NBA Player News

Caruso will miss a second consecutive game, freeing up minutes for the Wizards’ reserve guards. Rookie Ajay Mitchell cracked the rotation in Friday’s win over the Suns, logging 23 minutes and finishing with seven points, four rebounds, three assists, and one 3-pointer. While he doesn’t need to be rostered immediately, deep-league managers should watch Mitchell.

Giannis Antetokounmpo (knee) was ruled out shortly before tipoff, which allowed Green to slide into the starting lineup. He was quiet for most of the night, but he hit back-to-back 3-pointers with about three minutes left in the game, which allowed the Bucks to maintain their late lead. Green isn’t going to contribute much more than triples when he gets the chance to start, but he is certainly capable of getting hot and making a big impact in that regard.

Portis normally is normally able to put up an excellent statline when Giannis Antetokounmpo is out of the lineup, but that wasn’t the case in this game. During Antetokounmpo’s only other absence this season, Portis put up 21/18 with three blocks in 39 minutes as a starter. This time, he came off the bench, played just 18 minutes and wasn’t able to provide much value. Portis has played 23.8 minutes per game this season, so this was actually worse than his typical performance. It was certainly frustrating for fantasy managers and DFS players alike that were counting on a big night from Portis.

With Giannis Antetokounmpo (knee) sidelined for this game, Lillard was given the opportunity to be the focal point of the offense. He delivered early and often, scoring 17 points in the first quarter and entering halftime with 25 points, seven assists and six 3-pointers. Erik Spoelstra made some adjustments at halftime to force the ball out of Lillard’s hands, especially late in the game. However, Dame was able to find his teammates, and they were the ones to hit the big shots down the stretch. Lillard’s shooting is always impressive, but he has at least 10 assists in four of their last five games, which is just an added boost for an already elite player. He’s up to 7.7 assists per game this season, which would be the second-highest average of his career.

Carrington hasn’t gotten the chance to return to the starting lineup with Jordan Poole sidelined over their last two games. However, after struggling on Sunday, Carrington was able to contribute decent value as a reserve in this one. The volume still wasn’t there, but in just 25 minutes of play, his production was solid. It is frustrating that Carrington lost his starting job to Malcolm Brogdon, but managers shouldn’t give up on him quite yet. He’s still getting a large bench role, and there will be more chances for him to start this season.

The main issue that has plagued Sarr as a rookie has been his lack of shooting efficiency. A poor field goal percentage (37.9%) has tanked his season-long value, but he has put together consecutive efficient nights. This was tied for the best field goal percentage of his career, and he set a new career-high with four triples. It’s a bit unrealistic to assume that Sarr’s shooting woes are simply behind him, but it is encouraging to see him put together back-to-back performances like the ones he has had.

After scoring just 10 points in 30 minutes in their previous game, Kuzma made sure that wasn’t going to happen again. He took just 10 shots and zero free throws in that game, and he followed that with 18 field goal attempts and 11 free throws in this one despite only playing about three more minutes. Kuzma’s numbers have been down across the board this season, and he has struggled to contribute in any category, which has contributed to him rankings outside the top-250 in 9-cat leagues. He’s decent in points leagues, but his numbers still aren’t what they were in previous years.

With Durant and Beal making their return, the Suns will be back to rolling out their preferred starting unit. Ryan Dunn and Royce O’Neale will return to playing reserve roles.

Smith hasn’t really made an impact in fantasy basketball this season, largely because of the dominance and health of Nikola Vucevic. Smith isn’t a player to keep rostered, but he is certainly capable of contributing value if he ever gets the opportunity to start. This was his sixth game scoring in double figures, and Smith was able to haul in a new season-high for rebounds. He was one of seven players to score in double figures for Chicago, which attributed to their lopsided win in Washington.

White has had a few poor performances lately, including being held to 11 points in their loss to Memphis on Saturday. However, he has typically responded well, and he did that once again in this game. This was his eighth game with at least five 3-pointers this season, which has been a big reason for his fifth-round ranking in 9-cat leagues to this point. White also tied his season-high for rebounds in this game. He’ll look to continue to provide strong value in points, assists, steals and 3-pointers, with his next opportunity coming against Orlando on the second night of this back-to-back.

This was a slightly quieter game for Vucevic due to the lopsided score, but the Wizards didn’t really have any answers for him. He was limited to 29 minutes in a blowout win, though on the first night of a back-to-back, that’s not a bad thing. Vooch has been one of the best players in fantasy basketball this season, which can be attributed to his red-hot shooting start. His value won’t plummet if his field goal percentage regresses to the norm, but he likely won’t be able to maintain this elite start. However, until that happens, managers should enjoy the ride or look to sell high.