Ochai

Agbaji

Agbaji’s 24 points and six 3-pointers are a season-high. He’s averaging just 11.8 points and 1.7 3-pointers per game this year. With Gradey Dick out, Agbaji went off, but he simply can’t be counted on for scoring like this regularly. It would take a few more performances like this for him to establish a bigger role in the offense.

Brown hasn’t played yet this season, but he is now being listed as out due to reconditioning, not because of his offseason knee surgery. This is a step in the right direction, but it isn’t clear when he’ll actually be back in the lineup.

In Barnes’ return, it won’t be Agbaji that gets demoted to a reserve role. Davion Mitchell, who had been starting at point guard in place of Immanuel Quickley, will return to coming off the bench. He should still play plenty of minutes, but the streaming appeal isn’t there anymore.

Barnes will be back after an 11-game absence, which is great news for the managers that drafted him early. Ochai Agbaji has been part of the starting unit, but he will likely be pushed to the bench, with RJ Barrett also taking a usage hit.

Agbaji has had a productive season for Toronto this year, which continued in this game. He contributed value across the board and had a much better shooting night after three straight games making less than 40% of his shot attempts. Agbaji is currently available in 62% of Yahoo leagues but should be a solid streaming option until the team starts to get healthier. He had a hot scoring stretch a couple weeks ago, and while he can’t be relied on for that many points often, the defensive numbers and 3-pointers should be there consistently.

Barnes was injured during an October 28 loss to the Nuggets, with it being announced that he would miss at least three weeks. Tuesday would be that point in the recovery process, so the Raptors (and fantasy managers) will better understand how much Barnes has progressed. Ochai Agbaji will remain in the starting lineup while Barnes sits.

Agbaji had a tough assignment on Saturday, as he was the player most responsible for guarding Jayson Tatum. While he did a good job overall, the final image of Saturday’s overtime thriller was Tatum cashing a three over Agbaji’s outstretched hand. However, this should not dampen his start, as Agbaji is providing top 75 per-game value in 9-cat formats. Few, if any, fantasy managers expected that before the season began.

Agbaji was among the few Raptors who had an effective two games in Los Angeles County. Counting Saturday’s loss to the Clippers, he scored 37 points on 14-of-21 shooting from the field while also making seven 3-pointers. Filling the void left by Scottie Barnes, Agbaji has been a 3rd-round player over the last week. He’s rostered in 37% of Yahoo leagues, and if not for the Raptors’ upcoming three-game week, Agbaji would be an excellent player to add.

Regarding fantasy basketball, Agbaji has been far better than anyone anticipated before the season began. He’s ranked just outside the top-50 in 9-cat per game value, falling outside the top 75 in 8-cat. Agbaji’s worth a look, especially in deeper leagues, as Scottie Barnes is a few weeks away from returning.

Barnes was injured during Toronto’s October 28 loss to Denver when he took a shot to the face in the game’s final minute. He received some good news on Monday regarding not needing surgery, and he will be re-evaluated in another two weeks. Ochai Agbaji started the Raptors’ most recent game and will have additional value in deeper leagues.