A Wednesday evening in Indianapolis included the season debut of the Brooklyn Nets' Kyrie Irving and a rousing return to the Gainbridge Fieldhouse for Lance Stephenson. Irving, who remains eligible only during Brooklyn's road games, was quiet for much of the contest before delivering a game-high 10 points in a successful fourth-quarter comeback bid for Brooklyn.
The Nets' mercurial superstar finished the victory with 22 points on 17 shots and consumed a robust usage rate of 28.4%, similar to last season's 30.4% clip. James Harden, meanwhile, posted his second-lowest usage rate of the season at just 19%, suggesting there will be some statistical sacrifice to consider with this star-laden backcourt. The most actionable take might just be that Irving will undoubtedly prove fantasy-relevant whenever active.
Stephenson immediately made his presence felt with 20 points in his first six minutes of action last night. While Indiana suffered its sixth straight loss, the franchise's longest losing streak in five seasons, Stephenson finished the game with 30 points. It's unlikely he will look like Steph Curry from beyond the arc going forward, but given what should be a busy bench role, he could flirt with fantasy value while the rotation is so depleted.
Wednesday recap
Highlights
Bogdan Bogdanovic, Utah Jazz: 36 points (12-20 FG), 13 rebounds, 4 assists
Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets: 26 points (10-17 FG), 21 rebounds, 11 assists, 2 blocks
Lowlights
D'Angelo Russell, Minnesota Timberwolves: 6 points (3-12 FG), 2 rebounds, 3 assists
Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics: 19 points (6-20 FG), 8 rebounds, 3 assists
Wednesday takeaways
With CJ McCollum sidelined the past several weeks and Damian Lillard still dealing with a lingering core injury, the Trail Blazers have won just four of their last 19 games. A rare positive for Portland has been the play of young guard Anfernee Simons, who posted a game-high 28 points in a loss to Miami and has 71 points across his last two appearances. It's unlikely Simons sustains much value once the team's tandem of veteran guards is back in the fold, but he's proving quite productive in the interim.
In downing Portland, Miami netted another big line from rookie center Omer Yurtseven, who compiled 14 points and 16 rebounds to give him three straight games with at least 15 boards, the longest such streak by a Heat player since Hassan Whiteside in 2017.
Nikola Jokic continues to post absurd offensive numbers. Denver's do-everything center tallied his fourth career triple-double with at least 20 rebounds and 10 assists, tying Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the most since 1970. Denver wing Will Barton remains a free agent in nearly a third of leagues and yet has been productive as a complementary playmaker in recent games, including last night's 20 points and five dimes.
Injuries of note
The Warriors list Stephen Curry as doubtful to play this evening in New Orleans due to a quad injury. Jordan Poole figures to take on a larger scoring role if Curry rests.
The Clippers won't have Paul George or Luke Kennard for the matchup against the Suns, which means Marcus Morris Sr. is an ideal plug-and-play option, given he's averaged 21.1 points and 7.0 rebounds during his last six appearances.
Analytics advantage for Thursday
The Knicks' Derrick Rose and Kemba Walker will miss tonight's home meeting with the Celtics due to respective injuries.
Alec Burks has averaged 17 points and three steals during his last four outings and has enjoyed a worthy uptick in usage rate this season whenever both Rose and Walker have missed time. Burks makes for a solid streaming option during tonight's four-game slate, and he's available in more than 80% of ESPN leagues.
DFS discussion
Brandon Clarke, Memphis Grizzlies: With at least 22 minutes of run in each of the last three games and at least 27.75 DraftKings points in each of those outings, Clarke is positioned to exceed his reasonable price point against a Detroit team that ranks 28th in rebounding percentage.
Gary Payton II, Golden State Warriors: While the fantasy market is already quite aware of how effectively Jordan Poole can produce when given the opportunity, Payton has flown under the radar with double-digit scoring results in eight straight to go with strong rebounding and defensive rates. With Curry likely sidelined tonight, Payton could thrive in a larger role against a soft defensive backcourt for New Orleans.
