With one of the deepest and busiest schedules, Wednesdays in the NBA bring action, drama and monster fantasy box scores. Last night was par for the course – or should I say, par for the court? – as superstars Jayson Tatum, Trae Young, Kevin Durant and a number of others went HAM on a jaw-dropping night of basketball that had as many twists and turns as a gymnast driving a racecar in an episode of Black Mirror.
Not to mention – as always in the NBA these days – injuries, illnesses, rest and load management. I can’t wait to crack this slate open. Let’s dive right in.
Pass the menu: No “Tater” Tots for the Heat
With Pat Riley, Erik Spoelstra and Jimmy Butler as three of the cornerstones of their organization, in recent years the Miami Heat have prided themselves on top-tier defense. However, now sitting at 10-12 – outside of an Eastern Conference playoff spot while teams like the Pacers and Wizards are in there – things have been drastically different for the Heat this season. Wednesday was no exception, as megastar Jayson Tatum tore them to pieces on his way to 49 points and 11 rebounds in a convincing 134-121 Boston victory.
This was more of the same from Tatum – one of the best in the fantasy biz – but the real surprise was veteran Malcolm Brogdon who dropped 21 points and six rebounds in just 26 minutes of action. Brogdon has been a solid team player for the Celtics in a pure basketball sense, but his fantasy production has been inconsistent at best. Last night marked an interesting performance to take note of because per-minute stud Payton Pritchard was a DNP – Coach’s Decision. If Pritchard continues to get benched, this allows Brogdon to completely dominate Boston’s bench mob usage. It’s all about minutes, touches, usage and playing time in fantasy basketball.
More food? That “Trae” is Full of Magical Treats
The Orlando Magic have some nice young talent – Paolo Banchero, Franz Wagner and Bol Bol, just to name a few – but “young” is really the key word in this sentence. With youth comes a lack of on-court communication, particularly on the defensive side of the ball. So to me, it was no surprise when superstar Trae Young dictated the entire pace of the game, dropping 30 points and 14 assists on Orlando’s disheveled, disoriented D. This was a classic tempo control game from Trae, one in which he helped teammates Dejounte Murray and Clint Capela crack the 20-point mark as well.
The real fantasy takeaways, though? The per-minute production continues from Atlanta’s bouncy bench players. Jarrett Culver (nine points and 12 rebounds), AJ Griffin (15 points) and Onyeka Okongwu (12 and eight) shined off the pine, and this is exactly what the Hawks will need if they want to make a deeper run in the postseason this year. From a fantasy perspective, Okongwu is always the one to watch. If “load management” comes into play for the veteran Capela, Okongwu makes for a solid DFS play, as well as season-long in the deeper end of the pool.
No Washington Wizardry versus “KD”
After an absolutely dreadful start to the season – one mired by poor play and excruciating media headlines involving both Kyrie Irving and Ben Simmons – my very own Brooklyn Nets are really starting to turn things around. Now at 12-11 after tonight’s 113-107 victory over the Wizards, newly-installed head coach Jacque Vaughn appears to have really settled things down for these enigmatic Nets. Once again it was the future Hall of Famer Kevin Durant running the show with 39 points, five rebounds and five assists against the leaky Washington D.
The fantasy surprise is the slow-but-sure uptick in Kyrie Irving‘s unselfishness. Mr. World Is Flat can sometimes have games where he scores 25-plus points without a single assist. He gets into me mode – or really, does he ever get out of that mode? – and forgets that in the long run, the Nets won’t get anywhere with two aging vets standing around playing simple, easy-to-gameplan one-on-one ball. That said, five assists are a welcome sight on a night when Kyrie drops 27 points. This can actually continue – at least in the short term – as Simmons is currently sidelined with a frustrating left calf strain. You may not be able to teach an old dog new tricks, but you may be able to teach Kyrie Irving to pass the basketball once in a damn while.
It’s only fitting for a “Zion”ist to teach Kyrie a lesson
Explosive, electric Zion Williamson is still just 22 years old. And yet? He plays the game of basketball with a better all-around understanding than the aforementioned Kyrie, who is 30. Zion did it again last night – filling up the box score with 33 points, 10 rebounds, five assists, four steals and two blocks against one of the best team defenses in the NBA, Nick Nurse’s tenacious Toronto Raptors. Despite playing out of both the power forward and center spots, Zion has always been a willing and skillful passer and chemistry facilitator. Even more important than that, he finds disruptive ways to impact the defensive side of the ball, something many young players conveniently forget to do (or maybe don’t have the pure talent to do?). When healthy, Zion is as well-rounded as players can possibly get in our fantasy sphere.
But the say whaaaaat? situation came from nineteen year old Dyson Daniels. With quiet superstar Brandon Ingram out of action, babyface Daniels dominated bench play with 14 points, nine assists and eight rebounds. Believe it or not, this type of production can persist from Daniels in the absence of Ingram. Unfortunately for Daniels holders in deep leagues, I don’t think Ingram’s toe injury is going to keep him out much longer. That makes Daniels an injury-dependent DFS play on a night-to-night basis.
Seriously, these injuries and illnesses are getting SO annoying
I’ve loved basketball my entire life, but the NBA has become tough to support when hardworking people pay $500 for tickets, then their favorite players don’t even suit up because of made-up injuries. Something has to change in the long run, and I’m fairly certain commissioner Adam Silver is aware of that. In the meantime, here’s my fantasy rundown of last night’s injury nonsense:
De’Andre Hunter, Hawks: Left the game very early with a thigh injury and did not return. I expect Atlanta to give him a few days off to rest and recover because nagging physical issues have been adding up for him of late.
Jalen Brunson, Knicks: Left the game early with an ankle injury, but returned to drop 17 points, five rebounds and five assists on the seemingly unbeatable Milwaukee Bucks. The little lefty Brunson is truly a bulldog.
John Collins, Hawks: Had to be helped to the locker room with an ankle injury toward the end of the first half and did not return. This one didn’t look good. Again, keep an eye on Okongwu as I mentioned earlier.
Tobias Harris, 76ers: Left the game with an illness and did not return. Didn’t appear to be anything particularly serious to me. I’m sure we’ll see him back out there within the next couple games.
EJECTIONS: Fred VanVleet, Dillon Brooks and Ja Morant. I guess the refs had it out for impact players around the NBA last night? It was an absolutely wild night in basketball, and I hope to see you right back here next week.
John Frascella is a published sports author who has been covering the NBA for 18 years. Follow him on Twitter @LegendSports7 and @FantasyBBLegend for all things fantasy sports.
