NBA Player News

The Suns have made two changes to the lineup that started Monday’s loss to the Magic. Nurkic’s return from a sprained ankle means Mason Plumlee will come off the bench while O’Neale replaces Oso Ighodaro for matchup reasons. Jones, Booker, and Dunn complete the starting five.

After playing 33 minutes off the bench in Monday’s win over the Clippers, Beal’s playing time took a hit with Ryan Dunn returning from a sprained ankle. While fantasy managers who have Beal rostered should not consider dropping him, the role and the minutes aren’t promising with the veteran guard coming off the bench. If anything, this is a “buy low” time for those who can afford to take the risk. And if he’s moved before the trade deadline, Beal’s’ fantasy value would likely improve.

Durant, who was initially questionable for Wednesday’s game with a left thumb injury, ultimately played and matched Anthony Edwards’ point total. That wasn’t enough to get Phoenix the victory, but fantasy managers were likely pleased with KD’s overall stat line. Over the past two weeks, Durant has been a top-10 player in 8- and 9-cat formats. Phoenix hits the road for a Friday/Saturday back-to-back to end Week 14, beginning with the Warriors on Friday.

At first glance, Booker played well against the Timberwolves. However, he was responsible for a season-high nine turnovers, meaning managers in 9-cat formats took a noticeable hit. Over the past two weeks, Booker has averaged 3.7 turnovers per game, which is why he is a top-60 player in 9-cat formats (he’s been close to a top-30 player in 8-cat over the past two weeks). Nights like Wednesday’s haven’t been the norm for Booker, so don’t be surprised if he bounces back when the Suns visit the Warriors on Friday.

Alexander-Walker picked a good time for his best offensive game of the season, as the Timberwolves played Wednesday without sixth man Naz Reid. Not only did NAW establish a new season-high with 23 points, but this was also his first game of 20 or more. Based on his season-long production, fantasy managers know not to expect Wednesday’s performance to become the norm. However, if Reid remains out, Alexander-Walker will have more room to produce as a scorer.

Randle has scored 20 points or more in three straight and four of his last five games. And the 28 points scored in Wednesday’s victory were the most for the Timberwolves’ forward since November 17, when he dropped a career-high 35 on the Suns. The good news for Randle and those who have him rostered is that Minnesota still has two more meetings with Phoenix. The bad news is that those games aren’t scheduled to be played until March.

After scoring 16 points on Tuesday, Council IV followed that up by scoring in double figures once again. The main difference between these two games was that Council IV played an extra ten minutes, which meant that he spent more time on the floor than Justin Edwards, who has been the starter in place of Paul George. It’s unclear how much longer PG will be sidelined with this pinky injury, but Council IV has been playing well. They have two more games this week, including a game on Sunday, which is a day with only five games. That gives him a little bit of streaming upside, but he shouldn’t be considered a must-add player.

Playing against Kevin Durant, one of his childhood heroes, gets Edwards going. That was the case again on Wednesday, as the two stars engaged in a high-level duel in which both scored 33 points. However, Ant-Man’s team left the Valley of the Sun with the victory, as he recorded a complete stat line that included a career-high four blocks (he’s done this on two other occasions). With Donte DiVincenzo sidelined Edwards has provided top-20 value in 8-cat formats over the past two weeks.

Lowry hasn’t been much of a factor in fantasy basketball this season, but he made his presence felt in this game. He set a new season-high for rebounds and assists and scored in double figures for the first time since early November. Lowry has missed plenty of time this season, and he hasn’t had much success when he’s been on the floor. He played well in this game and contributed to them winning a fourth straight game, but he should be left on the waiver wire.

Dunn returned to action on Wednesday after missing Monday’s win over the Clippers with a sprained ankle. The rookie only played nine minutes off the bench, with starter Royce O’Neale logging 32 and finishing with four points, five rebounds, one assist, and two steals. While Dunn can have deep-league value when allowed to play starters’ minutes, fantasy managers may have to wait for that to happen. So, O’Neale is worthy of a look in deep leagues, but neither Suns wing qualifies as a must-add.

24 hours after Maxey dropped 43 points in a win over the Lakers, he added 30 more to extend Philly’s win streak to four games. He also extended his 25-point streak to 12 games, which has helped him be a top-five player in 9-cat leagues over the past two weeks. Maxey has seen a huge usage bump with Joel Embiid and Paul George missing so much time this season, and he has been able to shoot the ball at a higher percentage recently than he did earlier in the year. He has shot at least 50% from the floor in six straight games, and he’ll look to keep that going over their final two games of the week.