Jock

Landale

Both of Houston’s veterans will sit out the season finale, since they have been eliminated from the postseason for a little while now. Cam Whitmore should slide into the starting unit in place of Brooks, while Jock Landale will remain in the starting unit in place of FVV, with Amen Thompson filling the point guard minutes.

Smith is back after serving a one-game suspension against Portland on Monday. This has been their typical starting unit since Alperen Sengun went down, and that should continue for the rest of the season. Jock Landale got the start on Monday, but he will return to a reserve role in this game.

Landale got off to a scorching hot start on Monday and ended the first quarter with 15 points and two triples on 5-on-5 shooting. While he didn’t do as much scoring after that, it still ended up being a solid night. Landale got the start in place of Jabari Smith Jr., who was hit with a one-game suspension after getting into an altercation with Kris Dunn this weekend. Smith should be back for their next game on Wednesday, which will push Landale back to the bench. He has still played really well as a reserve since Alperen Sengun went down, but his upside will be capped by coming off the bench.

Jabari Smith Jr. will not play in this game as he is serving a one-game suspension due to an altercation with Kris Dunn on Saturday. Landale has been producing solid value off the bench lately, and he should certainly be streamed for this game in a starting role.

Smith and Dunn got into an altercation during the second quarter of Saturday’s game, with both being ruled to have thrown a punch. Smith will sit out Monday’s game against the Trail Blazers, with Jeff Green and Jock Landale being the players most likely to absorb his minutes. Whichever one receives the starting nod is worth streaming in that spot.

Landale’s minutes have increased since the Rockets lost Alperen Sengun to a severely sprained ankle, and there have been nights when he has provided tangible fantasy value. Thursday was one of those occasions, as Jabari Smith Jr.'s foul trouble opened the door for Landale. Smith was limited to 22 minutes, scoring five points (2-of-10 FGs, 1-of-1 FTs) and grabbing seven rebounds. Landale picked up the slack, finishing with his first double-double and season-highs in points, rebounds, and assists. Rostered in 16% of Yahoo leagues, he has provided top-75 per-game value in 9-cat formats over the past two weeks.

This was Houston’s first game without Alperen Sengun, and while Landale didn’t move into the starting lineup, he did see a major uptick in minutes. He logged more than 20 minutes for the first time this season, which led to him scoring in double figures for the first time this year. Landale may eventually move into the starting lineup, but since their next game is against Washington, Ime Udoka could opt to use Jabari Smith at center to match up with Kyle Kuzma. Their following game is against Cleveland, which will be a game that they certainly have to depend on Landale to battle down low against Jarrett Allen.

Sengun was injured during the fourth quarter of Sunday’s win over the Kings, and a wheelchair was needed to transport him back to the locker room. What appeared to be a severe leg injury has been diagnosed as a bone bruise and severely sprained ankle, so Sengun and the Rockets dodged a bullet. A timeline for return has not been determined, but Jock Landale could be the replacement in the starting lineup. However, fantasy managers would be better served to commit to Amen Thompson or Cam Whitmore. with the former boasting a higher fantasy ceiling.

Sengun’s right leg appeared to buckle when he landed after attempting to block a Domantas Sabonis shot at the rim. Rockets trainers used a wheelchair to take the third-year center to the locker room, which is not a good sign. If Sengun misses time, Jock Landale would take on an increased workload and is worth streaming in deep leagues.

Green is active after sitting out Wednesday’s loss to the Clippers, and his return should drop Jock Landale out of the rotation. Neither has been productive enough to impact fantasy basketball this season, so there’s no need to roster them.