Georgios

Kalaitzakis

The Thunder played just six guys on Sunday, and Simpson filled it up, but OKC got ran out of the building in this one. He shot 7-of-15 from the floor (1-of-3 3-pointers) and made both of his foul shots on the evening. Jaylen Hoard added 14 points on 6-of-20 shooting (1-of-6 3-pointers) with fifteen rebounds, three assists, one steal, and one block in 45 minutes. Georgios Kalaitzakis scored 17 points on 6-of-15 shooting (3-of-6 3-pointers) with six rebounds, three assists, and two steals in 48 minutes.

Kalaitzakis played his best game as a professional on Friday, in what was just his third game with OKC. The Greek wing shot 10-of-19 from the floor (2-of-7 3-pointers) and made 3-of-5 from the foul line. He and Jaylen Hoard accounted for 52 of OKC’s 101 points on the evening as both netted career-highs in scoring. The duo on 10-days will try to go out with a bang on Sunday against the Clippers.

Simpson is averaging 7.0 points, 3.0 rebounds, 8.0 assists, 2.0 steals and 1.0 blocks in his two games this season and while the 11 dimes were helpful tonight, the 2-of-10 shooting was damaging. It’s hard to say what the Thunder will do going forward but if Simpson is starting on Friday, he’s worth a look in all formats. Isaiah Roby had 18-5-5 tonight with four 3-pointers, Jaylen Hoard had 23 points and a full stat line, including a career-high five 3-pointers, Georgios Kalaitzakis scored 11 in a start, and Vit Krejci had nine points, six boards and six assists in the loss. Jeremiah Robinson-Earle added 18 points and a couple threes tonight and Lindy Waters had 10 points and three 3-pointers in the loss. Pick a Thunder, any Thunder as long as they’re playing for OKC on Friday or Sunday.

The Thunder overcame a 19-point deficit by winning the fourth quarter 31-12, played just six guys (seven if you count Lindy Waters’ four minutes) and treated us to a guy named Jaylen Hoard racking up 24 points and 21 rebounds. This is why you end your leagues before the final week of the season. Roby’s previous high in blocks was three, while Georgios Kalaitzakis had a career-high 17 points and seven turnovers, Zavier Simpson had a career-high 10 points, five assists, a steal and two blocks, Vit Krejci had 11 points and a full stat line, and Olivier Sarr came off the bench for 10 points, 12 rebounds and two blocks. See who’s starting for the Thunder on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday and then act accordingly. Pick a starting Thunder, any starting Thunder.

New signing Simpson and Kalaitzakis will start in their Thunder debuts Tuesday night, with Theo Maledon and Aleksej Pokusevski moving to the bench. Nothing has been said regarding the status of Maledon or Pokusevski, but given the way in which the Thunder have handled their rotation down the stretch, fantasy managers would be wise to look elsewhere for production. That’s a bad deal for those who have come to rely on the improved play of those two as the regular season comes to a close.

Ahead of their heavyweight tanking showdown with the Blazers, the Thunder are literally pulling guys off the street. It’s unclear what kind of role Kalaitzakis will have for the remainder of the season, but OKC is the perfect spot for him to get some minutes.

The Greek rookie appeared in just nine games with the Bucks this season and played just 5.3 minutes per game in those, and this move was to clear up space for Wesley Matthews, who played for the Lakers last season and the Bucks the season before that. Matthews isn’t really worth a look even though he’s back on an NBA team, however.

Portis has yet to make his regular-season debut, as he continues to recover from the hamstring issue, and with both him and Brook Lopez (back) again unavailable tonight, we’ll likely see Giannis Antetokounmpo start at center and perhaps Georgios Kalaitzakis will be able to get into the rotation. Portis doesn’t offer much upside, so there’s not much incentive to cling to him in standard leagues.

The kid has played professionally in Greece for years and has been regarded as one of the top Euro prospects in his age group. The Bucks may be trying to catch lightning in a bottle from Greece twice, but there’s a decent chance we won’t see him in the U.S. this season.