One theme this season is the amount of teams with 10 man or deeper rotations. Pace in the league is up. 3 pointers are flying. And all that running and shooting makes people more and more tired and also more and more injury prone. So there’s an inordinate amount in the early going of rotations with guys playing 10-14 minutes. Why 14? I hit the wrong button and don’t want to go and fix it. Just an observation. Maybe they’ll stay healthier (yes, talking to you Ja Morant). So what’s going on around the league?
Hawks: Really not that much and if it weren’t in alphabetical order this would be a stupid team to lead with. Everywhere you read about fantasy hoops you can find things about Clint Capela vs. Onyeka Okongwu. Ironically, they’re on the same team, so it’s not a contest silly. Okongwu has higher theoretical potential, but Capela helps them win too. It’s a good real life problem for the Hawks and one that hopefully avoided by owners. They’re just going to keep lower end value, no breakouts here.
Hornets: Couple interesting notes here. Brandon Miller pulled his butt, so he’s out for the short term. Tre Mann and Seth Curry have divvied up the minutes and each had 28 in the games he missed. Mann has more upside for the rest of the season, but be prepared for some shooting issues. Curry is one of my favorite players and I’m rooting for him but can’t recommend him long term. Mann is the play here. The other interesting note, if you think this is interesting for some reason, Mark Williams is injured. Please, please sit down. I’m as shocked as you are! Nic Richards is the starter, but the Hornets are going small in his absence. Grand Williams and Cody Martin are on the court for 24 minutes each and will continue that until Mark Williams exits his hyperbaric chamber and tears off his bubble wrap (I love Williams, I’m not mad just disappointed)
Bulls: Ten man rotation here, but only six guys really get minutes. Lonzo Ball is a story. He’s at this point on a 16 minute limit and will miss games. He does look great when he plays and had 6 points and assists vs. Memphis on Monday. If he is healthy and the minutes get over 20, you have my permission to get excited here. It’ll be after Christmas before it happens, so keep that in mind, and he’s never been an ironman. Jalen Smith is the lone big man reserve and his activity is notable, and if he gets more than 14 minutes that’s a good thing. Josh Giddey’s last 4 games: 27, 26, 24, 27 minutes. His defense is keeping him off the court for long stretches. His shooting has been ugly. The rebounds and assists are there, though. Just keep an eye on the minutes, he’ll give you what you drafted him for.
Dallas: Another center timeshare! This time, it’s Daniel Gafford (boo!) and Dereck Lively (yay!). Lively is shooting over 70% on the season and is slightly leading in minutes despite not starting. He also is closing the games if they’re close, so he’s the preferred target. Think Tyson Chandler with better ball skills. Kyrie Irving is still playing, but it’s always smart to pay for Kyrie insurance, right? Spencer Dinwiddie and Jaden Hardy are battling for top guard off the bench, with neither really taking hold of it. Just watch and see, there’s better options floating around out there. If someone emerges, then pounce.
Warriors: Steph Curry is out at least until Friday, so action should be taken here. They hadn’t played a game as of this writing, so it’s a prediction. Keep receipts, go ahead. De’Anthony Melton is my prediction to pick up more minutes and produce, but don’t look for anyone to get a bunch more minutes. Steve Kerr has stated his desire for a 12 man rotation; Moses Moody, Jon Kuminga, and Trace Jackson-Davis all are around 20 minutes as well. It’s a timeshare folks. Even Draymond Green is averaging 20 minutes (4-4-3 slash line). Fun to watch; not fun to predict.
Clippers: Hot prediction time! Kris Dunn is going to move into the starting lineup at the expense of Terance Mann. He’s a perfect foil to James Harden. Mann is averaging 3 points on 33% shooting in 22 minutes. I’m going to go on another limb here; those aren’t good numbers. I’d pick up Dunn if you need steals, a smattering of rebounds, and some assists. His last game: 28 minutes, 6 points, 9 boards, 4 assists, 4 steals. Like, if you need a stat filler, or if you’re in a big man build, he’s the perfect guy for a punt 3s.
Grizz: Ja Morant is at it again. No, not that. Well he might be, but maybe he’s smart enough to not post himself with things that the league doesn’t like on social media. No, what we’re talking about is that he missed Monday’s game. Soreness. In other words, teams aren’t taking the Bulls seriously, so they rest. Similar to the Wizards, huh. Scotty Pippen, Jr., who is somehow a Jr. even though he spells his name different than his dad, picked up 31 minutes with 14 points and 10 assists. Kid can play, and is worth handcuffing to the ever-injured Ja. Jay Huff is outplaying Zach Edey, and averaging 18 minutes per game. With his contract just being converted to the standard NBA one, he’s worth a watch list at least.
Miami: So, I was all set to talk about Nikola Jovic being the fifth starter, then he went and got 13 minutes on Monday. Jaime Jaquez and him are competing for minutes and at the moment cancelling each other out. Bam Adebayo was only averaging 31 minutes, but that’s skewed to one outlier game when he got over his missing A’Ja Wilson. He’s fine.
There we go, that’s almost 1000 words. I’ll hit the second half of the league next week, okay? What do you expect from me? Hopefully this helps you out starting off the season.
