Welcome to the Fantasy Vibe Check, your place to vent about the highs, lows and head-scratchers from the NBA and fantasy basketball.
Check out who I’m vibing with, and let me know in the comments or @DanTitus about what’s got you feeling a type-of-way about fantasy basketball.
One of the best value picks in fantasy, Franz Wagnerâs ascension up the NBA ranks has been among the best developments in the game. Heâs been a top 10 player in 9-cat leagues and top 20 in points leagues this season â an easy favorite for Most Improved Player after being on pace to put up career numbers in nearly every category. To see him suffer an oblique injury when heâs playing at an all-NBA level objectively sucks. What’s even more maddening is that he suffered the same oblique injury that has sidelined Paolo Banchero for the past 23 games.
The silver lining? Paolo Banchero told Marc J. Spears that he plans to return around Christmas. The team will be without its top two players for only a couple of weeks. In the meantime, we can expect to see a lot of Jalen Suggs and Goga Bitadze. Suggs and Bitadze had 33% and 26% usage rates last game, respectively, so that was just a glimpse of what to expect. Both players should be rostered in all leagues, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope is a good streaming option in 12+ leagues.
Since it’s NBA cup week, Wendell Carter Jr (29%), Anthony Black (5%) and Cole Anthony (6%) are options if youâre looking for more production on a lighter Tuesday slate. However, Iâd choose fringe Bucks players like Gary Trent Jr. over them because I have the Bucks winning and advancing. Still, Wagnerâs injury opens up more opportunities to everyone until Banchero returns.
The Magic built one of the best defensive units in basketball, so this will be an important stretch for the role players to step up in IRL and fantasy with their two stars are sidelined.
Just as I was getting over my Franz saltiness, Scottie Barnes sustained an ankle injury midway through the third quarter in Monday nightâs clash with the Knicks. Barnes inadvertently stepped on Karl-Anthony Townsâ foot going for a rebound and looked like he was in considerable pain.
âI can’t feel my foot.â đł
Scottie Barnes with some troubling words to the medical staff after a collision with Karl Anthony-Towns.
Hope they are both alright đđœ
pic.twitter.com/irZj0y5jJoâ ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) December 10, 2024
He would eventually limp to the locker room on his own, but he didnât return to the game.
Barnes missed 11 games earlier this year with an orbital bone fracture, making this ankle injury increasingly frustrating. However, Raptors HC Darko RajakoviÄ shared that Barnesâ X-rays were negative and that he would get more imaging on Tuesday. Getting clean X-rays is a promising start, so we’ll await the additional imaging results and the projected timeline for his return.
While Barnes is sidelined, RJ Barrett will become more of a point-forward again with more opportunities available for Gradey Dick (48%), Kelly Olynyk (20%), Davion Mitchell (4%) and Ochai Agbaji (20%). At 4% rostered, Davion Mitchell is an underrated fantasy contributor. In 11 games without Barnes this season, Mitchell is averaging 8.5 points, 3.2 rebounds, 6.2 assists and 1.1 steals across 31 minutes per game.
Iâm looking forward to the start of the NBA Cup on Tuesday night. If not for the Wagner injury, we wouldâve had eight entertaining and star-studded teams competing for the in-season championship. The Magic can put up a fight, but stopping Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard without their top players is a tall ask. Still, the East has the Knicks, Hawks, Bucks and Magic and the West sports the Rockets, Warriors, Thunder and Mavericks.
OKC has the best record in the Western Conference and has dominated most of the season, leading the NBA in point differential per game (+11.9) and defensive rating. SGA and Jalen Williams are playing at All-NBA levels and Isaiah Hartenstein hasnât missed a beat since returning from his thumb injury. Dallasâ record is underwhelming, but theyâve had some tough losses in the clutch. Luka DonÄiÄ and Kyrie and the health of the supporting cast are trending up, making Dallas a real threat to win the NBA Cup.
If you think OKC will move on, pick up players like Lu Dort (22%) and Cason Wallace (10%). If you like Dallas, Spencer Dinwiddie (14%) and Quentin Grimes (8%) are your best bets, but I donât love them.
The Warriors beat the Rockets on December 5, extending their consecutive win streak against Houston to 15 games. The Rockets havenât beaten the Warriors since February 20, 2020. I think the streak ends here and weâll see the Rockets advance. This matchup features two top-five defenses plus some electric bucket-getters with crazy athleticism, so it wonât disappoint.
Tari Eason, 48% rostered, is still recovering from a concussion, but if heâs active on Wednesday, make sure heâs not available on waivers. For Warriors who are under 50% rostered, Buddy Hield (45%), Kevon Looney (7%) and Gary Payton II (1%) are options if you think the Warriors advance to the semifinals.
