The second week of the NBA has come and gone, and there has been no shortage of injuries or blowouts. Plenty of rookies are getting good playing time, and are more than taking advantage of it. Very few players this week are down in their overall stock, and the trend of rookies being a benefit to both standard and dynasty leagues continues. Players like Chet Holmgren, who seemingly cannot miss a shot, or all the way to second-round picks like Trayce Jackson-Davis and Toumani Camara are putting in good minutes. It is going to continue to be incredibly important that teams make the right selection in the draft, as fantasy managers do for their picks. This is the second-week review of rookies who are on the rise or falling.
Fantasy Basketball Rookie Report: OKC is Che(a)ting
When you have a player that is above seven feet tall and is an offensive and defensive presence, usually that bodes well for the success of your team. Chet Holmgren was a bit out of sight, out of mind given his injury last season. Oklahoma City is .500, but games with both Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Chet Holmgren have been fun to watch. When they get SGA back, the entire roster is going to flourish. A combo of an inside-out defensive big man with a gravitational guard is what general managers dream of, and fantasy managers should too.
You, the reader, are not watching the Portland Trailblazers, and I don’t blame you. But if you’ve been following the rookie reports, Toumani Camara’s name has come up a few times, and I have had the ability to watch him play the Pistons in Detroit. I really like what Camara does on the basketball court. Despite not being a three-tiered scorer (yet?), he is always in the right place at the right time, and that is not because he is lucky. Finding players like this (Bruce Brown anyone?) is what helps take a team from point A to point B and facilitates the growth of an organization. You’ll see in this week’s risers.
As mentioned before, there are a lot of risers this week. Many players have gotten an opportunity to showcase their skills, and are doing it well. Below will be a guide to risers and fallers, as well as buy or sell potential.
Risers
- Victor Wembanyama (PF/C, San Antonio)
- Previous Riser
- Wemby has been excellent since the first week, displaying that shooting touch and dribbling ability that’s soared him into the 20 PPG/8 RPG/2 APG with 4 steals plus blocks per game. He is here, he is real.
- Hard to buy, stock is at an all-time high.
- Chet Holmgren (PF/C, Oklahoma City Thunder)
- Previous Riser
- Chet is what Wembanyama would look like if he got hurt his rookie year and couldn’t play. At 17.2/7.3/2.7 with 3.3 stocks, this secondary unicorn is nearly shooting 50/40/90, and it isn’t the field goals or threes that are there. Holmgren can shoot!
- Buy!
- Ausar Thompson (SG/SF/PF, Detroit Pistons)
- Previous Riser
- This may be biased, I know. Thompson is at 11.4/9.3!/4.0 with 3.3 steals and blocks. He is legitimately the most fun player to watch play defense on the pistons, and his shooting is only going to improve as he finds his spots.
- Buy buy buy!
- Derreck Lively II (C, Dallas Mavericks)
- Previous Riser
- Derreck Lively is providing an organizational need to a surging Dallas Mavericks team. He is not going anywhere and will only improve. 8.8/8.2/1.3 in 6 games, but only 1.7 steals plus blocks with his height and athleticism. Does not take threes and makes 80% of his two-point shots. Andre Drummond-level free throw shooter thus far though.
- Buy stock!
- Jordan Hawkins (SG/SF, New Orleans Pelicans)
- Previous Riser
- Hawkins has not been shooting the ball well in his starts but is on the rise specifically because of his starts and CJ McCollum having a collapsed lung. As a bench player, 9/3/1 on 45/50/1.000, but as a starter 10/4/2 on 28.2/20.0/60.0. Considering the bench stats and his college shooting splits of 39.6/37.6/87.2, Hawkins should be able to up his overall production from a fantasy standpoint soon.
- Buy!
- Anthony Black (SG/SF, Orlando Magic)
- Previously Fence-Sitter
- Getting some playing time and starts. 6.3/1.8/1.3 with an efficient 83.3/66.7/60.0, expect the shooting to come down and output slowly increases.
- Sell Stock!
- Cason Wallace (PG/SG, Oklahoma City Thunder)
- Previous Riser
- In 22.7 minutes per game, Wallace is shooting out of his mind. 73.1 FG%/75.0 3P% and 100% FT% are not going to sustain, but the 8.3 Points/2.5 Rebounds and 1.0 assists should give fantasy managers a good look into what his future value can be.
- Sell Cason Wallace stock early, if you can!
- Brandin Podziemski (SG/SF, Golden State Warriors)
- Previous Fence-sitter
- Has accumulated good marks in rebounds and assists since playing an average 15.5 minutes over two games. The shooting will be there.
- Buy stock now!
- Julian Strawther (F, Denver Nuggets)
- Previous Riser
- More minutes but less efficiency, still, getting minutes on a championship team is more important in the long run than being benched.
- Buy at a low price
- Kobe Brown (F, Los Angeles Clippers)
- Previous Riser
- More minutes and more shot opportunities. Still rebounding decently well in a small sample size. Too small a sample size for good fantasy decisions.
- Hold Stock
- Ben Sheppard (SG/SF, Indiana Pacers)
- Previous Fence-Sitter
- Gained 10 minutes per game with injuries, and showed some shooting ability, with an assist and rebound. Small Sample size, but getting minutes is important.
- Buy stock!
- Keyonte George (G, Utah Jazz)
- Previous Riser
- Playing 20 minutes per game in 7 games. Shooting splits slightly low at 43.2%/33.3%/70% but has 7.7PPG/2.3 RPG/3.1 APG, showing the all-around fantasy potential.
- Buy buy buy! (Buy buy)
- Marcus Sasser (PG/SG, Detroit Pistons)
- Previous Riser
- The sass-man has been averaging 9.3 PPG/2.3 RPG/2.6 APG on 58.1/59.1/1.000. The fantasy concerns are low free throws taken, but Detroit fans and media have been clamoring for starting Marcus Sasser.
- Buy Now! Sell Later!
- Hunter Tyson (F, Denver Nuggets)
- Previous Fence-Sitter
- Minutes are important, and Tyson has been getting minutes.
- Buy or hold.
- Jalen Pickett (G, Denver Nuggets)
- Previous Fence-Sitter
- Same as before, but has shown his offensive potential early. Consistent Jamal Murray injuries will give him value.
- Buy or hold.
- Craig Porter (PG, Cleveland Cavaliers)
- Undrafted Free Agent!
- Previous unknown.
- 3 games played at 12.3 minutes per game, 4.7 PPG/1.7 RPG/1.0 APG with a steal per game with decent shooting.
- Stock: ?
- Colby Jones (G, Sacramento Kings)
- Previous Fence-Sitter
- 4 games played now with nearly 10 minutes per game. Bad shooting splits at 36.4%/25.0% with only 2.3 PPG/1.8 RPG/0.3 APG. Not super encouraging but getting minutes!
- Stock: Buy low, low, low, low, low, low, low.
- Trayce Jackson-Davis (PF/C, Golden State Warriors)
- Previous Non-Player
- In 36 minutes, has shown interior scoring, rebounding and block potential with 6.0 PPG/4.7 RPG/1.7 Blocks Per Game. Will be in and out of the lineup in his first year with the usual Golden State Injuries.
- Buy!
- Toumani Camara (F, Portland Trailblazers)
- Previous Riser
- Currently a non-shooter with a 33.3%/29.4%/75.0% split but has 6.3PPG/4.6RPG/1.3APG in 24.6 minutes per game and a steal plus block per game. Definitely a good rebounder and the shooting will come. Smart player.
- Buy low!
- Jordan Miller (SF/PF, Los Angeles Clippers)
- Previous Unknown
- Getting minutes is important, that’s all!
- Buy low!
- Bilal Coulibaly (SF/PF, Washington Wizards)
- Previous Faller
- Improved shooting splits in the month of November doubled his fantasy output! Getting settled in. 8/3/2 on 53/33/43. The free throw rate is a bit concerning though.
- Buy low if possible, sell high if necessary.
Fallers
- Gradey Dick (SG/SF, Toronto Raptors)
- Previous Riser
- Awful shooting week for Dick, hard to get minutes and opportunities on a playoff-hopeful team with bad shooting, which will minimize fantasy output.
- Stock: Hold, until further notice.
- Brandon Miller (SG/SF, Charlotte Hornets)
- Previous: Riser
- I do not think he will be here for long. Drastically worse shooting splits at 39.3%/10%/67% with a dip in nearly half all counting stats for production.
- Stock: Buy low if possible.
Fence-Sitters
- Scoot Henderson (PG, Portland Trailblazers)
- Previous: Faller
- Injured, finally started to come around in the Pistons game.
- Stock: Buy lower
- Amen Thompson (G/F, Houston Rockets)
- Previous: Faller
- Has not gotten any better or any worse in the last week than the first one. Definitely underutilized.
- Stock: Buy lower if possible
- Taylor Hendricks (SF/PF, Utah Jazz)
- Previous: Fence-Sitter
- Has not gotten much playing time. DNPs
- Stock: Buy low!
- Jaime Jaquez Jr. (SF/PF, Miami Heat)
- Previous: Riser
- Has not changed too much on production since the first week, but getting consistent minutes
- Stonk: Buy low!
- Jett Howard (PG/SG, Orlando Magic)
- Previous: Fence-Sitter
- Still not playing a ton. Has 12 total minutes but is still playing.
- Stock: Buy low.
- Cam Whitmore (SF/PF, Houston Rockets)
- Previous: Faller
- Not getting a lot of playing time and not exhibiting any production with that time. Hard to gauge value with that.
- Stock: Hold.
- Brice Sensabaugh (SF/PF, Utah Jazz)
- Previous: Fence-Sitter
- DNPs
- Stock: Hold
- Dariq Whitehead (SF/PF, Brooklyn Nets)
- Previous: Fence-Sitter
- Injured
- Stock: Hold
- Oliver Maxence-Prosper (SF, Los Angeles Lakers)
- Previous: Fence-Sitter
- Injured
- Stock: Hold
- Leonard Miller (SF/PF, Minnesota Timberwolves)
- Previous: Riser
- Has not done much since the first week but should still get minutes over the season.
- Stock: Buy low
- Andre Jackson Jr. (SF/PF, Milwaukee Bucks)
- Previous: Riser
- Has had minutes despite a low draft position. Consistent Milwaukee injuries will give him more opportunity with a shallow team.
- Stock: Buy low!