Fantasy NBA Daily Notes: Powell keeps rolling as Curry returns
Powell produced 37 points, tied for the second most in a game by a Raptors player this season. Powell was absent from Toronto’s lineup for nine games in February but returned in early March and has averaged a robust 27.3 PPG in his past four appearances. Still available in free agency in nearly a quarter of ESPN leagues and likely affordable in trade talks, Powell should continue to thrive for Toronto during a quietly stellar career campaign for the fifth-year vet.
Highlights
Tobias Harris, Philadelphia 76ers: 28 points (11-22 FG), 14 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 TO
Norman Powell, Toronto Raptors: 37 points (13-20 FG), 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 steals, 3 TO
Lowlights
James Harden, Houston Rockets: 16 points (4-17 FG, 0-8 3PT), 7 rebounds, 4 assists, 4 TO
Robert Covington, Houston Rockets: 3 points (1-4 FG), 9 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 blocks
Golden State’s Curry delivered 23 points to go with seven rebounds and seven dimes in 27 minutes of action in his return from a fractured hand, marking the third-most points by a player in his first game back after missing the team’s previous 50 games in league history, per Elias. As a promising sign of his health and endurance, Curry lofted six 30-foot 3-point attempts, tied for the most such attempts in a game in his career.
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It wasn’t just Curry who proved impressive for the Warriors, as forward Marquese Chriss tallied a solid double-double with two blocks. Fellow frontcourt talent Eric Paschall continued to thrive with Draymond Green sidelined in posting 16 points and a career-best eight dimes in the loss to the Raptors last night. Guard Damion Lee, meanwhile, produced 23 points and eight combined assists and rebounds, suggesting these complementary players for Golden State can still produce even with Curry’s high-usage game back in the fold.
The Sixers earned their first road victory in more than a month, and their first victory in Sacramento since 2015, on Thursday evening. Harris produced a game-high 28 points, matching his career high, against Sacramento. Shake Milton, meanwhile, closed out a stellar road trip with an efficient 20 points — good for his fifth straight game scoring in double digits — the longest such streak of his career.
It was good to see Charlotte’s Devonte’ Graham handle a full workload last night in returning from an ankle injury. The key fantasy story from the Hornets was the strong play of rookie PJ Washington, who has overcome a midseason slump to produce double figures in five straight, including last night’s 20 points. During his past five appearances, the rookie has averaged 15.6 PPG to go with 8.4 combined assists and rebounds.
Phoenix won’t have wings Kelly Oubre Jr. or Cameron Johnson for tonight’s matchup with Portland, meaning Mikal Bridges should play a busy enough role to merit use as an interesting streaming option.
Boston’s Jaylen Brown will miss tonight’s visit from Utah with a hamstring injury expected to hold him out for several games. Jayson Tatum enjoys the biggest leap in usage rate on the roster with Brown off the floor, while Marcus Smart also sees a sizable uptick in fantasy production in such scenarios.
Karl-Anthony Towns will miss yet another game for the Timberwolves with a broken wrist, affording Juan Hernangomez and Naz Reid valuable rebounding and scoring opportunities against the Magic tonight.
Reid has averaged an awesome 18 rebounding chances per game the past three outings (defined as being within 3.5 feet of an available rebound), most on the team by a wide margin. In converting 68.5% of his chances into actual rebounds, we find Reid averaging a team-best 12.3 boards during this stretch, aiding real streaming value amid Towns’ absence. If you need a spot starter at center, look to shares of Reid.
Friday’s major matchup between the Bucks and Lakers is a potential NBA Finals preview.
Per Second Spectrum, LeBron James has scored 218 points with six or fewer seconds left on the shot clock this season, 29 more than any other player in the league. James is also 19-0 in his 30-point games this season, the most wins without a loss in 30-point games to start a season in NBA history. Three of the previous four players to start 16-0 or better in 30-point games reached the Finals.
Giannis Antetokounmpo, meanwhile, is the clear favorite for MVP honors and should present problems for the Lakers on both sides of the ball. Tonight’s tilt of super teams represents one of the truly marquee matchups of the regular season.