Sunday Daily Dose: Dose: DeMarcus Boogies Down
DeMarcus Cousins, superstar. Get used to it, folks.
On an eight-pack Saturday, Cousins’ crown shone brightly through the crowd, Cleveland went down in Tyronn Lue’s debut, and things are getting funky in Phoenix with the Alex Len power forward era upon us.
Milwaukee @ New Orleans: Pelicans 116, Bucks 99
You knew the Bucks would be tested in the second game of a back-to-back set on the road, but a lopsided 17-point loss was not the plan for a team that connected at a 52.7% clip from the field and 40% of its 3-point shots. Milwaukee once again had all five starters in double figures, and Greg Monroe (22 pts, 11 reb) has now recorded a double-double in 10 of his 12 January games. There is no reason Khris Middleton (22 pts, 7 reb, 5 ast, 4 3PM, 5 TO) can’t finish inside the top 50, and that very well may wind up being a conservative projection. Giannis Antetokounmpo fouled out in 28.5 minutes, providing runway for Michael Carter-Williams (19 pts, 4 reb, 5 ast, 2 stl, 2 blk, 4 TO, 9-of-12 FG) to take flight. Jabari Parker’s fantasy ceiling just isn’t very high, making him a low-end pickup better suited for deeper formats.
It’s only a matter of time until it goes from bad to worse for Tyreke Evans (knee), and Jrue Holiday (13 pts, 4 reb, 9 ast, 3 stl) is going to be the biggest beneficiary. Holiday now as at least nine dimes in five of his last six games and has been trending upward strongly in January, and I just don’t trust Evans’ surgically-repaired knee to hold up for the second half after everything he’s already gone through to date. Anthony Davis is averaging 22.3 points, 7.3 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 2.8 blocks over his last four games…The Pelicans are 3-1 during that stretch. Ryan Anderson’s value is based completely in his offense, and he’s someone I’d be pushing in trade talks if he were on any of my fantasy rosters. You can’t expect consistent production from Norris Cole, but you can safely project a stable dosage of minutes with Eric Gordon (finger) sidelined indefinitely. Not every waiver wire pickup has to have immense upside, and Cole can be a productive player on the right fantasy roster.
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New York @ Charlotte: Hornets 97, Knicks 84
After a blowout loss on Friday and a full night of travel through the inclement weather, some are going to call this a scheduling loss for the Knicks. I’d have an easier time buying that stance if the shorthanded Hornets weren’t down Nicolas Batum (toe), Cody Zeller (shoulder) and Jeremy Lamb (toe) while playing in the second leg of a back-to-back set after an overtime win. Zeller—who has a sprained ligament in the same (right) shoulder that required rotator cuff surgery—is expected to miss at least another week. Spencer Hawes will continue to start at center, but he’s an unattractive pickup in standard formats. The only New York player to show up in Saturday’s box score was Derrick Williams (19 pts, 14 reb, 4 ast), but garbage time was a factor and his appeal is comparable to a warm glass of tap water even with Lance Thomas (knee) sidelined given a healthy Carmelo Anthony (9 pts, 4-of-11 FG) and Kristaps Porzingis (13 pts, 3 blk). That would change if Melo is forced to miss time after departing Saturday’s loss early with a sore left (surgically-repaired) knee, but there is no indication of that at this time and Melo said the soreness wasn’t related to his previous procedure. The Knicks have now lost four of six games, while failing to reach 39% shooting in each of their last two. Ugly.
Kemba Walker needed 25 shots to score his 26 points, but he contributed everywhere on the stat sheet with six boards, five assists, a steal, a block and three triples while going a pristine 9-of-9 from the charity stripe. Walker is going to keep it moving even when Batum and eventually Al Jefferson (knee) get back on the floor…This is not a sell high scenario. Jeremy Lin (26 pts, 5 reb, 5 ast, 5 TO) turned in one of his best games of the season, but his value has been artificially inflated as Charlotte’s injuries have piled up. Even with Batum in a walking boot for his toe, trading Lin now in a 2-for-1 swap makes sense. Marvin Williams couldn’t find any offense, but his defense and versatility is keeping him on the floor (35 minutes) and Williams is going to keep on producing so long as his playing time is there. Here’s how to gauge P.J. Hairston exploding for 20 points and 10 rebounds: In his prior three games, Hairston had a combined 18 points and nine boards.
Memphis @ Minnesota: Timberwolves 106, Grizzlies 101
This is a bad loss for the Grizzlies, a team already playing without Tony Allen (knee, hamstring), and now sitting at a very mediocre 25-20, Memphis is going to have some tough decisions to make ahead of the 2016 NBA trade deadline. A “dinged up” Marc Gasol was able to provide 17 points on 7-of-12 shooting, but with as many turnovers as rebounds (two), it’s clear that Pau’s “little” brother is operating at far less than 100%. Matt Barnes and Zach Randolph combined for 20 points on an underwhelming and unimpressive 8-of-20 shooting, and it must have been a team theme night with Mike Conley requiring nine shots to score his nine points. Jeff Green took the commitment to the next level with more shots (13) than points scored (11), and when Mario Chalmers (19 pts, 3 reb, 5 ast, 2 stl, 1 blk, 6-of-8 FG) is your most statistically productive player, it’s probably going to be a long night.
In what could go down as Minnesota’s most impressive win of the season, the Timberwolves got a perfect night from a (near) perfect rookie in Karl-Anthony Towns: 14 points, nine rebounds, three dimes, a steal and a block on 6-of-6 shooting. It’s impossible to undersell Towns’ future as a force in both reality and fantasy, and the Big KAT is already doing things in his inaugural campaign that Anthony Davis could have only dreamed about at the same stage. In other words: Towns is a generational talent, a bona fide stud in keeper and dynasty formats and a big reason your re-draft team is exceeding everyone’s expectations…It was a big night for Minny’s youngsters with Ricky Rubio (15 pts, 6 reb, 12 ast, 3 stl) flirting with a triple-double, Andrew Wiggins (19 pts, 5 reb, 7-of-10 FG) showing out and Shabazz Muhammad (season-high 25 pts, 8-of-15 FG, 8-of-8 FT) showing off, and while Shabazz is better suited for points formats considering all he does is score, Wiggins is an under-appreciated asset who is less than one full season away from exploding as a multi-cat contributor. When people in your league start discussing why we didn’t see the breakout coming sooner, you should be able to lead the conversation.
Chicago @ Cleveland: Bulls 96, Cavs 83
I know it’s just shocking that firing David Blatt wasn’t synonymous with pushing the magic button for a broken Cavs team, but Cleveland needs more than a change in leadership to start truly firing on all cylinders. LeBron James was everywhere with 26 points, 13 rebounds, nine dimes, two steals and a block with just a single turnover, and that really helps to tell the story of how poorly everyone else on Cleveland’s roster played outside of J.R. Smith (18 pts, 11 reb). Kyrie Irving (11 pts, 5-of-16 FG) was nowhere to be found, while “focal point” Kevin Love had just 14 points and five boards despite a clear emphasis to get him the ball closer to the basket. To say Tyronn Lue will be challenged in getting the most out of Love is an understatement considering he starts at LeBron’s best position, and it’s hard to remember watching a more arrogant, entitled 30-12 team that has truly won nothing of note.
Derrick Rose’s team-high 21 field goal attempts resulted in just five makes and 12 points, four boards and four dimes, but it didn’t matter given Jimmy Butler, Pau Gasol and Taj Gibson combined 60 points on 25-of-44 (56.8%) shooting. It’s hard to believe this is the same Gasol who was signed for just $7.5M annually, and Pau is going to buck a league-wide trend when he opts out and signs for more money this summer than he’s earning on his current contract. The Butler—like he typically has all season—served it up hot and fresh with 23 points and nine rebounds (two 3PM) without a single turnover, while Gibson shook off his eye injury for 15 points, eight boards and two blocks. Without Joakim Noah the rest of the way, Gibson is locked into a critical role. The good Nikola Mirotic finally showed up with 17 points, six boards and three triples, but he’s still searching for consistency after scoring 17 points total over his prior four games. Any trade you make with Mirotic currently constitutes selling low, so a hold remains the recommended move for the highly frustrating player. The good news: It’s Mirotic’s second straight game with at least 25 minutes after four straight games checking in at a number below that mark.
As an aside, E’Twaun Moore (hamstring) left this game after just a handful of minutes, meaning Aaron Brooks stands to gain time playing behind Rose.
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