Ivica Zubac finished Wednesday’s win over the Kings with 11 points (4-of-5 FGs, 3-of-3 FTs), 12 rebounds, one assist and one blocked shot in 23 minutes.
Zubac has been solid in the backup center role for the Clippers, and Wednesday’s effort was his best of the season to date. Not only was this his first game with at least ten rebounds, but it was also Zubac’ first double-digit scoring effort since New Year’s Day. Rostered in 22% of Yahoo leagues, Zubac is a player whose value to the Clippers rotation is greater than his fantasy basketball value. He isn’t a must-have player, especially in standard formats.
Lou Williams (left hip discomfort) played 15 minutes in Wednesday’s win over the Kings, accounting for six points (2-of-8 FGs), one rebound, one assist, one steal and two 3-pointers.
Williams missed the Clippers’ prior two games due to the hip issue, and he wasn’t asked to take on his usual workload Wednesday night. The minutes should increase, which will give him more opportunities to get back to be the prolific perimeter scorer that we’ve come to expect. Williams’ return dropped Reggie Jackson, who played just two minutes, out of the rotation. Williams is still rostered in 43% of Yahoo leagues, and that number is a bit high given his production (or lack thereof).
Marvin Bagley (sore left wrist) shot 4-of-8 from the field in Wednesday’s loss to the Clippers, posting a line of 10 points, eight rebounds, one assist, one steal and one 3-pointer in 29 minutes.
After putting up a total of 31 shots in the two games prior, Bagley attempted just eight Wednesday night. And he had actually been quite productive overall entering the game, providing top-50 value in 8- and 9-cat formats over the last week. But the Clippers did a much better job of defending Bagley than they did on Friday, when he pumped in 20 points to go along with five rebounds, two assists, one block and two 3-pointers. Bagley and the Kings have two more games to play this week and four the next, giving him ample opportunities to bounce back from Wednesday’s effort.
De'Aaron Fox finished Wednesday’s loss to the Clippers with 25 points (10-of-18 FGs, 3-of-8 FTs), four rebounds, seven assists, one steal and two 3-pointers in 34 minutes.
Two areas proved to be problematic for Fox in Wednesday's defeat: turnovers and free throws. He racked up six turnovers, which doesn’t qualify as a major surprise given the perimeter defenders that he was up against. But a 3-of-8 night from the charity stripe? That’s another matter. The good news for those who have Fox rostered is that this hasn’t been a common occurrence for him, as he’s shooting 70% from the foul line for the season. Over the last week he’s provided second-round value in 8-cat, but the turnovers drop Fox down to the sixth round in 9-cat.
Pascal Siakam went 7-of-15 from the field and 4-of-4 from the stripe for 15 points in Wednesday's loss to the Heat.
Siakam added six rebounds, two assists, one steal and two turnovers in his 37 minutes of floor time, and this was a solid bounce-back game for him after he was held to just eight points on 4-of-14 shooting his last time out. It's been an up-and-down season for Spicy P thus far, and while he's hitting career-highs in assists (4.7) and rebounds (7.7), his averages in points (18.8), triples (1.2), steal (0.8) and blocks (0.6) are all down from last season, and he's also seen his usage rate dip to 24.7 (down from 27.8). He's also connecting on a subpar 25% of his 3-point attempts, and all that translates to just top-85 value on the season.
Glenn Robinson III shot 5-of-10 from the field in Wednesday’s loss to the Clippers, accounting for 14 points, two rebounds, two assists and three 3-pointers in 21 minutes.
Robinson, who reached double figures in points for just the third time this season, matched his high Wednesday night. He’s averaging a little over 18 minutes per game, and that combined with the wings that GRIII is splitting minutes with makes it difficult to consider him a player worth rostering.
Sterling Brown returned from a leg injury on Wednesday and played 21 minutes, finishing with four points, one rebound, two assists and two steals on 2-of-3 shooting.
He was a hot pickup/DFS play when Vic Oladipo was en route and Eric Gordon was hurting, but they're both good to go now. And as long as that's the case, Brown's not worth rostering.
Jae'Sean Tate replaced David Nwaba in the starting five on Wednesday and played a team-high 37 minutes, but hit 3-of-5 shots and a 3-pointer for nine points, six rebounds and nothing else in a loss to the Suns.
If he's going to continue to start at SF for the Rockets he's going to be worth a serious look in fantasy. The stat line was disappointing but the minutes were the opposite. This guy should be at the top of your watch list and if things go well and he starts again on Friday against the Pistons, he's going to be a hot pickup.
Norman Powell couldn't keep his hot streak going on Wednesday, scoring just seven points on 3-of-8 shooting to go with one 3-pointer, one turnover and nothing else in 19 minutes off the bench.
Just when we thought Powell was ready to get things going with back-to-back solid games, he comes back to earth with this stinker. He's been bad far more often than he's been good this season with measly averages of 11.7 points, 1.9 treys and just 0.9 steals per game on 39.8% shooting, which has him ranking well outside the top-50. It's possible that he'll figure it out at some point, but we're running out of reasons to rationalize keeping him on your roster.
Christian Wood started the second half after spraining his right ankle in the first half.
This is tremendous news after he appeared to roll the ankle badly. He got it taped up and is back out there, but we'll have to see how it looks tomorrow. It looks like a crisis was likely averted and we'll let you know how he did after the game.
Cameron Johnson started again on Wednesday and hit 3-of-9 shots and two 3-pointers for eight points, three rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block in 28 minutes of Wednesday's win over the Rockets.
He has not been shooting it well in January and has hit just 18-of-47 shots (38 percent) over his last five games. But he is now the starting power forward for the Suns and he's a decent steals and threes guy. As long as he keeps starting the numbers should follow and you have to think his shooting slump is about to end. He's an upside pickup right now.
Goran Dragic (foot) scored 17 points on 6-of-16 shooting (2-of-2 FT) on Wednesday, to go with three triples, four rebounds, five assists, one steal and five turnovers across 31 minutes.
Dragic has started the past two games with both Tyler Herro (neck) and Jimmy Butler (COVID-protocol) unavailable, and he should continue to see some increased opportunity until those guys get back, although it's not like his value will evaporate once those two get back. He's putting up late-round value in 8-cat leagues on the year with averages of 15.4 points, 5.3 assists and 1.6 treys per contest on 48.8% shooting from the field and 82.9% from the stripe.
Gabe Vincent (knee) was held to just three points on 1-of-8 shooting in a spot-start on Wednesday, adding one 3-pointer, one rebound, two assists and nothing else over 28 minutes.
Vincent had a nice couple of games when the Heat were struggling to find enough bodies to fill the required eight-player limit to play a game, but he hasn't done much over the past three, with three straight single-digit performances. He replaced KZ Okpala in the starting unit today, and Okpala wound up collecting a DNP-CD. Neither of these guys are worth your attention in fantasy hoops.
Kelly Olynyk flirted with a triple-double during Wednesday's win over the Raptors, tallying 15 points, eight rebounds, eight assists, two triples, one block and three turnovers in 28 minutes.
Olynyk was coming off back-to-back single-digit stinkers, so it was nice to see him right the ship tonight against a tough defensive team. He's been pretty good as a starter this season with averages of 12.4 points, 5.6 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 2.6 treys and 2.0 turnovers per game on 50% shooting, so give him a look if those numbers are appealing.
Duncan Robinson netted 14 points on 4-of-7 shooting Wednesday, to go with three rebounds, four triples, one assist, one block and one turnover in 38 minutes.
Robinsons is hitting career-highs in points (14.8), triples (3.8) and FG% (47.6) through the first 13 games of the season, which has him flirting with top-75 value in 9-cat leagues. He's not the most exciting player to roster, but he's worth a roster spot in most settings.
Tobias Harris scored 22 points on 9-of-17 shooting Wednesday, to go with three rebounds, five assists, one 3-pointer and two steals over 40 minutes.
Harris was also a perfect 3-of-3 from the charity stripe in this one, and he finished the game without a single turnover. Doc Rivers bemoaned Philly's careless turnovers in their disappointing two-point loss in Memphis on Saturday, but as a team, the 76ers only committed a mere nine turnovers compared to their 20 assists in Wednesday's win.
Danny Green hit 4-of-8 shots for 12 points, four triples, six boards, one assist and one turnover across 29 minutes in Wednesday's win over the Celtics.
Green continues to provide low-end value in 9-cat leagues thanks to his 0.7 turnovers per game to go with averages of 9.7 points, 2.5 triples, 2.7 assists, 3.8 rebounds, 1.1 steals and 0.7 swats per contest on 38.2% shooting. His value may dip a bit once Seth Curry (conditioning) comes back and gets fully up to speed, but until that happens, he'll be worth a roster spot in most 9-cat leagues.
Furkan Korkmaz (groin) scored seven points on 2-of-5 shooting (2-of-3 FT) Wednesday, to go with one 3-pointer, one rebound and one steal in 20 minutes off the bench.
This was Korkmaz first game since Dec. 27, and he looked a bit rusty while he was out there. As long as the main guys are healthy in Philly, it'll be tough for Korkmaz to impact fantasy hoops.
Tyrese Maxey was scoreless through 21 minutes as a starter on Wednesday, missing all four of his shots and finishing with just two rebounds and two assists to his credit.
Maxey had a fun run when the 76ers' roster was on life support, but the main guys are getting back, which will result in less opportunity for the rookie. Seth Curry's return is right around the corner, and once he's back, it could be tough for Maxey to find meaningful minutes in the rotation. He's no longer a hold in standard leagues.
Robert Williams picked up a DNP-CD in Wednesday's loss to the 76ers.
Williams just recently cleared quarantine and has only gotten in one practice since Jan. 6, so his conditioning still likely isn't where it needs to be just yet. Perhaps he'll be able to get out there for Friday's rematch, which would be a negative for Daniel Theis and Grant Williams.