The NBA is fantastic and there are so many things to talk about each and every week. Whether you are a Fantasy Basketball fanatic or just a fan here is ten things about the NBA that I want you to know about as we head into week 21 of the NBA season!
Best Games to Watch in Week 21
Monday March 5: Detroit Pistons at the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Pistons are desperately trying to make the playoffs. The Cavaliers are trying find some chemistry for another playoff run. Should be a fun game in Cleveland.
Tuesday March 6: Houston Rockets at the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Rockets and the Thunder on TNT; this should be dynamite!
Wednesday March 7: Utah Jazz at the Indiana Pacers. Utah is one of the hottest teams in the NBA and fighting for a playoff spot. Indiana is trying to hang onto their own playoff dreams. Should be a fun night in Indianapolis!
Thursday March 8: San Antonio Spurs at the Golden State Warriors. This would be the perfect situation for Spurs SF Kawhi Leonard to return. It should also be a terrific game!
Friday March 9: Houston Rockets at the Toronto Raptors. The top seed in the West and the top seed in the East collide in what might be a preview of the 2018 NBA Finals!
Saturday March 10: San Antonio Spurs at the Oklahoma City Thunder. This potential first round playoff preview is must see TV.
Sunday March 11: Indiana Pacers at the Boston Celtics. It’s always fun to watch games in March between two playoff teams. Especially when it’s a possible first round playoff preview.
You are a Happy Fantasy Basketball General Manager If
If you have players on your roster from the Chicago Bulls, Cleveland Cavaliers, Denver Nuggets, Golden State Warriors, Houston Rockets, Indiana Pacers, Los Angeles Lakers, Memphis Grizzlies, Miami Heat, New Orleans Pelicans, Orlando Magic, Toronto Raptors and Utah Jazz as they have four games this week.
Waiver Wire Pickup of the Week for Week 19
Over the past five games Denver Nuggets SF Wilson Chandler has really turned the jets on and with four games this week (@Dallas, Cleveland, Lakers and Sacramento) the Benton Harbor native has been a good source for points (14.8), rebounds (7.8), assists (3.8), blocks (1.8) with the occasional steal and just under two triples a night. Chandler always gets heavy minutes, makes a decent 43 percent of his shots from the field, 81 percent from the line and is widely available across the Fantasy Basketball Industry.
You are a Unhappy Fantasy Basketball General Manager If
If you have players on your roster from the Minnesota Timberwolves as they are the only team in the NBA team with two games this week.
Tweet of the Week
What Houston Rockets superstar James Harden did to Los Angeles Clippers small forward Wesley Johnson was insane…..ESPN’s Rob Perez tweeted it and is this week’s Tweet of the Week!!
Oh my good god this is it, the most disrespectful act of 2018 NBA. Harden crosses up Wes Johnson, STARES AT HIM ‼️ wets 3 in his face 💀💀💀 pic.twitter.com/j6W0PxMMQF
— Rob Perez (@World_Wide_Wob) March 1, 2018
Dunk of the Week
Chicago Bulls rookie power forward Lauri Markkanon may not win Rookie of the Year but this hammer against the Charlotte Hornets does win him this week’s Dunk of the Week!!
Taking Advantage of the Tankapalooza
Because the NBA powers that be didn’t think the Lottery all the way through we now have a NBA Front Offices building rosters solely to lose enough games in hopes of getting the number one pick in the NBA Draft. It sucks for fans of tanking teams but for wise Fantasy Basketball General Managers this is a beautiful thing and something to take advantage of. I’m going to give you one player on a few of these tanking teams that could pay off big in either Daily Fantasy Leagues or Season Long Fantasy Leagues. Each of these players is widely available across the Fantasy Basketball industry.
Atlanta Hawks: The Hawks bought out Ersan Ilyasova and opened the door for PF/C John Collins. Collins averaged 27 minutes over the past five games and contributes in several scoring categories.
Brooklyn Nets: Center Jarrett Allen is getting 24 minutes a game and is a good source of points, blocks and rebounds. He also has excellent shooting percentages!!
Dallas Mavericks: PF/C Dwight Powell is getting nearly 30 minutes a night and contributes in EVERYTHING but triples.
Memphis Grizzlies: PG Andrew Harrison is getting 32 minutes a night and is contributing in everything but blocks and is knocking down two triples a night.
New York Knicks: PG Trey Burke is getting over 25 minutes in his past three games and contributes in every category.
Widely Available Streaming Options for Week 19
Monday March 5: Detroit Pistons SF Reggie Bullock has a nice opportunity against a Cleveland Cavaliers team that is the worst in the NBA against small forwards.
Tuesday Tuesday March 6: Miami Heat SG/SF Josh Richardson is in a nice spot against a bottom three Washington Wizards defense against small forwards.
Wednesday Wednesday March 7: The New Orleans Pelicans have the third worst defense against shooting guards which bodes well for Sacramento Kings SG/SF Bogdan Bogdanovic.
Thursday March 8: Charlotte Hornets PF/C Frank Kaminsky is in a nice spot against a Brooklyn Nets defense near the bottom of the NBA against power forwards.
Friday March 9: Atlanta Hawks PF/C John Collins has a great opportunity against a Indiana Pacers defense in the bottom ten in defense against centers and power forwards.
Saturday March 10: The Hornets PF/C Kaminsky is in another great spot against a dead last Phoenix Suns defense against power forwards.
Sunday March 11: Chicago Bulls PG Kris Dunn has a good opportunity against a bottom ten Hawks defense against point guards.
Heading into the Home Stretch in Your Fantasy Basketball League
There is just a few more weeks until the Fantasy Basketball playoffs begin. Are you ready? You MUST do all that you can to make the league playoffs and here’s a little checklist to help you get it done!
- Re-read your league rules and double check your league trade deadline.
- If you are in a league with position limits pay careful attention to how many games you have left.
- If you are not safely in the playoffs and you have a player like Kevin Love on your roster and don’t have an injured reserve spot than you need to drop that player.
- No matter where you are in the league standings please continue to update your rosters every Monday in weekly leagues and every day in daily leagues. There is nothing worse than a General Manager that quits before the regular season ends.
That’s all I can think of right now but if there is something I have left out please use the comments section and help us out!!
Replacing Jimmy Butler
Last week Minnesota Timberwolves SG/SF Jimmy Butler was lost for the remainder of the regular season with an injured knee. If you are like me than you need to replace him pronto. Okay, there isn’t going to be a player to replace his production but we must still try. Below are three players that are in good spots this week.
Utah Jazz SF Joe Ingles is streaky and over the past five games he’s knocked down 2.4 triples per night with decent success in every scoring category except for blocks. Ingles also plays 35 minutes per night and has four games this week (Orlando, @ Indiana @Memphis, and @New Orleans) and is available Industry wide in more than 50 percent of Fantasy Basketball Leagues.
Miami Heat SG/SF Josh Richardson has four games this week (Phoenix, @Washington, Philadelphia and Washington) and over the past five games Richardson has been solid in every scoring category except blocks. Richardson is also widely available industry wide.
Indiana Pacers SG/SF Bojan Bogdanovic has four games this week (Milwaukee, Utah, Atlanta and @Boston) and over his past five games has averaged 2.6 triples a night and has done very well in all the scoring categories except blocks and steals. Bogdanovic is widely available and ready to help your team in the three point shot scoring category this week.
Enjoy the NBA this week!!
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