Three Burning Fantasy Basketball Questions (Mar. 2)
Every week, D.J. Foster will tackle three burning questions in the Fantasy Basketball world. Topics for today: Ranking the top-10 players for the rest of the season, big names to cut and the wackiest DFS stat line of the year.
1. Who are the top-10 players for the rest of the season?
This isn't as easy as you might think. You can't just plug in the 10 players who have performed the best so far and call it a day. Schedule, rest, fatigue and matchups will all play a role as we inch closer to the postseason. With that in mind, here are my top-10 players to close out the season.
1. Stephen Curry
2. James Harden
3. Kevin Durant
4. Russell Westbrook
5. Anthony Davis
6. DeMarcus Cousins
7. Damian Lillard
8. Kawhi Leonard
9. LeBron James
10. Draymond Green
It may feel strange to have James listed so low, but Cleveland doesn't have an awful lot to play for down the stretch. While Toronto could push the Cavs for the 1-seed in the East, James will likely see his minutes reduced and may even rest a few games if the Cavs can lock it up in the last few weeks. LeBron's free throw and three-point percentages fell apart in February (67 and 28.6 percent), which could be signaling fatigue.
While it's possible Stephen Curry and Draymond Green get some rest, those guys are going to push to play. The Warriors are hunting for the regular season win record of 73 games, and until that's off the table, it's hard to see them sitting out with minor ailments.
I'm bullish on James Harden the rest of the way, especially with Houston scrapping for a playoff spot. Here's guessing he takes his game to the next level over the final few weeks, using even more possessions than he already does.
Damian Lillard is riding a perfect storm. He's on fire as a scorer right now, and the Blazers are surprisingly right in the mix for a strong playoff seed. That post All-Star snub boost hasn't worn off yet, and it might not not at all.
2. Which big name players should I be willing to cut?
As long as you aren't in a keeper league, there are a few big names you should be ready to part with.
The first is Chris Bosh, who hasn't appeared in a game since February 9th due to blood clots. It's tragic and unfortunate, but it's looking more and more like Bosh will miss the rest of the season. Obviously he's a great fantasy contributor when he's out there, but it seems more likely that the Heat and Bosh will agree not to risk his health any further. You can wait until there's more of a "can't miss" waiver wire addition out there, but if you play in a shallow league, you should probably act sooner rather than later.
Next up is Denver Nuggets forward Danilo Gallinari, who tore two lateral ligaments in his ankle on February 26th. He's listed as being out for a month, but with Denver well out of the playoff hunt and Gallinari suffering so many injuries in the past, it would be silly for both team and player to trot him out at less than full strength. Gallinari already improved his trade stock and showed the Nuggets what he can do this year, so there's essentially nothing to gain by going out the last eight or so games of the season on a recovering ankle. You can safely cut him loose and get help somewhere else now.
Lakers guard Lou Williams can be let go as well. Hamstring injuries tend to linger, and Williams has really been struggling over the last few games. With D'Angelo Russell and Jordan Clarkson finally getting big minutes and performing well, Williams will take a backseat and likely won't rush back to action in a lost season for the Lakers.
3. What's the craziest stat-line you've seen all year?
This is a fun one, because we just talked about Anthony Davis's 59-point, 20-rebound game last week and how it seemed unlikely that anyone would do better than that.
And while this stat line isn't better in the traditional sense, it's certainly much weirder.
While all the focus was on Stephen Curry's 12 three-pointers and game-winner against the Thunder last week, Draymond Green's crazy game sort of stayed in the shadows.
Green didn't make a single shot against the Thunder. Normally, that would kill your lineup in DFS, but check this out: Green ended up scoring 60.5 fantasy points in that game, despite not making a field goal. That's absurd.
Here's Green's final line: 44 MP, 2 points, 14 rebounds, 14 assists, 6 steals, 4 blocks.
I think it's safe to say that no one else is going to score over 60 fantasy points without making a shot this year.
That's it for this week. Make sure to check back on Monday, where we'll break down our top-10 fantasy basketball waiver wire additions.