NBA Player News

A bright spot for the Bulls in their 20-point defeat was the ability to get Buzelis extended run. The rookie has struggled some with the physicality of the NBA, but Wednesday’s performance was a step in the right direction. Buzelis established season-highs in points, rebounds, steals, blocks, and 3-pointers. Outside of blowouts, the rookie’s playing time will be limited early in the season, so there’s no need to add Buzelis now. But he will have added value later in the season if the Bulls aren’t contending for a postseason berth.

Nobody was happier than Booker to have Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal back in the lineup. Though he has a few big scoring nights with them out of the lineup, he also had his fair share of struggles, and the team had lost their previous five games. Booker has had a rough shooting season so far, but the presence of KD and Beal should help him get easier looks. Managers should expect Booker’s numbers to continue to improve as the team logs more games with their full lineup healthy.

After missing the team’s last five games, Beal was back in the lineup on Tuesday and picked up right where he left off. He has scored at least 20 points in three straight games, and he reached that mark in just 27 minutes in this one. Mike Budenholzer said that he would manage the minutes of Beal and Kevin Durant, and he luckily didn’t need to play them more because the game got out of hand in the third quarter. This was the first night of a back-to-back, and it wouldn’t be surprising if they got the night off against the Nets.

Following a seven-game absence, Durant was back in the lineup on Tuesday and helped the Suns end their five-game losing streak. He was expected to have his minutes managed, and he logged about 30 minutes, though his night was cut short by the lopsided score. He may have played longer if he needed to, which was an encouraging sign for fantasy managers. They’ll host the Nets on the second night of a back-to-back on Wednesday, and it wouldn’t be surprising if Durant and Bradley Beal ended up sitting out to manage their calf injuries. That would likely allow Ryan Dunn and Royce O’Neale to return to the starting lineup.

For the first time in franchise history, the Lakers lost an NBA Cup game, though it certainly wasn’t AD’s fault. He bounced back from arguably his worst performance of the season during Saturday’s blowout loss to Denver, and while it didn’t help his team get back on track, it did provide a nice boost for fantasy managers. Davis will continue to be one of the best players in fantasy basketball regardless of the Lakers’ record, but he will have a chance to help them get back on track in San Antonio on the second night of a back-to-back for both teams on Wednesday.

Russell has struggled all season, but his numbers have dropped off even more in his move to the bench. He played well in his first game following his demotion, but this was his highest-scoring game since then. Russell has ranked outside the top-200 since becoming the team’s sixth man, and even his good games haven’t been great for fantasy managers. He’s still rostered in 84% of Yahoo leagues, and it’s difficult to drop a player that was selected in the middle rounds. However, the production has been nowhere near his ADP, and there isn’t much hope for a turnaround.

Hayes missed the team’s last six games with a right ankle sprain, and in his first game back, he injured the same ankle in the final minutes. The severity of this one is unclear, but it seems unlikely that he’ll be available to play in San Antonio on Wednesday. Christian Koloko should fill out some of the backup center minutes in his place, but he won’t play a large enough role to be worth streaming in any format.

This was Collins’ third straight double-double, and he has had exactly 20 points and 13 rebounds in each of the last two. He has reached the top-25 in 9-cat leagues, though that mark is a direct result of some incredibly efficiency so far this season. He had found a new identity in Utah, and the results for fantasy managers have been excellent. With three more games left this week, Collins should continue to provide excellent value, especially with Lauri Markkanen injuring his knee in this game.

George hasn’t been able to improve his efficiency in year two, which has resulted in him not being a productive player in 9-cat leagues. However, he had one of his best performances of the year on Tuesday. George is an electric scorer, and he got going in this game, though the turnovers were still an issue. While this level of production would be great for fantasy managers, he has only scored 20 points twice this season. George is simply too inconsistent to trust at this point, which makes him difficult to roster in category leagues.

Champagnie has been a staple of the Spurs’ starting lineup since last December, and he has quietly been solid in 9-cat leagues this season. His value is inflated by being decent in every category, but he is more than capable of providing 3-pointers and steals. He isn’t a must-roster player, but he has been and should continue to be a serviceable option.

Castle seems to really like playing against the Jazz. They have played them three times already this season, and Castle has scored his career-high of 23 points in two of those games. In the other, which came five days before this game, he scored 18 with six assists. Castle has been solid since entering the starting lineup, though efficiency has still been an issue for him, which isn’t surprising for a rookie guard. Castle isn’t a must-roster player at this point, but there have been some encouraging signs early on this year.