Welcome to the first fantasy basketball week of 2022! The new year offers renewed perspective on our rosters. At this point in the season, you know your strengths, weaknesses, and the moves you need to make to solidify your run in the playoffs. COVID is still present and wreaking havoc on any roster momentum you establish, but you have a feel for how to stream to manage the missed games. In 2022, it is time to double down on our season builds and trade away the dead weight on our rosters (De’Aaron Fox anyone??). Let’s hop into the first week of the new year with our Week 12 schedule preview and see where we can gain a competitive advantage.
Fantasy Basketball Schedule Preview
The weekly breakdown of games is as follows:
- January 3, Monday: 10 games
- January 4, Tuesday: 4 games
- January 5, Wednesday: 11 games
- January 6, Thursday: 4 games
- January 7, Friday: 9 games
- January 8, Saturday: 6 games
- January 9, Sunday: 10 games
Teams with 5 games this week (1)
MEM
Teams with 4 games this week (18)
WAS, MIN, DET, MIL, SAC, ATL, TOR, DEN, BKN, POR, LAC, UTA, DAL, ORL, SAS, GSW, HOU, NOR
Teams with 3 games this week (11)
PHI, LAL, BOS, CHA, CHI, IND, OKC, PHO, CLE, NYK, MIA
Streaming Options: Team Edition
Memphis Grizzlies (Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, Sunday):
The Memphis Grizzlies have a great schedule this week but offer rather weak streaming options, unfortunately. However, keep an eye out for the return of Dillon Brooks and De’Anthony Melton as they may have been dropped during their stint in Covid protocol. Brandon Clarke is getting some increased minutes, so kick the tires on him in deeper formats.
- Dillon Brooks (SG)
- De’Anthony Melton (PG/SG)
- Kyle Anderson (SF/PF):
- Steven Adams ( C )
- Brandon Clarke (PF/C)
New Orleans Pelicans (Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Sunday):
First things first, take a quick peek at your waiver wire and if Josh Hart is on the waiver wire, pick him up immediately. When you are finished with that, kick the tires on Herb Jones. If Brandon Ingram continues to sit, Herb Jones is a great option for this week. If you need scoring and threes, look at Nickeil Alexander-Walker. He has been disappointing but can provide a spark and was trending prior to going into Covid protocol. While Jonas Valanciunas is out, consider Jaxson Hayes for your big-men stats. He has been impressive and should continue to get more minutes while Big Val is out.
- Josh Hart (SG/SF)
- Herb Jones (SF)
- Nickeil Alexander-Walker (SG)
- Jaxson Hayes ( C )
Phoenix Suns (Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday)
Phoenix plays on the light days on Tuesday/Thursday and offers a little bit of streaming value with Cameron Johnson (until Jae Crowder returns) and Jalen Smith (until Ayton returns). Both options are serviceable until the starters come back from Covid protocol.
- Cameron Johnson (SF)
- Jalen Smith (PF)
Los Angeles Lakers (Tuesday, Friday, Sunday)
The Lakers play on the Tuesday and Sunday down nights, but don’t offer a ton of streaming options. Though, one player to add is Malik Monk. As a starter, Monk is offering efficient scoring and should continue to do so getting open looks from Lebron James. A Laker to keep tabs on is Trevor Ariza. He is finally back in the lineup and should be ramping up his minutes as a stretch four and defensive wing.
- Trevor Ariza (SF)
- Malik Monk (SG)
Fantrax was one of the fastest-growing fantasy sites of 2020, and we’re not stopping now. With multi-team trades, designated commissioner/league managers, and drag/drop easy click methods, Fantrax is sure to excite the serious fantasy sports fan – sign up now for a free year at Fantrax.com.