Daniel Theis posted a 23-point, 10-rebound double-double in Wednesday's loss to the 76ers.
Theis was nearly perfect in this one, going 10-of-11 from the field, 1-of-1 from distance and 2-of-2 from the stripe, and he added one assist, one steal and two turnovers in his 27 minutes of floor time. This was easily Theis' best game of the season, but he tends to follow up solid stat lines with awful stinkers, and it's not like he's going to hit 90.9% of his shots on most nights. He also figures to have his minutes take a hit once Robert Williams is re-introduced into the rotation, so we wouldn't be rushing to the wire to grab him after this game.
Marcus Smart went 10-of-19 from the field and 4-of-7 from the line on his way to 25 points in Wednesday's loss to the 76ers.
Smart added one 3-pointer, four rebounds, four assists, one steal and two turnovers in his 34 minutes of action, and it was nice to see him finally hit at least 50% of his shot attempts as he had been connecting on just 29.2% of his FGA in the four games prior. Jaylen Brown dropped in a team-high 26 points on 10-of-24 shooting (3-of-6 FT), to go with three triples, five rebounds, three assists and four turnovers in 33 minutes, but ultimately, it was not enough for the Celtics to pull out the win.
Wayne Ellington started again and hit 5-of-11 shots and four 3-pointers for 16 points, two rebounds and three assists in 33 minutes of Wednesday's overtime loss to the Hawks.
He scored a season-high 24 points with seven triples in his previous game and officially belongs in waiver-wire discussions as long as he continues to start. He's also a cheap DFS option right now, averaging 20 points and 5.5 3-pointers over his last two games.
Tim Hardaway Jr. played through a sore groin on Wednesday and hit 6-of-13 shots and three 3-pointers
Hardaway bounced back a game after missing all 12 of his shots and failing to score on MLK Day. Hardaway has now scored in double figures in all of his games this season except for Monday's disaster and is worth rostering in most leagues, despite a lack of peripheral stats.
Jeff Green scored a season-high 16 points on 5-of-8 shooting Wednesday, to go with four triples, seven rebounds, two assists, one steal, one block and three turnovers through 45 minutes in a double-overtime loss to the Cavs.
Green had a clutch 3 down the stretch of the first OT period to put Cleveland up by three, but the red hot Collin Sexton came right back with a 3-pointer of his own to force a second overtime. The four 3-balls tied a season-high, and Green has been in a nice groove over the past four with double-digit scoring and solid 3-point shooting. He was also in the closing unit of tonight's game, so he's on the radar in deep leagues.
Willie Cauley-Stein came off the bench on Wednesday and hit 4-of-9 shots and 2-of-4 free throws for 10 points, five rebounds, two assists, two steals and two blocks in just 19 minutes of a 124-112 win over the Pacers.
That's roughly the same minutes he plays when he starts and it's hard to say if he came off the bench because Myles Turner was out, or if Rick Carlisle just felt like making a change tonight. The line was solid but it's going to tough for WCS to put up fun stat lines if he's not going to get at least 25 minutes a night. And even then, he's shaky at best.
DeAndre Jordan hit 6-of-7 shots for 13 points, four rebounds, two blocks and one turnover across 24 minutes in Wednesday's double-overtime loss to Cleveland.
The Nets opened this game by hitting their first 10 shots, and four of those came on easy dunks from DJ. With three superstars around him, he was basically able to get free runs right to the basket, and as an added bonus he went 1-of-1 from the stripe. He's not going to blow you away with what he brings to the stat sheet, but he's a solid low-end big to have at the end of your roster.
Doug McDermott hit 6-of-16 shots and two 3-pointers for 16 points, eight rebounds, three assists and a block in 34 minutes on Wednesday.
If Myles Turner was expected to miss much time with his fractured hand McDermott would be an interesting pickup right now. He's actually having his best season, scoring in double figures in all but four games and he's averaging 18.3 points and 2.7 3-pointers over his last three. But his assists, steals and blocks are almost non-existent, which is why he's probably still sitting on your waiver wire.
Kevin Durant flirted with a triple-double in Wednesday's double-overtime loss to the Cavs, tallying 38 points, 12 rebounds, eight assists, three triples, one steal, four blocks and two turnovers in 50 minutes.
KD got his points efficiently, going 12-of-25 from the floor and 11-of-13 from the charity stripe, and this was his third straight game with at least 30 points. Durant was a top-3 stud in two of his three seasons while playing on the superteam in Golden State, with his lowest overall ranking being No. 8, so we're not worried about him maintaining his status as a fantasy monster on his new superteam in Brooklyn. However, with how many minutes he played tonight, fantasy managers may want to be on the lookout for a potential rest day for Friday's rematch, with that game being the first of a back-to-back.
Justin Holiday hit 4-of-9 shots and two 3-pointers for 10 points, three rebounds, two assists and a steal in 38 minutes of Wednesday's loss to the Mavericks.
Holiday figures to see a big boost in value with Caris LeVert out indefinitely, but he's yet to come through. In fact, Holiday hasn't played much differently lately than before his teammates were injured. But he is getting minutes, steals and 3-pointers and the rest should follow, as long as the minutes stay in the 30s. Hang in there with him but also keep a close eye on Jeremy Lamb, who scored 10 in his season debut tonight.
Jeremy Lamb (knee) made his season debut on Wednesday and had 10 points, two rebounds, two steals and a 3-pointer on 4-of-8 shooting in 19 minutes.
Lamb and Justin Holiday appear to be the two guy you'll want to think about grabbing with Caris LeVert out indefinitely (kidney), but until we same at full health and getting 30-plus minutes a night, Holiday is the preferred player to hold right now.
Christian Wood rolled his right ankle on a non-contact play and immediately took himself out of Wednesday's game against the Suns.
It didn't look great on TV but we're guessing he's having it re-taped with hopes of coming back in the game. It's possible that could happen but his ankle is likely going to swell overnight. Hopefully it's not as bad as it looked.
Taurean Prince scored 17 points on 5-of-9 shooting Wednesday, to go with three triples, seven rebounds, four assists, one steal, one block and three turnovers across 32 minutes in a double-overtime win over the Nets.
Most of Prince's production came during the overtime period, and there may have been a bit of a revenge factor here going up against the team that traded him in his Cleveland debut, so we'd like to see this again before recommending him as an add in standard settings.
John Collins hit 13-of-24 shots and a 3-pointer for a season-high 31 points, 11 rebounds, a steal and a block in Wednesday's 123-115 win over the Pistons.
The Hawks version of the Big 3 all went nuts tonight as Clint Capela went off for 27 points, 26 rebounds and five blocks, and Trae Young overcame a six-point first half for 38 points and 10 assists. Of course, it's easier for those guys to all get digits when players like Cam Reddish, De'Andre Hunter, Bogdan Bogdanovic and Danilo Gallinari are all in street clothes.
Cole Anthony finished Wednesday’s win over the Timberwolves with 13 points (5-of-7 FGs), seven rebounds, three assists, one blocked shot and three 3-pointers in 28 minutes.
Anthony’s assist total wasn’t great, but this may have been his best game since replacing the injured Markelle Fultz in the starting lineup. Efficient on offense, the rookie made all three of his 3-point attempts with the last giving Orlando the 97-96 victory as time expired. Also, he was responsible for just one turnover. Having struggled in recent games, Anthony remained confident thanks in large part to teammate James Ennis. Over the last week, he has provided 15th-round value in 9-cat formats, which isn’t enough to justify rostering the rookie in standard leagues. But the return of Evan Fournier should help Anthony when it comes to consistently finding better looks, so keep an eye on him.
Aaron Gordon tallied 13 points (3-of-9 FGs, 6-of-8 FTs), nine rebounds, seven assists, one steal, four blocks and one 3-pointer in 36 minutes Wednesday vs. the Timberwolves.
Gordon didn’t have a great night shooting the basketball, but fantasy managers weren’t hurt too much as he did a little bit of everything. What is even more noteworthy than his line was the fact that Gordon moved into the point guard role for the second unit, with Jordan Bone picking up a DNP-CD as a result. Gordon did turn the ball over four times, but that role may be his for the foreseeable future. Sitting just outside of the top-100 in 9-cat, getting more time on the ball in a playmaking role could improve Gordon’s fantasy value even with the suspect perimeter shooting.
D'Angelo Russell shot 7-of-17 from the field in Wednesday’s loss to the Magic, posting a line of 19 points, two rebounds, six assists, two blocks and four 3-pointers in 32 minutes.
Minnesota found a way to lose a game that it controlled for much of the first three quarters. Russell didn’t have the best night, and it’s worth noting that coach Ryan Saunders made a change to the rotation to account for the absences of Ricky Rubio and Karl-Anthony Towns. Russell’s initial rests in the first and third quarters were shorter than usual, as he was brought back into the game in both instances to serve as the second unit’s primary scoring option. We may see Russell used in this fashion more often, as it is unknown when either Rubio or KAT will clear the league’s health and safety protocols. Over the last week Russell has provided top-15 value in both 8- and 9-cat formats.
Jaden McDaniels shot 5-of-9 from the field in Wednesday’s loss to the Magic, putting up 12 points, eight rebounds, one assist, one steal, three blocks and two 3-pointers in 26 minutes.
One of the few things that has worked for Minnesota recently has been Ryan Saunders’ decision to give McDaniels rotation minutes. After an underwhelming 12 minutes in Monday’s loss to the Hawks, the rookie forward was much better Wednesday night. McDaniels isn’t worth rostering right now, regardless of league format, but he likely earned himself another look Friday against Atlanta based upon how he played against the Magic.
Naz Reid tallied 14 points (5-of-8 FGs, 2-of-2 FTs), three rebounds, one assist, three blocks and two 3-pointers in 29 minutes Wednesday vs. the Magic.
Since scoring two points in Minnesota’s January 5 loss to the Nuggets, Reid has hit double figures in three of his last five outings. And he’s been productive as a starter, averaging 12.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1.3 steals, 0.8 blocks and 1.0 3-pointers per (not counting Wednesday’s numbers). Karl-Anthony Towns is still out due to COVID-19, which will give Reid a few more opportunities to start. Reid, who is providing top-75 value in 9-cat over the last week, should be rostered in more than just 12% of Yahoo leagues given his role and how he’s playing.
Tristan Thompson pulled down nine rebounds in Wednesday's loss to the 76ers, adding two points, two assists and one turnover across 21 minutes.
Thompson only attempted two shots in this one, and this was his fourth consecutive game being held to single digits in the scoring department. He's been abysmal over that four-game span with averages of 3.0 points, 8.7 rebounds and not much else on 33.3% shooting, so he has no business being rostered in the vast majority of leagues.