Fantasy NBA Daily Notes: Is Gallinari primed for a scoring binge?
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Gallinari had scored just 35 total points across his past four games but erupted for a season-high 38 last night. With Cam Reddish, Bogdan Bogdanovic, and De’Andre Hunter all sidelined by injuries, Gallinari has a unique opportunity to be Atlanta’s secondary scoring option behind Trae Young in the weeks ahead.
Rostered in just a third of ESPN leagues, it’s time to give Gallinari a spot on your fantasy roster to see if this is the start of one of his famous scoring binges.
Highlights
Jarrett Allen, Cleveland Cavaliers: 26 points (10-11 FG), 18 rebounds, 2 assists, 5 blocks
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma City Thunder: 42 points (13-20 FG), 8 rebounds, 4 assists
Lowlights
Pascal Siakam, Toronto Raptors: 5 points (1-6 FG), 2 rebounds, 4 assists
Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics: 13 points (4-20 FG), 1 rebound, 1 assist, 2 steals
Gilgeous-Alexander became the fifth player in Thunder franchise history (including Seattle) with a 40-point game at age 22 or younger, joining Kevin Durant, Spencer Haywood, James Harden and Russell Westbrook. Luguentz Dort finished the game with 16 points and, most crucially, hit the game-winning buzzer-beater to down the Spurs. Dort became just the third Thunder player over the past 10 seasons with such a successful buzzer-beater, joining Durant and Westbrook. While Gilgeous-Alexander is universally rostered, you can still find Dort in free agency in 82% of leagues.
Goran Dragic returned to Miami’s rotation after missing nine games due to injury. The Slovenian combo guard scored 15 points in 21 minutes and could become a solid fantasy contributor once he’s back to playing a bigger role. In a positive sign for his fantasy stock, Kendrick Nunn still started and played 36 minutes in the win over Toronto.
San Antonio’s Jakob Poeltl has quietly emerged as an elite rim protector with 15 blocks over his past five games. Like with New York’s Nerlens Noel, you’ll need to stomach some light scoring and rebounding rates, but the sheer scarcity of block production makes Poeltl an interesting roto value.
With Devonte’ Graham out with an injury for Charlotte last night, scoring guard Malik Monk played a major role with 29 points in a win over the Suns, dropping 22 in the first half, a career high for any half of his career.
Charlotte’s Cody Zeller left last night’s win over Phoenix in the fourth quarter due to a hip injury. It’s worth tracking Zeller’s status for Friday’s matchup with the Warriors, as both Miles Bridges and P.J. Washington would become strong options if their teammate sits.
The Philadelphia’s Seth Curry is listed as probable to face his former team, the Mavericks, tonight.
The Mavericks have listed big men Kristaps Porzingis and Maxi Kleber as questionable for tonight’s game against Philadelphia.
Denver’s Gary Harris will miss tonight’s tilt against the Wizards. Facundo Campazzo is a strong streaming option for those in need of assist upside.
Milwaukee’s Jrue Holiday is listed as doubtful for tonight’s matchup with New Orleans.
Durant has been ruled out for Brooklyn’s game against the Magic in Orlando. Bruce Brown, fresh from a career scoring effort, is a worthy streaming candidate with Durant sidelined.
The Sacramento Kings have an historically weak defense. The team has allowed 118.2 points per 100 possessions this season, a defensive rating that would rank as the worst of all time if sustained for the entire season.
The Knicks host the Kings tonight and, given such inviting matchup metrics, make for a solid roster to build around in daily fantasy competition. With point guard Elfrid Payton listed as doubtful due to a hamstring injury, it could be wise to stream guards Derrick Rose and Immanuel Quickley.
Rose has averaged 18.0 points and 5.9 assists per 36 minutes with Payton off the floor this season. Quickley has averaged 22.5 points and a team-high 9.5 3PA per 36 minutes in such scenarios.
Giannis Antetokounmpo and Zion Williamson meet in a matchup of the two highest-scoring players in the paint this season.
Williamson scored 32 points on just 18 shots last night and is the fifth player in the shot-clock era to average 25.0 PPG on 60% shooting through his first 30 games of a season. He is the first since Charles Barkley in 1987-88.
Meanwhile, Antetokounmpo has recorded 261 points, 110 rebounds and 57 assists over his past eight games. Per Basketball Reference, the last NBA player to match or exceed these figures over an eight-game span was Wilt Chamberlain in 1966-67.