Donte DiVincenzo (pronounced correctly only if you’re from New Yawk) is quietly the best shooting steals threat in the NBA. Sure, it’s an arcane stat category that I just made up on the spot — kind of like the time I went into a haunted house and proclaimed every table cloth a murder weapon — but it’s a stat that matters for efficiency. When you’re looking for edges in your fantasy teams, an excellent shooting guard who plays [checks notes] shooting guard and also racks up the steals is the kind of B-side player that you feel sexy about while the A-team is off enjoying a masked excursion to the club.
Let’s take a quick look at DiV, who is a player that is bound to make even the most hardened coder scream in anger when I use that acronym.
Availability: Rostered in 70% of Yahoo leagues, ADP of 126 at NFBC. The significance? You can either waiver wire him right now or go trade for him.
Usage: OK, this is kind of crummy for a guy who’s supposed to be starting, but we’re in ramp-up mode. He’s got an 18% usage rate, which is right smack in the middle of the league. He’s averaging 22.5 minutes per game, which is fifth-best on the Bucks. Again, we’re looking for upside, so if he cracks the 25-minute barrier, the next pieces of info will be great news to you. If he remains at his current usage, he’s still a valuable bench/streamer.
Steals: Let’s get this out of the way first: He’s averaging 2.4 steals per 36 minutes, which is the best rate in his short career. It’s more or less tied with that wide group of players in the “top 20ish” category, which is fuzzy math but good enough when we combine it with his 2019 stats, where he was 9th in the NBA in steals per 36 minutes. In short, he’s an elite stealing threat who is only 24 and entering his first year as a “starter.”
Shooting: Here’s where we’re getting interesting. You probably read earlier in the year that FG% is one of the scarcest categories in fantasy basketball, in part weighted by the ridiculously high numbers produced by the Centers and Power Forwards who sit near the basket. Son recommends that you aim for 48% FG% as a marker to remain in the top tier of your league. Small sample size right now, but DiV is shooting .618% overall, with a ridiculous .684% from beyond the 3-point line. Last year, DiV shot .455% overall — in the top 70 in that category — with a weaker .33% from beyond the 3. Certainly, regression will come into play, but DiV is shooting his shot and making it count. He was remarkably efficient last year and has a bigger role this year. At the time of writing, DiVincenzo has the highest shooting percentage among non-centers for players in his range of steals per 36 minutes. In layman’s terms: he’s damn efficient and doesn’t need a lot of playing time to contribute to your team.
Summary: With a modicum of increased playing time, Donte DiVincenzo becomes a key player that supports you in several categories while hurting you in none. At the time of writing, his usage is somewhat low, representing an efficient floor that fantasy managers would envy for their second team. He should be either on the waiver wire right now, or acquirable in a low-stress trade. If he bombs — which can happen to any player — it cost you almost nothing.
Have an awesome week everybody, and have a stress-free and healthy New Year!
