Philadelphia big-man Joel Embiid should be tough to stop on Monday night as the 76ers host the Rockets.
With the NFL season over, the NBA takes center stage with an 11-game slate Monday. There will be no shortage of star power with the Mavericks, Nuggets and 76ers among the teams in action. With so many options to consider on Yahoo, let’s get right to it and highlight some players to target, as well as a few to possibly avoid.
Guards
Brandon Ingram, NOP at OKC ($30): Some grim news came out of New Orleans over the weekend. Zion Williamson suffered a setback by aggravating his hamstring injury, which has kept him on the sidelines for over a month. The team says that he’ll be sidelined for several more weeks, leaving Ingram to continue to carry increased scoring responsibilities. He has been a reliable source of production for the Pelicans, scoring at least 40.6 Yahoo points in four straight games.
Malaki Branham, SAS at CLE ($13): As far as matchups go, this is not a good one for the Spurs since the Cavaliers have the best defensive rating in the league. However, Branham has shown upside, scoring at least 26.0 Yahoo points in four of his last six games. Added playing time should be coming his way with Tre Jones (foot) out, making him possibly worth the risk in tournament play.
Guard to Avoid
Edmond Sumner, BKN at NYK ($18): When the Nets initially traded away Kyrie Irving, their lack of depth left Sumner to play heavy minutes. He responded with back-to-back games with at least 36.5 Yahoo points. However, with their new additions now available, he hasn’t played in the last two games. It may be best to keep him out of your entry.
Forwards
Kelly Olynyk, UTA at IND ($17): The Jazz thinned out their depth by dealing Mike Conley, Malik Beasley and Jarred Vanderbilt at the trade deadline. The departure of Vanderbilt should help Olynyk, who is now in line to play more minutes. While his numbers haven’t been off the charts, he has averaged 11.4 points, 6.4 rebounds and 3.4 assists over the last five games. It should also help his cause that the Pacers have played at the eighth-fastest pace in the league.
Josh Green, DAL vs. MIN ($14): With Dorian Finney-Smith gone, Green now looks like an important supporting player for the Mavericks. Even with Luka Doncic returning from injury Saturday against the Kings, Green started and played 40 minutes. He has logged at least 37 minutes in four straight games, averaging 20.8 points, 5.0 rebounds and 2.8 assists.
Forward to Avoid
Ben Simmons, BKN at NYK ($20): It’s a new era in Brooklyn. With Irving and Kevin Durant gone, the Nets have their eyes set on rebuilding. They brought in several wing players at the deadline, complicating matters for Simmons. He has come off the bench in back-to-back games, totaling 36 minutes. That contributed to him scoring 22.6 and 14.1 Yahoo points, respectively. It’ll be difficult for him to provide value at this salary in his new role.
Centers
Joel Embiid, PHI vs. HOU ($53): This one will require monitoring because Embiid (foot) is questionable. He has been on the injury report a lot lately, but he has averaged 35.4 minutes per game while appearing in nine straight matchups. He has been locked in during that span, averaging 32.8 points, 11.7 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 1.6 steals and 1.0 blocks. If he plays, he should be a handful for a Rockets team that lacks size at center behind Alperen Sengun.
Mark Williams, CHA vs. ATL ($15): Don’t read too much into Williams providing only six points and five rebounds in his last game against the Nuggets. He played just 21 minutes while getting into foul trouble against Nikola Jokic. Before that, he had a double-double across 31 minutes against the Celtics. He’s locked into a starting role with Mason Plumlee gone, so Williams could provide excellent value at such a cheap salary.
Center to Avoid
Christian Wood, DAL vs. MIN ($24): Wood has played in four straight games since missing a few weeks with a thumb injury. However, he didn’t log more than 19 minutes in any of those four games while coming off the bench. The Mavericks now have Irving to take some of the scoring pressure off Doncic, and the coaching staff has seemed reluctant to give Wood a significant role for much of the season. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see him remain in a limited role following the Mavericks’ recent acquisitions.
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Mike Barner started covering fantasy sports in 2007, joining RotoWire in 2010. In 2018, he was a finalist for the 2018 FSWA Basketball Writer of the Year award. In addition to RotoWire, Mike has written for Sportsline, Sports Illustrated, DK Live, RealTime Fantasy Sports, Lineup Lab and KFFL.com.
