The Sacramento Kings got a rare win on Wednesday night, edging out the equally moribund Brooklyn Nets by a score of 104-99. While the Kings may have one of the worst records in the NBA, they still have players that are interesting for fantasy purposes.
Of late, they have been led by Zach Randolph, who started and produced 21 points (8-11 FG, 4-4 FT), 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 block, 1 3-pointer and 3 TO in only 26 minutes of action. Randolph is a 16-year NBA veteran playing on a lottery-bound young team, so it would seem that at some point the Kings might move away from using him so heavily. Whether they opt to bench him more or to perhaps trade him away to a contender, either decision would likely lower Randolph's ceiling later in the season. As such, fantasy managers with Randolph on their roster should enjoy the current production, but also strongly consider trading him while his value is high.
Randolph's situation pairs well with Willie Cauley-Stein's outlook, as the young big man would seemingly be the greatest beneficiary if and when the Kings move away from Randolph. Cauley-Stein (available in 58 percent of leagues) started on Wednesday, producing a solid line of 13 points (5-9 FG, 3-4 FT), 9 rebounds and 2 assists in 31 minutes. Those numbers are very much in line with his recent production. However, Cauley-Stein finished strong last season as the primary big on Sacramento's roster with averages of 14.8 points and 10.2 rebounds in six April games. He could well have that same kind of upside in the later portions of this season.
George Hill (available in 61.8 percent of leagues) returned from a case of strep throat and took advantage of De'Aaron Fox's (quad) absence to produce 22 points (7-9 FG, 4-4 FT), 7 rebounds, 4 assists, 4 3-pointers and 3 TO in 35 minutes. Hill had been a much better fantasy producer in previous years, but splitting time and contributions with Fox this year has limited him. In a way, he fits the profile laid out above for Randolph. Seemingly, the Kings should eventually turn to giving Fox (available in 65.2 percent of leagues) more run, which could mean that Hill will also be either playing elsewhere or spending more time on the bench.
There are other young, inconsistent players with inconsistent production, but reasonable upside, on the Kings roster that are worthy of consideration as the season goes along. This includes Buddy Hield (shooter/scorer, available in 75.5 percent of leagues), Bogdan Bogdanovic (shooter/scorer, available in 93.5 percent of leagues) and rookie Justin Jackson (do-everything-wing, available in 87.5 percent of leagues).
Like most lottery-bound teams, as the season goes along for Sacramento, the younger players will potentially get more valuable as the veteran guys tend to move to the background.
Wednesday recap
Box scores
Highlights:
James Harden, Houston Rockets: 51 points (15-27 FG, 17-21 FT), 9 assists, 4 3-pointers, 3 rebounds, 1 block, 6 TO
Kyle Kuzma, Los Angeles Lakers: 38 points (12-17 FG, 7-10 FT), 7 rebounds, 7 3-pointers, 4 assists, 1 block
Kelly Olynyk, Miami Heat: 32 points (12-15 FG, 2-5 FT), 7 rebounds, 6 3-pointers, 2 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 4 TO
Jamal Murray, Denver Nuggets: 30 points (10-17 FG, 5-6 FT), 5 3-pointers, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 2 TO
Pau Gasol, San Antonio Spurs: 20 points (8-14 FG, 3-3 FT), 17 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 blocks, 1 3-pointer, 4 TO
OG Anunoby, Toronto Raptors: 20 points (7-9 FG, 0-1 FT), 6 3-pointers, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal
Lowlights:
Al Horford, Boston Celtics: 6 points (2-10 FG, 2-5 FT), 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 TO, 6 fouls, 27 minutes
Nicolas Batum, Charlotte Hornets: 0 points (0-1 FG), 5 assists, 2 rebounds, 1 TO, 26 minutes
Dennis Schroder, Atlanta Hawks: 8 points (4-15 FG), 8 assists, 3 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 TO
Ricky Rubio, Utah Jazz: 5 points (2-8 FG), 2 steals, 1 assist, 1 3-pointer, 5 TO, 25 minutes
Wednesday takeaways
Harden and Kuzma had a heck of a duel on Wednesday, combining for 89 points on only 44 field goal attempts. I had cautioned against the use of Harden in DFS leagues as he had recently taken a bit of a step back in order to allow Chris Paul to shine, but Paul was hobbled and eventually left the contest, ceding the stage back to Harden. On the other hand, I had lobbied for the DFS use of Kuzma because of how he's played of late, including his previous game against the Rockets.
There were 238 total points scored in that fantasy-friendly game, which allowed strong outings from Lonzo Ball (16 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 3-pointers, 2 blocks, 1 steal), Corey Brewer (available in 99.9 percent of leagues; 21 points, 5 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 3-pointers, 1 assist in 25 minutes off the bench) and Larry Nance Jr. (available in 78.9 percent of leagues; 13 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal in 22 minutes off the bench) for the Lakers. The Rockets got strong supporting games from Trevor Ariza (available in 30.6 percent of leagues; 18 points, 11 rebounds, 4 steals, 4 3-pointers, 3 assists, 1 block) and Eric Gordon (21 points, 5 3-pointers, 4 rebounds, 1 block, 1 steal in 36 minutes off the bench).
Olynyk (available in 83 percent of leagues) exploded against his former Celtics team on Wednesday, taking advantage of extra opportunities with so many of his teammates injured (see below). Josh Richardson (available in 74.1 percent of leagues) continued his strong play for the Heat with 19 points, 6 assists, 4 rebounds, 2 3-pointers and 1 steal on the night.
Murray (available in 49.8 percent of leagues) continues to be up-and-down, but both extremes are getting better. His two previous games were "down" games in which he averaged only 12.5 points, 2.5 treys and 2 assists. However, in the three games surrounding those contests, he's averaged 28.7 points, 4.3 treys and 3.3 assists to show his upside.
Anunoby (available in 99 percent of leagues) is having a strong rookie season, but his defensive "glue-guy" style doesn't generally generate the kind of production he had on Wednesday. Perhaps Toronto teammates DeMar DeRozan (28 points, 8 assists, 3 3-pointers, 2 rebounds) and Serge Ibaka (24 points, 5 rebounds, 2 3-pointers, 2 assists, 2 blocks) both had a better night, but Anunoby's performance was more noteworthy.
Batum has continued to struggle through physical issues as he tries to get back up to speed, and he continues to have as many bad games as good. On Wednesday, his struggles may have given Jeremy Lamb (available in 50.2 percent of leagues) more opportunity to pop off for 32 points (11-17 FG, 8-10 FT), 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 3-pointers, 1 block and 1 TO in 28 minutes off the bench.
Injuries of note
The Rockets were already without Clint Capela (heel) and Luc Mbah a Moute (dislocated shoulder) on Wednesday, but they also lost Chris Paul early in the fourth quarter with a left adductor strain. Paul's prognosis hasn't been released yet, but if he has to sit then James Harden and Eric Gordon are the obvious beneficiaries.
Damian Lillard collided with Pau Gasol and landed awkwardly on Wednesday, apparently injuring his left knee. He left the game for awhile and, though he was able to return later, he had a noticeable limp when he left the locker room. Consider him to be questionable until more information is released.
Kawhi Leonard and Tony Parker both sat on Wednesday as a "rest day" in the first half of a back-to-back. Leonard has been on a 15-17 minute limit since his return from injury, but there is some speculation that he will soon be able to play more minutes.
Donovan Mitchell sat Wednesday with a toe injury, and it is unclear whether he will be able to play on Thursday. The Jazz have a glut of point guard and wing options to play in his absence, but none of them played particularly well on Wednesday.
Goran Dragic didn't play on Wednesday night due to a left elbow injury. He joined Hassan Whiteside (knee), James Johnson (ankle) and Justise Winslow (knee) on the sidelines. Dragic has missed two straight games, ceding the starting point guard role to Tyler Johnson (available in 83.7 percent of leagues), who turned in 6 points (2-8 FG, 2-5 FT), 11 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals and 1 block on Wednesday night.
Analytics advantage for Thursday
The Chicago Bulls have been hitting the 3-pointer more often of late, with 24 made shots in the last two games. The Bulls get a lot of 3-pointers from their frontcourt, with each of Lauri Markkanen (available in 37.9 percent of leagues), Nikola Mirotic (available in 36.9 percent of leagues) and Bobby Portis (available in 69.8 percent of leagues) capable of volume production behind the arc. Their opponent tonight are the Cleveland Cavaliers, who have allowed the most made 3-pointers this season at 12 treys per game.
Mirotic has come in and electrified the Bulls, jump-starting their current seven-game win streak. However, Mirotic moved to the bench on Wednesday night with Markkanen back in the starting line-up. Mirotic still got his double-double off the bench, but can he continue to produce at this level if he continues to not start?
Top players to watch tonight
The Philadelphia 76ers frontcourt is always of interest, especially with Joel Embiid moving in and out of the lineup with back issues. He missed two games earlier this week, and there is a report that he may also miss the next two games before returning on Christmas. This isn't official, though, so he is still considered questionable for Thursday night. If he sits, it could mean added opportunity again for the talented Dario Saric (available in 27.6 percent of leagues), as well as more spot-work for Richaun Holmes (available in 92.9 percent of leagues) and possibly Amir Johnson (available in 99.4 percent of leagues).
Michael Beasley (available in 90.6 percent of leagues) has averaged 26.5 points, 7 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 2 blocks in his last two games while starting in place of Kristaps Porzingis. However, Porzingis is listed as questionable for Thursday, and said on Wednesday that he's nearly back to full-strength. He thinks he can play moving forward. Will he? More importantly, can Beasley continue to produce once "The Unicorn" is back in the lineup?
