With 22 teams in action on Sunday it would be nearly impossible to try to break each one down in an effective manner. So I’m going to hit on 21 things we learned yesterday. And no, despite my massive man-love for Hassan Whiteside, he’s not my No. 1 story.

Games Played Week 14

4 Games – BOS, CLE, DAL, DEN, LAC, MEM, MIN, NYK, PHI, POR, SAC, TOR

3 Games – ATL, BRK, CHI, DET, GSW, HOU, IND, LAL, MIA, MIL, NOP, OKC, ORL, PHX, UTA, WAS

2 Games – CHA, SAS

1. The Atlanta Hawks are really, really good (and Hassan Whiteside & DJA are just going to have to wait).

That’s right, I’m a homer and this isn’t even all that related to fantasy. My Hawks beat the Timberwolves behind another stellar team effort on Sunday and now sit at 37-8 on the season, and have won 16 straight games. The Hawks were once 1-3 this season, which means they’re 36-5 since Nov. 8, or game five of the season, if you will. And while non-basketball fans all over the UGA football-minded state of Georgia continue to approach me with “How ‘bout them Hawks?’ chatter, the fact is they are as hot as any NBA team I’ve ever witnessed, including Michael Jordan’s Bulls in their 72-win season in 1995-96. Maybe the other shoe will someday fall, but for now, the only advice I can give you is to buy the NBA League Pass and set your DVR for Friday, Feb. 6, when the Golden State Warriors visit the Highlight Factory. The question to ponder before then is, will the Hawks be 42-8 when that game rolls around? They play at home against Brooklyn, a beat up Portland team, and the lowly Sixers over their next three, then visit New Orleans (no Jrue Holiday), and host Washington before taking on the Splash Brothers on Feb. 6. And if you’re looking for a fantasy Hawk to pick up, DeMarre Carroll is probably your man. He had 14 points, six rebounds and two 3-pointers on Sunday, and is basically the glue holding the whole thing together, in my opinion. OK, now onto the fantasy news.

Editor’s Note: Rotoworld’s partner FanDuel is hosting a one-day $225,000 Fantasy Basketball league for Monday’s NBA games. It’s $25 to join and first prize is $25,000. Starts at 7:30pm ET on Monday. Here’s the FanDuel link.

2. Hassan Whiteside is a bad, bad man no one’s ever heard of.

Whiteside blindsided the Bulls on Sunday, coming off the bench after missing a couple games with a sprained ankle. He certainly looked healthy yesterday, racking up a massive triple-double with 14 points, 13 rebounds and 12 blocks in just 25 minutes. I’ve had him as my No. 1 center pickup for the last three weeks in Waiver Wired, and after this performance, the sky’s the limit. And it couldn’t happen to a nicer guy, as he was toiling at the Charlotte YMCA just three months ago, unable to get any attention from NBA teams. And his shoutout to NBA2K on national television is paying massive dividends for both Whiteside and the video game, as it’s become a hit on social media. I hope that you were able to pick him up when he burst onto the scene a few weeks ago, although he was still only owned in about 46 percent of Yahoo! leagues when I wrote about him (again) in this week’s Waiver Wired column on Saturday night.

3. D.J. Augustin loves being on the cover of Waiver Wired.

Mike Gallagher alerted me via text that Brandon Jennings was likely done for the year just as I was about to post Waiver Wired on Saturday night, so I made a last-second adjustment and made D.J. Augustin the cover boy. He responded by going off for a career-high 35 points on Sunday, adding four rebounds, eight assists and five 3-pointers on 12-of-20 shooting. Hopefully you saw the news or column in time to pick him up, as DJA should be a beast the rest of the way. He was still available in one of my leagues when I went to pick him up on Saturday night, but by the time I finished deciding who to cut (my options weren’t great), a fellow league member scooped him up. Congratulations on your find, Coach K. Lucky dog. 

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4. Nick Young can’t catch a break.

With news that Kobe Bryant’s season is likely over, Young has become one of the hottest pickups in the league (behind Whiteside and DJA). However, he was benched on Sunday and played just eight minutes off the bench. Coach Byron Scott, who isn’t making any friends in fantasyland, said that Young acted as though he “didn’t want to be here.” This makes no sense to me, as the opportunity facing him is quite massive with Bryant’s season all but a historical fact. Young is still the favorite (along with Wayne Ellington, who had 13 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists and a 3-pointer) to go nuts in Kobe’s absence, so just keep him rostered if you own him. Swaggy P will eventually emerge.

5. Kris Humphries can still play basketball.

Humps went nuts on Sunday with a season-high 21 points and 14 rebounds on 9-of-13 shooting in 33 minutes. With Nene and Marcin Gortat both healthy, Humphries will be inconsistent at times, but if you’re in need a big man, picking him up and hoping he stays hot makes sense.

6. It will take more than a DUI to slow down Ty Lawson.

Lawson returned from his one-game DUI absence and went off with 31 points and 12 dimes. If you picked up Jameer Nelson thinking Lawson might go away, you might want to rethink that plan.

7. Jared Sullinger enjoys starting at center.

Sully balled out with 26 points, nine boards, three assists, a steal and a 3-pointer in 30 minutes on Sunday and Kelly Olynyk is out with a sprained ankle. He started at center over Tyler Zeller (15 points, 5 rebounds, 1 block) and should be locked and loaded for a strong finish in Boston.

8. Marreese Speights is worth owning, but it can be a costly endeavor.

I started Speights in a points league and had a comfortable lead heading into Sunday. However, I got tracked down and passed by Ryan Knaus, as Speights had 0.2 fantasy points, just when I needed him most. He hit just 1-of-7 shots for two points, five rebounds and zero blocks, and despite having Klay Thompson and Stephen Curry in my lineup for some massive numbers (you know about Thompson, right?), I lost 143.7 to 143.2, thanks in part to Speights’ disappearing act. I still think he’s worth owning given the constant health concerns surrounding Andrew Bogut, but he’s going to have some awful nights to go along with the good ones.

9. Thaddeus Young can still play basketball.

Young has been pretty frustrating to own this season, but he’s getting hot and had 26 points, six rebounds, seven assists and a steal on 11-of-17 shooting on Sunday. He’s now averaging 19.0 points, 5.4 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 1.4 steals over his last five games, so make sure he’s in your lineup going forward.

10. Nikola Pekovic is trying to ruin Gorgui Dieng.

And he’s succeeding. Pek had 15 points, three rebounds and no blocks in a whopping 36 minutes on Sunday, while Dieng also started and had nine points, seven boards and a block in 28 minutes. I have no idea why the Wolves are giving Pek such heavy run with his shaky feet, but they are. Dieng is still worth owning, especially if he continues to start alongside Pekovic, but he’d be a lot more fun to own if Pekovic were watching in street clothes.

11. Jimmy Butler is terrible.

I’m kidding, obviously, but he wasn’t great on Sunday with just five points on 2-of-8 shooting. He played 43 minutes and while it’s true that he’s cooled off since his blistering start to the season, he’ll get hot again soon. Just hang in there with him or buy low.

12. The Thunder are in trouble when it comes to making the playoffs.

After getting run out of Atlanta’s gym on Friday night, the Thunder got steamrolled by the Cavs on Sunday. Cleveland has now won six straight games, and may still be the favorites to win the East in the playoffs. OKC, on the other hand, is currently on the outside looking in with a record of 22-22. They are a full three games behind Phoenix (and a game behind the Pelicans) for the final playoff spot in the West, and may need some help getting into the postseason. The Suns, Spurs or Mavericks may have to go into a slump, while the Thunder are going to have to get hot to make some magic happen. The good news for OKC is that there are plenty of games remaining on the schedule, but the teams they’re chasing are very good. This will be a fun story to watch the rest of the way.

13. Isaiah Thomas is back.

Thomas had 25 points and four 3-pointers off the bench in Sunday’s blowout loss to the Clippers, and has now scored 22-plus points in four straight games. He’s averaging 20.8 points, 3.4 assists, 1.2 steals and 3.0 3-pointers over his last five, so get him back in your lineup. On a side note, Alex Len came through with 15 points, six rebounds and two blocks, as Brandan Wright sat out with a heel injury. Any time Wright is out, Len’s a must-start.

14. Rajon Rondo and Chandler Parsons are having trouble co-existing.

Rondo had his best game in recent memory on Sunday with 17 points, eight rebounds, nine assists, two steals and two 3-pointers, while Parsons disappeared with six points and nothing else on 2-of-6 shooting on Sunday. Parsons had been playing well, while Rondo had been struggling, so I wouldn’t read too much into Sunday’s line for either player.

15. Tyreke Evans is going to be a beast as long as Jrue Holiday (leg) is out.

Evans started at point guard again on Sunday and went off for 24 points and 12 assists on 11-of-19 shooting. As long as Holiday is out, which could be a month or so, Evans should be used in both daily and weekly fantasy leagues. It’s like free money.  

16. Roy Hibbert can still play basketball.

While it seems at times that Hibbert is a waste of a roster spot, he’s still a talented big man and had 11 points, 13 rebounds and a block on Sunday. He was absolutely hideous in his previous three games, but got it going against Nikola Vucevic of all people. I still think he can finish the season on a high note and he looks like a nice buy-low option to me.

17. Tobias Harris hates coming off the bench.

He’s trying to be professional about it, but Harris is clearly annoyed at coming off the bench. He played 30 minutes on Sunday, but hit just 2-of-5 shots for 11 points and seven rebounds. Now’s a good buy-low time on him and I’ll be shocked if he’s still coming off the bench by the end of the week.

18. Khris Middleton is getting hot for the Bucks.

Middleton had 21 points, five boards, two assists, three steals and three 3-pointers on 9-of-14 shooting Sunday and played well on Saturday. The slump is over, so give him a look if he’s available in your league. He was another guy I profiled in this week’s Waiver Wired.

19. Kawhi Leonard is a freak.

But you already knew that, right? He had 19 points, 14 rebounds, three steals, a block and a 3-pointer, and if you waited on him while his hand was healing, you probably don’t even remember him being gone. He tweaked his ankle on Sunday and is playing with one (huge) hand, and I’m not even sure Gregg Popovich can slow him down right now.

20. Jodie Meeks might be a sneaky pick up right now.

He played 28 minutes and took 13 shots on Sunday, but hit just two of them for nine points. Along with DJA, Meeks is also going to see a boost with the loss of Jennings, while it’s also worth mentioning that Kentavious Caldwell-Pope played a team-high 42 minutes on Sunday. All three of these Pistons are worth a look right now, while Augustin is a must-own player.

21. Jordan Clarkson might be ready to go off.

The Lakers rookie started again on Sunday and played 28 minutes. He hit just 2-of-10 shots for eight points, but the Lakers have no reason to sit him, and he could become a hot player over the last couple months of the season. Especially if Nick Young officially checks out. Jeremy Lin is also getting heavy minutes and had 15 points and six dimes on Sunday, making him worth a look if you need a PG. The same goes for Carlos Boozer, who got loose for 18 & 11 in just 22 minutes off the bench, hitting 9-of-13 shots.