NBA Player News

Knecht hasn’t played much during his second season in the league, but he got the opportunity in the blowout win. He took advantage and stuffed the stat sheet, but he’ll likely be back on the bench for the playoffs. Still, this was a productive game for him, and it may lead to a team being interested in making a trade for him this offseason, which is the clearest path to him being a rotation player.

Wemby may have missed all three of his three-point attempts, but the final stat line was what fantasy managers have come to expect. While a few managers may take Oklahoma City’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander with pick 1.1, many consider it a two-horse race. If it isn’t Wembanyama going first overall, then it will be Denver’s Nikola Jokić.

With the Suns sitting their projected starters, they struggled to find an answer for Castle on defense. He attempted only five field-goal shots, but the third-year guard’s ability to apply pressure off the dribble earned him 15 free-throw attempts. Turnovers and field-goal percentage limited Castle’s value in nine-cat formats last season, making him a superior option for those competing in eight-cat formats or points leagues.

With Julian Champagnie getting the night off, Harper remained in the starting five despite De’Aaron Fox making his first appearance of the preseason. Whether he starts or comes off the bench, Harper has a high fantasy ceiling heading into his second NBA season. The top-100 ADP is reasonable, as Harper will play plenty for the reigning Western Conference champions. With the Spurs playing their final preseason game on Friday, we should get a more definitive answer on Mitch Johnson’s starting lineup then.

Wednesday’s exhibition was the first of the preseason for Fox, who logged 19 minutes against the Suns. While he struggled during the NBA Finals, the Spurs’ point guard is locked into that role going into the 2026-27 season. Fox may not be a top-50 fantasy player, but he remains valuable to managers willing to punt free-throw percentage.

Egor Dёmin looks to capitalize on his summer league performances and has done so in preseason. He’s been able to get by players more effectively which has helped unlock more of the passing. While he won’t be a full-time point guard in the NBA, he should still be one of the favorites to have a breakout season in the NBA. While its important to not over index on single game +/-, he was a 0 which led all starters.

Giannis looks like he’s in regular season form after dominating the Nets on Wednesday. They had no answer when he drove into the paint. He capitalized on miscommunications on defense with his passing. He should be going in round 1 in redraft league drafts.

Davion showed how much of a pest he is defensively in this game with his full court pressure and defensive numbers. He did leave the game temporarily after hitting his head on Day’Ron Sharpe’s knee, but he returned to the game. He should be primed to at worst, be a steals and assists streamer for redraft leagues.

Over two NBA seasons, Salaün has failed to secure a consistent role in Charlotte. The absences of Kon Knueppel and Grant Williams, both recovering from hamstring injuries, have created more opportunities for Salaün, who played well in Boston. However, one performance does not make him a player worth selecting in redraft leagues.

The Hornets have been without Kon Knueppel all preseason as he recovers from a hamstring injury, and he’s unlikely to be ready for the October 21 season opener. While Liam McNeeley (seven points, five rebounds, two assists, one steal and one three-pointer vs. Boston) was the replacement in the first three exhibitions, O’Neale did the honors on Wednesday. The veteran wing is most valuable to managers needing three-pointers and steals, and he provided the former in Beantown. O’Neale’s negative was his team-high five turnovers. Charlotte visits Memphis in its preseason finale on Friday; that game should answer who is best positioned to start for Knueppel when the regular season begins.

Anderson, the 18th overall pick in June’s draft, returned from the ankle injury that sidelined him at the start of training camp. The rookie guard logged 21 minutes off the bench, signaling that it’s “all systems go” with no restrictions. With Coby White sidelined by a calf injury, Anderson may get minutes backing up starting point guard Dennis Schröder (five points, three rebounds and two assists vs. Boston) once the regular season begins. That said, he’ll be far more valuable in dynasty leagues than in redraft leagues.