NBA Player News

Sochan injured his thumb during the first half of Monday’s game, with rookie Stephon Castle replacing him in the starting lineup. Castle’s fantasy value will increase if he receives the starting nod, but Julian Champagnie is the better streaming option. He’s been a starter since the beginning of the season, filling in for Devin Vassell.

With Scoot Henderson (quad) sidelined for the sixth time in their last seven games, Banton was able to play an extended role off the bench. That allowed him to provide an offensive boost, but he wasn’t able to contribute in many other categories. If Henderson remains out for Friday’s game against the Jazz, expect Banton to play a large reserve role once again. He’s capable of providing multi-category value, but there will likely be better streaming options on a day with seven games being played. Still, Banton was a solid producer off the bench in this game.

Ayton was Portland’s leading scorer in this game, but that was about the only thing he did well. His three rebounds in 33 minutes were a new season-low, and that is way below his season average of 9.8 boards. The Blazers’ next two games are against the Jazz and Lakers, and matchups with Walker Kessler and Anthony Davis aren’t going to be easier for Ayton. The buckets should continue to come consistently, but he’ll need to do more to make the fantasy impact that he’s capable of.

Avdija has been playing at a high level recently, whether he has started or come off the bench. He has scored at least 15 points in five straight games and has been a top-100 player in 9-cat leagues over the last two weeks. He got off to a slow start to his first year with the Trail Blazers, but he has put that behind him in recent weeks. This was an ugly loss for Portland, and they’ll look to get back on track on Friday with the Jazz coming to town.

Powell did a lot of his work in the first half, but he was still able to have his fifth 30-point game of the year. Following a six-game absence, he has been able to pick up right where he left off. He only needed 25 minutes in this game to dominate his former team after he scored 28 in 24 minutes in their last game. Powell has been spectacular all year, and the only thing that could potentially slow him down would be the return of Kawhi Leonard, but there’s no reason to think that will happen soon.

Jones Jr. isn’t much of a contributor in fantasy hoops, since most of what he provides on the court is elite defense. He’s a good source of steals, but that’s typically it. However, he got some shots to go in the big win over Portland. DJJ will continue to be a valuable role player for the Clippers, and his contributions are a big reason that they’ve won eight of their last ten games. He’s important to the team, but he isn’t a player to roster in fantasy basketball.

Mann has been playing a significant bench role for the Clippers recently, but he may be sidelined for an extended period of time due to this injury. On Tuesday, Amir Coffey scored 19 points on five triples in 23 minutes, while Jordan Miller scored 14 points in 24 minutes. Both players may be in line to see extra minutes on the wing with Mann sidelined, though their roles and numbers may have been a bit inflated by the lopsided score in this game. Neither player will be a reliable streaming option.

It has been a rough year shooting the ball for Murray, but he seemed to figure it out over their last few games. However, he returned to his struggles in this one. He made up for one of his lowest-scoring games of the season by providing value in other categories across the board. Murray hasn’t become a shot-blocker, but it was still a nice bonus for this game. He’ll look to get back on track with his shot in Cleveland on Thursday.

After missing about a month with a calf strain, Gordon was able to return to the lineup on Sunday. He came off the bench for that game, and he made his return to the starting unit in this one. He got off to a really strong start to the season, so it was unfortunate to see his momentum impacted by the calf injury. One of the reasons for his improvement in 9-cat value has been his increase in 3-pointers. AG knocked down three in this game and is averaging 1.8 threes per game, which is his highest mark since the 2017-18 season.

He wasn’t able to get a triple-double, but Jokic was still able to provide his typical dominant numbers. He set a new season-high for steals, and he still hasn’t scored less than 20 points in a game since the season opener. Even if the Nuggets have been inconsistent as a team, Jokic has been the best player in fantasy basketball every single night. He has averaged career-highs in points, assists, steals and 3-pointers, and it is scary to see that he can still get even better than he has been over the last five years.

While neither Alperen Sengun nor Domantas Sabonis recorded a double-double on Tuesday, Eason did. He finished the defeat with his second of the season and remains a top-50 player in 9-cat formats. While some may be tempted to sell high, Eason’s skill set is such that he can retain this production level. He should be rostered in more than 53% of Yahoo leagues. However, it was reported after Tuesday’s game that Eason had to be restrained from going after a heckling fan. A suspension would change the equation regarding his short-term fantasy value.