The LA Clippers made the news (and this space) last week when their game against the Houston Rockets got chippy enough for the tension to spill into the locker rooms after the game. However, very quietly, the Clippers have been making noise on the court as well, winning six of their last seven and 10 of their last 13 games overall. In the process, they've become surprisingly fantasy friendly and therefore worth spending a bit of time with to start the week. Let's start at the top ... and not with the player that was expected to occupy that spot this season.
Lou Williams is playing the best basketball of his life and is a legitimate NBA All-Star candidate this season. Last week, several of my ESPN Fantasy co-writers debated whether they would rather have Williams or Kyle Lowry for the rest of the season. This would have been an unheard of comparison to start the season, when Lowry had an ADP of 28 and Williams had an ADP of 94.4.
However, during the last month, Williams has averaged 30.2 points, 5.5 assists, 4.1 3-pointers, 2.3 rebounds and 1.5 steals while shooting 46.8 percent from the field on 19.7 shots and 92.1 percent from the line on 8.4 free throw attempts. He is rated second on the ESPN Player Rater for the month, behind only Karl-Anthony Towns. And then, this weekend, this happened:
Lou Williams is the first player with 30 points and 10 steals in a single game since Michael Jordan in January 1988. pic.twitter.com/wCER0BFbSi
- ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) January 21, 2018
Any time one does something that hasn't happened in 30 years, last done by MJ, one is having a good night. And frankly, I see no reason that Williams slows down any time soon outside of a trade sending him out of town, because the rest of the Clippers have fallen in behind him. Including Blake Griffin.
Griffin was supposed to be the heir apparent in Clipperland with the departure of Chris Paul, and he started the season as the highest usage player on the team. However, he has been back for 10 of the last 12 games, and he has smoothly transition to the second option on the team behind Williams. His averages of 20.2 points (46.3 FG%, 81 FT%), 7.6 rebounds, 5.6 assists and 1.3 treys during that stretch are still strong all-around numbers, but more importantly, the team is winning and he seems to fit into that second slot a lot more comfortably than he did the lead chair.
DeAndre Jordan is the usual third option, and he's still a fantasy stalwart because his strengths (rebounding, blocked shots) are the weaknesses in the lead guys, while the attention that Williams and Griffin draw from opposing defenses make it easy for Jordan to maintain his high field goal percentage with almost all dunks. (I won't discuss his free throw percentage.)
However, Jordan is the member of the team most often mentioned in trade talk these days, and he's been injured for the past four games while the team has kept playing well. This is worth discussing, because in his absence, the Clippers have discovered a couple of other guys who are flirting with fantasy relevance. Montrezl Harrell (available in 93.9 percent of leagues) has come off the bench, while Willie Reed has started in Jordan's place, but Harrell is the one who has stepped up his production of late with averages of 15.2 points, 6 rebounds and 2 combined blocks/steals during his past six games.
Wesley Johnson (available in 95.3 percent of leagues) has also played well in Jordan's absence, with averages of 14.3 points, 8.7 rebounds and 1.7 blocks with 2.3 3-pointers during his past three games. Add in guys like Milos Teodosic (available in 86.2 percent of leagues; 11.2 points, 5.8 assists, 2.8 3-pointers, 2.8 rebounds during his past five games since return from his latest injury), and the Clip Show has a lot of interesting parts right now.
Jordan's return would clearly eat into Harrell's production, and whenever Danilo Gallinari (glute) returns, it would hurt Johnson's production, but at the very least, they're worth short-term interest and perhaps long-term, if Jordan is in fact moved and Gallinari is unable to remain healthy ... again. And if Gallinari (available in 78.6 percent of leagues) does stay healthy this time, he's the one who suddenly becomes interesting in fantasy.
The Clippers seem to have found their new base of success built around Williams and Griffin, and they're providing a very fantasy-friendly environment for themselves and their teammates.
Sunday recap
Box scores
Highlights:
Kyrie Irving, Boston Celtics: 40 points (14-23 FG, 7-8 FT), 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 5 3-pointers, 1 block, 1 TO
Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, Brooklyn Nets: 21 points (8-15 FG, 3-4 FT), 8 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 3-pointers, 1 block, 1 TO
Jordan Clarkson, Los Angeles Lakers: 29 points (12-19 FG, 4-5 FT), 10 assists, 6 rebounds, 3 steals, 1 3-pointer, 1 TO
Lowlights:
Bismack Biyombo, Orlando Magic: 4 points (1-1 FG, 2-2 FT), 3 blocks
Avery Bradley, Detroit Pistons: 7 points (3-12 FG, 1-1 FT), 1 rebound, 1 assist, 1 TO
Tyler Ennis & Josh Hart, Los Angeles Lakers: 0 points (0-3 FG), 2 assists, 1 rebound, 1 steal, 1 block, 28 total minutes
Domantas Sabonis, Indiana Pacers: 9 points (28- FG, 5-6 FT), 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 5 PF
Danny Green, San Antonio Spurs: 5 points (2-9 FG), 3 assists, 1 rebound, 1 3-pointer, 1 TO
Sunday takeaways
When the Celtics lost to the 76ers last week without Irving, the thought was that when he returned he would revitalize the offense. Irving brought his own mega offense when he returned, but the rest of the team didn't respond as anticipated. Jaylen Brown was solid with 17 points and seven rebounds, but Al Horford and Jayson Tatum combined for only 18 points on 22 shots to sink the unit. Interestingly, Marcus Morris moved back into the starting lineup in place of the ill Aron Baynes, but his 12 points in 26 minutes was very similar to the 13.2 points in 26 minutes that he averaged during the four games before off the bench.
The Nets got strong Sunday performances from Hollis-Jefferson, Spencer Dinwiddie (22 points, 5 assists, 4 rebounds, 4 3-pointers) and DeMarre Carroll (16 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 3-pointers, 1 steal). Caris LeVert was pedestrian on Sunday (9 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists) but has his good games as well. It will be interesting to see how their group dynamic changes with the return, and eventual rise, of D'Angelo Russell, who played 14 minutes off the bench with only three points and one assist on Sunday.
The Lakers had been winless in games without Lonzo Ball this season until their past two outings, both of which saw monster games from Clarkson (available in 51.9 percent of leagues). He has averaged 31.0 points, 8.5 assists and 6.5 rebounds in those two games -- unsustainable numbers, but perhaps ones that suggest that he should have a larger role even when Ball (knee) and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (Achilles) are available.
Sabonis has been a strong injury sub for Myles Turner. His weak effort on Sunday is as much about facing a strong Spurs defense than it is about weakness on his part.
Injuries of note
Jordan has been ruled out of Monday's game against the Minnesota Timberwolves; his fifth missed game in a row. As mentioned above, Harrell and Johnson are worth considering for streaming/DFS purposes in his absence.
The Memphis Grizzlies are wracked with injuries. JaMychal Green (ankle) is listed as out for Monday, and Jarell Martin (left hand) is listed as questionable. James Ennis III (calf) and Chandler Parsons (calf) are still out, and Dillon Brooks (illness) is listed as questionable. The Grizzlies could therefore have major holes in their frontcourt on Monday, allowing little-used players such as rookie Ivan Rabb or Deyonta Davis to see additional minutes in the frontcourt -- both are available in essentially all leagues. In the backcourt, Mario Chalmers (shoulder) is questionable, but Andrew Harrison (shoulder) is probable and could get more minutes than usual if Chalmers sits. Wayne Selden (available in 99.5 percent of leagues) took advantage of the extra opportunity on Saturday, popping for 31 points (11-16 FG, 4-4 FT), 5 3-pointers, 2 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 TO in 26.4 minutes of action.
Analytics advantage for Monday
Per 82games.com, the Milwaukee Bucks' defense has allowed 117.6 points per 100 possessions with Giannis Antetokounmpo off the court. Meanwhile, their Monday opponents, the Phoenix Suns, allow 112.1 points per 100 possessions, tied for second-most in the NBA. With Antetokounmpo out of the game, this one projects as a scoring fest with huge numbers allowed by terrible defenses on both sides. This would seem to be an excellent game to find potential streamers or to stock your DFS teams with on Monday night.
Top players to watch tonight
Antetokounmpo is going to miss Monday's game with a sore knee. He missed Saturday as well, and Khris Middleton was the one to explode with a 23-point, 14-rebound, 10-assist triple-double. Eric Bledsoe was quieter on Saturday but also has the upside to step up in Antetokounmpo's absence, especially against his former team, the Suns. The last time that Bledsoe faced the Suns, also with Antetokounmpo on the bench, he detonated for 30 points, 7 assists, 6 rebounds and 2 steals in a November win.
James Harden will be in the third game of his comeback from injury, after playing 34 minutes on Saturday against the Warriors. Harden was solid with 22 points and eight assists on Saturday, and running mate CP3 was dominant with 33 points, 11 rebounds, 7 assists, 6 3-pointers and 3 steals. They take their dynamic duo action up against the red-hot and defensively stingy Miami Heat on Monday.
