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Welcome back to another exciting day of the NBA 2018-19 season. There are almost 10 games to choose from and watch the ones that catch our fancy. With an eye on the present, let us look at some meaningful performances and delve into yesterday night's NBA games.
Thursday's recap:
1. The Boston Celtics 128 - 100 The New York Knicks
2. The Phoenix Suns 86 - 108 The Portland Trailblazers
3. The Utah Jazz 118 - 91 The Houston Rockets
Highlights:
1. Kyrie Irving (Boston Celtics): 22 points, 9-15 FG, 8 assists, 4 rebounds, 2 TOs and 1 block.
2. Derrick Favors (Utah Jazz): 24 points, 10-13 FG, 10 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 block and 1 TO.
3. Damian Lillard (Portland Trailblazers): 25 points, 8-14 FG, 8 assists, 5 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 block and 4 TOs.
Lowlights:
1. Marcus Morris (Boston Celtics): 10 points, 5-13 FG, 0-7 3 PT FG, 3 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 steal.
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2. DeAndre Ayton (Phoenix Suns): 11 points, 5-13 FG, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 1 block and 2 TOs
3. PJ Tucker (Houston Rockets): 0 points, 0-2 FG, 5 rebounds.
Thursday's takeaways:
1. The Boston Celtics won an easy game over the New York Knicks, 128-100. They outplayed the Knicks in each quarter of the game and managed to score a lot. Even though Morris and Hayward did not chip in a lot, Brown came back from injury and made up for it, scoring 21 points in 25 minutes.
2. The Phoenix Suns played another game without their main scorers, Devin Booker and TJ Warren again were a really, really bad team. They scored a measly 9 points in the first quarter to the Trailblazers' 34. The Blazers started playing their bench in response and Jake Layman had a 24-point outburst in 26 minutes along with Damian Lillard scoring a team-high 25 points for the Blazers. Josh Jackson had the best outing among the Suns, scoring a team high 14 points.
3. The Houston Rockets got completely outplayed by the Utah Jazz, 118-91. The Jazz outplayed the Rockets 38-11 in the 3rd quarter, even without Rudy Gobert, who got ejected within 3 minutes. James Harden also had an uncharacteristic off night yesterday, making only 5-16 shots, scoring 15 points. Donovan Mitchell also had a very off night, scoring only 6 points in 26 minutes. Derrick Favors had a great night, scoring 24 points in 26 minutes and also pulled down 10 rebounds. Clint Capela had a good game for the Rockets, scoring 12 points and 10 rebounds.
1. PG 1 - Stephen Curry (Golden State Warriors):
The Golden State Warriors have been very underwhelming to begin their title defense, currently 5-5 in their last 10, but in 4th place with a 17-9 record. Most of their woes were because of the lack of bench strength, if any of their stars were out due to injuries.
Curry and Green were injured and this is what led to a horrible stretch for the Warriors, given their high standards. Even a considerable fight from Durant, who had scored 3 consecutive 44+ point games, couldn't really start them. But now Steph is back and it's a completely different ballgame when he's in the picture.
Steph returned in the game against the Pistons, which the Warriors surprisingly lost. Curry had 27 points then, showing his slight rustiness after injury. He followed that up with wins over the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Atlanta Hawks. He scored a game high of 42 points against the Cavaliers and 30 against the Hawks respectively. He is matching a career high of 30 points per game, to go with 6 assists and 5 rebounds. He is one of the first picks on your DFS rosters.
Alternative Picks: De'Aaron Fox (Sacramento Kings)
PG 2 - Mike Conley (Memphis Grizzlies):
The Grizzlies have started the season really well, they are currently 14-9 for the season and are sitting at the 6th place. They seem to have figured out their game both defensively and offensively and have been able to stick to their plan and execute it perfectly. In the last 3 games, the Grizzlies have won 2 games and lost 1. They usually hold teams to a low total and manage to play some amazing basketball. Along with Gasol, their best player has really been Mike Conley.
In the past 3 games, Conley has averaged almost 27 points per game to go with 6 assists, 1 steal and 1 block per game as well. Conley is averaging career highs in points and assists. The timing of his scoring bursts have been key too -- he has scored most of his points in the second halves of games, helping push the Grizzlies over the hill. He should be rostered as he is a very consistent player and usually stuffs the stat sheet as well.
Alternative player: Ben Simmons (Philadelphia 76ers)
SG 1 - DeMar DeRozan (San Antonio Spurs):
The San Antonio Spurs have been a mixed bag this season. Compared to their usual high standards, they have been really bad to start the 2018-19 NBA season. They are currently in 14th place, with an abysmal record of 11-14.
While the Spurs and Pop usually have 2 role players performing more than they have been able to, this season the team lacks bite. The only player who seems motivated to do something is DeMar DeRozan. The Spurs are currently on a 3-7 run and have lost 2 of their last 3 games.
DeRozan, in this bad stretch for the Spurs, is having a superb year. He is averaging 24 points per game, to go with 6 assists and 6 rebounds per game. Given the injury situation the Spurs had in the beginning, he had to step in as the point guard and the shooting guard, doing a great job.
He is enjoying a career high in field goal percentage as Pop has given him the green light to do what he feels he is best at. 92% of his shots are coming in the mid range. In the last 3 games, DeRozan has averaged 28 points per game, to give with 5 assists and 6 rebounds. He was averaging a triple double against the Lakers before the previous game and scored a massive 32 points in their last meeting. This should make him a lock for the game tomorrow.
Alternative pick: Zach LaVine (Chicago Bulls)
SG 2 - Jimmy Butler (Philadelphia 76ers):
The Philadelphia 76ers were widely considered contenders to reach the Eastern Conference finals. With the way Joel Embiid was playing to start the season and how well Simmons complemented his play, they decided to move up the timetable and trade for a third star to make this a win-now season. They traded Robert Covington and Dario Saric for Jimmy Butler from the Minnesota Timberwolves.
This made a lot of sense for the Wolves as the front office and Butler had been trying to work out a way to trade him all season, a wish which was finally granted. Since joining the 76ers, Butler already has had 2 clutch, final second-game winning 3 pointers.
Since the trade, the 76ers are 8-3 and have won 2 of their last 3 games, losing only to the Toronto Raptors. Butler in these games has been great, averaging almost 23 points per game to go with 5 rebounds as well. He has also been great defensively, averaging 2 steals per game for the season. He is in great form right now and is expected to explode at any point of time. He is an amazing pick for tomorrow but should be taken only if you have the funds for him.
Alternative pick: Jrue Holiday (New Orleans Pelicans)
SF 1 - LeBron James (Los Angeles Lakers):
The Los Angeles Lakers have been on a roll of late. They are currently on a 4-game winning streak and have a record of 15-9. The rest of the Lakers are learning how to play with LeBron James and it's showing on the court now. They beat the San Antonio Spurs in their last fixture, 121-113 and a huge credit goes to their newest star, the King, LeBron James. He has started more shots for himself rather than be a distributor this season and it shows.
In his last 3 games, LeBron has averaged a huge 31 points per game, to go with 6 assists and 5 rebounds per game. He is also been a good defender, averaging almost a block and a steal per game. His career average for points has also gone up to 28 per game, as he is taking almost 20 shots per game now. He scored a team high 42 points, with 5 rebounds and 6 assists against the San Antonio Spurs and given that they play them again tomorrow, he should be a lock in your squad.
Alternative pick: Paul George (Oklahoma City Thunder)
SF 2 - Kawhi Leonard (Toronto Raptors):
The Toronto Raptors are solidifying themselves as the best team in the Eastern Conference. They are on a 9-1 streak and have beaten almost every team in their path. They have a 21-5 record to start the season and don't look like they're going to stop anytime soon. Their squad is being touted as one with the most depth and can theoretically compete and maybe beat the Warriors too.
All of this is justifying the one big move they made in the summer -- trading DeMar DeRozan for Kawhi Leonard. Kawhi has just elevated this team into championship territory. Most league executives think that Kawhi has not even reached 80% of what he was with the San Antonio Spurs and that is what is terrifying.
Kawhi has not been cleared to play back-to-back games and yet he is averaging 26 points per game, along with almost 9 rebounds and 3 assists. We all know of Leonard's defensive prowess and he has not let the Raptors down, averaging almost 2 steals and 1 block per game. In his last game against the Philadelphia 76ers, he scored 36 points, pulled down 9 boards, had an amazing 5 steals and 1 block in the game. He goes up against the Brooklyn Nets and should be in for a huge game.
Alternative pick: Josh Richardson (Miami Heat)
PF 1 - Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks):
The Milwaukee Bucks are a team built around their star player, Giannis Antetokounmpo. They quickly adapted to the new system put into place by their new head coach, Mike Budenholzer. They have all shooters surrounding him and made him the crown jewel of this Bucks team. This system has directly translated into the second place for the Bucks this season, with the record of 16-7. They have been 6-4 in their last 10 games, but this is not for the lack of trying by Antetokounmpo.
Giannis in the last 3 games has been a force to reckon with, averaging a huge 28 points per game, along with 12 rebounds and 7 assists per game as well. He seems to have taken another leap this season, shooting more efficiently, pulling down more rebounds and playmaking more.
There’s no way to guard Giannis anymore. He’s too quick for anyone to defend him one-on-one, and he’s too good a passer for teams to send help now. Instead of putting his shoulder into the chest of weaker big men and dunking through them, he’s getting around slower big men and dunking over them.
Alternative pick: LaMarcus Aldridge (San Antonio Spurs)
PF 2 - Anthony Davis ( New Orleans Pelicans):
He is one of the few elite big men who can do it all. He can shoot 3s as well as dominate the glass. He is a fantastic fantasy player if he can stay on the court for the whole NBA 2018-19 season. He is is first in the NBA in PER and third in box plus/minus.
By any metric, he is one of the five best players in the NBA and has got to be the first pick on any team's fantasy roster. In the last game, The New Orleans Pelicans overcame the Dallas Mavericks 132-106, largely due to a big performance from Davis. He scored 27 points, grabbed a season low 4 rebounds but dished out a season high 9 assists. He also got a jaw-dropping 5 blocks and 2 steals.
He has averaged 28 points per game to go with 13 rebounds per game this season. He is averaging 2.8 blocks per game as well, showing how elite of a rim protector he is for the New Orleans Pelicans. He is also getting almost 5 assists per game which is great quality for an elite big man. They go up against the Memphis Grizzlies which is another grind-it-out game for the Pelicans but look for Anthony Davis to show up again.
Alternative pick: Blake Griffin (Detroit Pistons)
C 1 - Nikola Jokic (Denver Nuggets):
The Denver Nuggets narrowly missed out on the playoffs last season, losing in a very close game to the Minnesota Timberwolves and thereby missing the playoffs. It must've been a significant blow to the team then.
Come the 2018-19 NBA season, the Nuggets have become one of the best teams in the Western Conference, leading the Western conference with a 17-7 record and are currently on a 8-2 run. Not only has the supporting cast been really good this season, they are now channeling more and more of their offense through their star center, Nikola Jokic. The Nuggets juggernaut has won 7 games in a row right now and face the Charlotte Hornets tomorrow.
The last 3 games, the Nuggets have beaten the Trailblazers, the Raptors and the Magic, showing how good of a team they've really become. Jokic has been averaging 16.5 points per game, with almost 10 rebounds and 8 assists as well. These are absurd numbers for a big man, to have such amazing vision and elite playmaking ability. Jokic is one of the top centers in the league and look for him to have a great game against the Hornets who do not have a backcourt to stop the likes of him.
Alternative pick: Tristan Thompson (Cleveland Cavaliers)
C 2 - Andre Drummond (Detroit Pistons):
The Detroit Pistons have been having a better year than most, with the Pistons having a 13-9 record to start the season, even though they are on a 2-game losing streak. A major factor of their great start is the fact that Blake Griffin has again become an elite player.
But it is also because of the continuous improvement that Andre Drummond has made. While he had the tools for scoring and rebounding at the glass, he was always a horrible free throw shooter, until last season, where he averaged 60% shooting from the line -- a huge improvement over his career average of 38% and he has just improved more this season.
He has scored 18 points per game, to go with 15.5 rebounds as well. His assist numbers are almost a non-factor, given that Blake has taken over the playmaking duties. He is also a defensive monster, almost averaging 2 blocks and steals. He has also started shooting 3s this season, but they are at a really bad clip. They play the Philadelphia 76ers tomorrow and given that Joel Embiid is out for rest, Drummond can have a great night, given he always has a problem against him.
Alternative pick: Marc Gasol (Memphis Grizzlies)
