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Box Score Breakdown -- Saturday, November 8th

In our first night post-Ricky Rubio, the NBA at least wasn't subjected to seeing another one of it's stars facing an extended stint on the sidelines wearing an expensive suit. What we did get were two thrilling last-second upsets by the Pelicans and the Bucks and a whole slew of huge performances.

ADD ME! ADD ME!

I'm a little perplexed that Draymond Green is only owned in 59 percent of ESPN leagues and 66 percent of Yahoo leagues. Maybe it's just me, but I assumed that the starting power forward for the Warriors would've been pushing 100 percent ownership. Well, others' loss is your gain, as Green is free for you to add. David Lee will miss at least the next weeks with an aggravation of his hamstring injury and even when he returns, there is no guarantee that he displaces Green from the starting five. So, when Green drops a line of 14 points (6-13 FG, 1-5 3Pt, 1-2 FT), eight rebounds, two assists, one steal, and two blocks in 34 minutes, just know that this is not a flash in the pan type of performance. Unfortunately, Green is owned in all of my leagues, but that may not be the case in yours, so make sure you click that available players tab and have a look.

DROP HIM LIKE HE'S HOT

He was the number one pick in the 2014 NBA Draft, but that doesn't mean he needs to stay on fantasy rosters all season. Andrew Wiggins is struggling to provide fantasy value for his owners this season, particularly in 12 team leagues and that was highlighted by a disappointing night against the Heat, in a Wolves team looking for someone to step up in the absence of Rubio. He scored 10 points (3-9 FG, 0-1 3Pt, 4-5 FT) with one rebound and two assists in 28 minutes and so far this season his numbers have been underwhleming. He will improve obviously, but in a standard league, it isn't worth holding onto him considering it's likely to take a few months for his game to become fantasy relevant. I'd move on and use that roster spot to stream in the hot free agents.

M.I.A.

These guys all sat out Saturday's action, for one reason or another.

  • Wizards
    • Drew Gooden (DNP-CD)
    • Martell Webster (back)
    • Bradley Beal (wrist)
  • Pacers
    • C.J. Miles (migraine)
    • C.J. Watson (foot)
    • David West (ankle)
    • Rodney Stuckey (foot)
    • George Hill (knee)
  • Knicks
    • Pablo Prigioni (ankle)
    • Jose Calderon (calf)
    • Andrea Bargnani (hamstring)
  • Timberwolves
    • Ricky Rubio (ankle)
    • Anthony Bennett (knee)
  • Heat
    • Danny Granger (hamstring)
    • Chris Andersen (back)
  • Celtics
    • Marcus Smart (ankle)
    • Rajon Rondo (hand)
  • Bulls
    • Derrick Rose (ankles)
  • Warriors
    • David Lee (hamstring)
  • Rockets
    • Dwight Howard (illness)
    • Terrence Jones (leg)
    • Patrick Beverley (hamstring)
  • Grizzlies
    • Vince Carter (DNP-CD)
  • Bucks
    • Kendall Marshall (DNP-CD)
  • Spurs
    • Marco Belinelli (groin)
    • Tiago Splitter (calf)

CASUALTY WARD

Some relatively good news for Marcus Smart and Ricky Rubio, with scans showing no fractures, but both suffered severe ankle sprains. Smart is projected to miss two to three weeks, while Rubio's injury may keep him out for up to eight weeks.

Roy Hibbert added to the Pacers' woes, when he left Saturday's game after just 11 minutes of court time with a bruised left knee. Coach Frank Vogel called him day-to-day with Ian Mahinmi likely to benefit the most from his absence, although with Hibbert expected to not miss much time, Mahinmi is not a must-add.

Spencer Hawes lasted just 12 minutes in the day's early game, leaving with a sprained foot. He first hurt the foot Wednesday and is considered probable for Monday. If he misses, Glen Davis would likely absorb his minutes, but Hawes had limited fantasy value as it was.

FANTASY LINE OF THE NIGHT

Steph Curry or Anthony Davis? I could've gone either way, but in the end, I leaned toward the guard from the Bay Area. Curry led all scorers with 34 points (13-19 FG, 6-9 3Pt, 2-2 FT), grabbed 10 rebounds, had five assists and four steals and helped keep the Warriors as the NBA's only undefeated team, knocking off the Rockets while the Grizzlies were stunned by the Bucks. There's not much to say about Curry, except that he will likely be one of the top two fantasy players when all is said and done this season and this game was the second time he has grabbed 10 rebounds this season, a phenomenal effort for a slight point guard.

ROOKIE OF THE NIGHT

Even with eight games on the docket, performances from rookies were a little thin on the ground. Just nudging out Kostas Papanikolaou was fellow European Damjan Rudez of the Pacers, who scored nine points, all from three-pointers. In fact, he took just four shots on the night, and they were all from deep as well. He also added a blocked shot to his box score. Not an overwhelming line, but a solid contribution from a guy who will need to play more with the Pacers missing arguably their best seven players.

TRIPLE-DOUBLE WATCH

Both Nicolas Batum and Damian Lillard came close, with Batum registering a line of 10 points, eight rebounds, eight assists, one steal and two blocks and Lillard dropping 25 points, including four three-pointers, seven rebounds and eight assists.

James Harden also came close, scoring 22 points and adding seven rebounds and seven assists in the loss to the Warriors. All three of these guys are likely to register at least one triple-double this season.

BOX SCORE HIGHLIGHTS AND ODDITIES

LaMarcus Aldridge shot poorly in registering a 21 and 10 game, going 7-of-22 from field. This was also just the second time he has reached double digit rebounds for the season with Chris Kaman and Robin Lopez pushing LMA further away from the basket.

J.J. Redick righted his shooting wrongs, scoring a season high 30 points (11-13 FG, 2-3 3Pt, 6-8 FT) with four rebounds and one steal in 37 minutes and was a key contributor, along with Blake Griffin in the Clippers' comeback.

Jamal Crawford jumped into the starting lineup replacing Matt Barnes, yet that move did nothing to change the relative values of both players. Crawford scored 20 points (7-16 FG, 3-5 3Pt, 3-4 FT) with just two rebounds, while Barnes scored just four points with three rebounds, one steal and one block in 26 minutes. Barnes can be dropped in pretty much any 10 or 12 team league.

Garrett Temple has his second consecutive poor night, scoring just three points (1-4 FG, 1-3 3Pt) with six rebounds, two assists and one block in 31 minutes. Importantly, the minutes are still there as there's no one to really challenge for playing time at the two with Bradley Beal out and Temple remains a nice short-term add in most leagues.

Solomon Hill had his best game as a pro, scoring a career-high 28 points (10-19 FG, 1-3 3Pt, 7-11 FT) with six rebounds and three steals in 43 minutes. He has started all season and played over 36 minutes in each of the past three contests, scoring double-digits in five straight. He's also nabbed a steal in the last five games and should be looked at in all standard, and deeper leagues, at least until we see the Pacers looking somewhat close to fully healthy.

Iman Shumpert had another very nice game for the Knicks, scoring 19 points (8-12 FG, 2-4 3Pt, 1-2 FT) with four rebounds, seven assists and one steal in somewhat of a combo guard role. He looks a lot more athletic this season and it's clear coach Derek Fisher likes him as the team's starting two-guard. If he's still available, he's worth consideration in standard leagues.

Kyle Korver went crazy again from deep, knocking in 27 points (7-12 FG, 6-9 3Pt, 7-7 FT) with four rebounds, one steal, and three blocks in 38 minutes. Amazingly, it is the second time in this young season that Korver has had a 20 point, six three-pointer, three block game. Odds are that he finds it difficult to repeat the feat again, but his value has never been higher than what it is at the moment.

After a big night against the Hornets, Al Horford struggled his way to six points (3-13 FG, 0-2 3Pt) with six rebounds and three assists. Nothing to see here, just a bad night from one of the league's best big men.

Dennis Schroder had his second nice game in a row and appears to have jumped ahead of Shelvin Mack on the depth chart. He swiped five steals against the Knicks to go with 11 points.

Starting in place of Ricky RubioZach LaVine played 26 minutes and scored five points (2-5 FG, 1-2 3Pt) with six rebounds, four assists and one steal. The scoring is disappointing, but the other numbers are encouraging. Mo Williams, who many, myself included, thought would be the starter, played 22 minutes, scoring two points (1-5 FG, 0-2 3Pt) with four rebounds, five assists and two steals. Their lines were remarkably similar. In a shallow league, LaVine is probably a better add due to his higher upside, but in a deep league, I'd go Williams as his production will likely be more consistent.

Evan Turner replaced Rajon Rondo in the starting lineup as the point guard and had a stereotypical Evan Turner type line of 19 points (7-14 FG, 1-2 3Pt, 4-4 FT), five rebounds and six assists. He'll go back to the bench when Rondo returns, but will take on the backup point guard role while Marcus Smart nurses himself back to full fitness.

With Derrick Rose sitting due to his sprained ankles, Aaron Brooks took full advantage, scoring 26 points (9-15 FG, 4-7 3Pt, 4-4 FT) with eight assists. With Rose out, Brooks makes a sensible add in most leagues, but his value will likely only hold for leagues of 14 teams or deeper once the former MVP returns.

Andrew Bogut pulled down a season high 18 rebounds and blocked four shots in the Warriors' victory over the Rockets. He's a very valuable fantasy player provided he can stay healthy and if you have a chance to sell high on him, I would take it, due to his history.

Kostas Papanikolaou replaced Donatas Motiejunas in the starting lineup and put up a serviceable line of two points (1-9 FG, 0-5 3Pt), 10 rebounds, one assist and three steals in 29 minutes. If he were to get a starting job long-term, he becomes an intriguing fantasy player, but as a bench guy, his value is only applicable in 14 team leagues or deeper.

Isaiah Canaan scored a career high 21 points as the starter in place of Patrick Beverley, adding four rebounds, one assist and one steal, but he only holds value while Beverley remains sidelined. If you need someone for this week for scoring and threes, the Canaan-ball is a nice option, but beyond that, he is deep league fodder only.

Giannis Antetokounmpo led the Bucks in scoring, dropping 18 points (6-11 FG, 6-7 FT) with two rebounds, two assists, and one block in 30 minutes. Jason Kidd's rotations are probably unknown to him at this point, so with that sort of uncertainty it's hard to hold onto Antetokounmpo in 10 team leagues. Saturday was the first game the second-year player had played 30 minutes or more.

Kendall Marshall went from starting Friday to a DNP-CD on Saturday, such are the whims of Kidd. It makes it hard to own any Bucks bar Brandon Knight, Larry Sanders and Jabari Parker.

As I mentioned above, Anthony Davis was within a whisker of getting the line of the night honors. He posted an amazing 27 points (10-17 FG, 7-8 FT) with 11 rebounds, four steals and six blocks in 37 minutes and continues to look like a freak of nature on the court.

Ryan Anderson's struggles continued, scoring just nine points (3-10 FG, 3-7 3Pt) with two rebounds in 25 minutes. The troubling part is the minutes with Omer Asik definitely impacting Anderson's ability to get on the court. I'd be trying to offload Anderson.

Kawhi Leonard made his owners feel a little better about drafting him, putting up a 14 and 14 night, with a steal and a block and three assists. The shooting still isn't there and that could be stemming from the vision problems he suffered in the preseason, but for now hold tight and if you don't own him, maybe try to pry him away from a panicked owner.

NIGHTLY LEADERS

Points

  1. Steph Curry, G, GSW, 34 points
  2. J.J. Redick, G, LAC, 30 points
  3. Tony Parker, G, SAS, 28 points
  4. Solomon Hill, F, IND, 28 points

Rebounds

  1. Andrew Bogut, C, GSW, 18 rebounds
  2. Zach Randolph, F, MEM, 14 rebounds
  3. Kawhi Leonard, F, SAS, 14 rebounds
  4. DeAndre Jordan, C, LAC, 14 rebounds

Assists

  1. Chris Paul, G, LAC, 11 assists
  2. Jrue Holiday, G, NOP, 11 assists
  3. Damian Lillard, G, POR, 8 assists
  4. Dwyane Wade, G, MIA, 8 assists
  5. Aaron Brooks, G, CHI, 8 assists
  6. Nicolas Batum, F, POR, 8 assists

Steals

  1. DeAndre Jordan, C, LAC, 5 steals
  2. Dennis Schroder, G, ATL, 5 steals
  3. Steph Curry, G, GSW, 4 steals
  4. Anthony Davis, F, NOP, 4 steals
  5. John Wall, G, WAS, 4 steals
  6. Larry Sanders, C, MIL, 4 steals
  7. Shaun Livingston, G, GSW, 4 steals

Blocks

  1. Anthony Davis, F, NOP, 6 blocks
  2. Andrew Bogut, C, GSW, 4 blocks
  3. Kyle Korver, F, ATL, 3 blocks
  4. Samuel Dalembert, C, NYK, 3 blocks

Three-Pointers

  1. Steph Curry, G, GSW, 6-9 3Pt
  2. Kyle Korver, F, ATL, 6-9 3Pt
  3. Damian Lillard, G, POR, 4-8 3Pt
  4. Aaron Brooks, G, CHI, 4-7 3Pt

Minutes

  1. Solomon Hill, F, IND, 43 minutes
  2. James Harden, G, HOU, 43 minutes
  3. Steph Curry, G, GSW, 40 minutes
  4. DeAndre Jordan, C LAC, 40 minutes