NBA Player News

Billups joins the Covid party and it looks like the earliest he can return will be January the 5th against Miami, but it could be longer. Scott Brooks will act as the Blazers head coach in Billups’ absence. Brooks has extensive head coaching experience including most recently with the Washington Wizards.

Ace Bailey is the best point of attack defender the Jazz have on the roster right now. He’s also put in serious work on the offseason to get better at rebounding the ball and passing. The amount of trust the coaching staff has in him right now cannot be understated. He’s worth grabbing in redraft leagues if he’s available, and in dynasty leagues, you have to be happy if you have him on your roster.

On a night when Mikal Bridges (three points and one three-pointer) didn’t have it, Knicks head coach Mike Brown didn’t hesitate to turn to his bench. Clarkson, who didn’t play in Tuesday’s win over the Pistons, scored 12 points, grabbed two steals, and hit two three-pointers in the second half in 12 minutes. Bridges played three minutes in the second half and 13 overall. Clarkson isn’t at the point where he can be trusted in fantasy basketball, but he helped the Knicks come back from 19 down on Wednesday.

Keyonte had a lot on his shoulders with the injuries to Jaren Jackson and Lauri Markkanen. He was the go to guy and helped keep the Jazz in the game. He was one of three people on the team to play more than thirty minutes in the loss. If you have Keyonte George in redraft leagues, it will be worth paying attention to how many points he’s scoring in case there is a sell-high window due the injuries and with Darryn continuing to get better.

In the second game of a back-to-back, a team usually needs more production from its bench, and the Knicks’ reserves answered the call in Chicago. Shamet briefly left the game in the first half after tweaking his right ankle, then hit four three-pointers and scored 12 of his 14 points after halftime. Add in the assists and blocks, and this was a good night for the few who are rostering Shamet.

Anunoby has scored 20 or more points in three of five games, with Wednesday’s total a season high. He didn’t record any defensive stats against the Bulls, but that’s not a big deal, as OG posted two steals and two blocks in Tuesday’s win over the Pistons. The Knicks play one more game in Week 2, Friday night against the 76ers in Philadelphia.

Herro has scored at least 23 points and made at least three three-pointers in four of five games so far this season. He played 27 minutes in a game the Bucks lost by 32. Given Milwaukee’s lack of depth, which has led to high usage for Herro, the only thing that can slow him down are blowouts.

Shooting 36.6 percent from the field in New York’s first four games, Brunson snapped out of that funk in a big way on Wednesday. Shooting 52 percent from the field and 6-of-10 from beyond the arc, the Knicks point guard finished with season highs in points, assists, steals and three-pointers. With the Knicks not arriving in Chicago until about 3 AM Wednesday, Brunson delivered an impressive showing.

Towns had an injury scare in the first quarter after colliding with Bulls forward Noa Essengue and hitting his left hand/wrist on the court. After a quick trip to the locker room to get taped up, KAT returned to the game, with foul trouble limiting him to 28 minutes. We’ll see if Towns shows up on the injury report for Friday’s game against the 76ers.

Thompson’s 23 points were his season-high after five games this year. After recording at least 10 rebounds in the first three games of the season, he’s grabbed just nine boards in his last two games. Thompson’s offense continues to improve, including his three-point shooting, which will only raise the floor of his fantasy value.

Bey, who played 26 minutes on Wednesday, replaced Jeremiah Fears (11/4/3/1 with one three-pointer) in the Pelicans’ lineup to begin the second half. After the game, Pelicans head coach Jamahl Mosley said he made the lineup change to get more size on the court. New Orleans outscored 28-22 in the third, with Fears scoring seven and Bey four. Given the circumstances, Bey’s role is unlikely to change anytime soon.