Last night wasn’t a bad night of basketball by any stretch of the imagination, but it sure felt like the biggest news came in the form of non-update updates on Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook.  Durant went through a light workout and Westbrook took some shots with his surgically-repaired right hand.  The timetables haven’t changed on those guys, but suffering owners have to take what they can get at this point. 

With just four games on the slate last night, there’s some space to go with the Breakdown format so let’s get right to it.

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FOREVER YOUNG

Of course Nick Young would bring a sense of calm to the Lakers’ offense and temporarily their season, as he hit 6-of-10 shots (including two threes) for 17 points, five rebounds and one steal in 28 minutes.  I’ve been in the camp that believes he should be added despite a career of poor peripheral stats, as the Lakers desperately need what he can bring in terms of scoring and that should float some late-round value.  From there, if anything happens to Kobe Bryant at his advanced age the upside is just waiting to be cracked open. 

Carlos Boozer remained hot with a 20 and 10 night so ride him until the wheels fall off.  Jeremy Lin flashed his upside with 15 points on a judicious 6-of-7 shooting, adding three boards to go with two steals and a whopping 10 assists.  He has played his way into fantasy lineups with his recent surge and is returning top 75-100 value (8/9 cat) on the year.  Kobe made some amends on the shooting front with a 10-of-18 mark from the field, scoring 28 points with four rebounds, three assists, three treys and one steal. 

Ed Davis was quiet with just six points, seven boards and one steal in 22 minutes, and owners simply need to be patient as he’s a solid late-round value on the year.  Jordan Hill went for 18 and 10 but had no defensive stats for the fifth game in his last six contests.  His efficiency has also slipped as his RPMs hit the red at 30.1 mpg, with a 46.2 percent mark from the field to go with just 1.2 combined steals and blocks per game.  It all adds up to top-100 value, which might fool some folks fawning over popcorn stats.

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PAUL BEARING DOWN

The Hawks got a big-time performance out of Paul Millsap (29 points, 11-of-16 FGs, two threes, four boards, three assists, four steals, two blocks) but it wasn’t enough to thwart the Lakers on their home floor.  After a slow start he’s now rocking top 15-20 value and that’s a good look for the patient owner.  Next up on that front will be Al Horford (15 points, eight boards, 7-of-8 FGs, one three), who is a round or two below his projected value if he stays healthy. 

The Kyle Korver slowdown is probably underway and last night he hit just 2-of-6 shots (2-of-5 3PTs) for eight points, two boards, three assists and a block.  Jeff Teague scored 23 points on 8-of-14 shooting (including a three) but had just three assists in the rest of his box.  With just 0.6 threes per game he needs to pick it up somewhere to get back into early round territory in 8-cat leagues.  Thabo Sefolosha (10 points, nine boards, one steal, one three) had a serviceable night with DeMarre Carroll (groin) still out. 

DOIN THE SHUMPTY SHUMP

When the story of the night became Carmelo Anthony’s ongoing knee pain, even the staunchest supporters had to be wondering if his slow start this season is tied into it.  And then when one factors in the fact he has nothing to push himself for in a relatively meaningless season, of course the red lights and sirens were bound to go off.  If you didn’t get the story already, he says he has dealt with the pain all season and that it’s just something that he has to play through. 

Taking him at face value and seeing him get back on track shooting the ball, it’s not going to be comfortable but some patience is in order.  He hit 10-of-17 shots last night for 26 points, six rebounds, five assists and two threes as he continues to slow climb back to his early round habitat.  Top-20 players don’t grow on trees and to get one it takes the kind of semi-bold risk that owners are staring at right now on a buy low play.   I don’t have a crystal ball, but I think the conditions are right to pull the trigger on such a move.

J.R. Smith struggled in last night’s loss to the Bucks, hitting just 3-of-12 shots for nine points, three assists, two steals, one block and one three.  The resounding return of Iman Shumpert (21 points, 9-of-14 FGs, eight rebounds, eight assists, three steals, two threes) caps Smith’s upside completely, as I completely buried the lede here with the Shump.  I know historically he has some issues with injury risk and efficiency, but throw that stuff out the window as you Usain Bolt to pick him up.

Amare Stoudemire had a productive night with 14 points, five boards, four assists and two steals in his 24 minutes, so give him a look if you need a stop-gap forward.  Tim Hardaway Jr. got hot for 24 points on 9-of-14 shooting with three treys, two boards and two assists in 29 minutes.  Unless you’re in a straight points league he’s still not built for fantasy leagues due to his many deficiencies. 

BUCK SHOTS

Don’t look now but the Bucks have the fifth rated defense in the league and it’s going to take some serious film review to wrap my head around that.  They’re long and lithe and rotate a ton of bodies into the game, and like many of last year’s bad teams they’re surely sneaking up on folks.  But kudos go out to Milwaukee – when you’re playing for a new arena it’s good to see some effort. 

Larry Sanders (thigh) was a very late scratch but he’s traveling with the team and should be considered day-to-day.  Zaza Pachulia had one of his patented fill-in specials with 14 points, 13 rebounds, four assists and two steals, but he’ll only be worth a look in spot-duty if Sanders misses more time.  Jabari Parker (12 points, five boards, 24 minutes) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (13 points, six boards, 7-of-7 FTs, 18 minutes) are still more sizzle than steak in fantasy leagues this year.  They just don’t have the stat-set this season to justify must-hold status in competitive leagues. 

The corpse of Ersan Ilyasova showed out with 20 points on 8-of-10 shooting, three triples, two boards and a key shot late in a 20-minute effort.  He needs to get Carl’s Jr. Like a G6 hot to hit the radar.  Khris Middleton would look good on any number of small forward-needy teams, but he’s stuck on the Bucks and that’s going to lead to inconsistency all season.  He had another worthwhile night posting 13 points, three treys, seven boards and three assists in a 33-minute start.  He’s a speculative add in 14-team formats and that’s it for now. 

O.J. Mayo seems to have plateaued as last night’s 11 points, zero rebounds, six assists, one steal and one three in 23 minutes is a pretty common sight.  With Brandon Knight (14 points, 6-of-15 FGs, four rebounds, nine assists, one steal, one three) still producing at a top 15-40 pace (8/9 cat), there isn’t nearly as much need to tap Mayo for more if you’re Jason Kidd.  Owners should be looking more toward an injury to help Mayo out rather than a jump in utilization, and that’s not a great equation for upside in a dense Milwaukee rotation. 

As for Knight, he is clearly ahead of some career-long marks in percentages and that will probably catch up with him in the long run, but the overall shape of his numbers isn’t screaming regression.  If you want to give him a season-long top 30-60 evaluation in any sell-high situation I could get behind it. 

SERGEON GENERAL’S WARNING

We’ve discussed Serge Ibaka’s struggles for a bit now and he drove the point home in last night’s loss to the Jazz, hitting just 2-of-13 shots for six points, six rebounds, one steal, one block and one three.  He logged just 22 minutes and he has appeared exhausted almost every time I’ve flipped to a Thunder game.  This is super buy-low territory for a guy that will actually improve when Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant return, as his game is predicated on efficiency and energy on defense.  Right now he has neither. 

Steven Adams has bounced back a little bit after blowing most of his opportunity to shine while everybody has been out.  He scored 11 points on 5-of-9 shooting (1-of-4 FTs) with eight rebounds and two blocks in 27 minutes.  He’s still hanging around the bottom of the top-200 on the year, but it’s good to see him file some good games into his log. 

Reggie Jackson (10 points, 4-of-13 FGs, three boards, seven assists, one three) is on permanent sell-high status while there is meat on the bone.  It’ll be a tough sell but someone in the top 50-70 (8/9 cat) that’s well situated could get ahead of the curve.  Jeremy Lamb was active yet again and put up 19 points on 5-of-15 shooting with three treys, four rebounds, four assists, one steal, one block and a perfect six free throws.  It’s not efficient and owners spot-starting him need to look at his home-away splits, but he’s playing well enough to be owned in all leagues and started in most of them while he’s hot. 

Anthony Morrow had another disappointing night, with eight points on 2-of-7 shooting to go with five rebounds, two steals and one three in 34 minutes. He has hit just 7-of-31 shots since his explosive first game, and that’s a nice recipe for a bounce-back in the short-term. 

GUILTY FOR IMPERSONATING A BUTLER

The Jazz saw their top two guns get silenced as Gordon Hayward (4-of-12 FGs, 13 points, four rebounds, two assists, two steals, one three) and Derrick Favors (10 points, seven boards, one block) struggled but they still got the win.  That’s because they got big boosts from Alec Burks (20 points, 14 rebounds, three assists, one steal, two blocks, two threes, 8-of-9 FTs), Trey Burke (17 points, 7-of-17 FGs, three treys, nine assists, one steal, one block) and Enes Kanter (16 points, 15 boards, 4-of-8 FTs). 

The story is the same with Burks, whose lack of consistent peripheral stats will keep his upside in check, but if you needed a Jimmy Butler impersonation to rekindle the hope he gave it to you tonight.  It wouldn’t be surprising to see him make the proverbial jump too late this year, or more appropriately after another offseason in the kitchen experimenting.  Kanter backed his bad night at the stripe with zeroes in the usual areas, and is returning just borderline 14-team value on the season. 

No, I’m not dropping Rudy Gobert (six points, five rebounds, one steal) in 12-team leagues, as he’s a long-term stash for me and it’s way too early for that.  But I’m not going to stone anybody for moving on, as top 175-200 value so far makes him a frill for owners.  Burke has climbed back into legitimate 12-team value, and I mean legitimate in that he jumped back onto the right side of the cut line.  He probably finishes the season near the top-100 if I had to bet today, if anything because the second-year player is more likely than less likely to stay healthy. 

ENCINO MAN

Fresh off of giving away a nice potential road win in Portland, the Pelicans traveled to Sacramento for the tail-end of their back-to-back.  After a sluggish start they slowly picked apart the Kings, who did their part in combusting on their end, and in the end Steve Nebraska wasn’t to be denied.  Anthony Davis, that is, scored 28 points on 11-of-19 shooting (6-of-8 FTs) with nine rebounds, two steals and three blocks as he pulls away from the field in fantasy leagues.  He did come up limping after a play in the second half, but stayed in the game and showed no noticeable signs of it for the rest of the game.  The paranoia-pleasure ride rolls along. 

Tyreke Evans was held scoreless in the first half and came alive in the second, posting yet another juicy line of 18 points on 5-of-11 shooting with six rebounds, five assists, one three and a 7-of-8 mark from the line.  He’s hitting 47 percent of his threes on 1.4 makes per game, but low percentages have kept him from truly capitalizing as he returns top 70-100 value (8/9 cat) on the year. 

The Kings won’t be happy about being one of invisible Eric Gordon’s conquests, as the struggling guard hit 7-of-13 shots for 17 points, three treys, four assists and a steal.  Gordon needs a handful of these games to deserve standard league consideration.  Ryan Anderson returned to his hometown and hit 9-of-17 shots for 22 points, four threes, four boards, a steal and a block, and though New Orleans probably doesn’t want to part with him he sure would fit well in a Kings uniform. 

ALTERED BEAST

The Kings continue to be a buzz-worthy team in the NBA because DeMarcus Cousins is a beast and he is taking multiple steps forward on many different fronts.  Some quick housecleaning – Cousins developed some hip pain in warm-ups but looked fine during the game and owners will simply want to keep an eye on it.

The team itself has improved under the tutelage of Mike Malone, making everything just a bit crisper, but there are still significant issues facing the squad.  Namely, they still rely on just three offensive players just like last season, so if any of Cousins, Rudy Gay (6-of-17 FGs, 15 points, four rebounds, five assists, one steal), or Darren Collison (3-of-10 FGs, 13 points, 11 assists, two threes) goes cold or leaves the floor then everybody but Cousins becomes much easier to defend.  Defensively, they are touch-and-go as offensive struggles or early leads have been bellwethers for lackadaisical play. 

The Pelicans could be seen with five players camped out in the lane for much of the night and though Ben McLemore (1-of-6 FGs, two points) had a nice hot streak, the expected cooling off period can create a glaring hole.  Carl Landry (eight points, nine boards, 16 minutes) is the best thing going for the second unit on a nightly basis, but aside from the random Omri Casspi (13 points, five boards) explosion they are deficient on most nights. 

Jason Thompson (15 points, nine boards) had a nice night and along with Cousins’ 24 and 17 with three assists and two blocks, they gave the team a chance to win last night.  Collison was lightly benched when the offense went stagnant in pivotal third quarter, but he has surpassed all expectations and set the table for a lot of folks to sound silly this summer, including yours truly. 

But we all know that the first real measurement of a team comes after 15-20 games and they’re sitting at 6-5, with some wiggle room on that record in both win and loss columns.  They still need a second unit scorer and it remains to be seen what things look like when opponents have a better gauge on their weaknesses going forward.  Therein lays the rub for evaluating their season, but if they can add another guy and Collison can continue playing at a high level they could be onto something. 

NEWS AND NOTES

Dwight Howard had a child abuse allegation reopened by Florida police and his attorney released a statement saying the issue had already been investigated with no finding of guilt.  Folks would be wise to let the situation play out a lot further before making any snap judgments. 

Stan Van Gundy said that Jodie Meeks could be out until February, which is a bummer because I thought I was being sneaky grabbing him early in some deeper big money leagues. 

Gorgui Dieng will start at least two games with Nikola Pekovic sidelined for at least that many games due to a sprained right wrist.  We should probably give Pek a bit of a pass because this isn’t impacting his bad ankles, but it’s a reminder that Dieng shouldn’t be on any wires.  Thaddeus Young (personal) is expected to return to action Sunday. 

David West (ankle) continues to miss time with his ankle injury and none of the Pacers’ injured wing brigade can get healthy, either. 

Bradley Beal hasn’t been ruled out for Wednesday’s game, which is a bit of an upturn from Randy Wittman’s statements earlier in the week that had folks tapping the breaks.  Either way … SOON.