Dose: Boogie Down
Friday night was a hot shooting night in the fantasy world led by DeMarcus Cousins big scoring output. Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook kept their title as the best tag team in the NBA while Roy Hibbert shook off an injury to dominate the Celtics. All that and more in this week’s Dose.
Cousins brings the funk
DeMarcus Cousins had himself a game against Denver on Friday, scoring 32 points, 13 rebounds, four assists, three steals, and four blocks. Yes, Cousins turned the ball over seven times but putting that aside, every other facet of his game was great from a fantasy perspective. He hit 12-25 from the field and 8-9 from the line. He’s been back to his dominating ways as of late, averaging 24 points and 14 rebounds over his last three.
Unfortunately, the Kings didn’t get the win thanks to solid performances from Ty Lawson and Arron Afflalo who both went for 22 points apiece. Kenneth Faried was also solid with 12 points and 13 rebounds.
Durant and Westbrook lead Thunder brigade
Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook both put up terrific fantasy lines on Friday as the Thunder took care of the Jazz. Durant poured in 32 points on 14-21 shooting with six assists, and five boards. The shooting from Durant is just impeccable and so valuable in head-to-head leagues. Westbrook wasn’t too shabby either, notching a double-double of 25 points and 12 rebounds. The two are starting to cook with gas now that they’re both totally healthy. The fantasy world has been put on notice.
On the other side of the court, Utah was solid. Three players scored over 20 points. Gordon Hayward led the way with 27 points, four boards, four assists, and three steals. Derrick Favors notched a double-double with 22 points, 11 rebounds, and three blocks while Trey Burke had 20 points, five boards, and five assists. Burke’s performances as of late are particularly encouraging. He’s tallied 20 points or more in three of his last six so he may be heating up, however there is a sell high window here.
Pelicans spoil Randolph’s return
Zach Randolph returned after a nine game absence and grabbed a double-double of 11 points and 11 rebounds, however, it was not enough as the Pelicans went hog wild in defeating the Grizzlies. Four players scored 20 or more, led by Jrue Holiday, who had 23 points, eight assists, and two steals. Anthony Davis had a standard high-end line of 20 points, nine rebounds, and three blocks while Tyreke Evans and Ryan Anderson combined for 41 points off the bench. It’s hard to ask for much more if you own any of those players. Dante Cunningham started for Evans due to matchup reasons but was awful, going 0-5 from the field. Evans will be productive no matter what.
Smith makes a big impact
After going scoreless on Wednesday in his Cavalier debut, J.R. Smith started and went hog wild on Friday, scoring 27 points with three triples and five boards. It was quite a showing from Smith, who is prone to big scoring outputs. His shot attempts will take a hit once LeBron James returns but he could be fantasy relevant again sooner rather than later. He’s worth a flier for sure.
Double-Double party for Wizards
John Wall, Marcin Gortat and Nene Hilario all notched double-doubles as the Wizards defeated the Bulls on Friday. Gortat had 21 points and 13 boards, Nene put in 15 and 11, while John Wall scored 16 points and handed out 12 assists. Wall has been fantastic all year and Nene has been hot and cold but for Gortat, this was arguably his best game in a month. The center has taken a slight step back in nearly every offensive category so hopefully this game will get him out of a mini-funk.
Wiggins keeps rolling
The Bucks bested the Wolves on Friday but in the fantasy world Andrew Wiggins was the main draw. He had 20 points, which was his sixth straight 20-point game. He added seven boards, five assists, and two steals. His shooting was poor, only hitting 6-17 shots but he’s been so good as of late, it’s hard to complain. He’s finally living up to his real life draft position and is kind of exceeding his fantasy draft position as well. He’s without question the frontrunner for the Rookie of the Year award.
Hibbert puts aside ankle injury and looks great
Roy Hibbert shook off his ankle injury and put up 19 points, 11 rebounds, and five blocks as Indiana downed Boston. The big man left Wednesday’s game early after hurting his ankle and finished with just two points. The fact that he came into this one and was so productive is a great indication that he’s ready to rock going forward. Meanwhile, for Boston, Evan Turner had a real mixed bag of a fantasy line. He scored nine points, grabbed 15 rebounds and had seven assists. However, he shot just 3-15 from the field and 3-6 from the charity stripe. He’s had a few nice outings since the Rajon Rondo trade but is too sketchy night in and night out to trust in most leagues.
Covington swipes in bunches
Robert Covington led the Sixers to a win over Brooklyn on Friday, scoring 20 points with seven boards and a season-high six steals. The guard was hot from the field, knocking down 8-12 shots, including three triples. Covington has been a nice waiver wire gem for fantasy owners and doesn’t look to be slowing down any time soon. On the other side of the court, Mason Plumlee and Brook Lopez started alongside each other and looked good. Plumlee had a double-double with 15 points and 15 rebounds while Lopez went for 18 and six. It’s encouraging that Plumlee is teaming with Lopez as his fantasy value won’t take a major hit.
Hawks play team ball
Jeff Teague rocked a double-double of 14 points and 11 assists while Al Horford chipped in 19 and 16 rebounds as the Hawks got by Detroit on Friday. The entire starting lineup scored in double figures as Paul Millsap banged in 17 points and seven rebounds, DeMarre Carroll went for 13 and Kyle Korver hit three triples on his way to 11 points. It was a nice effort from all parties and while Korver’s line was a bit empty, the rest of the crew did what most fantasy owners expect. For Detroit, Greg Monroe stood out with his 15 points and 12 rebounds but frontcourt mate Andre Drummond struggled as he played just 17 minutes and scored four points and grabbed five rebounds. He was battling through an illness but he’s kind of in a small funk right now. He'll be fine so don't panic and sell low.
Markieff has some shooting woes
The Suns fell to the Spurs on Friday and one of the reasons was Markieff Morris’ dreadful shooting. The power forward hit just 1-13 shots, finishing with three points and eight rebounds. Morris is usually quite consistent so this was a bit of a shocker but he should be fine in the next one. Unfortunately, he did some real damage to fantasy owners in the field goal percentage department but those are the breaks sometimes. He’ll be fine going forward.
