-pointers in 37 minutes.
Morris played quite well Tuesday night, scoring in an efficient manner while also turning the ball over just once. But he and his teammates struggled to slow down Sacramento’s guards, and that combined with 19 turnovers proved to be too much for the Nuggets to overcome. “It's no explanation for having that many turnovers, and not getting back, man,” Morris said after the loss. “We know they got coast-to-coast drivers. We didn't load up much to show those guys, like Fox and all their guards, bodies.” In theory, Morris’ fantasy value would drop considerably when Murray is healthy. But Denver’s backup point guard is currently ranked just outside of the top-100 in both 8- and 9-cat formats.
Facundo Campazzo accounted for one point, one rebound, five assists and two steals in 13 minutes Tuesday vs. the Kings.
Campazzo, who missed all three of his field goal attempts, received an uptick in minutes due to the absence of starting point guard Jamal Murray. The rookie, who’s anything but when factoring in his experience in Europe, played a total of 16 minutes in Denver’s first three games. Campazzo isn’t worth using a roster spot on in any fantasy format, especially with Monte Morris still in the fold.
Lou Williams had his best game of the season Tuesday, scoring 20 points (7-of-11 FGs, 5-of-6 FTs) with three rebounds, five assists and one 3-pointer in 20 minutes.
After going scoreless in nine minutes Sunday, Williams was back to his usual self in Tuesday’s win over the Timberwolves. He established season-highs in both points and assists, with his 20 points exceeding his total from the first three games combined (19). This would be a good time for fantasy players to attempt to “buy low” on Williams, given his career resume.
Patrick Beverley shot 4-of-5 from three in Tuesday’s win over the Timberwolves, finishing with 12 points, three rebounds, one assist and one steal in 22 minutes.
Beverley isn’t much of a scorer, but he does have the potential to produce 3-pointers and defensive stats on most nights. Tuesday’s effort was a good one for the veteran guard from an offensive standpoint, but the production on the other end has been a bit limited. Beverley, who’s averaging 1.2 steals per game for his career, should get fantasy players who have him rostered at least one per on most nights. That being said, his value to the Clippers rotation far outweighs his fantasy value. Beverley shouldn’t be rostered in standard leagues right now.
Ricky Rubio played 25 minutes in Tuesday’s loss to the Clippers, finishing with 17 points (6-of-8 FGs, 3-of-3 FTs), five assists, one steal and two 3-pointers.
In the two games that Minnesota has played (both losses) since Karl-Anthony Towns went down with a dislocated left wrist, Rubio has scored a total of 26 points. By comparison, he scored 12 points in the Timberwolves’ first two games (both wins). Rubio, who tweaked his left ankle early in Tuesday’s loss, offers late-round value in standard leagues and his scoring will increase with Towns out of the lineup. While that’s good for his fantasy projections, whether or not that’s good for the Timberwolves is another conversation.
Malik Beasley shot just 5-of-16 from the field in Tuesday’s loss to the Clippers, tallying 19 points with four rebounds and two 3-pointers in 28 minutes.
Beasley’s night, at least from a scoring standpoint, was saved by his going 7-of-8 from the charity stripe. With Karl-Anthony Towns (left wrist) sidelined, more will be required of Beasley offensively. And with that comes increased attention from opposing defenses. In Minnesota’s losses to the Lakers and Clippers, he shot a combined 8-of-25 from the field and 2-of-11 from beyond the arc. As a result Beasley is well outside of the top-100 in both 8- and 9-cat formats, but now isn’t the time to cut bait due to Towns’ absence.
D'Angelo Russell shot 9-of-19 from the field in Tuesday’s loss to the Clippers, scoring 22 points with three rebounds, four assists, two steals and four 3-pointers in 31 minutes.
After struggling mightily in Sunday’s loss to the Lakers, scoring just four points, Russell got back on the right track with regard to his shot. He has now scored 18 points or more in three of Minnesota’s four games this season. If there’s a concern right now, especially with Karl-Anthony Towns (wrist) sidelined, it's the assist total. Having averaged at least 6.2 assists per in each of the last three seasons, Russell has 17 through Minnesota's first four games. The lower assist numbers and his turnover tally (14 in four games) are the biggest reasons why Russell is well outside of the top-100 in 9-cat formats.
Naz Reid played 20 minutes in Tuesday’s loss to the Clippers, scoring 11 points (4-of-6 FGs, 2-of-2 FTs) with three rebounds, one assist and one 3-pointer.
Reid shot the ball reasonably well, but he had a rough night on the defensive end of the floor. The young center, filling in for the injured Karl-Anthony Towns, wasn’t the only one who deserved blame for Minnesota’s poor showing on that end of the floor. However, for some reason he didn’t see much action during the second half. "When you start switching just to switch with it not being part of what we’re doing with certain guys, that’s going to cause confusion and miscommunication,” Timberwolves coach Ryan Saunders said after the loss. “It wasn’t one guy. It wasn’t two guys. It was multiple guys that started doing that.” Reid’s issues opened the door for Jarred Vanderbilt, who logged some time as the backup center in the second half and finished with nine points, six rebounds, one assist, one steal and one blocked shot in 16 minutes.
Anthony Edwards shot 4-of-7 from three in Tuesday’s loss to the Clippers, finishing with 12 points and one blocked shot in 25 minutes.
Edwards didn’t offer much outside of points and 3-pointers Tuesday night, which was disappointing. But with the loss of Karl-Anthony Towns limiting what the Timberwolves can do offensively, it’s fair to wonder if Minnesota will need to move the rookie into the starting lineup. Jarrett Culver missed all 10 of his field goal attempts, but he did contribute 10 rebounds, one steal and one blocked shot. While the non-scoring contributions were helpful with Josh Okogie (hamstring) sidelined, Edwards’ scoring ability is something that Minnesota can use with that first unit. Ryan Saunders may not make a move just yet but stay tuned, even when Okogie is healthy enough to play.
J.J. Redick's struggles continued on Tuesday with two points on 1-of-5 shooting, one rebound and one steal in 18 minutes.
Redick opened his 15th NBA season with a 23-point gem, hitting 8-of-14 shots with six triples. In the three games since then he's been ice cold, shooting a combined 3-of-20 from the field. He doesn't offer much beyond the scoring and threes categories, so the slump is a strong headwind for fantasy purposes. There are more reliable and/or higher-upside players available in 12-team leagues.
Lonzo Ball had seven points on 3-of-12 shooting, one assist and three turnovers on Tuesday, playing 23 minutes in the Pelicans' 111-86 defeat.
Nobody on the Pelicans' roster played more than 29 minutes in this game, and we're throwing it out for evaluation purposes. Lonzo was coming off a fantasy gem on Sunday with 16 points, eight boards, five dimes and five steals, and he's made at least one 3-pointer in each game this season (1-of-7 tonight). He should bounce back vs. the Thunder on Thursday.
Zion Williamson scored 20 points on 9-of-13 shooting on Tuesday, but he did little else with 2-of-6 free throws, two boards and one steal in 29 minutes during an ugly loss to Phoenix.
The Pelicans' lack of interest in babying Zion this season was never more evident than the start of the fourth quarter. With the Pelicans trailing by 39 points, coach Stan Van Gundy left Williamson in the game for a few minutes, surrounded by reserves. This game was a disaster for the Pelicans fantasy-wise, so at least he managed to help out in the scoring and FG% categories.
Jaxson Hayes had six rebounds, two blocks, one assist and one steal in 12 minutes during Tuesday's blowout loss to the Suns.
Hayes didn't even attempt a single shot during his time on the court. He's looked lost for stretches to begin the season, but finally got some momentum in meaningless minutes tonight. New Orleans continues to use him ahead of Willy Hernangomez (four boards in seven minutes), but that's not saying much. As long as Steven Adams is healthy and Zion Williamson is getting center minutes, there's no path to value for Hayes.
Cameron Johnson hit 6-of-13 shots with four 3-pointers on Tuesday, scoring 18 points in just 22 minutes off the Suns' bench.
Johnson's contributions didn't stop at the offensive end of the court, either, as he stole the ball once and swatted a pair of shots for good measure. The second-year forward is filling his role nicely, particularly as a 3-point threat (2.0 triples on 40% from deep), but it's hard to see him maintaining his extreme efficiency for long. He's at 53.6% from the field, 40% from deep and 100% from the line, with zero turnovers in 93 total minutes this season. Enjoy it while it lasts.
Devin Booker shot just 3-of-9 from the field for eight points on Tuesday, adding six boards, three assists and two steals in an easy win vs. New Orleans.
Giannis Antetokounmpo was also held to single-digit scoring tonight, so lightning struck twice in the NBA tonight. There have been tons of lopsided games to begin the 2020-21 season and this was another one, with Booker only playing 26 minutes as the Suns strolled away with a 111-86 victory. Expect a closer contest and a bigger workload for Booker vs. the Jazz on Thursday.
E'Twaun Moore made his season debut on Tuesday, committing two fouls in six minutes of garbage time.
We're only discussing Moore because he may not play again for a long time -- he's not in the rotation -- and we haven't written about him since he signed with the Suns. The end.