Milwaukee Bucks vs. Orlando Magic
Bucks Notes:
- The return of Donte DiVincenzo and the addition of the ageless Wes Matthews has completely dried up the fantasy values of Grayson Allen and Pat Connaughton. Allen is averaging 3.5 PPG over his past four, while Connaughton is at 6.0 PPG over that same span. It looks like this quartet will cancel themselves out going forward, meaning you can drop Allen (33 percent rostered) and Connaughton (47 percent rostered) even though they’ve been top-120 players so far this season, and hold off on picking up DiVincenzo (19 percent rostered).
- Jrue Holiday got off to a slow start, but has caught fire since Thanksgiving. Over his past 19 games, he’s shooting a scorching 56 percent from the field (on over 15 attempts per game), and 40 percent from deep despite a fair number of those games coming without Milwaukee’s two All Stars. He’s averaging a 21-5-7 over that span and has been a top-30 player over the past 30 days. Gotta show some love for Holiday, who’s deserving of an All Star nod himself.
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | 3PTM | TOV | FG | FT |
| 25 | 5 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 8-11 | 6-6 |
Magic Notes:
- The Magic have been decimated lately. On any given night they can trot out six guys you’ve never heard of in your life (Hassani Gravett, anyone??). But the one constant through it all has been…Gary Harris. That’s right, my guy is still rolling after after recording 17 points, three assists, three triples, and three steals last night. He’s been very solid over the past couple weeks, ranking in the top-100 over the past 14 days. Folks are starting to pay attention as Harris is up to 34 percent rostered, but there’s still an opportunity to grab him.
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | 3PTM | TOV | FG | FT |
| 17 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 7-15 | 0-0 |
- R.J. Hampton is another player to potentially pounce on. He’s gotten about 30 MPG off the bench since stepping back onto the court and is averaging about 13 PPG and 5 APG, while hitting from distance and picking up steals. He generated 15 points and five dimes on Thursday, and is rostered in only seven percent of leagues.
Philadelphia 76ers vs. Brooklyn Nets
Sixers Notes:
- Though his usage rate barely registers, Matisse Thybulle is a fantasy asset for his propensity to generate defensive stats. As such, the one column you really want to be monitoring with him nightly is the minutes one, since more minutes means more time to envelop helpless offensive players in his web. Thybulle has been consistently getting over 30 minutes a night during Philly’s recent spate of absences, including a whopping 39 last night. That allowed him to rack up three steals and two blocks, while also chipping in a modest 60 percent FG percentage, four boards, and zero turnovers. Pick him up if you need help in the defensive cats (37 percent rostered in Yahoo! leagues).
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | 3PTM | TOV | FG | FT |
| 6 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3-5 | 0-0 |
Nets Notes:
- In a significant outcome for fantasy managers, Nic Claxton remained in the starting lineup and received 33 minutes of playing time even with LaMarcus Aldridge back in action. Claxton started alongside LMA and delivered another strong outing, with 10 points, nine rebounds, two assists, a steal, and two swats. Hopefully the Nets continue to deploy him in heavy minutes. He should be rostered in more than 39 percent of leagues.
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | 3PTM | TOV | FG | FT |
| 10 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 5-9 | 0-0 |
- Speaking of Aldridge, the veteran big man picked up right where he left off after 18 days out. In 27 minutes he scored 12 points, grabbed eight boards, made a three, and sent back two shots. He’s returned seventh-round value all season, and should continue to do so moving forward
Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Washington Wizards
Cavs Notes:
- What a resurgence, nay, a resurrection for Kevin Love. He could have gone the way of, say, John Wall, but Love has shown up to work for Cleveland this season, and is a significant part of their surprise success thus far. He kept it up in just his second start of the season, registering a double-double with 24 points and 11 rebounds, while knocking down four treys, all without any professional level point guard to feed him. Even in short minutes, Love has excelled of late, hovering near the top-30 over the past 14 days despite garnering just 24 MPG. He’s been picked up in most leagues (72 percent rostered) by now, but it’s fun to watch him drink from the fountain of youth.
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | 3PTM | TOV | FG | FT |
| 24 | 11 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 7-15 | 6-8 |
Wizards Notes:
- Kentavious Caldwell-Pope made his first appearance in nearly two weeks, and hit the ground running. KCP finished with 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting from beyond the arc, with four assists, two steals, and a block to boot. He’s a solid 3-and-D wing who can help you a little in a few categories, without taking anything off the board (29 percent rostered). Give him a whirl if you’re looking for some stability to round out your team.
| PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | 3PTM | TOV | FG | FT |
| 12 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 4-8 | 0-0 |
- Deni Avdija was shunted back to the bench with the return of several key players, but he received solid playing time (24 minutes) and usage (12 field goal attempts). He scored 13 points and grabbed six boards against the Cavs, and over the past 14 days he’s averaging over a three, a steal, and a block per game. I’m still interested to see where this goes (24 percent rostered).
