Friday's Fantasy Basketball Streamers: Ayo Dosunmu, T.J. McConnell, and More
Streaming players from four NBA teams with good matchups on Friday.
Let's jump right in today and look at streaming players on four NBA teams that have good matchups on Friday. We will focus on the guys who are widely available in fantasy leagues and can easily be picked up. Most stats are from NBA.com.
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Detroit Pistons vs. Portland Trail Blazers
The Blazers have been a recent friend here, as they rank third in pace and have the 11th-worst defensive rating. A team expected to struggle has followed that path and gives us a nice target each time they play.
Detroit again looks like one of the best teams in the East, sitting with the top record in their conference (17-5) and the second best in the league behind the Thunder (21-1). The Pistons have the third-best defensive rating and rank just outside the top 10 in offensive rating; they look like a real contender.
Guard
LeVert is the veteran player, and he averages around 20 minutes and 10 points per game. He's a fine low-level streamer in a good matchup. Jenkins is an undrafted second-year player who is a scorer but not much else. He played at least 30 minutes in five straight games in mid-November, and Jenkins has played at least 24 minutes in each of the past two, making him an intriguing player if you need scoring.
Forward
Robinson has missed the past two games and is questionable for this one. He scores (12.6 points per game) but doesn't do a lot else, making him a lower-level streamer if he plays. Harris is owned in a little less than half of leagues, and he puts up decent production, with around 30 minutes and 15 points per game (without much else).
Holland's status is directly tied to Robinson's (as is Jenkins'), so if Robinson plays, Holland is a lot less appealing. Even if the starter is out, Holland is still a low-level streamer.
Center
I tend to have a soft spot for bench centers who put up decent numbers. When the matchup is right, a guy like Stewart can accumulate points and rebounds, making him an OK streamer. There's also a low floor, but Stewart has a good outlook today.
New York Knicks vs. Utah Jazz
It's the second straight day here for Utah, the team that plays at the fourth-fastest pace and has the fifth-worst defensive rating. Yesterday, they beat the Nets 123-110, but four guys on Brooklyn who were listed here as streamers scored in double digits, including two with over 20 points.
The Knicks are back among the contenders in the East, holding a 14-7 record with the fourth-best offensive rating and a middling defensive rating (that could easily become top-10). Questions about New York's ceiling won't be answered until the playoffs.
Guard
McBride is the player of note, as he has started half his games and averages around 28 minutes and 11.5 points. He doesn't do much else other than score, but McBride is a decent streamer. Clarkson is a lower-level fantasy guy, but at 20 minutes and 10 points per game, he is at least a feasible deep-league player.
Forward
- None
Center
Robinson used to be a fantasy-relevant player when he was a starter, but he now plays backup minutes and doesn't put up many stats, keeping him off the fantasy radar. This will likely only change if Karl-Anthony Towns suffers an injury.
Indiana Pacers @ Chicago Bulls
We'll finish with a double-dipping, as both the Pacers and Bulls meet our criteria as streaming targets. Since they play against each other, let's look at players from both teams who could benefit from a fast game.
The Pacers play at the 10th-fastest pace and have the eighth-worst defensive rating; the Bulls are second fastest and 10th worst, respectively. Both teams are prime fantasy targets for our purposes, creating a game full of possible streamers.
Indiana Pacers
Guard
- T.J. McConnell
- Ben Sheppard
- Garrison Matthews
McConnell missed the start of the season with an injury, but he has now played 12 games and is back to doing his thing. McConnell is a decent streamer, averaging 10.2 points, 2.5 rebounds, 4.4 assists, and 1.3 steals per game, and he will get plenty of minutes with injuries built up at guard.
Those injuries also give more opportunities to Sheppard and Matthews, though they are lower-level fantasy players. Sheppard does a little of everything at a low level, averaging 6.5 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 2.0 assists per game. Matthews is just a scorer, and he has put up at least nine points in the three games in which he played at least 20 minutes.
Forward
Walker and Jackson are at the same level as fantasy players. Walker is a little better with points and assists, while Jackson is a little better with rebounds, steals, and blocks. They are both lower-level streamers, but there's a little value in this one; I slightly prefer Walker.
Center
There's not much big-man talent in Indiana these days, but Huff might be the best of the centers. He is averaging 7.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 2.3 blocks per game over the full season, but Huff has been better since November 19, a stretch in which he has played at least 18 minutes in each game.
In the eight games since that time, Huff averaged 11.3 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 3.1 blocks; he has legitimate streaming value at the center position. Huff has a chance at a nice game in this one and had 14 points and eight rebounds when these teams faced off last Saturday.
Chicago Bulls
Guard
Dosunmu is benefitting from guys around him missing time, averaging nearly 28 minutes and 16 points per game. He's mostly just a scorer, but Dosunmu is putting up enough points to be a worthy fantasy player.
Jones is dealing with an injury (that will be a theme throughout this section), so he might miss this game after sitting out on Wednesday. He has a nice stat line, averaging 13.2 points, 3.2 rebounds, 4.9 assists, and 1.7 steals per game, so he could be a good streamer if on the court.
Forward
Williams has been active, which is different from much of his career. He is putting up modest stats, averaging 7.3 points and 3.2 rebounds per game. Williams has only scored in double figures five times, and just one of those was in the past four weeks. He is a low-level streamer.
Okoro is dealing with a back injury and could miss this game. He has some streaming value if he plays, but there's also risk involved; I prefer Williams, though skipping both guys is probably best.
Center
Both these players have been out with injury, including Collins not yet making his season debut. The fantasy outlook here is murky at best if either does play, so it's probably best to skip the Bulls' potential backup centers.
