Hello sir or madam, have you welcomed Maxime Raynaud into your heart? If no, now’s the time to fix that. The rookie big man put up 12 points and 14 rebounds on Sunday and is averaging 15.1 points and 9.9 rebounds per game since being inserted into the Kings’ starting lineup thanks to Domantas Sabonis getting hurt. And with Sabonis out for another month, Raynaud should continue to put up worthwhile numbers like this for the foreseeable future.
Are there holes in Raynaud’s game? You betcha. You’re basically only getting points and rebounds from him; he doesn’t block many shots, get many steals, hit many threes or produce many assists. He’s far from the all-around fantasy stalwart that Sabonis is, and given that he’s just a fill-in at the moment, I can understand a prospective fantasy manager shrugging at him a bit. Even in a best case scenario in which he maintains the starting center job for the rest of the year, he doesn’t profile to be someone you’d be getting superstar production from.
At the same time, there are reports that the Kings could go on a firesale at the trade deadline, and that could very well include Sabonis. And if that sale were to stretch to the Kings’ other notable veterans such as Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan or Russell Westbrook, then suddenly it becomes plausible for Raynaud to become a double-double machine if nothing else. And given that he’s only 22 and is a rookie, the upside is definitely there for that role to increase.
Are you going to get much more than points and rebounds from him? Maybe not, and it’s hard to fall in love with a big man who doesn’t regularly give you threes or blocks in 2025. Still, there’s a very real path to him being awesome by the end of the season and his playing time isn’t going to be challenged until about February at the soonest. If he’s still available in your league, he’s definitely worth adding because at worst you’re going to be getting good production from him for the next month or so, and there’s the real possibility that that stretch is going to last even longer.
Other notes:
In his second game back from injury, Trae Young had 35 points, 9 assists and 7 threes in only 26 minutes. Notably, Jalen Johnson kept up his sensational play of late in this same game, totaling 36 points, 11 rebounds and 9 assists. Granted, this was in an abnormally high scoring game in which both teams scored over 150 points, but it doesn’t change the fact that Johnson’s status on this team should be unquestioned from here on out, regardless of whether Trae is healthy or not.
Ivica Zubac will be out for a few weeks, which opens the door for Brook Lopez to start in his place. Lopez has looked extremely washed this year, in fairness, but he makes for a decent rental given his ability to hit threes and block shots.
Egor Demin had 16-5-3-2 against the Raptors on Sunday. That makes three straight games in which he’s scored at least 14 points. He’s not doing enough to warrant being owned in standard leagues yet, but the playing time should be there so he’s worth keeping an eye on.
Kel’el Ware had 28-and-19 over the weekend. He’s averaging a staggering 24.7 points and 15 rebounds per game in his last three games and it’s hard to see him exiting the starting lineup from this point forward. It’s been a bumpy ride for Ware, who scored 6 or fewer points in his four games prior to this stretch, but those who’ve stuck with him have to be ecstatic right now, because he looks like could be a fantasy superstar.
Jaime Jaquez Jr. collected 23 points and 5 assists on Sunday. His production has been decent of late thanks to Tyler Herro being out, but his upside is capped when the Heat are healthy.
Mitchell Robinson had 9 points, 7 rebounds and a block against the Knicks. He’s been playing really well lately, but he’s just a streamer so long as he’s coming off the bench.
Kevin Porter Jr. stuffed the stat sheet with a 24-10-9-4-1 line against the T’Wolves. KPJ might be a terrible person, but he’s been playing fantastic in Giannis Antetokounmpo’s absence. I would sell high on him if I could, not only because these numbers are gonna come down when Giannis returns, but because he’s a turnover monster; he has 19 of them just in his last three games and has the potential to tank your field-goal percentage as well.
Ryan Rollins produced 16-4-5 in 23 minutes in Minnesota on Sunday. That he’s been moved to the bench is not exactly convenient if you have him in fantasy, but the Bucks are awful and should continue to play him enough for him to be productive.
Dennis Schroder was a beast on Sunday, putting up 24 points, 10 assists and 7 rebounds in 32 minutes off the bench. His production should continue to fluctuate but he has a chance to be a reliable fantasy producer if enough pieces fall into place in Sacramento.
Dominick Barlow put up 21 points and 4 rebounds against the Mavericks. The fourth-year player hasn’t done much to garner fantasy consideration yet, but he feels increasingly entrenched as the Sixers’ starting power forward.
Cam Spencer collected 19 points, 11 assists and 4 rebounds on Saturday. This feels like a decent time to invest in Spencer, who’s been playing well recently and who could potentially earn a more stable role if Morant were to get traded in a few weeks.
Santi Aldama was a monster over the weekend, totaling 37 points, 10 rebounds, 5 threes, 2 assists, a steal and a block against the Wizards. Aldama is a rather inconsistent player (he had 3 points and 2 rebounds just two games earlier!) but nights like this reinforce why he’s worth holding on to.
