NBA Player News

After coming off the bench in Thursday’s loss to the Timberwolves, Wallace and Hartenstein are in the starting lineup for Sunday’s matchup in Denver. Their moves into the lineup push Aaron Wiggins and Jaylin Williams to the bench. While Wiggins can still offer tangible fantasy value in his role, JayWill is worth leaving alone.

Even with his modest output on Sunday, Randle continues to provide fantasy managers with excellent value. Over the past two weeks, he has been a top-50 player in eight-cat formats, slightly lower than his season-long production. Randle will look to get his Week 17 off to a good start on Monday against the Hawks, the first of four games the Timberwolves will play.

Edwards and the Timberwolves were unable to bounce back from Friday’s disappointing loss to the Pelicans, as Kawhi Leonard and the Clippers grabbed control early and never let go. Ant-Man’s final stat line was decent, but not at the level that many fantasy managers expect of him. His streak of games with at least 30 points ended at four, and Edwards will look to start a new one on Monday against the Hawks. The Timberwolves play four games in Week 17, two on each side of the All-Star break.

Konan-Niederhäuser enjoyed one of his best games of the season, finishing one point shy of his season-high and doing a good job on the glass. While Brook Lopez (five points, two rebounds, two assists, two blocks and one three-pointer in 26 minutes) is locked in as the starting center, Ivica Zubac’s exit means that there will be more opportunities for Konan-Niederhäuser. He isn’t a must-roster player, but keep an eye on YKN, especially if the Clippers fall out of the play-in spots.

While the overall line was modest, Collins has reached double figures in each of his last 11 games. Over the past three weeks, the Clippers forward has offered sixth-round per-game value in nine-cat formats, according to Basketball Monster. With James Harden and Ivica Zubac no longer in the picture, there should be more opportunities for Collins offensively, even after Darius Garland (toe) is healthy enough to play.

While Leonard’s offensive output will grab the headlines, how he started Sunday’s rout set the tone for the Clippers. He recorded steals on three consecutive possessions and scored 12 points in the first quarter. Leonard finished with his fourth 40-point game of the season and a robust overall stat line. With the Clippers trading James Harden and Ivica Zubac, the path to the postseason became much more arduous. But, as long as Leonard’s on the floor, they’ve got a chance. The Clippers play five games in Week 17, with a road back-to-back against the Rockets before the All-Star break.

Nembhard had a rough afternoon in Toronto, continuing a slump in which he’s shot 12-of-40 from the field over his last three games. Having shot 36.1 percent from the field, his fantasy value is ranked outside the top 150 over the past two weeks. While his season-long fantasy value remains respectable, Nembhard’s value has not received the boost that many fantasy managers hoped with Tyrese Haliburton unavailable. He’s higher on opposing teams’ scouting reports, and that’s affected Nembhard’s efficiency.

Sunday’s game got away from Siakam and the Pacers in the third quarter, as the Raptors outscored them by a 44-26 margin. That factored into Spicy P playing only 24 minutes, which may be a concerning development for managers counting on him to deliver consistently excellent production through the fantasy playoffs. However, this was the first game since January 10 in which Siakam played less than 32 minutes, so there’s no need to panic. The Pacers play five games in Week 17, starting with the Knicks on Tuesday.

Jackson-Davis made the most of his debut appearance for the Raptors, recording a double-double. While 16 minutes aren’t a big deal for most players, TJD met or exceeded that number just 14 times with the Warriors this season before being traded. The issue moving forward is that the Raptors were shorthanded on Sunday: Jakob Poeltl (back) was out, and Collin Murray-Boyles left the game in the first half with a thumb injury. While Jackson-Davis played well, fantasy managers should not overreact.

Back in the lineup after sitting out Thursday’s win over the Bulls, Barrett had a good afternoon against the Pacers. All that was missing from his stat line was a blocked shot. Unfortunately, Barrett’s fantasy value has tailed off after a hot start to the season. But, in fairness to him, there may have been too much expected of Barrett in terms of fantasy value. While days like Sunday are certainly possible, Carter is a better option in points leagues than category leagues.