Garrison

Mathews

Mathews had been on a 10-day contract, but he will now join the Pacers on a standard NBA deal. The 29-year-old has seen his playing time increase of late, averaging almost 18 minutes per game over his last six games. He’s scoring 7.2 points per game with 1.0 rebounds and 0.7 assists, so he remains firmly off the fantasy radar.

After playing 34 minutes in Friday’s win over the Bulls, Thompson moves into the Pacers’ starting lineup. His promotion comes at the expense of Garrison Mathews, whose limited fantasy value takes a hit with the move to the bench. The other four starters are unchanged.

Sheppard will miss a second straight game after straining his calf during a December 3 loss to the Nuggets. How much time he’ll miss remains unknown. While Jarace Walker has made starts in the past, the Pacers went with Garrison Mathews for Friday’s game against the Bulls. Neither player is a must-roster option, but Mathews can provide three-point production as a starter.

Mathews was with the Knicks in training camp before being waived on October 18. He has averaged 6.5 points on 38.2 percent shooting from beyond the arc in his career and should fill a minor role off the Pacers’ bench.

Mathews, believed to be in contention for the Knicks’ final available standard contract slot, did not play during Friday’s exhibition loss to the Hornets. Meanwhile, Landry Shamet played 20 minutes off the bench and appears to have solidified his spot on the roster, if not as part of the Knicks’ bench unit. Due to his shooting ability, Mathews should garner interest across the league once he clears waivers.

Friday night’s preseason finale was a big deal for Shamet, and it may have offered a clue regarding the Knicks’ approach to their final available roster spots. While Shamet played 20 minutes off the bench, neither Garrison Mathews nor Pacôme Dadiet saw any action. Dadiet was the subject of trade rumors earlier this preseason, but that was during a time when Malcolm Brogdon was still on the roster. With Brogdon announcing his retirement earlier this week, Dadiet’s odds of being traded to free up a spot for another veteran may have decreased. If so, that may be bad news for Mathews, who was also in the mix for one of those final spots.

New York agreed to a deal with Landry Shamet earlier in the day, and now it is being reported that it’s not a guaranteed deal for Shamet, which means Mathews and Shamet will be competing against each other for a roster spot. Whichever one makes the team will be nothing more than a reserve floor spacer.

Niang and LeVert have bolstered their numbers since joining Atlanta and both had solid performances against 76ers. Vit Krejci and Garrison Matthews can absorb some of LeVert’s minutes while Dominick Barlow has a chance to snag some backup power forward minutes.

Daniels will rest on Sunday after flirting with a triple double in his last outing. Vit Krejci and Garrison Matthews can take advantage of his absence to wrap up the weekend.

Atlanta is locked into the eight-seed in the East and will visit Orlando in the first round of next week’s play-in tournament. There’s nothing on the line for Sunday’s regular-season matchup, which may prompt the Hawks to rest key players like Okongwu and Daniels. Garrison Mathews and Vit Krejci are two of the players who would play more if the Hawks decide to rest their starters.