Seven games on what was a modest slate in the NBA Tuesday, with the Nets continuing to push for a top-four seed without a number of key rotational pieces. Shabazz Napier was, once again, able to take control on the offensive end, hitting five triples on his way to 24 points. I run down all seven games, highlighting those borderline 12-team guys including Napier.
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Fantasy Basketball Fringe
Players to add
Ante Zizic, Shabazz Napier, Richaun Holmes
Players to stream
Jeff Green, Terrance Ferguson, Bryn Forbes, Marco Belinelli, Patty Mills, Davis Bertans, Mikal Bridges, T.J. McConnell, Landry Shamet
Cleveland Cavaliers def. Washington Wizards 116-113
Cavaliers
- Ante Zizic (45%) – Add: Zizic finished with 12 points and 12 rebounds in Tuesday’s win but did see his playing time fall to just 24 minutes. He basically split minutes with Larry Nance and this is a situation to monitor moving forward. Zizic is still fine to roster in standard leagues but with Kevin Love nearing a return, the upside is not as enticing as it was only a week ago.
- Alec Burks (35%) – Watch: Burks scored just eight points on 3-of-7 shooting Tuesday but added a season-high nine assists. He is a player sitting right on the cusp of being a streaming option and owners could really go either way on him moving forward.
- Matthew Dellavedova (7%) – Drop
Wizards
- Jeff Green (46%) – Stream: Green had nine points with not much else Tuesday, his first single-digit scoring game in over a week. Green typically offers very little outside of points and threes and could be streamed in if that matches your needs.
- Sam Dekker (9%) – Drop
- Ian Mahinmi (5%) – Drop
Milwaukee Bucks def. Detroit Pistons 115-105
Bucks
- George Hill (30%) – Drop
- Ersan Ilyasova (20%) – Drop
- Sterling Brown (11%) – Drop
- Pat Connaughton (7%) – Drop: Connaughton took advantage of both Malcolm Brogdon and Sterling Brown being out, scoring 16 points in 22 minutes. He has been in and out of the rotation of late and with both injured players sounding as though they could return on Thursday, Connaughton can be left on the waivers.
Pistons
- Reggie Bullock (39%) – Watch
- Luke Kennard (24%) – Watch: Kennard had his best game in over a week, scoring 19 points in 8-of-16 shooting. He does next to nothing outside of scoring but is worth keeping an eye on, especially if Reggie Bullock is forced to miss additional time with his ankle injury.
- Stanley Johnson (22%) – Drop
- Bruce Brown (11%) – Drop
- Langston Galloway (10%) – Drop
- Zaza Pachulia (8%) – Drop
Oklahoma City Thunder def. Orlando Magic 126-117
Thunder
- Nerlens Noel (32%) – Watch: Noel was in the starting lineup Tuesday, replacing Steven Adams who was out with an ankle injury. Noel was very productive during his 34 minutes on the floor but would need Adams to miss further time to consider him a must-roster player.
- Terrance Ferguson (17%) – Stream: Ferguson was a late scratch Tuesday after suffering back spasms in the warmups. At this stage, owners should sit tight and wait to see if this is going to cost him any significant time.
- Patrick Patterson (8%) – Drop
Magic
- Jonathon Simmons (19%) – Drop
- Jerian Grant (17%) – Drop
Brooklyn Nets def. Chicago Bulls 122-117
Nets
- Shabazz Napier (32%) – Add: Napier was excellent again Tuesday and is basically a must-roster player in most formats. In his three games as the primary backup, he is averaging 20.6 points, 3.6 assists, 1.6 steals, and 3.3 three-pointers.
- Ed Davis (30%) – Stream
- Rodions Kurucs (22%) – Watch: Kurucs continues to start for the Nets but his production is very inconsistent making him hard to roster in anything but deeper leagues.
- Theo Pinson (9%) – Drop
- Treveon Graham (5%) – Drop
Bulls
- Chandler Hutchison (15%) – Drop
- Robin Lopez (14%) – Drop
- Ryan Arcidiacono (13%) – Drop
- Shaquille Harrison (13%) – Drop
- Wayne Selden Jr. (12%) – Watch: Selden started again but was unable to put up numbers matching his previous performance. He does have a chance to move into the standard league conversation and savvy owners should keep a close eye on his production moving forward.
- Antonio Blakeney (9%) – Drop
New Orleans Pelicans def. Houston Rockets 121-116
Pelicans
- E’Twaun Moore (46%) – Drop
- Darius Miller (12%) – Watch: Miller played 40 minutes Tuesday in what was one of the strangest games of the season. The Pelicans were basically without their entire starting lineup which meant playing time was all over the place. Owners should simply keep an eye on the injuries before making any decisions regarding streaming.
- Frank Jackson (12%) – Watch: Jackson started his first game, finishing with 10 points and seven rebounds. He only played 23 minutes and it was Tim Frazier who picked up most of the slack after Elfrid Payton was ruled out with an ankle injury.
- Cheick Diallo (8%) – Drop
- Tim Frazier (7%) – Drop: Frazier had been in and out of the rotation over the past few weeks but came away with a double-double in Tuesday’s victory. Elfrid Payton was ruled out prior to tipoff with an ankle sprain which afforded Frazier additional playing time. He could be a sneaky source of assists if Payton is forced to miss further time. Until then, owners should just monitor things in New Orleans.
- Kenrich Williams (2%) – Drop: Williams came out of nowhere to record a career-high 16 rebounds in Tuesday’s emphatic victory. He played 30 minutes and also set career-marks in scoring and blocks. The Pelicans are paper thin up front and until they get healthy bodies back, Williams should at least feature in the rotation.
Rockets
- Austin Rivers (25%) – Drop
- Gerald Green (16%) – Drop
- James Ennis (15%) – Drop
San Antonio Spurs def. Phoenix Suns 126-124
Spurs
- Bryn Forbes (40%) – Stream: Forbes scored just 12 points but did have another two triples, keeping him in the picture as a three-point streamer.
- Pau Gasol (36%) – Drop
- Jakob Poeltl (35%) – Drop
- Marco Belinelli (29%) – Stream: Belinelli continues to fire away from outside, connecting on another four triples in Tuesday’s victory. The Spurs are loaded with three-point streaming options and selecting the right one on any given night can be difficult.
- Patty Mills (26%) – Stream: Mills was solid again Tuesday and much like many of his teammates, is fine to stream in if you need perimeter scoring.
- Davis Bertans (19%) – Stream: Bertans moved into the starting lineup and hit five triples, finishing with 18 points. He has now hit a combined 10 three-pointers in his two games since returning to the lineup and is worth a look if you need three-pointers from the power-forward position.
Suns
- Mikal Bridges (45%) – Stream: Bridges notched double-digit scoring for the second straight game, finishing with 17 points to go with four steals. The defensive upside is clear for Bridges and as soon as he can find consistency on the offensive end, he should become a viable 12-team option. Until then, he is worth a look as a defensive streamer with the hope that this offensive surge can continue.
- Richaun Holmes (37%) – Add: Holmes started and played 30 minutes, finishing with a somewhat modest line. DeAndre Ayton continues to miss games with a sprained ankle and until he returns, Holmes is a must-roster player. Upon Ayton’s return, Holmes will likely be able to maintain backend value, thus making him a solid pickup.
- Elie Okobo (24%) – Watch
- Dragan Bender (15%) – Drop
- Jamal Crawford (6%) – Drop: Crawford went off for 22 points but had scored a total of just 14 points in his previous four games. He can be safely ignored in most formats.
Philadelphia 76ers def. Los Angeles Lakers 121-105
76ers
- T.J. McConnell (21%) – Stream: McConnell played just 18 minutes in Tuesday’s victory, and despite the low usage, still collected two steals and five assists.
- Wilson Chandler (18%) – Drop
- Landry Shamet (16%) – Stream: Shamet continues to hit three-pointers as part of his largely one-dimensional fantasy game. There are three-point guys available who will likely offer a little more but Shamet could be thrown in if you need perimeter scoring.
- Mike Muscala (13%) – Drop
- Corey Brewer (11%) – Drop
- Jonah Bolden (11%) – Drop
Lakers
- Lance Stephenson (18%) – Drop
- Michael Beasley (12%) – Drop
Got a question about today’s fantasy basketball fringe report? Hit Adam up on twitter @adamking91 or give a shout out to @Fantrax
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