Jose

Alvarado

Williamson can’t play in the second leg of back-to-backs and McCollum is resting. Jose Alvarado has a strong chance to start at point guard but New Orleans could replace Williamson in a variety of ways.

Thursday’s game is the first of two in as many nights the Pelicans will play in Phoenix, so some availability issues were expected. Olynyk’s absence is more impactful, opening up a place within the starting lineup. Karlo Matkovic and Jose Alvarado are potential replacements. Both will have added value whether they start or come off the bench, as Brown is one of the Pelicans’ better reserves.

Alvarado has come off the bench for the last two games, and the production has been a mixed bag. After offering little fantasy value in Friday’s loss to the Mavericks, he was far better against the Spurs. In addition to shooting 50 percent from the field, Alvarado tallied nine rebounds and eight assists, with the former representing a season-high. Rostered in 28 percent of Yahoo! leagues, “Grand Theft Alvarado” has provided top 75 value in eight-cat formats. He doesn’t need to be a fixture in the starting lineup to be worth rostering with Dejounte Murray (Achilles) out for the season.

Olynyk will make his first start as a Pelican in one of two changes to the lineup that started New Orleans’ final game before the All-Star break. He fills the void left by Javonte Green, who was waived earlier this week. The other change is Williamson, who returns to action after sitting out the February 13 win over Sacramento. Jose Alvarado heads to the bench but should continue to figure prominently in the rotation.

Alvarado was excellent during Wednesday’s loss to the Kings, and he picked up right where he left off in Thursday’s rematch. During this two game set in Sacramento, Alvarado averaged 18.0 points, four rebounds, 8.5 assists, 2.5 steals and 3.5 three-pointers while turning the ball over just once. Dejounte Murray (Achilles) is done for the season, but Alvarado is still available in 75 percent of Yahoo! leagues. Assists and steals will be his most consistent categories, but the recent scoring boost has been great.

McCollum will return to the Pelicans’ lineup on Wednesday after missing Monday’s loss to the Thunder for personal reasons. New Orleans went with a bigger starting five in CJ’s absence, promoting Karlo Matkovic. Either he or Jose Alvarado will head to the bench.

With McCollum sidelined, Jordan Hawkins will likely be the one that slides into the starting lineup. He was held scoreless in 18 minutes in their last game, but Hawkins is worth considering as a streamer if he starts. Jose Alvarado should see a bump in minutes as well, and he’ll continue to be the team’s primary playmaker.

After missing Wednesday’s game against Denver, Alvarado returned to the lineup for this one. He was also inserted into the starting unit for the first time since November. Alvarado took advantage of the opportunity and provided excellent value in both assists and steals. With Dejounte Murray (Achilles) done for the season, Alvarado should be able to supply value in both categories for the remainder of the season, as long as he continues to start.

Alvarado moves into the starting lineup, as the Pelicans will go with a true point guard to account for Dejounte Murray (Achilles) being done for the season. Rookie Karlo Matkovic heads to the bench but should play rotation minutes off the bench. Unfortunately, he loses whatever streaming value he possessed with this lineup change.

Alvarado will return to the Pelicans’ rotation, and he could see big minutes with Dejounte Murray sidelined.