Mo Williams going for a franchise-record 52 points isn’t something that I’d put in the impossible category, but rather the insane category, and he was probably even in some of your lineups last night so congrats.  I could sit here and point out his late-round value in 27 mpg on the season, talk about Ricky Rubio‘s return, Zach LaVine‘s troubles or even Kevin Martin‘s timetable — but none of it really matters.  A vote for Mo Willie Style is a gambler’s play, not knowing when the next stretch of time off due to injury is going to strike. 

So gamble away if you’d like, as one look at his game log over the last week or two will show that he’s a bit better than a coin flip to give you a big night. 

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Editor’s Note: Rotoworld’s partner FanDuel is hosting a one-day $300,000 Fantasy Basketball league for Wednesday’s NBA games. It’s $25 to join and first prize is $30,000. Starts at 7pm ET on Wednesday. Here’s the FanDuel link.

THE BIG NUMBERS

BUSTED

INJURIES

Dwyane Wade strained his left hamstring and even though he downplayed the injury it’s anybody’s guess how long he may take off.  Luol Deng (eight points, 4-of-13 FGS, eight rebounds, one steal, 37 minutes) tweaked his ankle and he’ll be questionable for tonight’s game against the Warriors, and along with the recent injury history of Wade and Chris Bosh it’s not hard to see the beginnings of a lost season. 

That’s why you can’t pay me to drop Mario Chalmers, who scored 19 points on 7-of-16 shooting with three rebounds, eight assists and two steals in 31 minutes.  He gets discarded whenever the team is healthy and he does all sorts of things that drive his teammates and coaches crazy, but this is what owners would get used to if a few dominos start to fall his way. 

Jordan Hill might have hyperextended his knee and he has yet to be scheduled for an MRI, but owners can’t help but be worried that the heavier usage early in the season eventually catches up to him.  Any time off helps Ed Davis (12 points, eight boards, one block, 23 minutes), but Byron Scott is starting to become a real thorn in fantasy owners’ sides with his lineups. More on that a little later in The Middle.

Tony Wroten (knee sprain) is not traveling with the team and it’s fair to wonder if he has a long-term issue here.  Jakarr Sampson (five points, two boards, three assists, one three) and Hollis Thompson (seven points, 17 minutes, one three) look like potential beneficiaries here, but if last night was any indication Brett Brown has his core unit intact with Michael Carter-Williams, K.J. McDaniels, Robert Covington and Nerlens Noel all logging 30-plus minutes. 

Rudy Gay left last night’s game early due to a left knee sprain and he’s day-to-day, getting an MRI last night and results likely to be released pretty soon.  Nobody in Kings land seems to think this injury is serious, and the team doesn’t play until Friday.  I’m not sure I’d be jumping all over Derrick Williams (12 points, 10 boards, two assists, two steals, 36 minutes) even if Gay were to be week-to-week, considering Williams has a number of fantasy deficiencies. 

Tyson Chandler hit the ground hard and reportedly rolled his ankle, but after his extreme flop late and the fact it was hard to make out if anybody actually dinged him – I wouldn’t be surprised if he fooled everybody again.  And I also wouldn’t be surprised if he sits out tonight against the Nuggets.  Charlie Villanueva would be worth a look in Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS) games if that’s the case. 

For more injury news check out our injury page.

WELCOME BACK

LeBron James (knee, back) returned after an eight-game absence and looked pretty explosive, finishing with 33 points, three treys, seven boards, five assists and one steal in 37 minutes.  It’s going to be a disappointing year for him in fantasy leagues and it’s shaping up to be a disappointing year with the Cavs, who just don’t have the defense or toughness to be a top-flight contender this year.  Yes, it’s extremely early and even as constituted right now they’ll have a puncher’s chance to come out of the East, but things are slowly coming unglued and they have about a month or maybe even less to turn it around before David Blatt gets the axe. 

Shawn Marion (hip) got back on the floor with six points, two assists and 11 rebounds in 22 minutes, but he needs to show us a lot more before we pay him much attention.  Kevin Love (nine points, nine boards, one block, 27 minutes) got benched for the entire fourth quarter as his defense gets more attention than anything he’s doing on offense, but owners should know that this is a solid buy low moment.  The Cavs are doing exactly what the Heat did in LeBron’s first year there, just instead of Pat Riley you have David Griffin and instead of Micky Arison it’s Dan Gilbert calling the shots. 

Enes Kanter has done a fine job to transform his body and game from overweight center to stretch four, but there is no amount of help that he can get fending off Rudy Gobert.  Kanter returned from his ankle injury and did fine with 13 points, 10 boards and one steal in 32 minutes, and I’m not even sure that he’ll dip below late-round value now that Alec Burks is gone for the year.  But if Quin Snyder doesn’t want to wedge Trevor Booker’s (illness) minutes into the small forward position, they’re eventually going to come out of Kanter’s and not Gobert’s bucket. 

PICKUPS

Hassan Whiteside is getting the last laugh after playing his way out of the league amidst questions over his ability to handle the mental aspects of the game.  Sometimes fit can drive everything as the Heat need an interior presence and Whiteside has been able to focus on doing what he does best – block the ball.  He had another solid night with 15 points, nine rebounds and five blocks in 21 minutes off the bench, and with the Heat looking content to ride him going forward there’s no way owners can pass up on the upside.  He has been a top 10-20 player over the last six games on the strength of 13.2 points, 9.3 rebounds and 3.5 blocks per contest.

THE MIDDLE

J.R. Smith went huge with 29 points, eight threes, two assists and four steals but still took a bunch of terrible shots and has the return of Iman Shumpert to contend with.  It’s hard to see him becoming anything but the fourth option and I won’t be dropping anything but dead weight to take a flier on him in 12-team leagues. 

The Lakers are going to be a mess until Kobe Bryant eventually shuts it down, and who knows when or even if that will happen, but Byron Scott is all over the place with his rotations and there is both risk and opportunity.  Ronnie Price is living off accomplishments from well over two weeks ago, and last night he managed just two rebounds, three assists and two steals in 32 minutes. Yuck.  He needs to have a solid night to jump back onto rosters in 12-team leagues. 

Jeremy Lin (seven points, two assists, one steal, 16 minutes) had a bad game but still maintains a late-round posture, and like everybody else he waits for Kobe to clear out minutes and touches later in the year.  Neither Wes Johnson (six points, four rebounds, two blocks, 3-of-13 FGs) nor Nick Young (eight points, 2-of-11 FGs) have been good lately, but they’re both late-round guys that I can’t see passing on in 12-team leagues. 

Timofey Mozgov managed just two points and six boards to go with four turnovers, and owners may want to keep him on a shorter leash but I think he fits with David Blatt and needs a bit more time before he’s flat out dropped in standard formats.  It’s possible his touches take a hit and his rebounding suffers next to Kevin Love and Tristan Thompson, but his per-minute numbers have been fairly consistent. 

David Lee is almost in the add section and he should probably be owned in most 12-team formats.  He’s easily returning late-round value in the 11 games he has played and he’s doing it with defense, with 1.6 combined steals and blocks per game in just 18.5 mpg.  That just seems fluky to me, albeit not impossible since his role has changed, and low upside makes him a better desperation or deep league play. 

DROPS

Luc Mbah a Moute had built up a bit of momentum in fantasy leagues over the last few weeks, but last night’s seven points, one steal and one three in 20 minutes set him back.  With little upside and plenty of injury risk, owners can drop him for a hot free agent.