Andrew Wiggins will turn 22 in less than a month, but he knocked down what should be the first of many buzzer-beating game winners, becoming the youngest player of the season to do so:
A buzzer-beater win in Minnesota is rarer than a healthy Nikola Pekovic. The last one happened almost 5 years ago on a Luke Ridnour floater on February 22, 2012. About the same time as Pek’s last game.
In addition to the game-winner, Wiggins added 31 points (11-22 FG), 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, and 2 threes. Wiggins continues to develop in his third NBA season and makes the young Timberwolves roster a fun team to watch.
Karl-Anthony Towns – KAT posted an efficient 18 points (7-12 FG, 4-5 FT), 10 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals. That’s now back-to-back games that KAT hasn’t attempted a three. Maybe he’s received the memo that he shouldn’t be shooting them as often!
Gorgui Dieng – Coming off a 4-point performance, Dieng went for 16 points, 9 rebounds, 2 assists, and 3 blocks.
Ricky Rubio – Rubio collected another double-double with 14 points, 10 assists, and 4 rebounds. He has 6 double-digit assist games in 11 January games.
Shabazz Muhammad – Muhammad scored 16 points, 3 rebounds, and 2 threes on Tuesday. Shabazz has been Sha-good from long range lately, having hit 7-12 in the last 4 games.
Tyson Chandler – Chandler keeps showing that he still has something left in the tank, collecting 22 points, 17 rebounds, and 2 blocks. The Suns should trade Chandler so that Alex Len (11 points and 10 rebounds) can receive more minutes.
Eric Bledsoe – Struggling from the floor, Bledsoe managed 18 points (5-18 FG) and 7 assists in 29 minutes, but still played over Brandon Knight (10 points in 22 minutes).
Devin Booker – Booker led the Suns in scoring with 26 points, 4 assists, and 4 threes, hitting 5 of 6 shots in the 4th quarter.
Bradley Beal & John Wall – The Wizards wore all black going into their game with the all-of-a-sudden rival Celtics. There’s been some bad blood all season, but Wall and Beal made a statement by combining for 58 points. Wall finished with a line of 27/7/7, while Beal looked unstoppable in the 4th quarter, on his way to 31 points, 5 assists, and 2 steals. Beal’s shooting slump over the last 4 games seems to be over, as he shot 12-18 from the field.
Markieff Morris – Morris continues his recent string of strong games with 19 points, 11 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 blocks. Over the last 5 games, Morris is averaging 18.4 ppg, 9.2 rpg, 2.8 apg, and 1.4 threes per game. Let’s hope he keeps this up.
Marcin Gortat – Gortat was nearly perfect from the floor, shooting 7-8 from the field and 2-2 from the line, en route to 16 points and 8 rebounds.
Isaiah Thomas – Thomas had his work cut out for him, as the Wizards pressured him extra hard all game. He shot only 7-19 from the field, but added 10-11 from the line for 25 points, 13 assists, and 2 steals.
Marcus Smart – Smart finished with 13 points, 5 rebounds, 4 steals, and 2 threes. Like Thomas, he was frustrated by the Zards, but instead of taking it out on the court, he decided to take it out on his coaches. Monitor the situation should Smart receive any discipline from the team.
Jae Crowder – Crowder shot an efficient 6-8 from the field to go along with his 17 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists.
Al Horford – Big Al scored 22 points, but did little else (4 assists, 2 rebounds, and 1 block) in the Celtics’ loss. It was especially disappointing with Amir Johnson being benched and playing only 4 minutes.
LaMarcus Aldridge – Without Kawhi Leonard by his side, LA led the Spurs in scoring with 21 points, 7 rebounds, and 2 assists. Leonard’s hand injury isn’t considered serious, but the Spurs haven’t announced a timetable for his return. Kyle Anderson (8/7/4 line) will continue to start for the Spurs with Leonard out.
Patty Mills – Dejounte Murray (11/3/2) started for the 4th straight game for the injured Tony Parker (ankle/foot), but it was Mills who had more of an impact on the game. In 30 minutes off the bench, Mills went off for 18 points, 3 assists, and 3 steals. Murray and Mills will continue to split minutes and make for good pickups with Parker ailing.
Kyle Lowry – Lowry led the Raptors, scoring 30 points and grabbing 5 rebounds in 42 minutes. He missed DeMar DeRozan’s (ankle) presence pulling defenders away from him, as he shot only 9-23 from the field and 1-7 from three.
Terrence Ross – Ross missed a three with fewer than 20 ticks to go that would have given the Raptors a 1-point lead. Other than that miss, he shot a strong 6-10 from the field, scoring 21 points off the bench with 3 threes. DeRozan will miss at least the next game against the Grizzlies, giving Ross and starter Norman Powell (16/4/2 line) another chance at heavy minutes.
Jonas Valanciunas – JV fell 1-point shy of a double-double with 9 points, 13 rebounds, and 2 blocks.
Nerlens Noel – No Joel Embiid and the Sixers still beat the Clippers? Well, Sixer fans can thank Noel for that, who put up a crazy 19 point, 8 rebound, 5 assist, 2 steal, and 3 block night. Embiid is expected back Friday, but that means one more game of Noel dominating minutes. Jahlil Okafor sat with a left knee contusion, but is the odd man out in the big man rotation in Philly.
Robert Covington – Big Shot Rob continues to help fantasy owners with 14 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, 3 blocks, and 2 threes. The counting stats are great, just don’t expect strong field goal percentages.
T.J. McConnell – I continue to write him off, but McConnell continues to rack up the assists. He dished out 10 to go along with 9 points on Tuesday, after dishing out 11 on Saturday. Owners in need of dimes should add McConnell.
76ers Bench – The 76ers mounted a huge comeback in the 2nd half, propelled by strong bench play from Richaun Holmes and Dario Saric. Holmes contributed 18 points and 3 rebounds, while Saric posted a 16/8/2 line. Holmes will return to the bench (or D-League) when the 76ers’ big men are healthy, but Saric can be useful, if he continues to shoot himself out of this slump.
Blake Griffin – In his first game since December 18, Griffin looked a little rusty offensively, but still contributed his usual fantasy game: 12 points, 11 rebounds, 5 assists, and 1 steal. The minutes and efficiency should improve as he rounds back into form, but he looks to be in mid-season dunking form:
DeAndre Jordan – He may have had a Shaqtin-a-Fool moment from the free throw line that made funny man Kevin Hart laugh, but Jordan was a monster on the glass, finishing with 10 points, 20 rebounds, and 3 assists.
Clippers’ Shooters – All three of the Clippers’ shooters had it going from deep. Austin Rivers knocked down 4-7 from three to finish with 20 points and 3 assists, J.J. Redick banged 5-10 for 22 points, and Jamal Crawford came off the bench to shoot a sexy 6-9 from deep for 27 points. Meanwhile, Raymond Felton was sent to the bench with Griffin back and played only 17 minutes, contributing just 2 points and 3 assists. Felton had been playing well recently, but it looks like Rivers will see the majority of starting point guard minutes with Chris Paul out.
Jimmy Butler – The steady Butler grabbed 20 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 steals.
Dwyane Wade – Wade was robbing everyone, snatching 7 steals, 21 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 assists.
Cristiano Felicio – Backup big-man Felicio notched his third double-double of the season with 12 points and 10 rebounds.
Nikola Vucevic – Vucci Mane posted 20 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals. This was Vucevic’s only 2nd 20+ game in 13 January games, as he’s seen his scoring fall from last year’s averages.
Serge Ibaka – Ibaka registered 16 points, 8 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 blocks, and 3 threes.
Elfrid Payton – Payton struggled, committing 8 turnovers and shooting 5-16 from the field, but still managed 10 points, 5 assists, and 7 rebounds. With Evan Fournier (foot) and D.J. Augustin (ankle) ailing, Payton will continue to see minutes in the upper-30s, as one of the few healthy backcourt options. Better games are ahead.
Nikola Jokic – Against the Jazz big frontcourt, Jokic posted 23 points, 11 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals, and 3 blocks. Is there anything he can’t do? He’s leading fast breaks and filling up the box scores on a nightly basis. Jokic has 8 double-doubles in the last 10 games.
Jameer Nelson – Nelson held off the Jazz, leading the Nuggets to an upset win over the Jazz with 17 points, 7 assists, and 3 threes. Emmanuel Mudiay sat for the second game in a row with a sore back.
Darrell Arthur – The oft injured big man played 22 minutes, recording a season-high 16 points, 8 rebounds, and 3 threes off the bench. A nice game for Arthur, but the frontcourt is too crowded in Denver and a trade would be needed for Arthur to provide value.
Derrick Favors – Favors matched his season-high in scoring with 18 points, 5 rebounds, and 1 steal/block each.
George Hill – Coming off of a 9-point outing against the Thunder, Hill struggled again, knocking down 6-18 FGs with 17 points, 5 assists, and 3 rebounds. It wasn’t a great shooting night for the Jazz stars, as Gordon Hayward (2-10 FG, 9 points) struggled from the field as well. Expect both guys to bounce back from shooting slumps soon.
Boris Diaw – Bobo exploded off the bench for 16 points and 3 assists, knocking down 2 threes.
