NBA look ahead: The Fantasy Five
This column will concentrate on borderline fantasy options who should get strong consideration to start/bench during the upcoming week based on schedules.
A quick reminder: Monday is Martin Luther King Jr. Day, which means a full day of basketball that starts at 11:00 am PST, so get your lineups set early.
Hassan Whiteside: Over the last six games, he’s averaged 12.2 points, 9.3 rebounds and 3.5 blocks. He’s averaged 2.1 bpg while playing just 15:44 mpg so far this season, so while now starting and looking at much more playing time, it’s safe to project Whiteside to be among the league leaders in blocks from here on out. It’s a joke he’s owned in fewer than 50 percent of Yahoo leagues, as he should be started in 100 percent of them right now.
P.J. Tucker: He’s scored double digits in just three of the past eight games, but Tucker has quietly been a top-75 player over the past two months. Moreover, the Suns play four games in Week 13, all at home and include a matchup with a Lakers team that ranks No. 27 in Defensive Efficiency. Tucker is owned in just 27 percent of Yahoo fantasy leagues.
Tony Allen: He leads the NBA with 2.2 spg yet is owned in just 19 percent of Yahoo fantasy leagues. Allen has been the No. 42 ranked fantasy player over the past two weeks and is on a Memphis team that plays an NBA-high four games next week, with the 8-32 76ers holding the best Defensive Efficiency among the group of opponents.
Here’s Wilson Chandler with a monster dunk.
Here’s Russell Westbrook with a “blooper dunk.”
And here’s Westbrook scoring with 0.1 seconds remaining in the second quarter of a game against the Warriors in which the Thunder scored four points on a dead ball with 1.0 seconds left in the first half.
Joe Johnson: He’s owned in nearly 90 percent of Yahoo leagues but has shot just 35.8 percent (54-for-151) from the field over the past 10 games. Johnson has been the No. 159 ranked player over the past two weeks, plays for a Brooklyn team that ranks in the bottom-five in PACE and has an NBA-low three games on the schedule in Week 13.
Jamaal Crawford: Like Joe Johnson, Crawford is owned highly in Yahoo leagues (85.0 percent), is experiencing an extreme shooting slump (34.8 FG% over the past eight games), has been a major fantasy detriment over the past two weeks (ranked No. 185) and is on a team that plays just three games next week. Crawford is in a major shooting slump and is averaging nearly five fewer minutes per game this season compared to last, but it’s worth mentioning his 25.7 Usage Rate is a career high and is more than players such as Chris Paul, Anthony Davis, Al Jefferson and Kyrie Irving.
