The In-Season Tournament is over, so we're all back to a full week of fantasy basketball with games that will count on Saturday and Sunday.
Given the uptick in activity, we'll have a clearer idea on what to anticipate this week from a fantasy perspective.
Top Fantasy Friendly Team This Week: Milwaukee Bucks
The Milwaukee Bucks have four games this week, and they're all at home.
- Monday: Chicago Bulls
- Wednesday: Indiana Pacers
- Saturday: Detroit Pistons
- Sunday: Houston Rockets
The Bulls did beat the Bucks recently, but they aren't very good (by NBA standards). The Pacers' league-best pace will be fantasy-friendly for opponents all season. The Pistons… woof… and the Rockets are only good at home, save for Friday's random road win over the Denver Nuggets, their first of the season.
Schedule-wise, this is what you want if you have and or want to stream a Buck. It's a get-right portion of their schedule, where they're embarking on a six-game home stretch against teams they should beat.
GiannisAntetokoumnpo, Damian Lillard and Brook Lopez are easy decisions. Khris Middleton is finally starting to get real minutes, logging 30 for the first time this season on Thursday. Even if he sits a game this week, he should give you solid production.
Must Plays: Giannis Antetokoumnpo, Damian Lillard, Brook Lopez, Khris Middleton
Waiver Wire Candidates:Bobby Portis (possible hold), Malik Beasley
Deep League Streamers: Cameron Payne, MarJon Beauchamp. (Both are very low-end options purely for volume, but decent enough to fill out a roster in deep leagues, especially if the Bucks run away with a game or two this week.)
Top Fantasy Un-Friendly Team This Week: Oklahoma City Thunder
Because of the In-Season Tournament, most teams play four games this week. The Oklahoma City Thunder do not.
Unfortunately, as great as the Thunder have been this regular season, fantasy-wise, they've been much less tantalizing than expected going into the 2023-24 campaign.
Their three games this week are as follows:
- Monday vs. Utah Jazz
- Thursday at Sacramento Kings
- Saturday at Denver Nuggets
Two difficult contests on the road, and moreover, there are only three nightly lineup locks on this team. That's it. You trust three guys on this team — from a fantasy perspective — night in and night out: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams.
In previous weeks, I've already detailed Lu Dort and Josh Giddey's inconsistencies, and not much has changed.
Absolute Keepers: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren, Jalen Williams
Underwhelmers: Josh Giddey, Lu Dort
Curious But Too Inconsistent: Isaiah Joe, Cason Wallace
INJURY PIVOTS
G Kyrie Irving
Dallas Mavericks
Irving is out with a heel contusion for an undetermined amount of time, and the Mavericks have four games this week, beginning with a back-to-back on Monday and Tuesday.
Team Pivots: Tim Hardaway Jr., Dante Exum
Waiver Wire Pivots: Killian Hayes, Caleb Martin, Kyle Lowry
C Bam Adebayo
Miami Heat
Adebayo's been dealing with a hip injury, but he'll at least be able to travel with the Heat to Charlotte on Monday, though he'll miss his fourth straight game, potentially and counting. The Heat host Charlotte on Wednesday, then welcome Chicago to Miami, whom they'll play on Thursday and Saturday.
Team Pivots: Jaime Jaquez Jr., Orlando Robinson, Kevin Love
Waiver Wire Pivots: Naz Reid, Al Horford, Isaiah Hartenstein (Mitchell Robinson is hurt!)
F Jerami Grant
Portland Trail Blazers
Grant has a concussion and won't travel with the team to Los Angeles on Monday. They also have games on Thursday, Saturday and Sunday — all at home.
Team Pivots: Matisse Thybulle, Toumani Camara
Waiver Wire Pivots: Saddiq Bey, Naz Reid, Al Horford
RISERS
G Killian Hayes
Detroit Pistons
Killian Hayes is still starting, and has been playing better, so he's worth putting on your waiver wire radar.
Hayes is averaging 10.0 points, 4.3 assists and 3.1 rebounds per contest in 21 appearances this season on 44/31/68 shooting. This year, he's started 17 of those outings, and is currently playing out his best stretch of the season. Hayes is averaging 16.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.8 stocks over his last four games, where he's shooting 58/44/44.
The truth is probably somewhere in the middle, but Hayes is viable as a streaming option this week and has four games between Monday and Saturday, including a home game against the Indiana Pacers.
C Isaiah Hartenstein
New York Knicks
Mitchell Robinson is injured with ankle inflammation and is out for Monday's game against the Toronto Raptors. In fantasy football, Robinson would be the running back you'd always want to handcuff with his backup. Robinson played 59 games last season and 31 three seasons ago. Isaiah Hartenstein is a quality backup and a capable starter.
Because Robinson left the Knicks game against the Celtics early on Friday, Hartenstein logged 29 minutes, recording five points, 16 rebounds, four assists and two blocks. Expect Hartenstein to be a stat-sheet stuffer, even if he might not break double figures in scoring. He could be in for a big week if Robinson is out for an extended period.
FALLERS
G Immanuel Quickley
New York Knicks
Hartenstein's teammate, however, is still struggling with consistency. I've dropped, picked up and dropped and picked back up Quickley this season already. I still have him on one of my two teams (which are 6-1 and 5-2, respectively). Quickley's minutes have dropped to 24.2 per game, way down from 28.9 per contest last season. Quickley has averaged 13.8 points and 1.3 assists per game while logging 22.5 minutes over his last nine, shooting 37/33/93.
He'll get hot at some point, but it's been a very underwhelming first 20 or so games. If your team is outstanding and could afford to wait it out, power to you, it's just hard to see what his best looks like this season in his current sixth man role.
F Andrew Wiggins
Golden State Warriors
Andrew Wiggins is averaging just 12.6 points and 4.4 boards per game on 42/28/63 shooting. He's been bad fantasy-wise, and has played to a completely droppable level to this point.
It's a massive decline from where he's been as a Warrior, and he is in the midst of his worst career season. This team is in need of a shakeup, and while it may not come for several weeks, Wiggins' lack of production would be a reason why. Maybe he turns it around, but if you can't afford to wait, just don't.
