Friday's Fantasy Basketball Streamers: Santi Aldama, De'Andre Hunter, and More
Streaming players from three NBA teams with good matchups on Friday.
The quarterfinals of the NBA Cup tournament took place on Tuesday and Wednesday, and the Magic, Knicks, Thunder, and Spurs advanced to the semifinals. That penultimate round takes place on Saturday, so we again won't have a streaming article tomorrow, as all teams involved are strong.
The same will be true next Tuesday, when the finals of the in-season tournament take place (8:30 EST on Prime Video, if you were wondering) between the winners of Saturday's games. This tournament was created to bring more importance to the regular season, but while the league hypes it up as a success, I'm not sure anyone really cares. The players get more money, so that's cool for them, but have you talked to any fan who said they are excited for the NBA Cup?
Moving to fantasy, let's look at streaming players on three NBA teams with good matchups on Friday. We'll focus on the guys who are widely available in fantasy leagues and can easily be picked up. Most stats are from NBA.com.
Use FantasySP's fantasy assistant to link your teams and get advice on roster moves, lineup decisions, and more!
Charlotte Hornets vs. Chicago Bulls
The Bulls plays at the second-fastest pace and have the eighth-worst defensive rating. After a 6-1 start, including winning their first five, Chicago has gone 3-13 since, and they have lost their past seven games.
Charlotte isn't any better, but they play at a slow pace, so they don't qualify as a target team despite their weak overall game. The Hornets have a bottom-10 defensive rating and are just outside the bottom 10 in offensive rating.
Guard
Charlotte is dealing with injuries at guard, giving opportunities to a few other guys (and plenty of touches to Kon Knueppel, who has a little availability and would be a great pickup here). All three guys listed have low stats for the season but have gotten more minutes recently with LaMelo Ball, Collin Sexton, and Tre Mann among the players missing time.
McNeeley scored in double figures twice last week, and Simpson had 16 in Charlotte's last game, but it's tough to trust anyone here. They are all low-level streamers who have a little intrigue because of expanded minutes but also very low floors, making them risky.
Forward
Diabate missed Charlotte's last game and is questionable for this one. He can slot in at both forward and center and has OK numbers at 8.7 points and 7.8 rebounds per game. Salaun had a three-game stretch to start December in which he played at least 18 minutes and scored at least 10 points, but he usually is far below those numbers and isn't on the fantasy radar.
Center
Kalkbrenner averages 25.5 minutes, 9.0 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 1.9 blocks per game. Like Diabate, that's fine modest production that makes Kalkbrenner a feasible low-level fill-in with a good matchup, though there's a lower floor and ceiling.
Cleveland Cavaliers @ Washington Wizards
After New Orleans beat Portland last night, Washington now sits alone with the fewest wins in the league, just three. It's not a surprise that they are in the basement, and they fit well for our purposes, playing at the fifth-fastest pace and holding the worst defensive rating.
After cruising to the top seed in the East last year, Cleveland is in the middle after 25 games this season, sitting 14-11 with a point differential of plus-3.2, the 10th-best offensive rating, and the eighth-best defensive rating. Last season, the Cavs were first on offense and eighth on defense while sporting a plus-9.5-point differential; they are still in position to be among the contenders in the conference over a longer stretch.
Guard
Tyson plays close to 28 minutes per game and is averaging 13.0 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 1.1 steals. He's a good streaming player when the matchup is right, like in this one. Ball plays fewer minutes and puts up fewer stats, mostly staying off the fantasy radar, though there's deep-league, low-level value.
Forward
Hunter plays 29 minutes and averages 16.0 points per game; it's a surprise that he's available in so many leagues. He has modest stats otherwise (4.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists), but Hunter puts the ball in the basket and is available in around 70% of leagues. Wade is another low-level guy who probably is off your radar.
Center
- None
Memphis Grizzlies vs. Utah Jazz
Utah makes it three great targets today, as they play at the fourth-fastest pace and have the second-worst defensive rating. While Washington has far and away the worst defense by that stat, the Jazz are the worst of the rest of the league.
A few years back, Memphis looked like a team that could compete for championships. They have fallen off hard, resulting in shuffling of the roster and questions about Ja Morant's future. The Grizzlies have the 12th-best defensive rating but rank way down at 25th in offense. That is partly a product of Morant missing half the games, but he looks set to maybe return for this one, and Memphis needs to make their move now if they are going to make real noise this season.
Guard
If Morant does return, that lowers the value of each of these guards. Coward has averaged 13.3 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 2.7 assists per game and Spencer 11.1 points and 3.9 assists; they are both OK streamers with Coward holding a little more value.
Caldwell-Pope produces at a low level and is off the fantasy radar outside of deep leagues. The other two have more upside, though I'm a little skeptical of what things look like with their star back.
Forward
Williams will also feel some of the Morant effect, as he plays guard and forward. He does a little of everything at a modest level, averaging 7.8 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 5.3 assists. Wells scores more (12.2 points) but doesn't add much else; he's an OK streamer if you need points.
Center
Zach Edey is out for at least a month, leaving the center minutes largely to Landale and Aldama. Landale is lightly owned and likely to see a big bump, while Aldama is already owned in over half of leagues and will probably become owned in most leagues soon.
Landale is averaging 21.4 minutes, 10.9 points, and 5.4 rebounds per game. That's middling, but if he gets closer to 28-30 minutes, his numbers are going to look good. Aldama is at 13.1 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 3.0 assists, and the same expected bump in minutes (he's at 26 per game) would make him a nice mid-level player who can slot in at both forward and center.
