Monday's Fantasy Basketball Streamers: Players from the Nuggets, Mavericks, and More
Streaming players from three NBA teams with good matchups on Monday.
Christmas is a big day on the NBA calendar. The best teams are often on the schedule; only two of the 10 currently have a losing record, and one of those could flip before Thursday. In a long season, certain days are good benchmarks of where the season stands, and Christmas falls about one-third of the way through the season, making it a good time to take stock of the league.
Shifting to fantasy basketball, let's look at streaming players on three NBA teams with good matchups on Monday. We'll focus on the guys who are widely available in fantasy leagues and able to be easily picked up. Most stats are from NBA.com.
Use FantasySP's defensive rankings to find the teams and players with the best matchups every day!
Dallas Mavericks @ New Orleans Pelicans
The Pelicans play at the 11th-fastest pace and have the third-worst defensive rating. Though we are usually looking for teams in the top/bottom 10, New Orleans is only one-hundredth of a possession behind 10th place; it's close enough.
Dallas has the seventh-best defensive rating but the third-worst offensive rating, the latter helping lead to their 11-18 record. The Mavs likely have changes coming before the trade deadline, and in the meantime, they are waiting to retool around a younger core and Cooper Flagg.
Guard
Thompson and Christie are both questionable for this one and need to be verified before putting them in your lineup. If one or both miss this game, it would give Nembhard a good outlook; Nembhard has played over 30 minutes in three games this month, and in all three he had double-digit points and assists.
Thompson and Christie both average around 11 points per game but don't add much else, making them lower-level fantasy players.
Forward
Marshall plays over 28 minutes per game and averages 13.2 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 1.1 steals. He is a decent low-to-mid-range streamer if you need a forward.
Center
Gafford puts up decent backup numbers: 8.2 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 1.6 blocks. He's a low-level fantasy player, but if you are desperate at center, you could do worse with this matchup.
Denver Nuggets vs. Utah Jazz
Utah plays at the fourth-fastest pace and has the second-worst defensive rating. The Jazz have a permanent spot on our streaming list until things change drastically.
Denver lost to the Rockets a few days ago in a matchup of Western Conference contenders. For some of those top teams, the only games that matter are ones against other contenders until we reach the playoffs.
Guard
Hardaway and Brown both play around 25 minutes per game. Hardaway scores 12 points per game versus 6.9 for Brown, and though Brown does everything else a little better, Hardaway is the better fantasy player here. Both guys are just low-level streamers.
Forward
Watson is questionable for this game and might not play, so check is status before throwing him into your lineup. He puts up OK numbers, with 10.5 points and 4.8 rebounds, but he's a lower-level streamer. Jones will get a bump if Watson is out, but he doesn't put up enough numbers to be on the fantasy radar.
Center
Valanciunas is another backup center who doesn't put up a lot of stats (8.6 points, 4.5 rebounds) but could be an OK deep league streamer. He would get a big boost if Jokic ever missed time.
Detroit Pistons @ Portland Trail Blazers
The Blazers play at the third-fastest pace and have the 10th-worst defensive rating. Portland held Sacramento to 93 points on Saturday, but prior to that, they had given up over 130 points in three straight games.
Detroit looks like a true contender in the East, holding the ninth-best offensive rating and the second-best defensive rating. The Pistons have the best record in the East and the second-best record in the league (22-6).
Guard
Robinson averages 30 minutes and 12 points per game but doesn't do much else. He's OK if you need points, but Robinson isn't a great fantasy player. LeVert is a little lower in each category without adding much else; he's off the fantasy radar outside of deep leagues.
Forward
Harris is a decent streamer, averaging 13.6 points and 5.0 rebounds per game. Holland is questionable for this one and might not play, but even if he does, he doesn't put up much for stats and is better left out of your lineup.
Center
Stewart is another guy who fits as a fine low-to-mid-level streaming center. He is averaging 10.3 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 1.9 blocks per game.
