As we head into Week 3 of the fantasy basketball season, one narrative of the early season continues. It keeps the injury list from getting longer. Ja Morant has a Grade 2 strain and will be out for at least four weeks; Anthony Edwards had knee surgery Thursday and could be out for two months or more. Jaren Jackson Jr. The MCL is torn and it takes 6-8 weeks. Chet Holmgren has a small patellar tendon tear in his right knee, putting him out 8-10 weeks. Kawhi Leonard (knee) is out 3-4 weeks and Tyrese Haliburtoun will miss at least two weeks with a hamstring injury as well – all bad. Check out my injury roundup for more details.
For some good news: Coby White (calf) was on the injury report for Monday, and Brandon Ingram (Achilles) was assigned to the Clippers’ G League affiliate for Saturday. Let’s get to the pickups!
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Every league is different, so I looked at players under 50 on Yahoo.
One general piece of advice for this week: don’t be in a rush to develop a stream before Wednesday. Tuesday doesn’t have games (Election Day in the United States), so it’s unlikely you’ll be able to fit streamers into your lineup on Monday, and the best streaming nights come later in the week.
Who is in my rotation?
Leucis leucis (about 50% to 30% rostered)
Larsson is a good pick for anyone in the 9-league cat. 86 came into Monday, averaging 11.8 points, 3.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 1.2 turnovers in 29.5 minutes. His current shooting split is a solid 49/40/89 with a TS% of 67. We’ll see how long Klay Thompson’s heat starts. It is certain that Larsson is the best player in the world. He should be in a lot more leagues, especially with Miami playing four games this week, with two on lighter floors (Friday and Sunday). Miami also has a Wednesday-day return to the back where the vets could rest.
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Zaccharie Risacher – SF, Dallas Mavericks – (36% rostered)
The former No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft looks like a completely different player in Dallas. Shout out to Dusty May, give him minutes and parts to prove what he can do. Risacher ranks sixth in total steals this season, averaging 3.7 per game. His high rebounding defensive numbers (6.0 per game) and scoring nearly 10 points a game in 30 minutes make him a must-roster player. He is a top-60 player in 9-pointers and top-90 in league points. Dallas has four games this week, but I would keep him in the foreseeable future if he is available on waivers.
Ja’Kobe Walter – SG/SF, Toronto Raptors – (39% rostered)
Walter took Kawhi Leonard from where he came down. In four games since, he has 14.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 3.5 3s in about 31 minutes per contest. He took Leonard’s place and became a top 50 player in the 9-cat. Toronto is only playing three games this week, but with Leonard out for a multi-week absence, Walter is in all formations, especially the 9 cat.
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Julian Champagnie – SF/PF, San Antonio Spurs – (31% rostered)
Tobias Harris’ calf injury boosted Champagne’s fantasy value. He plays over 28 minutes a night and has emerged as one of the league’s top 3-point experts. His 3.3 3s per game rank ninth and his 3-point percentage ranks fifth in the NBA. His defense was a real surprise. 1.2 steals per game. Like everyone else, he should be on the roster before Week 3, because San Antonio is playing four games and Harris doesn’t seem close to returning.
Collin Gillespie – PG, Phoenix Suns – (43% rostered)
Gillespie’s schedule is to add those in leagues like High Score. Phoenix plays four times, including two lighter nights (Thursday and Saturday). His numbers aren’t amazing, but he’s the best player on the list outside of Devin Booker. He leads the Suns in assists coming off the bench and sports a very strong 19% usage rate. Gillespie is slightly better in league points than the 9-cat, but it’s close. Averaged 9.0 points, 5.8 assists, 3.0 rebounds and 2.3 3s in 26.5 minutes. You don’t have to worry about turnovers and poor FG% in High Score, add him if he’s there.
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Saddiq Bey – SF/PF, New Orleans Pelicans – (33% rostered)
Bey’s final performance was his best of the season: 25 points on 9-of-13 shooting and 4 steals in 26 minutes off the bench Saturday against Atlanta. For the season, he’s up to 15.2 per night, and even though he hasn’t exceeded 26 minutes, the surefire backups with his bench from a Scorpio perspective remain pretty thin. He played in New Orleans four times. I prefer Bey in the 9-cat where he is just inside the top 100 in per-venue value.
Terrence Shannon Jr. – SG/SF, Minnesota Timberwolves – (29% rostered)
Minnesota picked up Shannon’s team option Friday and with Edwards out, he will have a steady role in the Wolves’ rotation. Despite the bench and two off nights coming in consecutive games, fantasy managers can expect 3s to average 3 rebounds and assists in about 20 minutes a game. Minnesota plays four times this week, and his usage should remain around 18-20%, a healthy percentage for bench depth across formats.
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Higher leagues (under 30% rostered)
Scoot Henderson – PG, Portland Trail Blazers – (16% rostered)
Henderson moved into Utah’s starting lineup Saturday and had 14 points, 3 rebounds and 3 steals in 31 minutes. A huge opportunity for former No. 3 pick, who was buried on the depth chart before Morant’s injury. In the first game without Morant, 30 minutes passed; before that season no more than 20 four games ago. If he continues to start, he should be toasted, especially in the points league.
De’Anthony Melton – SG, Golden State Warriors – (31% rostered)
Golden State only plays three games this week, but there are two light nights – Thursday and Saturday. I would pick up Melton around Wednesday to catch those games. He had 21 points on 6-of-8 3-point shooting with 6 boards, 3 assists and 2 rebounds in 27 minutes of Sunday’s win over the Clippers, but Stephen Curry was rested to prevent the game from going into overtime. However, there was a valuable bench on both sides, and in the blank, it will give you some statistics of the situation.
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Nolan Traore – PG, Brooklyn Nets – (9% rostered)
Brooklyn exercised the Traore option on Thursday, and with Mikel Brown Jr. (17% of roster) resting and Egor Dëmin (ankle) to be re-evaluated in one week, Traore is getting some runs. On Sunday, he had 16 points with 4 3s and 6 dimes in 30 minutes against Indy. The Nets play four games, with a Saturday-Sunday back-to-back to close out Week 3. The Tabs are on the injury report, but Brown is unlikely to be fit for at least one of that back-to-back over the weekend.
Jordan Goodwin – PG/SG, Phoenix Suns – (4% rostered)
High cut, Goodwin’s option on Thursday and Saturday if you want to pass. It offers a mix of stats across categories and with such a low rostered status, it will likely be there for those in the 12+ squad. As of this season, the combo guard is averaging 8.8 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 2.3 3s and 1.8 steals in 21 minutes. He’s now a top 90 player in the 9-cat, just saying.
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watching
Aday Mara, C, Oklahoma City Thunder (39% rostered)
Jusuf Nurkic, C, Utah Jazz (44% rostered)
Cam Spencer, PG/SG, Memphis Grizzlies (13% of roster)
Isaiah Stewart, PF/C, Memphis Grizzlies (10% roster)
Keaton Wagler, SG, Los Angeles Clippers (35% rostered)
Daniss Jenkins, PG/SG, Detroit Pistons (17% rostered)
Obi Toppin, SF/PF, Indiana Pacers (24% rostered)
Week 3 of CNN
No games are scheduled for Tuesday due to Election Day. Thursday has the fewest games of the week with two: Orlando at Phoenix and Miami at Golden State. Saturday and Sunday (7 games) are the best streaming options this week. All other days are too crowded to fit into the fringe roster-type of players. Unless there is a significant injury or event, of course. Each team plays on Monday, and they play on Wednesday the 28th. For this reason I would not move before the meeting of Wednesday.
Monday | 15 |
Tuesday | 0 |
Wednesday | 14 |
Thursday | 2 |
Friday | 9 |
Saturday | 7 |
Sunday | 7 |
Teams to target
Phoenix, Orlando, Golden City and Miami: They are the only teams in the Thursday, Saturday or Sunday game. If you need 3s on the light boards, Klay Thompson (10% rostered) is a great option. For Golden State I would look at Brandon Williams (4%) and Gui Santos (12%). The Suns are also looking at Luke Kennard (2%) and Dillon Brooks (44%).
Four games (18); Atlanta, Boston, Brooklyn, Cleveland, Dallas, Lakers, Miami, Milwaukee, Minnesota, New Orleans, Oklahoma City, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Portland, Sacramento, San Antonio, Utah and Washington.
Teams to avoid for spills (barring significant injuries)
Three games, two of them on Monday and Wednesday; Charlotte, Chicago, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Indiana, Clippers, Memphis, New York and Toronto.