It’s another edition of fantasy basketball category analysis. I’m not the Exalted One or anything like that, but you should back up your Big Rig and pick up these players to help you go to the light, and not to the dark, to get ahead in your league. Some will bang under the basket like Bruiser Brodie, while others will give a quiet contribution like Courtney Lee.
Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, a lot has changed in two weeks, but we need to stay two steps with our moves to stay competitive and not get our heads taken off by a spinning lariat.
Rest in Peace, Brodie
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Every other week, we’ll be looking at players who are widely available and rostered in fewer than 60 percent of fantasy leagues on Yahoo. We’ll be focusing on 8-cat leagues because turnovers are a waste of a category, to be honest. We’ll be looking at players who can help you in each of the eight categories you can get before your league-mates catch on.
The eight categories we’ll focus on each week are:
- Points
- Rebounds
- Assists
- Steals
- Blocks
- Threes
- Field-goal percentage
- Free-throw percentage
Let’s get to it.
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Points
Lu Dort (SG/SF – OKC) 45% rostered
Two weeks ago, Dort’s teammate, Darius Bazley, was in this spot, and he’ll return, no doubt. But let’s shift over to Dort, who broke out the day after Christmas, recording 15, 26, and 15 points in his three-game stretch between the holidays. He’s looked to be the second option behind Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in Oklahoma, and he will be, at worst, the third option behind SGA and Bazley moving forward. He’s a fun player to roster, but more importantly, he’s a good player to roster.
Rebounds
De’Andre Hunter (SF/PF – ATL) 57% rostered
The sportsbooks haven’t caught up to Hunter yet, and it seems like fantasy players haven’t, either. With the number of injuries the Hawks have had so far, Hunter has been the biggest benefactor, as he’s been a threat from the floor and behind the arc and has hit the over on his rebounds total in his past five games.
Assists
Tyrese Haliburton (PG/SG – SAC) 46% rostered
So his game couldn’t transition well, eh? Haliburton has been a standout as a rookie, but he’s going to miss a couple of games after suffering a bone bruise to the same wrist he hurt in college. He’s worth stashing, though, as the injury doesn’t sound too serious, and he’s been phenomenal both on and off-ball, averaging four assists per game but recording five or more in three of his games this year. How did he fall to No. 12?
Steals
De’Anthony Melton (PG/SG – MEM) 6% rostered
The loss of Ja Morant has been a huge blow to Memphis, as they are already without Jaren Jackson, Jr. The good news, though, is that neither are long-term injuries, and Melton just got the green light to start his season. He was a mainstay in this column last year, and while he never reached Christian Wood levels, he is a consistent contributor for steals.
Blocks
Bismack Biyombo (C – CHA) 32% rostered
With Cody Zeller out for another 3-5 weeks, Biyombo is a must-roster player. He’s boring, but boring produces results. He’s flirted with a double-double in nearly every game since Zeller went on the shelf, and he’s averaged a block per game so far this season. You can drop him the second Zeller returns, but ride the wave until then.
Threes
Justin Holiday (SG/SF – IND) 11%
When T.J. Warren went down with an injury, people were rushing to grab Aaron Holiday or Doug McDermott, but it’s Aaron’s brother Justin who you want on your roster. He showed a little bit of what he’s capable of Saturday as he hit four three-pointers – his only points of the game – in a loss to the Knicks. He’s the definition of a streamer, but Warren could miss a significant chunk of time, making Holiday valuable in deeper leagues.
Field-goal percentage
Robert Williams (C – BOS) 16% rostered
Daniel Theis isn’t the answer. Tristan Thompson really isn’t, either. Is Robert Williams? Possibly, and it’s time to find out, as Williams has been getting more run of late with the Celtics. He’s shooting 74 percent from the field heading into Monday’s game.
Free-throw percentage
Payton Pritchard (PG – BOS) 5% rostered
Post-draft, Malachi Flynn looked like the “of course” player who was drafted late who would immediately contribute due to his landing spot in Toronto. But while Flynn has struggled to find his footing, Pritchard has already become a cult-type figure in Boston. With Kemba Walker hurt and Jeff Teague having an up-and-down season, Pritchard has (heading into Monday) played 21 or more minutes in four straight games, essentially Wally Pipping Teague as the Boston guard to own until Walker returns. He was an 80 percent free-throw shooter at Oregon.
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Michael Waterloo is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Michael, check out his archive and follow him @MichaelWaterloo.
