So THAT’S why Paolo Banchero stopped driving the other night and chucked up three pointers! If you missed it, Paolo Banchero, future first round fantasy pick and guy who hit a 50 burger earlier, will be evaluated in 4-6 weeks for a torn oblique muscle. Talk about a season going sideways, right? If you own Banchero, you’re basically just out his stats. Sorry. I can’t make a good player out of thin air for fantasy. There just isn’t a backup who can be plugged in to solve that 25/9/6 hole in your lineup. Franz Wagner, who had some weird discomfort, injury, or illness of his own, is more important, but he’ll just be less efficient with more touches. Sorry Magic. Go to Disney for a month and check in then.
Knicks: Miles McBride has been mentioned, and his minutes are consistently in the mid 20s. He’s a low end hold with upside for when OG Anunoby misses his 25 games or so at some point. Nothing else really new here, but if you picked up McBride, you should be filled with some pride inside.
Wizards: Bad team rotation alert! They’re playing 8 guys over 20 minutes. Bilal Coulibaly is safe as he’s the high minute man with 35. Fire when ready with that guy. Be on the watch as the season continues, there’s going to be a lot of updates of guys sitting games with “sore back” or “knee pain” or “bro needs a nap.” They’re all in on Capture the Flagg. So when a big guy sits, stream Marvin Bagley. Alexandre Sarr is at 24 minutes and that feels right for now, but sit on him and the minutes will rise. Unless you’re like really heavy, then sitting on him might give him a random injury that makes him sit for a week.
Raptors: Another team with a major injury, this time for Scottie Barnes to his face. With them at 1-5, there’s no need to rush him or Immanuel Quickley back. Davion Mitchell has averaged 27 minutes and is a low end assist option. His steals could tick up too. Grady Dick looks safe as a 31 minute per game starter, and Ochai Agbai is getting a few weeks of consistent run while guys heal up. Dick is a surefire starter right now, and Agbai just an intriguing guy to watch.
Sixers: What a mess. Paul George and Jo’el Embiid have yet to suit up, and have yet to give out an update of when they are suiting up, and they could suit up at any moment, which means this entire blurb thing here could be updated as soon as it’s published. Of the guys who are earning minutes in their stead, Caleb Martin is the most likely keep playing as much for the season. He’s the hold if you’re looking for a season long solution. Kelly Oubre is more of the temporary guy you are going to move on from when they come back. Andre Drummond is at 28 minutes, the exact amount of minutes he can play before his coach has a breakdown on the sidelines. He’s another steady producer; he’s capable of boards at least even in 20 minutes per game.
Bucks: A rough watch this season for sure. Gary Trent, Jr. is at 30 minutes, but if his shooting (like his one bankable skill) doesn’t improve this will drop. For who, I don’t know. The Bucks don’t really have a lot of good players. I guess Delon Wright would pick up those minutes, but at that point who cares? Trent is probably safe just due to the lack of options on the roster. I won’t even mention any other names, not worth the virtual ink.
Suns: Some mild surprises here. Tyus Jones is validating my playing time hype with 32 minutes per game and is a solid hold for the rest of the year. He’s not scoring, but the Suns team isn’t exactly filled with ironmen. Then the shots and scoring will tick up. The centers, Joseph Nurkic and Mason Plumlee, are at 20 minutes or so per game. Nurkic is more productive, but neither are high end options at this amount of playing time. Royce O’Neale is outpacing their minutes with 26 and producing and that will continue. Grayson Allen is battling some sort of injury and is at 17, and can be dropped. Ryan Dunn is a fun rookie at 18 minutes. I would prefer Allen, but Dunn could still produce in a limited role for deep leagues.
The Suns are always an injury away from opening up a lot of value for a bench player. Keep an eye on this, it’s sure to change and change quickly.
Kings: Keegan Murray looks locked and loaded with 37 minutes and isn’t being hurt by DeMar DeRozan coming in. The battle to watch is Malik Monk vs. Kevin Huerter. They’re right at the same amount of minutes. Oh dear, a dreaded timeshare! And worse, it’ll be a game flow situation on a nightly basis. I would prefer Monk of the two, but I’d really rather just hold on to Gary Trent instead of these guys.
Pelicans: What an injury filled mess. Jordan Hawkins is at 31 minutes, which nobody predicted, but it’s going to last for a while. Jose Alvarado is another short term starter and both of these guys are locked in this role for a bit as both of the starting guards are injured. They actually, unlike every other situation here, are good pickups and replacements. Daniel Theis starts but like plays five minutes and goes away. Yves Missi is still my huckleberry for big man minutes. He’s at 20 right now and that’ll rise.
Jazz: In a shocking turn of events, there are more injuries to write about. Lauri Markkanen went down with back spasms, which is a great low key tanking move to lose to the Spurs. Kyle Filipowski is getting mid 20s minutes for now and is worth a flier. His elderly girlfriend would much appreciate that! Walker Kessler is getting more minutes than last year as well (28 in a blowout on Thursday night). Maybe, just maybe, John Collins will be dusted off and rolled out with the rest of the guys and have some fun.
