Dose: Down Goes Jabari Parker
Jabari Parker went down for the Bucks, Chris Bosh is out indefinitely, Josh McRoberts’ season is likely over, the Pacers blew out the Lakers, Kelly Olynyk went nuts against the Sixers, and Robin Lopez suffered a broken hand for the Blazers, propelling Chris Kaman onto fantasy rosters across cyberspace on an eight-game Monday night. Follow me on Twitter by clicking here.
Hawks 93, Bulls 86
Atlanta got 21 points, 10 rebounds, six assists and two steals from Al Horford, who is finally playing much better on a consistent basis. Paul Millsap added 17 points, eight boards, four steals and a trey, while Jeff Teague and Kyle Korver each scored 12 points in the win.
The Bulls got double-digit scoring from all five starters but didn’t have enough to win. Jimmy Butler led the way with 22 points and a full stat line, Taj Gibson had 15 points, 17 rebounds and two blocks, Derrick Rose had 14 points and eight assists, but hit just 6-of-21 shots and missed all seven of his 3-point tries, and Pau Gasol had 13 points, 12 rebounds and three blocks in the loss. Mike Dunleavy added 11 points, six rebounds and two 3-pointers for the Bulls. As long as Joakim Noah is out with his ankle injury, Gibson is a must-start, while Dunleavy is worth a look if he’s on waivers in your league. If you’re holding Nikola Mirotic, you might want to rethink that plan, as he played just 18 minutes and hit 1-of-7 shots, and his minutes will take a hit once Noah’s back.
Cavaliers 97, Hornets 88
LeBron James had 27 points, seven rebounds, 13 assists, a steal, three blocks and two 3-pointers on 11-of-19 shooting, and all that talk about his deteriorating skills can probably be put to rest. Kevin Love turned back the clock for 22 points, 18 rebounds, five assists, four steals and four 3-pointers, and this is the game his owners have been waiting for all year. Kyrie Irving added 16 points and five assists, and Tristan Thompson was quiet off the bench with 10 points and five boards. The strong play of Love kept him quiet tonight, but I still like TT as a pick up right now. Dion Waiters played through his abdominal injury and hit 3-of-10 shots for seven points and a 3-pointer. He was hot before the injury and should get it going again soon.
Kemba Walker had 24 points, five boards, five assists, a steal and a 3-pointer, and Al Jefferson added 14 points, eight rebounds and no blocks, which is where the good news ends for the Hornets. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist started and checked LeBron, and we know how that turned out. Cody Zeller did almost nothing in 18 minutes, and Lance Stephenson was disappointing with eight points, two rebounds, four assists and two steals on 4-of-12 shooting. Stephenson hasn’t played very well this season, but still has plenty of time to get things turned around.
Pacers 110, Lakers 91
Rodney Stuckey torched the Lakers for his best game of the season with 20 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists on 6-of-14 shooting as the Pacers opened up a ridiculous 60-27 lead by halftime. C.J. Miles came off the bench to hit 8-of-16 shots and three 3-pointers for 20 points, and could find himself back in the starting lineup soon now that he’s healthy again, and Donald Sloan had fun in garbage time with 17 points, six rebounds and two 3-pointer after going AWOL for the last few weeks. C.J. Watson, David West and Roy Hibbert all started and managed to score in double figures, while Solomon Hill was quiet with four points, but did have seven rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block. Ignore Sloan for now and think about grabbing Stuckey, Watson and Miles if they’re available in your league. And any time the Lakers are in action, think about running any guards you can find to start against them in daily leagues.
Kobe Bryant played well at the start of the third quarter, but never fully put it together, hitting just 8-of-26 shots for 21 points and some mini-stats in most categories. His shooting may not be getting worse, but it’s not getting better, either. He’s averaging 8-of-23 shooting over his last five games, good for just 34.5 percent. Ed Davis started, but was a disaster with zero points and four rebounds on 0-of-5 shooting, Jordan Hill’s struggles continued with six points and four rebounds, and Ronnie Price is useless in fantasy despite starting. Jeremy Lin was 0-for-6 off the bench and it could be time to let go if you’re good at PG. Wes Johnson is the most interesting prospect on the Lakers right now and kept it going with 13 points, a steal, a block and three 3-pointers, and he’s the guy I’d target if available. Carlos Boozer is worth owning after another nice showing with 13 points and 10 rebounds, and Nick Young lived up to his end of the deal with 18 points, a couple 3-pointers, a steal and a block on 6-of-12 shooting. The Lakers had won three straight, but never had a chance last night. If Kobe’s shooting doesn’t improve soon, more blowouts are coming. As for the struggling Hill and Davis, I’d hang onto Hill, but am fine with dropping Davis for a better waiver-wire option.
Celtics 105, Sixers 87
Kelly Olynyk came off the bench for his best game ever, scoring a career-high 30 points to go along with nine rebounds, three steals, two blocks and three 3-pointers. Brad Stevens has said he’s going to stick with Tyler Zeller (five points, five boards, two blocks) as his starting center, but might have something to think about after last night. Olynyk was quickly grabbed in many leagues, but if he’s still there in yours and you need a center with plenty of upside, get him. Jared Sullinger’s funk continued for 2-of-10 shooting, five points, 11 rebounds and a 3-pointer. He’s scored five or zero points in each of his last four games, hitting just 6–of-31 shots over that stretch. I’m not sure what his problem is, but he’s due to break out of the funk soon, as long as he doesn’t lose his job to Brandon Bass or Olynyk. Avery Bradley had just four points, but did have a nice stat line, and Avery Bradley scored 15 points despite going 1-of-11 from downtown. Keep in mind this game came against the woeful Sixers.
Nerlens Noel started and had a career-high 19 points, eight boards, four assists, three steals and two blocks on 9-of-12 shooting, so I hope you held onto him when he was struggling. Robert Covington is still very cheap in DFS and had 13 points, six boards, two steals, a block and two 3-pointers. Tony Wroten played 30 minutes off the bench but somehow didn’t score a point, missing all three of his shots. He led the team in minutes, which is the only positive from last night’s disaster. K.J. McDaniels played 20 minutes, but hit just 2-of-10 shots for six points, a steal and three blocks. Hang in there with him if you can.
Raptors 95, Magic 82
Lou Williams led the Raptors with 18 points and a 3-pointer off the bench, and Kyle Lowry had another nice, all-around stat line in the win. Terrence Ross and Jonas Valanciunas were quiet, but should still be owned, while Patrick Patterson once again outplayed starter Amir Johnson with 10 points, three boards, six assists, two steals and two 3-pointers in 28 minutes. Patterson is the guy I want to own there.
Tobias Harris stayed hot with 18 points and six boards, Nikola Vucevic backed up Saturday’s double-double with 13 points, nine boards, two steals and two blocks, and Victor Oladipo and Evan Fournier each scored in double figures for the Magic. Kyle O’Quinn can be forgotten now that Vuc is back, and I’m not putting too much stock in the fact Ben Gordon hit 7-of-11 shots for 16 points and two 3-pointers last night. Elfrid Payton played just 14 minutes and can be dropped if you’re holding him. Channing Frye was terrible again with three points on 1-of-6 shooting. I’m not going to tell you to hang onto him since he doesn’t have a clue right now, but I do think he’ll get hot again at some point in the near future.
Bucks 96, Suns 94
Besides Olynyk breaking out and Stuckey’s big line, Jabari Parker’s left knee injury was the story of the night. He was on the floor for some time and it looks like he could miss a lot of games due to the injury. He’ll have an MRI on Tuesday and we should know more then, but for now, owners should start making other plans. Giannis Antetokounmpo is going to see a boost, while Khris Middleton looks like the guy to pick up here. Middleton hit a bad 3-pointer to beat the Suns at the buzzer last night, as he got a lucky roll on a line drive that was somewhat off line. He had 14 points and two 3-pointers in 29 minutes off the bench. Larry Sanders was useless again with zero points, one rebound and zero blocks in 30 minutes. I still have him on a bench or two, but he’s not sniffing my starting lineup in weekly leagues, and may not be on my team for much longer.
Markieff Morris bounced back from an off night with 25 points, seven boards and two 3-pointers, Isaiah Thomas scored 20 with four 3-pointers off the bench, and Gerald Green took advantage of another start for 12 points, eight boards, three steals, a block and two 3-pointers, but hit just 3-of-18 shots. Kobe’s got nothing on Green. Goran Dragic was out again with his back problem, which is why Green started and Thomas played 26 minutes. Alex Len started over Miles Plumlee and had six points, six rebounds, a steal and three blocks, and looks like a better option than Sanders (and Plumlee) right now.
Blazers 108, Spurs 95
The Blazers got 23 points and double-doubles from LaMarcus Aldridge and Damian Lillard, and Wesley Matthews pumped in 14 points and three more 3-pointers in the win. Chris Kaman had 11 points and three boards in 20 minutes, but is set to get more run going forward, and a probable starting job. Robin Lopez suffered a broken right hand and is going to be out “a while,” so grab Kaman if you can. Nicolas Batum was disappointing with seven points and six assists, but that’s to be expected when you’re facing Kawhi “hands” Leonard.
The Spurs were without Tony Parker (hamstring), Tim Duncan (rest), Manu Ginobili (back) and Tiago Splitter (calf). Kawhi Leonard stayed hot with 21 points, nine boards, four assists and a block, while Boris Diaw, Aaron Baynes, Cory Joseph and Danny Green all scored in double figures in the starting lineup. Diaw was particularly nice with 10 points, four boards, nine assists, a steal, a block and a 3-pointer, but couldn’t do anything to stop Aldridge on the other end (23 & 14). Baynes filled in nicely for Duncan with 15 points, nine boards and a steal, but Duncan should be back for the next one, as he appears to have been held out due to the second night of a back-to-back. Kyle Anderson got hot off the bench and hit 6-of-7 shots for 15 points, five boards and a block, but I don’t trust him. Any time Parker is sitting, Joseph is worth a look in daily leagues, and had 12 points, five rebounds, a steal and a 3-pointer in 37 minutes.
Clippers 113, Pistons 91
The Clippers crushed the Pistons, which meant the starters were on the bench for the entire fourth quarter. All five of them scored in double figures and DeAndre Jordan was particularly nice with 16 points, 15 rebounds, a steal and a block. Jordan Farmar had 15 points, five assists, a block and three 3-pointers off the bench, but a lot of it came in garbage time. Matt Barnes had 10 points, two rebounds, three assists, a steal and three 3-pointers, and scored a season-high 26 on Saturday. I am a fan of picking him up right now (after I drafted him and dropped him in many leagues).
The Pistons got 18 points, 13 rebounds, a steal and two blocks from Andre Drummond, but he hit just 2-of-6 free throws, as usual. At least he’s finally putting up the big-man numbers his owners were missing for the first couple weeks of the season. Jodie Meeks had 20 points, two steals and three 3-pointers on 5-of-10 shooting in 30 minutes, but was another guy who benefitted from garbage time. I do think he’s worth grabbing in many instances, if you have someone you want to drop.
Injury Notes
Chris Bosh will not play on Tuesday due to a calf injury and sounds more “out indefinitely” than “day-to-day.” Josh McRoberts has a torn right lateral meniscus and it sounds like his season is over. Shawne Williams is the guy I’d recommend grabbing in his absence, while Justin Hamilton should also see a boost. Udonis Haslem may end up starting, but just doesn’t do anything in terms of fantasy.
DeMarcus Cousins is hoping to return from his illness for Thursday’s game.
