The NBA takes it easy around the holidays so there just isn’t a whole lot for fantasy day traders to act on. Luckily, we can finally put the seemingly endless holiday season behind us and get back to scouring the box scores. Let’s take a look at some guys on the rise this week, as well as some that are hitting rock bottom.
Buy:
Vince Carter: Solid buy. The 35-year-old has found his way back into the Mavs’ starting lineup and is showing some of the Vince Carter you may remember from his Nets and Raptors days. He is averaging 30 MPG, 17 PPG, 6 RPG, and 1 SPG in his first three games as a starter and should continue to see plenty of opportunities if he can stay consistent.
Ed Davis: Strong buy. I was excited about his prospects when he stepped in to replace the injured Andrea Bargnani—but it took him until now to really come into his own. He is averaging 12.5 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 1 SPG, and 1 BPG over his last 10 games and has become a much more consistent source of points and rebounds.
Terrence Ross: Solid buy in deeper leagues. The 21-year-old lottery pick has been rapidly developing into a real scoring threat and is now getting fantasy-relevant minutes. He is averaging 24 minutes per game and hitting 14 PPG over his last five, with some steals to boot. He’s also hitting 50 percent of his three-point attempts, definitely worth a look after his 26-point performance against Portland on Wednesday.
Alonzo Gee: Solid buy. Gee has leveled out a bit from the high scoring performances we saw in November, but he has gotten more consistent as well. He has put together eight-straight games with double digit scoring and is averaging 34 MPG, 11.5 PPG, 5 RPG, 1.5 SPG, and 1 BPG over those eight contests.
CJ Miles: Solid buy. Inconsistency had definitely dogged Miles all season—but with good minutes and a return to the starting lineup he definitely has plenty of fantasy value. Over his last 12 games (five starts) he is averaging 27 MPG and 16 PPG with some occasional rebounds. His minutes should stay in the high-20s and low-30s meaning he will have more opportunities.
Sell:
Marco Belinelli: With Richard Hamilton back, Belinelli returns to a bench role and fantasy irrelevance. In his last two games, he has scored just a combined 10 points (on 4 of 15 shooting) with no other stats to speak of. Drop him and don’t look back until he turns it around.
Jason Richardson: After missing a couple games with a back injury, Richardson has returned shooting worse than ever (and his shooting was pretty rough before the injury). In three games he has put up a mere 18 points and is in danger of losing his starting job.
Ricky Rubio: He was playing minimal minutes (and poorly) in the five games after returning from his knee injury and is now suffering from back spasms that will cost him at least three games. With his legs still not 100%, it doesn’t look like Rubio is going to be in a spot where he can be a solid fantasy contributor for a while.
Kawhi Leonard: Leonard’s return after missing 18 games with a quad and knee injury has left a lot to be desired. With Manu Ginobli playing better, Leonard loses minutes and scoring opportunities and is averaging just 7.8 PPG and 5.7 RPG in his last six games while playing under 25 MPG.
Kosta Koufos: He occasionally shows signs of fantasy relevance but with a combined 18 points and 19 rebounds over his last three games he continues to prove that he is not to be relied upon in most fantasy formats.
