New Orleans

Pelicans

Facing his Lithuania national teammate Domantas Sabonis, Valanciunas recorded his 10th double-double of the season and third in as many games. The veteran center is closing in on top-50 per-game value in 8- and 9-cat formats, ranking slightly higher in the latter. While Valanciunas didn’t record any defensive stats on Monday, he’s averaging 1.2 blocks per game. That may not be elite, but it’s enough for fantasy basketball, given his value in points, rebounds, and percentages.

Jones came up big offensively for the Pelicans, as only Brandon Ingram (30 points) was more productive than him scoring-wise. Not only were the 23 points a season-high, but this was Jones’ first 20/5/5 game. He’s reached double figures in three straight and six of his last seven games, with Herb now ranked safely within the top 50 in 9-cat per-game value. The defensive production and percentages make him a quality fantasy option, but Jones can take things to another level if he continues to score at a consistent rate.

Appearing in his second game of the season, Murphy logged 30 minutes off the bench in Sacramento. Being able to take on that workload, especially after sitting out Saturday’s loss to the Bulls, is a positive development for Murphy. The question is whether or not he’ll eventually replace Herb Jones in the starting lineup. Regardless of what happens there, both will get the minutes needed to be of value to fantasy managers. Murphy is unlikely to finish the season ranked where he currently is (15th, per Basketball Monster), but he will be a solid player for category league managers to have rostered. Next up for Murphy and the Pelicans is a semifinal matchup with the Suns or Lakers on Thursday in Las Vegas.

Appearing in a road game for the first time since his return from a pneumothorax in his right lung, McCollum was effective in his 35 minutes on the court. The 17 points may not jump off the page, but the Pelicans didn’t need him to do too much with five other players in double figures. McCollum’s providing top 20 per-game value in 9-cat formats, well above his Yahoo ADP of 83, but that’s with nine games played. McCollum should be a middle-round player when the regular season ends and that wouldn’t represent poor fantasy value. His return has impacted young guards Dyson Daniels and Jordan Hawkins, who have fallen out of the rotation with the Pelicans returning to full strength. Daniels played five minutes on Monday while Hawkins picked up a DNP-CD.

Ingram notched his first 30-point game since a November 24 win over the Clippers, leading the Pelicans to Thursday’s In-Season Tournament semifinals in Las Vegas. He picked up the slack for Zion Williamson, who finished Monday’s win with 10 points, six rebounds, six assists, and three steals in 28 minutes. Ingram isn’t producing to the level of his Yahoo ADP (52), but he hasn’t been too far off. As long as he can stay healthy, fantasy managers who have Ingram rostered should be in a good place this season.

After sitting out Friday’s game against the Bulls, McCollum is back in the starting lineup. As a result, Dyson Daniels will come off the bench, losing his appeal as a streaming option. Also of note is Jones remaining in the starting lineup, with Trey Murphy III coming off the bench in his second game of the season.

Ryan will miss a ninth straight game, and there’s no timeline for his return. Ryan averaged 22.9 minutes per game before his extended absence, but his playing time was largely the result of multiple injuries across the depth chart. With New Orleans getting back to full strength, Ryan is unlikely to see that much run when he’s back on the court.

With Trey Murphy back in action on Friday, Jones’ minutes weren’t impacted much, as he played 31 and scored 17 points. Murphy wasn’t active against the Bulls, which led to a slight increase in Herb’s run, and he came through with another solid stat line. Jones has hit double figures in five of his last six games, but that’s something to keep an eye on as the Pelicans work Murphy back into the swing of things. Jones’ defensive ability ensures that he’ll be in the rotation for the long haul; how much he plays could depend on the progress made on the offensive end of the floor.

The significant development for Williamson on Saturday wasn’t the stat line but rather the fact that he played. After logging 26 minutes in Friday’s win over San Antonio, this was the first time he played both ends of a back-to-back since December 30-31, 2022. Given Williamson’s health struggles, that’s a big deal for the Pelicans and fantasy basketball managers. He was one of two Pelicans to score at least 20 points on the night, with Brandon Ingram (23/6/6/3 in 36 minutes) being the other. Next up for the Pelicans is an In-Season Tournament quarterfinal against the Kings on Monday, and CJ McCollum (lung) and Trey Murphy III (knee) are expected to be available.

With CJ McCollum sidelined, Daniels will move back into the starting unit as the team’s point guard. He has provided well-rounded value as a starter this season with averages of 8.5 points, 5.7 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.9 steals per game.