Historically I have joked numerous times in these blog posts about Kyle Lowry and his, to put it politely, above average behind, in terms of fatness, but in truth, I really like his basketball journey and respect that he has been a great mentor and positive influence wherever he has played. The fans seem to agree on this and especially his return in Toronto, for what is most probably his last game there, has been a feel good story.
With the game out of reach, the Toronto crowd started chanting his name to get him int he game and thankfully Nick Nurse obliged, resulting in a well deserved standing ovation for Lowry, who stuck through the ups and downs for many seasons in Toronto and was a vital part of their championship team. You can also see how Tyrese Maxey is pumping up the crowd and the only bummer is that he went 0/3 and never let the crowd full on erupt.
Regarding last week’s suggestions, Julian Champagnie continued starting and providing solid value with Devin Vassell sidelined, while Zeke Nnaji showed some glimpses before falling head first to the ground yesterday with a 0 point dud in New Horleans. You can hold for another game today with the Nuggets likely resting their veterans on the back to back but then I think we cut bait. Finally, Steven Adams performed as advertised without Alperen Sengun and is an immediate drop with the latter back in action, while on the Sell front, Jordan Poole has been semi productive in very limited minutes and I think a 12 minute appearance in the blowout in Washington provided a good push to make the cut.
Buy
Collin Murray-Boyles: It has been an injury plagued season for Jakob Poeltl with just 21 games played, so the no9 pick of the 2025 draft has been asked to do heavier lifting than expected, starting the last 6 games and delivering good fantasy lines, especially on the glass and in the defensive categories. Since starting, he is playing 31 minutes and averaging 10.5 points, 8.2 rebounds, 3.7 assists, 2 steals and a block. Poelt returning can ruin him but those are elite averages we can not ignore in standard leagues (29% owned).
Daniel Gafford: You would be shocked to know that Anthony Davis is hurt again, this time with a hand injury that will keep him sidelined at least for the next 6 weeks. Dereck Lively is also out for the season, so that leaves Daniel Gafford to amn the 5 position in Dallas and to try and salvage a down fantasy year. I think he is worth a look to see how much minutes the Mavericks are willing to pump to him, because we have seen him reach top40 value if he can get closer to to 26 minutes. Granted, those were the days with Luka Doncic running the point and providing easy finishes around the rim, but still it won’t hurt to add and evaluate (17% owned).
Naji Marshall: Another beneficiary of the injuries in Dallas has been Naji Marshall, who is starting and has seen increased playing time. He can be a valuable steals contributor with some more across the board production so give him a look as a streaming option with 3 games until Saturday (25% owned).
Sell
Cam Thomas: I think with Brooklyn only extending the qualifying offer for him and thus not being part of their long term future there is no reason to keep holding Cam Thomas in the hopes of playing again starter minutes like last season. He is currently averaging only 25 minutes per game and every single statistical category is in decline so I think he is just clogging up your roster at this point, hoping for a change that is not coming (81% owned).
