In the fantasy basketball world, it’s been the Year of the Rookie so far. One Philadelphia rookie is averaging near a triple-double, while the other has looked like garbage and is currently on the shelf with a shoulder injury. In Chicago, Lauri Markannen has been a pleasant surprise, and the same can be said for Kyle Kuzma out in Los Angeles.
After the Celtics lost Gordon Hayward on opening night, many expected Boston to take a major step back. Well, rookie Jayson Tatum, along with Jaylen Brown, aren’t letting that happen. Both have risen to the occasion and have become strong fantasy assets as well. Now, over the last week, a new rookie is beginning to shine out west. We’ll get more into him below.
Fantasy Basketball Week 4 Preview
Games Played by Team This Week
4 Games: BOS, BRK, IND, MIA, OKC, PHO.
3 Games: ATL, CHI, CLE, DAL, DEN, DET, GS, HOU, LAC, LAL, MIL, NO, NY, ORL, PHI, SAC, SA, TOR, UTA, WAS.
2 Games: CHA, MEM, MIN, POR.
Waiver Wire Targets
Richaun Holmes (PF/C – PHI)
After missing the first eight games of the season, Richaun Holmes returned to the court Friday night with six points, five rebounds, and one assist in ten minutes of action. You can see what he’s capable of doing just from ten minutes of game time. Whenever Holmes is on the court, he’s doing something to contribute to his stat line. He’s a capable scorer, plus rebounder, and provides plenty of defensive statistics. All he needs is the playing time, as evident by his per36 career stats below.
| Season | PPG | RPG | SPG | BPG | FG% |
| 2016-17 | 16.9 | 9.4 | 1.3 | 1.7 | 55.8 |
| 2015-16 | 14.7 | 6.9 | 1.0 | 2.1 | 51.4 |
Unfortunately for Holmes, his fantasy value rests squarely on the shoulders of Joel Embiid. As long as Embiid is on the court, Holmes’ minutes will be capped at around 20 per game. But as we all know, staying on the court has been a major problem for Embiid thus far in his career. Regardless, Holmes has enough upside as Embiid’s backup to be rostered now, and on the nights that Embiid rests or goes down with an injury, Holmes’ value rises dramatically. For all you DFS players out there, this is a name that needs to be considered whenever Holmes gets a start for Embiid. If he’s still on the waiver wire in standard leagues, add him.
Spencer Dinwiddie (PG – BKN)
The season-ending injury to Jeremy Lin has done wonders for the value of both D’Angelo Russell and Spencer Dinwiddie. Over the last five games, Dinwiddie is averaging 14.0 points, 2.6 rebounds, 5.8 assists, 1.6 steals, and 2.4 three-pointers while only turning the ball over 1.4 times per game. His strong play is going to continue to earn him more playing time according to Brooklyn head coach Kenny Atkinson. “He continues to play like this, we have to find more minutes for him,” Atkinson said. “There’s just no choice.” If you need a point guard, the arrow is pointing up here.
Donovan Mitchell (SG – UTA)
What if I told you there was a player averaging 20.8 PPG over his last four games that is currently available in roughly 60% of leagues? Obviously, there is one or I wouldn’t be saying it. The Jazz grabbed Donovan Mitchell (via trade with Utah) with the 13th pick in the draft, and he has quickly proved his worth as a scorer on a team that desperately needs it. On top of the scoring, Mitchell is also averaging 3.0 threes, 1.8 steals, and 3.3 rebounds in the last four games. Even star guard, Damian Lillard, has been impressed with Mitchell’s performance.
.@Dame_Lillard likes what he sees in Jazz rookie @spidadmitchell.#PORatUTA https://t.co/bn2mwDhGW9
— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) November 2, 2017
The biggest difference over these last few games has been that he’s hitting his shots with much more regularity. He’s still at only 36.8% on the season, but that is trending upward with how hot he’s been of late. If Mitchell is still available in your league, scoop him up quick. The Jazz need scoring and should give Mitchell every chance to provide that.
Buy-Low Targets
Dennis Smith Jr. (PG – DAL)
The first few weeks of Dennis Smith Jr.’s pro career haven’t gone quite as smoothly as fantasy owners would like. But eight up-and-down games from a rookie is hardly a surprise. He’s mixed in a few duds but already has four games of 16+ points and three games of eight or more assists so far. The talent and upside here are enormous. Don’t forget that. These early-season struggles have potentially opened a small buy-low window in fantasy leagues, especially if his owner has gotten off to a slow start. If you’re thin at point guard, it would be wise to make an offer or two for DSJ. This will likely be the lowest you see his trade value all season. Pounce before the price goes up.
Julius Randle/Kyle Kuzma (PF – LAL)
It’s odd for a player to be mentioned as a sell high/drop candidate and a buy-low candidate within a few weeks span. However, an injury to Larry Nance Jr. opens up more playing time for both Randle and Kyle Kuzma. Randle has always been a solid late-round fantasy contributor, but the lower minutes to start the season minimized his value to the point where he wasn’t providing enough to be rostered. He’s still behind Kuzma in the pecking order, but with Nance out for the next 4-6 weeks, Randle should have a nice boost in value.
Speaking of Kuzma, he’s been one of the best fantasy rookies so far. The 27th overall pick has averaged 15.7 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 1.3 three-pointers on 56.3% shooting overall. His minutes have been steady in the upper 20’s and should rise into the low-30’s with Nance out. He doesn’t provide much in the way of defensive stats, but Kuzma is a solid buy-low candidate in all leagues.
Injury Report
John Wall (PG – WAS)
Do you hear that sound? That’s all the John Wall owners out there breathing a big sigh of relief. Wall exited Friday’s game against Cleveland after colliding with Channing Frye. The diagnosis is a sprained left shoulder and luckily, x-rays were negative. It looked worse than it was, and the fact that he had his arm in a sling caused many to worry the injury was worse. Consider him day to day.
Larry Nance Jr. (PF – LAL)
Like I mentioned above, Nance is expected to be out for the next 4-6 weeks after fracturing a bone in his hand Thursday night. Before the injury, Nance was averaging 10.6 points and 7.5 boards with strong defensive statistics and a great field goal percentage. However, it will be hard to justify stashing him with how many good fantasy players are already hurt.
Al-Farouq Aminu (SF – POR)
A sprained right ankle is going to make Al-Farouq Aminu miss the next 2-3 weeks of action. He’s not much of an offensive threat, but Aminu’s value goes much further than the points scored column. His 8.1 rebounds, 0.9 steals, 1.3 blocks, and 1.6 3s makes Aminu a mid-round fantasy talent. Even if your league doesn’t have an IR spot, he’s worth holding onto since it’s only going to be a few weeks until he’s back.
Drop Em’ Like They’re (Not) Hot
Jae Crowder (SF/PF – CLE)
The move from Boston to Cleveland had been a major detriment to Jae Crowder’s fantasy value. In Boston, he was usually the 3rd or 4th scoring option most nights, which kept him in the low teens for scoring. That, paired with everything else he did, made him a mid-round fantasy talent. That’s no longer the case in Cleveland. His numbers through the first few weeks of the season are a far cry from what he did the past two years in Beantown.
| Season | PPG | RPG | SPG | 3PG | FG% |
| 2017-18 | 8.6 | 3.8 | 1.0 | 1.1 | 39.7 |
| 2016-17 | 13.9 | 5.8 | 1.0 | 2.2 | 46.3 |
| 2015-16 | 14.2 | 5.1 | 1.7 | 1.7 | 44.3 |
He’s just too far down the totem pole in Cleveland to make any type of significant fantasy impact right now. Unless there’s an injury to James or Kevin Love, Crowder likely isn’t going to do enough to warrant owning. Don’t forget about him entirely, but he’s a droppable commodity right now.
George Hill (PG/SG – SAC)
This is a poorly timed slump for George Hill. With rookie De’Aaron Fox breathing down his neck, Fox needed to start the season strong to keep his starting job throughout most of the season. With Fox’s strong start, Hill’s run as the Kings starting point guard is likely coming to a close soon. It’s not like Hill was a highly sought after fantasy commodity or anything. However, he was still the third or fourth point on most fantasy rosters. But let me ask a question: Did anyone really want to draft Hill? I got him in one league and immediately hated the pick. His poor performance and the presence of Fox makes Hill droppable in standard leagues.
Got a question about a player not covered here? Then follow me on Twitter @EricCross04 and ask me there. Also, make sure to follow and listen to @The3andDPod every Tuesday as Jon Sauber and I break down the latest from around the NBA and fantasy basketball.