Jaden

Ivey

Ivey had missed two games with knee inflammation, but returned in a big way Saturday. Ivey certainly hasn’t been great in fantasy this season, but he was just two rebounds and two assists shy of a triple-double against the Suns. Ivey also had four 3-pointers and one steal. It was a high-scoring game, though, and Ivey will need more performances like this one to change his season-long fantasy value.

Ivey returns after a two-game absence, which pushes Ausar Thompson back to the bench. Thompson and Malik Beasley will take hits to their respective fantasy values, but they’re worth holding onto in deeper leagues.

Ivey is on track to return after missing Detroit’s last two games. If he can play, Ausar Thompson is the most likely player to be headed to the bench, which limits his fantasy value in standard leagues.

Ivey was a late scratch for Monday’s win over the Heat and will remain sidelined on Thursday. Ausar Thompson will remain in the starting lineup, and he is worth streaming whenever he is allowed to start games.

Initially announced as a starter, Ivey was scratched minutes before tipoff on Monday. Malik Beasley replaced him in the starting lineup and will have added fantasy value if Ivey misses more time.

Ivey’s had better nights shooting the basketball, but the shot from the field isn’t why his fantasy value has decreased recently. Ranked outside the top 200 in 9-cat formats over the past two weeks, Ivey’s shot 69.2% from the foul line and averaged 3.6 turnovers per game. Remove those categories, and he’s been an 11th-round player.

No one connected to the Pistons would be blamed if they labeled Saturday’s defeat a “schedule loss.” After blowing out the Pacers on Friday, they faced the 76ers at home, and Cade Cunningham was a late scratch. Ivey didn’t have his best game, but he’s been much-improved this season. He’ll look to be better on Tuesday when the Pistons host Milwaukee in a pivotal NBA Cup game, the first of three Detroit will play during the first segment of Week 7.

Ivey was pretty good for fantasy while Cade Cunningham (pelvis) was out, but still had a good game in Cunningham’s return Friday. The Pistons blew out the Pacers and scored 130 points, which won’t happen every night. Still, Ivey was efficient on offense scoring 23 points on 13 shots and dishing out six assists. He only turned the ball over three times in 31 minutes, which had been a problem for Ivey this year. Ivey ranks outside the top 175 in fantasy and is rostered in most leagues. He’ll have to keep up this string of good games to make good on that faith.

The Pistons lost by 20 and none of their starters played more than low-20s minutes in this one. Ivey wasn’t particularly good while he was out on the floor. He had 17 points on 10 shots and turned the ball over seven times in 18 minutes. Ivey gets a usage boost when Cade Cunningham is out, but the Pistons have to keep the game close for him to play enough minutes for that to matter.

It’s unclear how much longer Cunningham will be sidelined, but this will be a third straight absence for him following his early exit last Thursday. Malik Beasley should continue to start in his place and provide plenty of 3-pointers, while Jaden Ivey should see a usage boost.