Mmmmmm soup… I mean noodle soup! I mean soup! COME ON!
After a long existence in the kitchen cabinet, Myles Turner finally got a chance to be mmmm, mmmm good going 25/7/2/1/2 on 11-13 shooting. He even had a third block called a goaltend with a verrrrry late whistle late in the game. Just like a fine batch of cream of broccoli, it just needed some time to age! I was a well-documented Turner-crazed ranker, but I think most would agree he’s been awesome when he’s on the court. Some nagging knee soreness limited his minutes early before breaking his thumb, but we finally got to see the potential I was so crazy for last night. Now, Ian Mmmmmmahinmmmmmmi was out with a sore heel which doesn’t sound too serious, so the minutes certainly aren’t assured. Turner’s 29 minutes were off the bench, with Vogel starting the inferior SC Apple Jordan Hill at the 5. Even with the depth the Pacers have at C, I gotta think this game has awarded Turner more consistent run. And if you aren’t sold yet, his per-36s are 17.1/8.9 with 2.2 BLK shooting 55% from the field (even though he’s a jump shooter). I was fortunate enough to add him in all 4 of my RCLs, so he’s likely out there in a lot of 12ers – I’d scoop him up as I think he’s the creamed corn of the crop of waiver bigs! Here’s what else went down over the weekend in fantasy hoops action, and The 7 Ahead for week 13:
Joe Young – Pacers rookies going nuts! Too bad they still lost to the Nugs… With George Hill (personal, we dunno) and Rodney Stuckey (sore foot, will miss another week or two), Young made the most of his run for 15/1/7 on 7-11 shooting in 18 minutes. Might be worth a short-term look in the deepers.
John Wall – After a tripdub flirt on Friday (28/7/8 against IND), goes 36/7/13/7/1 Saturday against the Celtics, hitting 11-13 FT. I would say Boston got stone-Walled, but the Wiz still dropped that one! It was a pretty dramatic finish too, with Wall missing a game-winning layup as time expired. So I don’t remember who it was, but fine commenter who tried to slam us on always liking John Wall – haven’t heard from you in a while!
Otto Porter – Missed both games over the weekend with a hip injury. That soooooo sounds like something that would happen to someone named “Otto”! Kelly Oubre got two starts, and while he is meh (7/4/0/2/0 and 10/6/0/2/0 with a trey in each), for dynasty it’s amazing to see him start after he wasn’t really in the rotation to start the year and I feared some D-League stints might be in there. Buy in dynasty if you can!
Bradley Beal – Sell in dynasty if you can! Still coming off the bench as the Wiz limit the minutes on his weary legs, but looked solid for 22/5/1 Saturday night with 4 treys. It just really hurts that even Beal said he’ll need a minutes limit the rest of his career. Hurts fantasy upside and his upcoming paycheck as a FA…
Kelly Olynyk – Show me the way, Olynyk of Nazareth! Well, he showed us a nice microcosm weekend of his season, going insane Friday for 21/9/1/3/1 and 4 treys against the lowly Suns, but only 11/3/1/0/1 against the Wiz Saturday. After intriguing me with the heavy minutes earlier in the month, Stevens has treated Olynyk like Judas.
Marcus Smart – Tripdub alert! Rainbow line alert! 10/11/11/2/2 against the Suns, and still solid 13/4/3/1/0 against the Wiz. I recently took him over Patrick Beverley in a comment, so use that as you may.
Jae Crowder – A big part of the Wizards/Celtics drama Saturday night, as he claimed Randy Whitman was jawing with him and he got a technical lining up for a free throw. “Jae, you soft bro!” “It’s either jogging or yogging, it might be a soft Jae…” The Wizards coaching staff is so weird, I’ve never been a big Whitman guy and they have a pirate with a huge eye patch. Anyway, hit the game-winning FT because my boyfriend Oubre had no back side help, giving him a 22/8/6 line against the Wiz after rainbowing for 17/6/5/3/2 in under 30 minutes against the Suns. The Boston Clam Crowder is mmmmmmm, delicious!
Isaiah Thomas – After a little shooting lull as the calendar turned to 2016, IT2/3 has been on fire and his FT volume is insane, with a season’s best 15-16 last time out. Pizza Guy is dewwwwivering!
Donald Sloan – In the world’s most annoying backcourt (remember I slam the Nets SG position all the time), it looks like Sloan is officially the guy to own. I still think Shane Larkin gets more run later in the season (Nets might even move Sloan if they can get much for him), but for now Sloan’s 15/9/9 and 4/4/12 lines over the weekend look good enough to own in most leagues. He doesn’t hit a ton of 3s and barely gets any D stats, so it’ll be limited. He might be the best Jarrett Jack clone! Deeper leagues that can afford stashing – I’d hold onto Larkin for the stretch run, especially past the trade deadline to see what happens.
Nicolas Batum – Went nuts at the Pels for 25/4/8, but cooled off against the Bucks for only 6/3/9. Through his 5 games in January, he’s up to a crazy 8.2 AST per game. He’s had some lingering injuries, so I might shop him to a low-AST team if you’re looking good there.
Ryan Anderson – Speaking of shopping, this rumor to the Kings for Rudy Gay just isn’t going away. 32 Pts on 12-19 shooting with 6 treys against the Hornets certainly isn’t helping the Kings get a discount!
Joakim Noah – Noah and the Flood of Injuries! My subtitle for the 15-16 season… Dislocated his shoulder on Friday night, and will need season-ending surgery. Sigh… He was turning it around too, pre-and-post that first shoulder injury. Anyway, Taj Gibson is set to play at least 30 mins a night, and turned in 11/11/0/1/0 and 9/11/1/0/0 lines over the weekend. Some blocks should be there most nights, so he’s worth nabbing in most leagues.
Giannis Antetokounmpo – Dubdubbed in 4 straight, crazy 28/16/0/1/3 and 14/11/3/0/3 lines over the weekend, and adding some crazy FT volume lately. The 3s we saw earlier in the year have dried up, but when you’re shooting a career-best 50.2% from the field, you ain’t complainin’!
Kyle Korver – Welllll, we get a great game of 17/4/3/1/1 on Friday night with 7-10 FG and 3 treys, only to see Korver disappear yet again down the rabbit hole for 3/3/0/2/0 against the lowly Nets. If only someone knew to temper expectations on draft day! Look at all those ranks in the 40s, eesh…
Dennis Schroder – 16/5/1 against the Bucks, and just when you’re like “where’s the beef?!”, brings the dimes with a dimebag for 15/6/10/3/0 in only 19:35 against the Nets. Hey, Korver, that’s how you take advantage of a good matchup, bruh!
Hassan Whiteside – Speaking of good matchups, tripdub alert! Tripdub with dem swats! 19/17/2/1/11 against the Nugs, then 14/11/0/1/4 last night against the Thunder. If you lost blocks this week with Whiteside on your squad, you got some bad juju going agianst you!
Beno Udrih – Picked up another start with Goran Dragic missing some games with a bad calf (make some veal then!), and got a dimebag with 11 AST. Didn’t do much else, but apparently he felt as though he was carrying the team on his shoulders and sat last night with a bad neck. Tyler Johnson time! 16/6/4 against the Thunder as the starting PG with two treys. Did commit 4 TO, but he’s such a solid player… REL bias! With Gerald Green leaving early with knee tendinitis and Dwyane Wade questionable every night, run should be there for TyJo in 12er+ leagues.
Emmmmmmmmmmmmmanuel Mudiay – Looked good again off the bench Saturday going 16/1/4 and hitting all 4 of his FT, but went full Michael Carter-Williams on us last night! 10/4/6/3/1, but shot 4-10 from the field, hit only 2-8 FT (!!!!!) and committed 7 TO (!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!).
Nikola Jokic – It’s never reliable, but there’s never a doubt of upside! 18/2/3/4/0 with a trey in only 24 minutes against the Pacers, but he’s still 12er streambait for me. Gimme Mmmmmmmyles Turner instead!
Terrence Jones – Yeesh. Goes back to playing low-20 minutes with virtually no stats in two weekend games. JB Bickerstaff continues to give JBs of the world a bad name…
Patrick Beverley – Suffered a kankle and sat last night, giving Ty Lawson a chance to drive the offense. Poor phrasing, JB! 12/2/5/0/0 in 31 minutes against the Lakers though… Yawn! Just such a bad fit even when he gets the run there in Houston…
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope – Didn’t do much against the Grizz (9 Pts in 31 minutes), but bounced back in a huge way for 20/5/2/3/1 on 9-16 FG leading the Pistons against the Warriors for that surprise W. Yup, KCP led them, he’s their best player! My KCP addiction remains strong!
Marcus Morris – A few commenters asked if they should drop Morris, but I had a feeling he could bounce back. 12/4/5 and 16/8/6/0/2 lines over the weekend, as his shot started falling again. So much for the knee tendinitis too, as he played 80 minutes in those two!
Draymond Green – Mannnnn… #Occupy with a rough weekend, going 5/5/9/1/2 on 1-7 shooting in the loss to the Pistons after putting up a dud the previous game against the Lakers. Not much to worry about here, except that giving him DNP-rests should never be an option, been awful these past two after he sat out!
Stephen Curry – 38 Pts on the nose in 3 of the past 5. I just laugh when I see he’s attempting 10.7 treys a game, and is shooting over 50% from the field overall… He’s a madman.
Festus Ezeli – Dubdub (10/10) with 5 blocks against the Pistons… He certainly was awesome earlier in the year, but Andrew Bogut had foul trouble and they keep wanting to limit the Festusivities…
Nerlens Noel – Not playing particularly well with Jahlil Okafor starting again (booooo!), but flirted with a double rainbow regardless last time out! 4/8/1/4/4 in only 26 minutes against the Blazers, and he mighta had a shot to get those dimes if the Sixers didn’t blow them out. Yes. The 4-37 Sixers. Blew out a team.
Richaun Holmes – Got an extended look, and he’s pretty solid out there! REL bias! I got him as a throw in in a trade, and was shocked to see his 17/6/3/0/1 line on 5-9 FT (1-3 3PTM 6-7 FT). Really the most surprising number was the 27 minutes.
C.J. McCollum – Uh oh! Our favorite catalyst for drama (he’ll get the Oscar, that’s for sure!) has really cooled off, shooting 40% or lower in 6 straight with a heavy volume. He’s at 16.0/3.5/5.0 the last 6 which is nice and all, but under a steal per game, missing FT (63.6%, albeit in a low volume) and an awful 33.3% from the field on 19.5 shots a game. I’ve mentioned a few times that I could see his legs wearing out with these crazy minutes and not nearly this kind of run in his career before (due to a bench role and injuries). And when you see the FG% dropping and the steals falling off, it’s certainly an indicator. Might be in the seller’s market.
Russell Westbrook – Now to easier analysis – he tripdubs almost every night and is awesome, the end! Hashtag analysis!
Markieff Morris – Inserted into the starting line-up the past two games, as the Suns are desperately trying to boost his value. Was terrible against the C’s for 9/9/4/1/0 on 2-10 FG, but looked like the Kieff of old for 17/5/3/3/0 last night. Unlike Turner, I was only able to nab him in 1 of 3 RCLs (I owned him already in the 4th), but he’s still out there in 49% of Yahoo leagues, so might be available in your 12ers. I worry it’s short-term though, as the trade does seem imminent.
Marc Gasol – Mucho puntos! I think that means a lot of points, I know the B-word in Spanish is something close to that too though! 37/8/3/0/3 against the Knicks, because ya know, the world’s worst NBA player Robin Lopez was playing defense…
Rudy Gobert – Mmmmmmmm, French Onion soup! 18/18/0/0/5 against the soft interior Lakers. The Lakers are like a cream-filled donut! Or as Gobert would say, an eclair! While the matchup might make this seem fluky, I think we’re primed for a big second-half. The buy-low window might be shut, but I’d keep pressing.
Trey Lyles – Derrick Favors is questionable for tonight which would really cripple Lyles’ value, but he also kept it going against that Lakers eclair defense, going 17/9/2/0/1 Saturday night. Lyles and Myles playing some great rookie big man minutes this weekend!
Omri Casspi – Still coming off the bench (Dammit Karl!), but 17/4/0/1/0 on 6-9 FG (5-8 3PTM) is still usable. Gotta love the high FG% 3-point shooters! He’s like a mini-Kawhi! Aight, aight, that’s too far…
Cole Aldrich – I mentioned on our last Pod that I thought Aldrich was a really underrated player, and with DeAndre Jordan sitting again (pneumonia), Cole went nuts for a rainbow 19/10/2/2/3 against the Kings Saturday night. He’s definitely stashable in deeper leagues should anything more drastic happen to DJ…
The 7 Ahead
- 5-game week: n/a
- 4-game weeks: ATL, BOS, BKN, CHA, CHI, CLE, DAL, DET, HOU, LAC, NO, NY, OKC, TOR, UTA
- 2-game week: San Antonio Spurs
- Weekly League Streamers (by Y! ownership percent/games this week): Dennis Schroder (27%/4), Mario Chalmers (42%/3), Jerian Grant (4%/4), Dion Waiters (12%/4)
- Stream days: Tuesday, Thursday, Sunday
Overall Thoughts: Well, poo… Pretty vanilla week where you’re playing your regulars, except for Kawhi Leonard owners, who have to decide in weekly leagues if he’s worth a start. Virtually all other Spurs aren’t worth it. And to make matters worse, somehow the scheduling gods gave the Spurs a back-to-back as their only games this week… This is more annoying than a London game!
It’s a typical week with your standard stream days, and a heavy MWFS. However, we get early basketball this afternoon! MLK day features 6 afternoon games starting at 1:00 PM EST, so be sure to set your line-ups this morning! For weekly streamers, it’s tough to ignore what Schroder has done lately and he gets a 4-game week. I know, I know, I usually only recommend 4 or 5 game weeks for streamers, but I added Chalmers to the streaming list as we added him in the Yahoo F&F for this week and I was surprised he was out there. I’d guess Mike Conley will miss a few more. Waiters has scored 18+ Pts the past three games, and is a popular streamer of mine, and finally I’m going pretty off the radar with Grant. I mostly want to play him for the Philly matchup this afternoon and get instant gratification!
Monday: We get a strong start to week 13 with 20 teams in action to kick it off. DAL and HOU start off on the second leg of b2bs, so keep an eye on your vets there – there’s a lot of them! Only the Pelicans head into a back-to-back, so monitor your aging and brittle Pels there (cough, Brow, cough). I imagine you’re sticking with your regulars and not doing too much early streaming on Monday even if you can make daily moves on the day-of.
Tuesday: Only 4 games on Tuesday, giving us an early opportunity to stream in matchups. MIA, MIN, and OKC head into b2bs, so be sure your streaming options are in play before making your adds. IND@PHO should feature a lot of pace, but the Suns look atrocious right now – I’d look at bench options before weighing the starters. MIL@MIA is a solid matchup even with the Bucks underachieving – even if Wade is healthy enough, I wonder if he sits either this one or Wednesday with his bad shoulders. Yes, plural. Tyler Johnson could be a nice early-week stream. MIN@NO is a pretty blah matchup, but I like Gorgui Dieng if he’s out there in your league. He had been underwhelming until a nice game last night, but the Wolves will need some size. Finally we get OKC@DEN – with OKC playing a b2b, expect a lot of run from their second unit, especially if they get comfortable early. Cameron Payne had some nice lines the past week – in deeper leagues I think he’s certainly worth a look.
Wednesday: As with typical NBA weeks, we get a full Wednesday slate with ATL, CLE, DET & SAC going into b2bs. 22 teams are active with only 8 off, so you’re playing your studs here, keeping an eye on any vets from the b2b teams that could possibly be sat.
Thursday: 5 games on Thursday as we near the weekend, and it’s time to start your big-time stream moves! LAC and SA go into b2bs, with that aforementioned awful SA schedule this week. Definitely keep an eye on your Spurs vets, as they play @PHO. They can win with their B and C units, I might even go so far as saying Jonathon Simmons is worth a look. Definitely playing Mario Chalmers if you can scoop him up for a stream. In deeper leagues I also like Aron Baynes against the Pels, as the Pistons will need added height and I think can win that one easily.
Friday: Back to a fairly full Friday, with 18 teams in action. BOS, CHA, CHI, IND, LAL, MIL, NY, and UTA play early-weekend b2bs, with no teams with a Sat/Sun stack. If you’re light on weekend games in your limited moves daily-move matchups, you might look to those teams for some weekend streaming. Although 20 teams go on Saturday, so be sure any stacking adds would play on both nights. The Celtics are especially appealing with a good matchup against the Bulls then at Philly – gimme some Evan Turner for a Fri/Sat stack.
Saturday: As mentioned, 20 teams go on Saturday, so you’re pretty full on both Fri and Sat going into the weekend. No teams play on b2bs, so you’re playing your regulars and keeping an eye towards Sunday streaming.
Sunday: It all comes down to a light Sunday! With the AFC and NFC Championships dominating the sports landscape, we get only 3 games to end the week – DAL@HOU, IND@TOR and OKC@BKN. Of those teams, only Houston goes into a b2b so be sure any of your Rox playing are active. The Mavs are awful in the interior, so if Dwight Howard sits, I would love me some Clint Capela. Raymond Felton would also be an option. If looking for a big, Bismack Biyombo still has a solid role and could easily give you 10 boards and multi-blocks. Cory Joseph had an awesome game in London, so he’s also an option in the Raps game for G stats. Finally in BKN, I could easily see a blowout, so I’m going back to Cameron Payne. Love him! Steven Adams should get a lot of run to D up Rolo, so he’s certainly in that big man streaming mix as well.
I hope everyone had a strong week 12, and looking forward to this week ahead! I hope you had a good weekend and everyone is avoiding a case of the Mondays – thanks for dropping by Razzball Nation!
