I spent many years of my youth living for others (not the charitable variety). It was probably due to a lack of identity and confidence that I let societal whims dictate my course. As I got older, and hopefully wiser (I’m still a dummy in many ways), I realized that this is my life and I’m going to live it the way I want to. We are all different, with different strengths and weaknesses, desires, motivations, etc. So, I do appreciate those who are strong enough to speak their mind, do their thing, and eschew all the BS. As much as I clown on Ben Simmons, what I most respect about him is that he knows who he is as a basketball player.
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 22 | 11 | 14 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9/15 | 4/5 |
Simmons has yet to even attempt a threeecola all season. I’ve seen him practice it, and it’s probably something he will unveil at some point in his career, but for now, he’s dominating without it. Which is a freaking scary thought for the league. I’d imagine that the 58% shooting from the free throw line would drastically improve as well, once he gets that outside stroke working. Regardless, Simmons has now messed around three times this season, and he’s come close many other times. He’s a top 50 player now. Once he gets that outside stroke going, top 10 probably. No BS.
Here’s what else I saw last night:
John Collins
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 29 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0/1 | 13/19 | 3/6 |
Collins is the caterpillar version of Julius Randle, who used to be a points/boards player with some dimes sprinkled in. Now, Randle has sprouted wings and blossomed into much more, as he’s draining threeecolas and even pollinating the stat line with some D stats. The transformation process takes time.
Dewayne Dedmon
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 24 | 12 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5/5 | 8/12 | 3/4 |
The Walking Dedmon? Over the last six games, he’s averaged 29 minutes, 10.7 points, 9.3 boards, 1.8 dimes, 2.2 steals, and 0.7 blocks per game, which has translated into top 25 production. The five threeecolas on five attempts? Yo, Ben Simmons. C’mon man!
Trae Young
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 13 | 2 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1/2 | 4/10 | 4/4 |
He’s Young! There will be ups and downs, but I believe. Once he gets the efficiency up and the turnovers down, he will be a top 100 player. Currently, he’s in the…..trust me, it’s bad.
Kent Bazemore
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 20 | 3 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 3/6 | 6/13 | 5/5 |
Bazemore has started the last five games and been a top 40 player. Taurean Prince is out for another week or two, so the production could continue. After that, a new team perhaps?
Joe Harris
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 16 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3/6 | 4/7 | 5/6 |
Nothing average about this Joe, as he’s been a borderline top 100 player on the season. His main contribution is in the threeecola department, but he will contribute a handful of boards and dimes with a solid field goal percentage.
Rondae Hollis-Jefferson
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 18 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1/1 | 6/10 | 5/6 |
Just another mundane Rondae. He doesn’t play over 30 minutes and isn’t spectacular in any particular category, but he will do enough to at least make you say, meh. 10.1 points, 5.9 boards, 1.8 dimes, and 0.9 steals are what you can be not-excited about.
Rodions Kurucs
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 11 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1/5 | 4/9 | 2/2 |
The rookie got the start because Allen Crabbe missed another game and played 28 minutes. He looks good, and has probably shown enough to continue getting minutes, but will likely be relegated to a bench role when Crabbe returns.
Jarrett Allen
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 11 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 5/6 | 1/1 |
Only played 15 minutes. Allen did have some foul trouble, but Ed Davis was the chosen option once again for Atkinson. Over the last four games, Allen has received 15, 28, 16, and 26 minutes. Atkinson no longer goes to Jarrett?
Ed Davis
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 8 | 10 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0/1 | 4/7 | 0 |
Speaking of Mr. Ed, Atkinson’s new horse played 28 minutes. It looks to be a matchup thing, so have fun.
D’Angelo Russell
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 32 | 6 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5/9 | 13/19 | 1/1 |
There was a time when downloading pictures over the internet would take time to load….like one line at a time. Sometimes, the picture would be crystal clear, while other times it would appear blurry. Good times. Not. That’s the Russell experience for fantasy. He’s currently the #82 player on the season.
Jared Dudley
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 16 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3/7 | 5/9 | 3/3 |
Played 25 minutes. Shrug emoji. I’m still of the belief that Atkinson gets Jarrett and Jared confused. Or maybe he yells down the bench, “Jarrett/Jared! You’re in!” And he doesn’t bother to look if it’s the right one.
DeMarre Carroll
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 15 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2/8 | 5/13 | 3/4 |
Played 31 minutes. Rather than singing carols for the holidays, Atkinson has just decided to play Carroll. The answer to any questions is that he’s the #276 player.
Spencer Dinwiddie
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 15 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1/3 | 3/8 | 8/8 |
Played 24 minutes. The Nets won 144-127, so the full service was not needed from Dinwiddie.
Jimmy Butler
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 19 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3/4 | 6/10 | 4/5 |
Returned from a two-game absence and played 25 minutes. The Sixers defeated the Cavs, 128-105, so Butler was able to outsource much of the work yesterday.
Joel Embiid
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 24 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0/1 | 10/16 | 4/6 |
Played 29 minutes. Good thing he didn’t have to exert too much energy yesterday, as the line that wants to sex him needed tending to.
Wilson Chandler
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 11 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 2/6 | 4/10 | 1/1 |
Continues to start and played 29 minutes. Has slowly been improving since he returned back to action. Chandler is getting the minutes and contributes in threeecolas, rebounds, assists, and blocks. The field goal percentage hasn’t been good lately (sub-40%), but he’s normally in the 45-46% range. He’s a low usage player, but over the past six games, he’s been a top 150 player.
Cedi Osman
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 18 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2/4 | 6/10 | 4/7 |
Played 35 minutes. I wouldn’t give up on Osman, as the team seems committed to him and he has the ability to contribute across the board. The main issue with him has been the shooting efficiency, but he has shown that he’s capable of improvement, as evidenced by yesterday’s game. Let’s remember that he’s still only 23 years old.
Alec Burks
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1/4 | 2/10 | 0 |
Osman! Looks like the money Cedi shelled out to that witch doctor was money well spent.
Jordan Clarkson
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 18 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2/6 | 6/16 | 4/4 |
Played 28 minutes off the bench, which has been his average over the past eight games. Clarkson is instant offense off the bench and will contribute threeecolas, boards, and a couple dimes. Just don’t expect the D, which has the ladies shaking their heads.
Matthew Dellavedova
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 13 | 2 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3/4 | 5/9 | 0 |
Played 22 minutes. It was blowout run, but it’s the Cavs, so that could be a nightly occurrence. With that said, the answer still remains no.
Kyle Kuzma
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 20 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 0/4 | 9/15 | 2/2 |
Played 29 minutes and led the Lakers in scoring. It was the back end of a back-to-back for the Lakers, so not too surprising that they got spanked 110-128 in Washington. Actually, yes it was because the Wizards stink. Regardless, over the past seven games, Kuzma has been a top 20 player. He’s improved in every statistical category, even in usage rate. Now, a lot of that is due to Brandon Ingram not playing, but he had been showing the improvement prior. When Ingram returns, things should tick back down, but the question is by how much?
LeBron James
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 13 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0/2 | 5/16 | 3/6 |
Washed. Trade him away.
Lonzo Ball
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 10 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 2/7 | 4/11 | 0 |
Stat. Sheet. Stuffer. Santa should hire him.
Josh Hart
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0/5 | 2/10 | 0 |
Played 21 minutes.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 25 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4/6 | 9/12 | 3/3 |
Played 27 minutes.
Kids, you play like shit, you don’t play.
The game was such a blowout that Moritz Wagner played 17 minutes and Svi Mykhailiuk played 28 minutes. Wagner provided 12 points, 3 rebounds, and 1 assist. Svi provided 5 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, and 2 steals. I like Mo, as he’s an athletic big that can shoot from outside. I’m hoping he can make a significant contribution later this season, but he missed a ton of time due to injury and may be too raw. I’m keeping my fingers crossed, though. Svi is a deadly outside shooter. He balled out in Summer League, but got punked a bit in preseason action.
Tyson Chandler
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 2 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1/3 | 0 |
Got the start because JaVale McGee could not play due to illness. 20 minutes of run was all he could muster, as he was getting abused defending the PnR action from the Wizards.
Jeff Green
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 20 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4/6 | 8/15 | 0/1 |
Got the start and played 33 minutes. He can do this. He just doesn’t on a consistent basis.
Thomas Bryant
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 8 | 11 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4/8 | 0 |
Played 28 minutes, a season-high. He had been averaging around 20 minutes per contest, so one game does not make a trend.
John Wall
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 40 | 6 | 14 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 4/8 | 16/27 | 4/6 |
Played 42 minutes. Pay that man whatever he wants! Feels tap on shoulder and hears that he’s getting paid $37 million next year, $40 million in 2020, $43 million in 2021, and $46 million in 2022. I was just kidding! It was a figure of speech!
Bradley Beal
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 25 | 12 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 4/9 | 10/24 | 1/1 |
Pay that man whatever he wants!
Markieff Morris only played 11 minutes due to a neck injury. The injury doesn’t sound serious, as he was available to return to yesterday’s game.
Sam Dekker
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 20 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0/2 | 10/15 | 0 |
The fantasy equivalent of hell freezing over.
Noah Vonleh
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 7 | 12 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1/5 | 3/10 | 0 |
Contributes a little something something in every category. As I always say, God trusted Noah. I think you can find it in yourself to do the same.
Kevin Knox
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 15 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 3/9 | 6/15 | 0/2 |
Continues to start and played 35 minutes. Build the fort! In here lies treasure.
Enes Kanter
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 20 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1/1 | 7/11 | 5/5 |
Tied for fourth in double-dubs with 20 on the season. He literally does nothing outside of points and rebounds, yet he’s a top 75 player.
Nemanja Bjelica
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 15 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 4/7 | 5/10 | 1/2 |
Continues to start and played 35 minutes. With Marvin Bagley III out due to injury, Bjelica has been sucking up most of the power forward minutes. The potent strain of Nemanja is back on the market.
De’Aaron Fox
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 28 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0/3 | 11/19 | 6/6 |
Over the past seven games, Fox has been the #12 player. He’s been averaging 22.1 points, 1.6 threeecolas, 7.6 dimes, 2.1 steals, 0.6 blocks, and only 2.7 turnovers. He’s also been shooting 54% from the field. The efficiency will likely come in a bit, but the rest is legit. The Kings are playing at the second-fastest pace, and Fox is a big reason why.
Buddy Hield
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 28 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3/9 | 12/23 | 1/1 |
Played a team-high 39 minutes. Stephen Curry who? We must all bow down and pay our respects to Vivek.
Bogdan Bogdanovic
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 15 | 7 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2/5 | 4/11 | 5/6 |
Got the start and played 37 minutes because Iman Shumpert was out. Y’all know my love for BogBog. He’s a top 100 player right now and provides points, threeecolas, boards, dimes, and steals.
Luka Doncic
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 28 | 6 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 1/5 | 9/15 | 9/14 |
Luka is a top 100 player for fantasy. I think someone accidentally inserted an extra zero.
Jalen Brunson
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 12 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0/4 | 5/13 | 2/2 |
Got the start and played 30 minutes because both Dennis Smith Jr. and JJ Barea were out. He’s been serviceable when given a chance, but it is only a streamer when there’s an injury in the Mavs backcourt.
Justise Winslow got the start because Goran Dragic was out, but only played 11 minutes due to injuring his ankle. The severity of the injury is unknown as of this time.
Hassan Whiteside
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 17 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 8/14 | 1/3 |
Only played 23 minutes and did not get any run in the fourth quarter.
Josh Richardson
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 22 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 2/8 | 9/20 | 2/2 |
My RichardSON!!!
Kelly Olynyk
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 8 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0/5 | 2/9 | 4/4 |
Played 32 minutes off the bench.
Bam Adebayo
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 5 | 8 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 1/1 | 1/2 | 2/2 |
Played 25 minutes.
Such a headache for fantasy. All three of Whiteside, Adebayo, and Olynyk neuter each other.
Dwayne Wade
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 19 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 3/6 | 6/12 | 4/4 |
April 9, 2019
Anthony Davis
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 27 | 12 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 2/3 | 10/19 | 5/6 |
#1 player in fantasy. And it’s not really close.
Jrue Holiday
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 22 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 4/8 | 8/19 | 2/2 |
Played a team-high 41 minutes. Holiday rarely takes a day off.
E’Twaun Moore
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 11 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3/6 | 4/10 | 0 |
Returned after missing two games and played 35 minutes off the bench. Solomon Hill has been starting (last six games) at small forward so keep an eye on how that situation unfolds.
Tim Frazier
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0/1 | 0/2 | 0 |
Only played 12 minutes. No news of injury and he wasn’t in foul trouble. Shrug emoji.
Kawhi Leonard
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 29 | 14 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1/6 | 12/21 | 4/4 |
Beep. Boop. Bop. I. Am. Kawhi. I. Am. Not. A. Robot. Beep. Boop. Bop. Both Kyle Lowry and Pascal Siakam did not play, so the Raptors were short-handed. As a result, they lost 86-95 in Denver.
Delon Wright
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 15 | 8 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0/4 | 6/12 | 3/3 |
Oh, I forgot about Fred VanVleet. He didn’t play either. As a result, Wright got the start and played 38 minutes. He’s only useful if there are injuries.
Greg Monroe
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2/6 | 0/2 |
With Jonas Valanciunas out for a while, that should mean more minutes for Monroe. Well, he played 13 minutes yesterday. I’d keep an eye on how that situation unfolds.
Mason Plumlee
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 10 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4/8 | 2/2 |
Continues to start for the injured Paul Millsap and played 27 minutes. In the three games since Millsap’s been out, Plumlee has been a top 125 player. He’s averaged 27.2 minutes, 9.3 points, 7 boards, 1 steal, and 1.7 blocks. Answer is yes.
Torrey Craig
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 13 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3/8 | 5/14 | 0 |
Craig has started the last six games. Earlier in the season, he rarely attempted more than five shots in a game. Over the last four games, he’s attempted 14, 7, 9, and 11. He doesn’t contribute much outside of threeecolas, but he is playing 27 minutes per game and accidentally runs into some peripheral stats.
Nikola Jokic
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 26 | 9 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0/1 | 11/19 | 4/5 |
It’s a Jokic when he doesn’t mess around.
Trey Lyles
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 4 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0/3 | 1/6 | 2/2 |
Only played 13 minutes. I thought it would be Lyles who would replace Millsap, but I was wrong. Shocker. Plumlee it is.
