What kind of person are you? Would you want an investment that went up or down 25% on any given day or one that increased 3% all the time? If you lit a fire to keep warm while stranded in the mountains, would you want the flame to burst up four feet in the air, providing tremendous warmth for 15 minutes but then it shut off for five minutes? Or a steady flame that didn’t keep you quite as warm but stayed on all the time? The upside is always alluring but sometimes slow and steady wins the race, and no player exemplifies that more than Jalen Brunson. He’s been in the top 70 to 90 range for the entire season. Last night was just another one of his solid, yet unspectacular performances:
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 22 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 4/6 | 9/15 | 0 |
Brunson is obviously overshadowed by Luka Doncic but he still garners a 22.4% usage rate playing along side Doncic. He’s averaging 32.2 minutes, 16.1 points, 1.2 tres, 3.7 boards, 5.3 dimes, and 0.9 steals while shooting 50% from the field and 81% from the line. He’s also turning the ball over only 1.7 times per game. The lede is often left for the spectacular but Son is a man of the common man.
Here’s what else I saw last night:
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Andrew Wiggins
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 12 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2/6 | 5/13 | 0 |
I think I’ve written up Wiggins once this season…and that was to say that he kind of sucks, both in real life and fantasy. I still remember the Maple Jordan talk. As Aunt Jemima is fake maple syrup, Wiggins is fake Maple Jordan. It’s a shame because he has all the physical tools to dominate. A microcosm of his career is the free-throw shooting. He’s never shot better than 71% from the line in a season. He’s at 64% this season. Free-throw shooting is all about concentration and reps.
Stephen Curry
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 34 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 5/16 | 10/24 | 9/9 |
Nothing fake about this Curry as it’s usually spicy, and then some. It’s laughable that his attempts from downtown are more than most player’s field goal attempts. He’s averaging 12.14 tres per game. Fred VanVleet is the only other player to average more than 10.
Karl-Anthony Towns
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 39 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3/6 | 14/22 | 8/11 |
Meow. There’s Mr. Robinson’s neighborhood. The Taj Mahal. Let’s that forget about the Towns with KAT! Top 10 player for fantasy on the season and he’s almost the perfect fantasy player.
The Timberwolves have won their last six games at home against the Warriors. Who would’ve thunk it?
Ivica Zubac
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 22 | 12 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 8/12 | 6/7 |
Chris Paul has his State Farm commercials. It’s now time for Death Row to sign Zubac and have him release an album because he’s been on fi ya!! Over the last four games, he’s been a top 60 player, averaging 13.8 points, 11 boards, 0.8 steals, and 1.8 blocks in only 24.8 minutes. He’s shot 64% from the field and 73% from the line. Now, three of those games were against the Rockets, who have boosted the FPPM to centers by 8.57% on the season. Ok, Dre. Maybe he doesn’t have staying power but we can release one single and Milli Vanilli it!
Christian Wood
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 17 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2/4 | 7/11 | 1/2 |
It’s as if Christian has entered a life of celibacy because this Wood has been limp! Over the last four games, he’s been outside the top 300! On the season, he’s shooting less than 50% for the first time in his career, the blocks are under 1 per game, and he’s converting only 59% of his free-throw attempts.
James Johnson
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 19 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3/5 | 7/11 | 2/3 |
Johnson led the Nets in scoring. Yeah, that’s not a good thing, although they only lost by one to the Raptors, 108-109. Unlike Wood above, this Johnson has elevated his game. Now, he’s still been outside the top 100 and won’t provide much in the points department on the regular, but he’s been playing over 28 minutes and contributing tres, some boards, dimes, and blocks. The free-throw shooting has been excellent but he’s posting a 53% mark on the season. Kevin Durant should be back soon so this Johnson will likely go limp as well.
LaMarcus Aldridge
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 16 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1/2 | 6/12 | 3/3 |
LMA got the start and played 30 minutes, the first time since back in January. Andre Drummond didn’t play so he will go back to playing around 20 minute when Dre returns. LMA can still provide the O when given the opportunity.
Scottie Barnes
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 18 | 10 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0/1 | 8/13 | 2/2 |
Another great game for Barnes, as he went for 28 points, 16 boards, 4 dimes, 1 block, and 5 steals against the Nets on Monday. He’s been a top 15 player over the last five games. We knew he would provide the D but it’s been the efficiency that has really been eye-opening. Over the current heater, he’s shooting 87% from the field. On the season, it’s still a respectable 48%. In Masai I Trust.
Malachi Flynn
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 15 | 6 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2/5 | 6/11 | 1/2 |
Received his second consecutive start with FVV out and Flynn produced again. Who do I trust? Masai!
Trae Young
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 31 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2/7 | 12/25 | 5/6 |
I don’t have much to say, except that Trae sure can play. He may not weigh much but makes his hay on the boards to the dismay of the bigs who array themselves around the rim. He makes it rain from Bombay which has made many of writers create a play on Broadway about how it’s child’s play. No, this is not hearsay. Make way, from here to Marseilles. Trae is a mainstay. I would’ve loved to see him perform on the Boston parquet. Top 20 player for fantasy. The turnovers are high and he doesn’t contribute at all in the blocks department but everything else is magnifique.
Bogdan Bogdanovic
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 25 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3/9 | 10/16 | 2/2 |
In 37 minutes off the bench. In 17 games as a reserve, he’s a top 10 player! He averages 29.4 minutes, 16.5 points, 2.9 tres, 4.2 boards, 3.5 dimes, and 1.5 steals while shooting 45% from the field and 82% from the line. The usage rate is 26.3% and he only turns the ball over 1.5 times per game. Uh, yeah. I think the microwave role suites him well.
Jaylen Brown only played three minutes due to an ankle injury.
Robert Williams III
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 9 | 13 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3/3 | 3/3 |
Our Time Lord and savior has finally been unleashed. He’s getting over 30 minutes a game and posting top 20 numbers on the season. He’s a zero in tres, but everything is robust. No wonder his name is Rob! He needs to drop the III, though, if he’s not going to contribute the tres. He’s averaging 9.8 boards, 0.9 steals, and 2.2 blocks while shooting 72% from the field and 72% from the line. He’s also dishing out 2 dimes per game.
Jayson Tatum
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 33 | 8 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3/10 | 12/25 | 6/7 |
Tatum is a top 20 player who contributes a little something something in every category. He’s only missed four games on the season which is an underrated aspect for fantasy. Sometimes we get so caught up on per-game numbers that we forget that one cannot score fantasy goodies if one is not actually on the court. Hi, KD, AD, and PG. The usage rate is 31.2% on the season and, in 146 minutes with Jaylen Brown off the court this season, that number jumps up 7%.
Grant Williams
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 18 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2/4 | 6/11 | 4/4 |
Williams is a low-usage player and usually comes off the bench. Over the last five games, though, he’s been a top 60 player, averaging 31.6 minutes as he’s started three of those contests and contributing a little something something in every category with excellent efficiency numbers and low turnovers.
Jerami Grant
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 26 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3/5 | 9/17 | 5/5 |
Since returning to action 13 games ago, Grant had scored fewer than 20 points in eight of 11 games. Over the last two games, though, he’s gone for 26 points in each contest. He’s also chipped in everywhere, especially in the defensive cats. The usage rate is in the 25% range and he could be a 1/1/1 player. The only bugaboo is the 41% field goal percentage.
Kyle Kuzma
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 21 | 9 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 1/5 | 7/15 | 6/6 |
Kuzma has been a top 20 player over the last five games!!! Kuuuuuuuuuuz. What a time to be alive. He’s more like a top 80 player but the heater is impressive nonetheless. The free-throw percentage isn’t great (72%) and the defensive stats are light, but he’s still contributing 0.7 steals and 0.9 blocks. Not great but not terrible either. He can light up the scoreboard, drain tres, grab boards, and dish out dimes. The Lakers could sure use him and KCP instead of the abomination that is Russell Westbrook.
Ish Smith
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 11 | 4 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1/2 | 5/8 | 0 |
In 23 minutes off the bench. Ish can score a little bit but he’s all about the dimes. Over the last five games, he’s averaged 5.2 per game. He does literally nothing else but if you need dimes, he’s an option. Tomas Satoransky played 14 minutes in this one but he may just be getting ramped up. Something to monitor.
Spencer Dinwiddie
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 14 | 1 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2/5 | 5/11 | 2/2 |
In 24 minutes off the bench. Since arriving in Dallas five games ago, he’s averaged around 28 minutes and the efficiency has been great, as he’s shot over 60% in three of those contests. That’s not the New World Order but the situation may be a better one for him in Dallas so improvement from the 39% mark he was posting on the season should be in order.
LeBron James
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 26 | 12 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 3/7 | 10/18 | 3/5 |
Another day, another loss for the Lakers as they have dropped six of the last seven. James played center in this one and that seems to be the way things will be going forward. The Lakers got rid of Deandre Jordan and Dwight Howard only played four minutes.
Carmelo Anthony
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | 3PT | FG | FT |
| 20 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 3/6 | 6/11 | 5/5 |
In 31 minutes off the bench. His offense is going to be needed down the stretch so he should get plenty of chances to huck and chuck up shots. The surprising aspect of Melo’s gams this season has been on the defensive side of the ball. On the season, he’s averaging 0.8 steals and 0.8 blocks. Over the last six games, he’s been a 1/1/1 player, shooting 52% from the field and posting top 30 numbers.
