Random Thoughts I Fantasy Basketball I Razzball

Welcome to the thirteenth installment of Weekly Yinteresting Thoughts (WYT). In these posts, I’ll be sharing some of my random thoughts, opinions, and questions about the NBA landscape as it pertains to fantasy basketball. Feel free to drop your comments and questions below! Let’s get started.

What an interesting past week for fantasy basketball. Tyrese Haliburton left the arena on crutches on the night of the 11th and his usage is up for grabs. Is it shifty veteran T.J. McConnell? Or 22 year old rookie Andrew Nembhard? Every year it seems like the Pacers are ready to host the fire sale by the trade deadline, and every year we’re disappointed. Fantasy managers anxiously await Myles Turner and Buddy Hield news to make moves. Probably nothing will happen. 

The Miami Heat swished a staggering 40/40 free throws against the Thunder; Jimmy Butler was responsible for 23 of them, and of course I had to be playing against him. Butler is putting up first round value on a per-game basis this season. Skeptics say that Butler’s frequent absences are baked into his relatively cheap draft price, but I disagree. Last season, Butler finished 32nd in total value and 17th per game. This year he’s 23rd total value and 9th per game. For an ADP of 30, he’s still putting up respectable value. Mr. Buckets is ranked 3rd over the past week.

Jimmy Butler Tonight

– 35 Points
– 7 Rebounds
– 4 Assists
– 4 Steals
– 3 Blocks
– 23/23 FT

Joins Harden, Dominique and Dirk as the only players to ever go 100% on 22+ FTs

First Player with 22+ FTs, 4 Steals and 3 Blocks

First NBA team to ever go 40/40 from the FT line pic.twitter.com/kv9RTgN1oB

— HEATMUSE (@HEATmuse) January 11, 2023

Don’t look now, but Kawhi Leonard is officially back. He’s the 6th-ranked player over the past week, putting up 22-6-3 on good percentages and 2.3 steals. He has a messy injury history, a terrible playoff schedule, and unreliable knees. I’d be looking to sell him for a top 40 asset sooner rather than later, but selling high on Leonard probably isn’t the reason you drafted him in the first place. We all know his ceiling is sky high, but I’m a bit scared of his injury history and poor playoff schedule. The Clippers during Week 21: three games, one back to back. Week 22: three games. Week 23: Four games, and one back to back. That’s a total of 2, 3, 3 games for Leonard. Are you willing to roll the dice on the Board Man?

Jazz MIP contender Lauri Markkanen continues to rip huge lines for thankful managers. Markkanen is averaging 30 over the past week and is the leading MVP on Yahoo, beating his ADP by 86 spots with incredible production. I had hoped those defensive stats would’ve increased a bit with the extra playing time, but no complaints from me.

Lauri Markkanen this season:

24.5 PPG
8.5 RPG
52/41/88%

Joins Dirk and Bird as the only players to average 24/8 on those shooting splits or better. pic.twitter.com/sPeatcAdXV

— StatMuse (@statmuse) January 12, 2023

Are we worried yet about Giannis Antetokounmpo? I’m not. The G Man is ranked 362nd over the past week due to 34% shooting from the field and 56% from the line. He’s averaging 12-19-5 across three games with no steals. This is probably the lowest buy low open that’ll present itself, and I suggest you take it. The Bucks have a good playoff schedule and Giannis’ season averages are not much different from last years. Most of his stats are down across the board, but if you can flip two second rounders for him, it’ll be worth it.