Wednesday night featured 11 NBA games and was highlighted by Gordon Hayward’s face and Patrick Beverley’s concussion. The Lakers and Clippers won again, Marvin Bagley returned to action, the Knicks actually won a game, and the Pelicans lost again.
Bulls 135, Hawks 102 - Zach LaVine went off for 35 points on 12-of-16 shooting, Lauri Markkanen continued his resurgence with 22 points, two 3-pointers and a block on 8-of-9 shooting, Wendell Carter Jr. double-doubled and Coby White played 25 minutes and had 19 points, four assists, a steal and a block. White’s worth a look in most leagues, as starter Kris Dunn generally isn’t getting it done, but did have three steals and a block last night.
The Hawks were destroyed by the Bulls and De’Andre Hunter, Trae Young and Kevin Huerter were all disappointing. Young, in fact, with his 4-of-14 shooting and seven turnovers, was actually detrimental in fantasy, but I’m sure all of them will bounce back on Friday against the Pacers. John Collins is due back in 11 days and while it won’t save Atlanta’s season, it should provide us with a sneak preview of what we might see next year. Cam Reddish and Alex Len were solid off the bench, but they simply can’t be relied on, outside of DFS.
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Rockets 116, Cavaliers 110 - P.J. Tucker, who went crazy in his previous game, had eight points, five rebounds, two steals and two 3-pointers against the Cavaliers last night. I just can’t trust him. Danuel House struggled again and is going to be dropped in a lot of leagues, but I still think he’s got “it.” And James Harden went double nickels (55 points) on the 5-19 Cavaliers and Russell Westbrook added a 23-7-6-4 line in the win. Ben McLemore’s flame is burning low after his six points and 2-of-7 shooting last night, but he did play a promising 33 minutes off the bench. He should bounce back.
Kevin Love double-doubled, Collin Sexton scored 18 and the Cavaliers finally turned Kevin Porter Jr. loose, as he hit 9-of-15 shots and six 3-pointers for a career-high 24 points, two rebounds, three assists and three steals. He’s eventually going to be fully unleashed and should become a hot fantasy pickup once it happens. But it’s probably a little too early for him in standard 12-team leagues.
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Pacers 122, Celtics 117 – The Pacers won a battle of boring, Eastern powerhouses and a Doug McDermott elbow to the face of Gordon Hayward ended Hayward’s night early in the Pacers’ comeback win. The Pacers were led by Malcolm Brogdon’s 29 points and eight assists, and he had one of his best games against the Celtics. Brogdon hit 15-of-15 free throws and also had two steals and two 3-pointers. I’m not worried about Victor Oladipo returning and slowing him down, especially after Oladipo said his return date was “loose as a goose” and his coach said, “I don’t see him coming back anytime in the near future.” I have zero faith in Oladipo coming back and helping fantasy owners this season, which is about where I was in October, as well. Most Pacers went off last night and the Holiday brothers (Justin Holiday, Aaron Holiday) both went off from the bench, but Jeremy Lamb and Myles Turner both struggled. I’m not racing to pick up the Holidays and I’m also not cutting Lamb or Turner, for what it’s worth. But Turner better get his act together in a hurry, because his play over the last two weeks has been unacceptable.
The Celtics lost Hayward to an inadvertent McDermott elbow and he may be wearing a mask next time you see him, as it appeared his nose was broken. But he should be fine after his last couple of injuries (broken hand, broken ankle). Kemba Walker went off with 44 points, seven assists and five 3-pointers, as the Celtics lost for just the sixth time this season. Jaylen Brown flirted with a triple-double (18-8-8) and has been one of the most pleasant surprises in fantasy, with or without Hayward in the lineup.
Lakers 96, Magic 87 – LeBron James triple-doubled, Anthony Davis double-doubled and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope scored 15 points with four 3-pointers after everyone finally gave up on him. Alex Caruso played 28 minutes and had seven points and six rebounds. He’s been playing well so deep leaguers should take notice.
Aaron Gordon, Jonathan Isaac and Evan Fournier all played pretty well for the Magic and Nikola Vucevic is expected to make his return from an ankle injury on Friday. Gordon’s posted back-to-back double-doubles and has scored in double figures in five straight games after going through a serious slump a couple weeks ago. Isaac has had at least one block in every game this season, which is crazy. Mo Bamba had 13 points, four rebounds and a block, but is now an afterthought with Vuc on the way back.
Clippers 112, Raptors 92 – Kawhi Leonard made his return to Toronto amid MVP chants and had a 23-5-6-2 line in the easy Clippers win. The Clips’ box score was pretty boring, but owners should take notice of Moe Harkless, who had 14 points, seven boards and a steal. He’s been playing well of late. Patrick Beverley left the game with concussion-like symptoms thanks to a Marc Gasol elbow and he could miss time. If he’s out, look for Jerome Robinson and Terance Mann to see a boost, although Lou Williams will probably be the guy who takes over at point guard.
Norman Powell had 22 points and two 3-pointers in the absence of Fred VanVleet (knee) and is worth a look if he’s still available in your league. FVV has missed two straight games and is day-to-day, so Powell’s run could be a short one. Marc Gasol had nine points, 11 rebounds, six assists, three steals, a block and a 3-pointer last night, and I was able to pick him up off waivers in one league overnight. He’s been putting up pretty solid numbers since his zero-point game on Sunday.
Hornets 113, Nets 108 – Devonte’ Graham scored a career-high 40 on the Nets and while we were drafting Dwayne Bacon back in October, we should have been drafting Graham. He’s basically having an All-Star season, is in the Fantasy MVP race, and is the waiver-wire pickup of the year after not being drafted in most leagues. Oh, and he also became just the third player in history to make at least 100 3-pointers in 27 or fewer games in a season. Get some, kid. Charlotte’s great schedule run comes to an end after next week’s four-game week, so there’s no need to keep holding onto marginal players (Malik Monk, Bacon, Cody Zeller, etc.).
Spencer Dinwiddie and Jarrett Allen played well for the Nets, but that was about it, as Taurean Prince, Joe Harris and Garrett Temple all struggled with their shot. DeAndre Jordan made an appearance with nine points, 14 rebounds and a block, which is your sign to trade him ASAP if you own him.
Jazz 127, Timberwolves 116 – Mike Conley missed another game with a hamstring injury and the Jazz got a big win. Donovan Mitchell scored 30, Rudy Gobert went off with 20 points, 16 rebounds, three assists, two steals and two blocks on 8-of-11 shooting, and Joe Ingles came through with 23 points, five rebounds, five assists, a steal and three 3-pointers on 9-of-14 shooting. I’ve been making the case that Ingles is much better when Conley’s in street clothes and that was certainly the case last night. Jingles is cooking right now, averaging 11.2 points, 3.8 rebounds, 6.7 assists, 1.7 steals and 2.2 3-pointers on 48 percent shooting in six December games. He’s worth a pickup, especially as long as Conley’s out, but the Jazz go 3-3-3 in their next three weeks of games played. Emmanuel Mudiay had 13 points, five boards, two assists, two blocks and two 3-pointers and is worth a deep-league flier as long as Conley isn’t playing.
The Wolves are reeling, losers of six straight games after beating the Hawks and Spurs, and they just can’t seem to play defense. They’ve given up at least 113 points in eight straight games. The good news is Robert Covington had 14 points, seven rebounds, two assists, two steals and three 3-pointers despite 5-of-13 shooting after Monday’s horrible dud. I get the feeling he’s about to heat up again. Andrew Wiggins scored 26, Karl-Anthony Towns had 21 points, 11 boards and two 3-pointes without a blocked shot, and Jeff Teague somehow tied his season high with 32 points with six assists on 11-of-16 shooting and hit all four of his 3-pointers and went 6-of-6 from the line. His ankle has been bothering him, so this was nice to see on a back-to-back. Jarrett Culver hit just 2-of-8 shots for four points and one assist, so make sure Teague’s not sitting on your waiver wire. He might be starting again at some point. The Wolves’ bench scored 36 points and Teague had 32 of those.
Grizzlies 115, Suns 108 – Jaren Jackson Jr. went off for 24 points, six boards, four assists, a block and three 3-pointes, so Jonas Nader and I are hoping you hung in there with him after the slow start. He’s rolling. Jae Crowder bounced back with 13 points, seven boards, five assists, two steals and two 3-pointers, and Dillon Brooks had 27 points, two steals and a 3-pointer on 10-of-18 shooting. If the Grizzlies play four times I’m rolling with Brooks and Crowder and they are in the midst of a four-game week and go 4-4 in their next two weeks. Ja Morant had 13 points and six dimes in 33 minutes and Jonas Valanciunas cooled off with six points and nine boards on 3-of-9 shooting. He’ll be fine. Brandon Clarke returned from an oblique injury and had 15 points, seven boards, two blocks and two 3-pointers. With the upcoming four-game weeks, he’s worth a pickup in most leagues.
For the Suns, Frank Kaminsky, Kelly Oubre, Ricky Rubio and Devin Booker all went off, while Dario Saric (3-of-10, 7 points) came back to earth after his 20-point explosion on Monday. The Suns go four times next week and all five starters deserve to be owned right now. Even the inconsistent Kaminsky. Aron Baynes had 12 points and six boards in 18 minutes, but Deandre Ayton, thankfully, is coming back on Tuesday. I’m not holding Baynes and am psyched for Ayton’s return. Let’s go!
Bucks 127, Pelicans 112 – The Bucks won their 16thstraight games as Eric Bledsoe and Khris Middleton went off in the absence of Giannis Antetokounmpo (quad) and Ersan Ilyasova had 18 points, nine boards and two 3-pointers on 8-of-10 shooting in a start for him. The Bucks play Memphis and Cleveland on Friday and Saturday, and it would be surprising to see Giannis play in both of those games, while there’s a chance he could miss both of them. If he’s out, Bledsoe, Middleton and Ilyasova all look like really strong plays again.
The Pelicans have now lost 10 straight games and I remain concerned about the rest of Jrue Holiday’s season with the playoffs almost out of sight. They’re about to get destroyed by the Sixers on Friday, but J.J. Redick bounced back last night with 31 points, and Brandon Ingram and Holiday both played well in last night’s loss. Starters Jahlil Okafor and Kenrich Williams combined to hit just 1-of-8 shots last night and scored a total of two points, while Jaxson Hayes had 12 points, five boards, two steals and two blocks in 24 minutes off the bench. It’s time to pick him up, as he’s going to play a ton of minutes in the second half for the tanking Pels. Is Lonzo Ball worth owning? I’m not really sure and he hit just 2-of-9 shots for six points, but also had five rebounds, six assists and four steals in 23 minutes. His ankle problems and the Pelicans’ record are also a concern. I’m just glad I don’t own him.
Kings 94, Thunder 93 – Bogdan Bogdanovic hit a 3-pointer with 13.4 seconds remaining to beat the Thunder and he finished with 17 points, three rebounds, a steal and two 3-pointers on 7-of-12 shooting in 29 minutes. Hopefully he’s about to go on a hot streak. Marvin Bagley returned and came off the bench, hitting 5-of-13 shots for 11 points, six boards and a block. Nemanja Bjelica started and had 10 points, five boards and two 3-pointers, but the end is near for him in fantasy. Richaun Holmes was quiet with 10 points, seven boards, two steals and a block in 25 minutes, but I’m not worried about him, and Harrison Barnes scored just five points on 2-of-9 shooting in 34 minutes. I’m also not worried about him.
Danilo Gallinari (ankle) was back and scored 14 while Abdel Nader, Steven Adams (double-double), Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Nerlens Noel and Dennis Schroder all scored in double figures, and Chris Paul had eight points, seven rebounds, 12 assists, three blocks and two 3-pointers on 3-of-9 shooting. The Thunder are an interesting case study with their 11-13 record. All the guys mentioned above are worth owning except for Nader and Noel, but both of them could be worth a look if Adams gets traded. The Thunder have a shot at making the playoffs, which gives me some hope about CP3 playing this one out. The Thunder are 10.5 games back and are basically tied with the Kings and Suns for the final two playoff spots in the West. It was nice to see Gallinari play after missing his last game with the sprained ankle.
Knicks 124, Warriors 122 OT – Marcus Morris scored a season-high 36 and led the Knicks to the overtime win, snapping a 10-game losing streak. The Warriors were down 21 in this one but fought back to take it to overtime before succumbing to Morris and company. The Warriors now have the worst record in the NBA at 5-21, while the Knicks are 5-20, LOL. Morris added 10 rebounds, three steals and five 3-pointers, RJ Barrett bounced back with 22 points, 10 rebounds, three assists, a steal, a block and three 3-pointers, and Julius Randle went off with 24 points, 13 rebounds, five assists and three 3-pointers in the win. Bobby Portis scored 15 and Elfrid Payton had 14 points, four rebounds and five assists in 30 minutes off the bench. Frank Ntilikina started but played just 13 minutes and had two points and one assist. I don’t like any of the Knicks’ point guards, but Payton is probably your best bet at this point.
Eric Paschall played just 17 minutes and it’s possible his hip injury is a problem, although the Warriors aren’t talking about it. I still think he’ll bounce back and be OK, but the Warriors play just two games next week. Paschall and company are going to start showing up on waiver wires. Draymond Green had a 14-10-12-4 triple-double and it’s time to sell high on him ASAP. Glenn Robinson bounced back with 17 points and two 3-pointers, and D’Angelo Russell exploded for 32 points, six dimes and six 3-pointers in the loss. Marquese Chriss double-doubled with 12 points, 10 boards, a steal and three blocks, and Alec Burks added 18 points, five boards, two steals and a 3-pointer. As I said, the Dubs play just two games next week, so a lot of these guys are going to end up on waivers. Your sell-high window is wide open on Green and I think he should be moved for whatever you can get. Again, the Warriors are 5-21.
