Ah, eight o’clock on a Thursday night. Prime games on, let’s just dive in and see what happened.
Houston Rockets: Steven Adams is out for a while after his ankle rolled in a decidedly unnatural fashion. I thought Clint Capela would get more run. Like I don’t get why he doesn’t. He’s measuring out great in rebounds and defense, and in theory would be able to boost your FG%. I guess he needs to be above the 30th percentile in shooting at the rim as a center? Well, keep an eye on Capela. Tari Eason is now back again and immediately played over 20 minutes. He’ll help in stocks and has the green light from three. If you can, get Eason. Capela is just a watchlist guy.
Dallas Mavericks: I watched the entire Mavs-Warriors game Thursday night on Prime (no, they don’t sponsor me), and the one guy that stood out was Max Christie. 21 points with 5 threes, 4 boards, and a steal. Advanced metrics love the guy, and the eye test matches up. You know who he reminds me of? There was a Sacramento King in the early 2000s, went by the name of Doug Christie. Hit some threes, some defense, and watching him you just knew he understood the game.
I’m sorry, that was an awful attempt at humor. Yes, Max is Doug’s kid. He doesn’t have the playmaking chops, but shooting and general offensive play, he fits perfectly with Cooper Flagg, and that’s all that matters. Strong buy in all leagues.
Chicago Bulls: Josh Giddey and his extreme amount of hair product came back from injury. No, it wasn’t eye irritation from hairspray dripping in them when he sweats. Also not an elbow injury from the insane amount of time he pulls he hair back behind his ears. Josh, seriously, isn’t it time for a headband?
Here’s how I see the Bulls’ minutes shake out:
- Giddey: 32
- Coby White: 28
- Tre Jones: 28
- Ayo Dosunmu: 24
- Kevin Huerter: Dumpsville, population YOU!
Tre Jones is just too valuable to the Bulls annual play-in tournament push to sit. He’ll continue his averages of around 10/4/7 with maybe a three, but 1-2 steals and very low turnovers. Don’t drop him.
Then, and I’ll write more on this next week, the trade deadline is coming. Coby White is playing well (22-4-4), but he’s a free agent. He could be moved at the deadline, which would hurt his value. The Bulls fast pace suits number accumulation well. If he’s moved, Ayo Dosunmu (who also is in myriad trade rumors) will get more minutes and production.
Kevin Huerter, also on an expiring deal, played 7 minutes and can safely be forgotten about.
Golden State Warriors: Jonathan Kuminga was just playing well and went out with a knee/ankle combo injury. He looked to be a big winner after the Jimmy Butler injury, but for now we’ll just have to enjoy De’Anthony Melton’s frenzied 24 minutes per game (22-3-2 with 3 stocks). He’s looking like the big winner with more usage. Moses Moody last night just played as a spot up shooter; I’m ignoring him for now.
Oh, dear, I stopped ignoring him for a while and noticed 3 treys, 2 steals and a block in 23 minutes. That will play in a 12-14 team league. I must have missed all that! If you want him, go ahead. I’m still skeptical.
That’s all I noticed on the couch last night! Thanks for reading, and hit me with questions below!
