San Antonio

Spurs

Tuesday’s showdown will be the eighth consecutive game Vassell has missed with a strained left adductor. Julian Champagnie has been the replacement in the starting lineup, and he’s worth streaming in deep leagues until Vassell returns.

Castle had a rough night in Minneapolis. Not only could he not get shots to fall, but the second-year guard was also responsible for seven turnovers. While the rebound and assist numbers were solid, Castle’s inefficiency essentially nullified them. He’ll look to bounce back on Tuesday when the Spurs open a three-game week in Oklahoma City.

Due to injuries, Champagnie has started seven straight and eight of San Antonio’s last nine games. That stretch includes three double-doubles, with the Spurs’ forward offering top-100 per-game value in eight- and nine-cat formats. Rostered in 24 percent of Yahoo! leagues, Champagnie is worth a look in deep leagues as long as Devin Vassell remains out.

Wembanyama was back in the starting lineup on Sunday, but the minutes (27) were still somewhat limited. Wembanyama landed on Rudy Gobert’s foot after attempting a three-pointer during the third quarter, tweaking his left ankle. That didn’t affect his availability for the rest of the game as he remained on the floor, but it could land Wemby on the injury report ahead of Tuesday’s game against the Thunder. Luke Kornet (six points, 12 rebounds, one steal and one block) played 23 minutes off the bench.

Having come off the bench in his first few games back from a knee injury, Wembanyama is in the starting lineup for Sunday’s game. Luke Kornet heads to the bench, which lowers his fantasy ceiling. That’s the lone change to the lineup that began Saturday’s win over the Celtics.

Wembanyama will be available for both games of the Spurs’ weekend back-to-back. While his playing time may be limited, resulting in Luke Kornet getting another start, the 7-foot-4 center doesn’t need much time to offer elite fantasy value.

Wembanyama is listed as questionable with a bone bruise on his left knee. If he’s ruled out, Luke Kornet could move into the starting lineup as his replacement.

Wembanyama took over as San Antonio’s primary catalyst in the second half, scoring a game-high 16 points on 6-of-12 shooting. The 22-year-old generational talent remains limited from a minutes standpoint as he works his way back from a knee issue, but he’s still delivered some monster fantasy performances off the bench. He’s averaged 22.3 points, 8.3 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.0 steals and 2.7 blocks in just 24.5 minutes over his last three games since returning from a brief two-game absence. The Spurs close out the week with a road tilt against the Timberwolves before opening up a three-game week against the Thunder and Bucks before a rematch against Minnesota.

Fox eclipsed the 20-point plateau for the first time in three games, falling one rebound shy of his fourth double-double performance of the year. The 28-year-old facilitator hasn’t lived up to expectations from a scoring standpoint in his first full season with San Antonio, but he’s still provided fifth-round fantasy value, averaging 21.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, 5.9 assists, 1.3 steals and 0.3 blocks through 29 games.

Added to the injury report Friday evening, Champagnie is good to go for Saturday night. He has been Devin Vassell’s replacement in the starting lineup and can provide deep-league streaming value, especially for managers needing three-pointers.