NBA Player News

Kalkbrenner spent five years at Creighton, and he’ll turn 24 this year, making him one of the oldest prospects in this year’s draft. At 7’1, 257 pounds, he’ll have few peers his size at the next level, giving him a physical advantage out of the gate. In his final season with the Blue Jays, he posted 19.2 points, 8.7 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 0.5 steals and 2.7 blocks per game. Kalkbrenner’s 66/73/32 splits over his final four collegiate seasons were impressive for a player of his size, and he has the skills to develop into a strong offensive option in the NBA. Charlotte traded away Mark Williams on Wednesday, so Kalkbrenner will compete with Moussa Diabate and Jusuf Nurkic for the starting center spot for the Hornets. He could be in for a big rookie year.

Wembanyama started things off with some excitement in the first quarter as he slammed home an alley-oop from Stephon Castle that came off the backboard. The 21-year-old center was efficient with 26 points and 14 rebounds in 27 minutes, but wasn’t much of a factor on the defensive end with one block after recording five blocks in his last game. The Spurs will take on the Knicks Wednesday in the second game of a four-game week.

Allen hadn’t even scored 20 points in his last 12 games, but dropped 27 points in the victory over the Spurs on Monday. It’s the most points Allen has had in a game since scoring 30 on November 12 against the Heat. He rose to the challenge against the Spurs and center Victor Wembanyama, adding 10 rebounds as well. The Cavaliers will be back in action Wednesday against the Suns for the second game of a four-game week.

Thompson’s shooting remains inconsistent. The 22-year-old point guard’s 20 points were just the second time he’s had at least 20 points in his last six games. Thompson threatened a triple-double with eight rebounds and seven assists against the Pacers Monday. After a slow start to the season, he’s provided fourth-round value over the last two weeks.

Smith had another great game against the Pacers on Monday. While Tari Eason is back starting and played 29 minutes, Smith’s fantasy value wasn’t impacted negatively. Smith is rostered in just 47 percent of Yahoo! leagues, which is simply too low. He’s provided sixth-round value over the last two weeks and is showing no signs of slowing down.

Durant has had 30 points in back-to-back games now. The 37-year-old small forward is in the groove going 24-of-37 from the field over the last two games. Durant is off to a great start this week after providing top-10 fantasy value over the last two weeks.

For the first time since December 18, Murphy has scored 20 points or more in consecutive games. Monday’s defensive assignment wasn’t an easy one for the Pelicans’ wing, who was given the task of defending Jalen Brunson with Herb Jones unavailable. However, that did not negatively impact Murphy’s offensive efficiency, as he shot 50 percent from the field. In eight-cat formats, he’s providing second-round per-game value for the season, exceeding his Yahoo! ADP (42).

While the finish to Monday’s game was suboptimal, with Poole looking to buy a foul call on a three-point attempt that effectively ended the Pelicans’ hopes of forcing overtime, his overall production was good. The 26 points were the most he’s scored since returning from a quad injury that sidelined him for a month, and four shy of his season-high. However, Poole is still shooting 38.6 percent from the field over the past two weeks, with the inefficiency weighing down his fantasy value.

After coming off the bench in the first seven games that he played upon returning from a strained adductor, Williamson was inserted back into the starting lineup on Monday. The Knicks struggled to come up with an answer for the Pelicans’ forward, who finished with a season-high 32 points. All that was missing from Zion’s stat line was a three-pointer, but most fantasy managers understand that he won’t offer value in that category. The Pelicans play three more games in Week 11 without a back-to-back, which should bode well for Zion’s availability.

Bey appeared to be on his way to a career night after the first quarter of Monday’s game. Shooting 6-of-9 from the field, the Pelicans forward scored 23 points in the opening 12 minutes. Unfortunately for Bey and fantasy managers who have him rostered, he cooled off considerably after halftime, missing all eight of his shot attempts. The overall stat line was good, and Bey staying in the starting lineup was another positive. But his Monday could have been even better.

Brunson finished with his fifth double-double of the season and first since December 2. And, as usual, “Captain Clutch” came up big for the Knicks down the stretch. Brunson shot 4-of-5 from the field in the fourth quarter, including a floater with just over a minute remaining that extended New York’s lead to three. The Knicks still have three games to play in Week 11, starting with the Spurs on Wednesday in the final game of their road trip.