NBA Player News

Bassey injured his leg on Tuesday night, and the initial diagnosis would be that he would be done for the rest of the season. The team confirmed the report on Wednesday, which means Zach Collins and Khem Birch should play the majority of the minutes at center for the rest of the season. Both of those guys will miss Wednesday’s game, so Gorgui Dieng should step into big minutes.

It wasn’t much of a game with the Nets missing D’Angelo Russell, Ben Simmons, Cam Thomas and Cameron Johnson, but Clowney, who moved into the starting lineup for Jalen Wilson, made the most of his opportunity. The 20-year-old power forward dropped 29 points and five threes on the Pistons. While the Nets are missing so many players, Clowney is certainly worth rostering in deeper formats.

Fontecchio was acquired in a midseason trade by the Pistons last year, but isn’t part of Detroit’s rotation this season. With the game against the Nets in hand Wednesday, the 29-year-old small forward got to play 24 minutes off the bench. He had a good game, but it still won’t matter much for fantasy basketball as he’s unlikely to play that much again going forward.

With the Nets missing a good chunk of their roster and the Pistons pulling away in the second half, Cunningham played just 23 minutes. It was wise for the Pistons to given some of their bench players extended run against a Nets team that would’ve struggled against anyone Wednesday. Still, Cunningham wasn’t able to hit his averages in only 23 minutes on the floor.

Beasley stepped into the starting lineup with Ausar Thompson out with an illness. The 28-year-old shooting guard ended up leading the team in minutes, shot attempts and points. Beasley continues to provide points and threes whenever he’s called upon for serious minutes this season, which has been frequently given the amount of injuries the Pistons have had.

Barrett has been efficient in the two games he’s played since returning from an illness, shooting 18-of-33 from the field and scoring 41 points in losses to the Bucks and Knicks. While Barrett remains a better option in points leagues than category leagues, his value in the latter has improved since his move to Toronto. To this point in the season, Barrett has provided 7th-round value in 8-cat formats.

Barnes’ four blocked shots were a season-high for the Raptors star, who also provided solid rebound, assist, and 3-point numbers on Wednesday. Ranked just outside the top 50 in 9-cat value for the season, he has provided top-30 value over the past two weeks. Things don’t get any easier for Barnes and the Raptors, who are now 1-16 on the road, as they visit Cleveland on Thursday.

Not only were Quickley’s 22 points the most he’s scored since returning to the Raptors lineup, but they also represent a season-high. The concern for fantasy managers is the potential for a shutdown later in the season, as Toronto is now 8-29 on the season (1-16 on the road). Fantasy managers who have Quickley rostered should consider using Wednesday’s performance to see what they can potentially fetch via trade.

Brunson didn’t have his best night as a scorer, with the 13 points being one higher than his season-low. However, the rebounds and assists were solid, so all wasn’t lost for fantasy managers who have the Knicks point guard rostered. Brunson is ranked a few spots outside the top 50 in 9-cat formats, and he’ll look to improve his standing on Friday when the Knicks visit Oklahoma City.

After sitting out Monday’s loss to the Magic, Towns was back on the court Wednesday night. He appeared to be laboring during the early stages but would eventually find his groove, recording his 31st double-double and a complete stat line. Towns’ double-double tally with the Knicks equals what he produced during his final two seasons in Minnesota.

Having scored 21 points on 9-of-23 shooting in his prior two games, Anunoby bounced back in the Knicks’ win over the NBA’s worst road team. The 27 points are the most he’s scored in a game since December 20, when he dropped 31 on the Raptors. Friday’s opponent, Oklahoma City, will provide greater resistance to Anunoby and his teammates than Toronto.