When I play franchise mode in any video game, I try and make it as realistic as possible. I’ll play games out, accept the draft order, not cheese, eat losses when they come, make trades that make sense, and all in all be a good citizen. Injuries? They have to on for sure. But, but, but….I have a confession to make. I have restarted more than one franchise when stupid injuries occurred early on that didn’t make sense. That was my rationale. I feel dirty now. That said, injuries are a part of the game and they make me sad. Yesterday, it was announced that Spencer Dinwiddie was diagnosed with a partially torn right ACL and would require surgery, ending his season. The usage was way down from past seasons due to the additions of Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant, so he wasn’t a fantasy stalwart by any means, but his injury has ramifications. Mainly, who takes his spot in the starting lineup? My initial thought is that Caris Levert stays with the second unit, which is his ideal spot. The likely scenario is that we start chasing waterfalls again with Timothe Luwawu-Cabbarot. Or Landry Shamet is inserted to provide shooting. Last night’s game wasn’t a good indication because both Irving and Durant were out. Let’s see how the lineup looks when everyone plays.
Am I sad? Ja. Why? Because Ja Morant suffered a severe ankle injury. He had to be taken off in a wheelchair, but thankfully, X-rays showed no fracture. The results of the MRI should be available on Tuesday. Whew. That said, Morant is likely to miss some time which turns my smile upside down. Tyus Jones will step in and start at point guard.
Enough sad talk. Let’s get to what else I saw last night:
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| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 4 | 9 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 2/2 | 0 |
In 30 minutes! Now, the game went to overtime, so don’t go hip-hopping around that this is the N. W. O. That said, it says something that he played that much when his BFFs didn’t even suit up. Hmmmmm. Anyways, boards and blocks are what this DJ spins on a nightly basis. Another numerology alert: 4 points, 4 blocks, 4 turnovers, and 4 personal fouls.
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 28 | 4 | 11 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 2/9 | 12/29 | 2/2 |
Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant both didn’t play due to “injury recovery.” Irving had a 28.1 usage rate on the season while Durant was at 28.4. The Third Musketeer LeVert had a usage rate of 31.9 in three prior games, then grabbed a 36.2 percent share last night. Dayam. The only thing that would be a detriment is if he starts alongside Kyrie and Durant in the starting lineup, but I don’t think that happens. The Nets are too good with LeVert leading the second unit.
Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 21 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 3/10 | 7/17 | 4/4 |
Got the start and played 40 minutes. Don’t go chasing waterfalls my ass! When TLC starts, I’ve diving headfirst into the rapids. That said, he’s a career 40% shooter from the field and doesn’t provide much in the defensive cats. He can shoot the tres, though, so maybe he can space the floor for Kyrie and Durant, but there’s a reason why he’s only started 35 of 221 games he’s played.
Chris Chiozza
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 14 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3/8 | 5/14 | 1/2 |
Played 27 minutes off the bench. Only viable when Kyrie sits, but that could happen often this season, so keep Chiozza on the speed dial. Points, tres, and dimes are what he provides.
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 28 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4/8 | 9/17 | 6/8 |
Mr. Anderson is the Matrix now. Remember when Neo first gains awareness and everything slows down for him? That’s why he’s nicknamed Slow-Mo. Shut up, I don’t want to hear it. So far in three games, Mr. Anderson is a top 55 player, providing points, tres, boards, and excellent percentages. The worry has been that his minutes could dissipate when Jaren Jackson Jr. and Justise Winslow return to the fold. Just ride the wave and deal with that when it comes because it’s within the range of outcomes that he continues to ball the F out. Remember, he is the Matrix now.
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 14 | 14 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0/1 | 6/11 | 2/2 |
Three games down. Three dub-dubs. Last season, JV was 10th with 39 dub-dubs. He damn well earns that varsity letter every season.
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 24 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 2/4 | 9/19 | 4/4 |
When you frolic down by the Brooks, sometimes the salmon jump into the bucket allowing you to gorge to your heart’s content. While other times you have to find cover amongst the trees from the bricks raining down from the sky. Brooks hucks and chucks and blows your field goal percentage down, but he plays a ton of minutes and will provide points, tres, steals, and a smattering of boards and dimes. The usage rate is a healthy 28.1 with Morant on the floor. That number could tick up to 30 without.
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 16 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1/1 | 6/11 | 3/7 |
Played 29 minutes off the bench. He’s shooting 37% from the free-throw line and 46% from the field. Gross. Last season, those numbers were 75% and 62% respectively. He’s going to be better and should deliver top 100-ish value.
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 9 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0/2 | 4/12 | 1/1 |
Replaced Ja and played 35 minutes. He won’t score many points, but can provide tres, dimes, and steals.
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 12 | 10 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 6/8 | 0 |
Viva la France!
Gobert is right on track posting top 25 production for fantasy. The uptick in dimes is a pleasant surprise. That’d be a nice little surprise to go along with the elite boards, blocks, and field goal percentage.
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 26 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 5/7 | 9/11 | 3/4 |
Oh, Lordy. I almost fainted when I saw this line. 911 indeed. Dort is a top 25 player!!! Ha! Stop the season. Alright, it’s been two games so let’s calm down. He’s not going to shoot 60% from the field but it’s encouraging that he’s hoisting up 11.5 shots per game. He’s confident and will continue getting plenty of opportunities. So, tres and steals are his main contributions but Dort does have access to ceiling as evidenced by last night’s game.
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 23 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1/7 | 9/21 | 4/4 |
Shai…..you are so freaking Gilgeous-Alexander. Mwah. Mwah. Mwwwwwwwwwwwwaaaaaaaah. Through two games, SGA is garnering a 33.6 usage rate and dishing out eight dimes while scoring 23.5 points per game. Chef’s kiss. Now, the shooting efficiency has been bad at 41%. That’s something we expected coming into the season, but 41% is too low. 44 to 45% seems more likely.
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 23 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4/5 | 9/20 | 1/2 |
A Jew, Muslim, and Buddhist were drinking and watching a basketball game at the bar. At the conclusion, they walked around the neighborhood looking for a church. Upon finding one, they opened the door and walked toward the priest. “We wish to convert to Christianity,” they said in unison. The priest responded by saying, “Why do you all have erections?” This is the power of Christian Wood. He can bring world peace and unite all religions under one tent.
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 34 | 6 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 5/9 | 10/16 | 9/9 |
Meh. It’s refreshing when Harden stoops to greatness from time to time, instead of the lofty air of amazing. This line is something most players don’t achieve in their lifetime. A subpar performance by Harden’s standards. O. M. G. It just hit me. Now I understand why the synergy between Harden and Wood is so strong. Wood gets Harden excited. Mind. Blown.
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 27 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3/8 | 9/20 | 6/6 |
Both Derrick Rose and Blake Griffin did not play in this one, so Grant played 37 minutes and garnered a 26.1 usage share. On the season, he’s averaged a 19.8 share. I thought he’d be worse but he’s been decent, providing points, tres, boards, and blocks. The steals haven’t been there but they will be. The turnovers have been super low while the shooting percentages have been good.
Josh Jackson
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 27 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3/7 | 11/19 | 2/4 |
Got the start and played 28 minutes. He led the Pistons with a 32.3 usage rate! Jackson ain’t going out like no chump. I respect it. When Rose and Griffin are playing, Jackson will obviously go back to the bench, but Casey seems to be smitten with him and will give him run each game.
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 18 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 1/2 | 5/9 | 7/8 |
Played 22 minutes off the bench. Wright never has a high usage rate and won’t jack up shots, so the points will rarely be voluminous, but he provides tres, boards, dimes, and defensive stats.
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 15 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1/1 | 4/7 | 6/6 |
Only played 26 minutes due to foul trouble.
Danilo Gallinari did not play due to a foot injury. Cam Reddish got the start in his place.
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 11 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2/5 | 4/10 | 1/2 |
The field goal percentage is always a concern for Reddish. He’s a career 40-ish percent shooter, so at least he’s consistent. There’s value in knowing exactly what to expect. That said, Reddish provides tres, boards, and steals. I can’t find the video but I’ll never forget a video of kids on the AAU circuit and they all were like Cam Reddish is the most unguardable player any of them have ever gone up against. I guess you could find video of that for most players but whatever.
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 29 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2/6 | 6/13 | 15/15 |
Just another Trae day. Through three games, Trae is the number eight player on a per-game basis. He has not racked up a steal or block. Crazy.
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 7 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3/5 | 1/2 |
Made his season debut and played 20 minutes. That may be the N.W.O. for a while.
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 17 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 5/7 | 6/10 | 0 |
Played 30 minutes despite coming off the bench. That’s going to be his role and it’s ok. If he gets unleashed to the starting unit then I’m going to have to sing Who Let the Bog Out? every day. And my family will not appreciate that. So far, Bog is averaging 29.2 minutes, 13 points, 3 tres, 7 boards, and 3 dimes. The defensive stats aren’t there but they will be. The shooting efficiency is a bugaboo, as he’s shooting 40% from the field and will likely settle in the 43 to 43% range.
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 20 | 3 | 11 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3/11 | 7/22 | 3/3 |
McCollum has played 483 games in his career. He has now dished out at least 10 dimes in six of them. Sharing is caring!
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 28 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 7/11 | 10/14 | 1/2 |
With Carmelo Anthony in COVID-19 protocols, there was uncertainty as to who would fill in off the bench. I was thinking it could maybe be Harry Giles III. Well, I’m a stupid, stupid man as it was Trent Jr. who went HAM against the Lakers. 28 points in 24 minutes of action is pretty, pretty good.
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 31 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 5/10 | 10/16 | 6/6 |
It’s usually Dame Time, right? Well, so far in three games, it’s all about CJ, as he’s the number two player for fantasy while Dame is outside the top 60. This dynamic will be flipped in a few months, but it’s cute when everyone is on the edge of their seats right now.
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 13 | 10 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 6/14 | 1/2 |
Played 38 minutes but was off from the start. The sky is falling! Aliens have landed on our planet! The polar ice caps are going to produce a tsunami of epic proportions! Calm down, people. All of those things have a better chance of happening than Davis finishing outside the top 25 on a per-game basis. Did I just jinx it into happening? Father, forgive me for I have sinned. Over the past seven seasons, AD has finished as the 2, 2, 1, 2, 5, 1, and 2 player on a per-game basis.
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 29 | 9 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 3/7 | 11/20 | 4/5 |
Simply unbelievable. Future generations will look upon LeBron how we view the Greek Gods.
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 24 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1/2 | 8/16 | 7/7 |
Dennis has been a menace to opposing teams all season, knocking down the open shot, breaking defenses down off the dribble, and facilitating. For fantasy, though, the points, boards, and dimes have been nice, but the lack of defensive stats really stunt his value. The 25.3 usage rate is nice to see.
