RADIO
Welcome back, RotoBallers, to the 18th edition of my weekly fantasy basketball risers and fallers for the 2023-2024 season!
Just like that, the All-Star break is over and we're getting closer and closer to the final stretch of the NBA regular season! If things haven't gone your way yet in your fantasy leagues, don't lose hope! I'm here to help you assess the value of some players who are seeing major production swings during the year.
With that being said, let's look at the risers and fallers from Week 18 of the NBA season.
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Fantasy Basketball Risers: Week 18
Max Strus - F, Cleveland Cavaliers
Max Strus now has the entire basketball world talking about him after his legendary performance against the Mavericks on February 28, and now his confidence is sky-high. Strus scored 15 points in just five minutes during the fourth quarter and scored the ridiculous game-winning shot from half-court.
Max Strus had one of the most absurd heat checks we will ever see pic.twitter.com/lvjmLAATDG
— Hoops (@HoopMixOnly) February 28, 2024
Strus averaged just 8.9 points a night in his last nine games before the All-Star break, but since then he has been on fire, averaging 14 points while shooting 55.9% from the field and 45.5% from three. Both the Cavs and Strus are on a roll right now, and it wouldn't be shocking to see him continue his hot streak as the Cavs continue their quest to stay in the top two seeds in the East.
De'Andre Hunter - F, Atlanta Hawks
Trae Young is hurt and the Hawks will probably miss the playoffs in yet another disappointing season. Now that we're in the era of player empowerment, Young could realistically ask for a trade in the offseason. If that does happen, the Hawks will blow their roster up and they'll only keep the players who they think can be an integral part of their future. That's why now is a great time for De'Andre Hunter (and Jalen Johnson) to prove their worth to the franchise.
Johnson has been pretty good but Hunter has been slightly better, so let's put the spotlight on him. Since coming out of the All-Star break, the Virginia product has put up 20 points a night while shooting 55.9% from the field and 38.5% from three. He only averaged 27.2 minutes per game, so his numbers could skyrocket with more minutes as the Hawks slowly shut down their stars.
Andrew Wiggins - F, Golden State Warriors
Andrew Wiggins has been one of the most disappointing players of the 2023-24 NBA season so far, and he's one of the biggest reasons why the Warriors haven't been the dominant team that they've always been. The Dubs are a considerably better team when Wiggins is on his game, and now that he's playing well the team is finally back on track.
Wiggins almost seemed surprised that Curry made that pass😂 pic.twitter.com/zZjHDDDFSs
— NBA Muse (@NBAMuseAcc) February 23, 2024
Over his last nine games, the former number-one overall pick has averaged 15.3 points while having a true shooting percentage of 64.1%, which is the eighth-highest true shooting percentage in the NBA among all players who have taken at least 100 shots in that timespan. Let's hope that his latest family issue doesn't keep him out of action for an extended period like it did last season.
Fantasy Basketball Fallers: Week 18
Russell Westbrook - G, Los Angeles Clippers
The Clippers dominated everyone from the start of December to February 5, going 26-5 and looking like the best team in the NBA. But they have been pretty poor as of late, going 3-4 since then. During these tough seven games, the whole squad has struggled, but Russell Westbrook's struggles stand out.
Russ was playing well for the Clippers since moving to the bench and was doing a little bit of everything while shooting efficiently (49.5% field goal percentage during the Clippers' 26-5 run), but he has been abysmal since then, scoring just 9.4 points a night while shooting 34.2% from the floor and 18.2% from deep. His rebounds and assists per game have dipped too, while he hasn't played in more than 22 minutes in a game since coming out of the break.
Tobias Harris - F, Philadelphia 76ers
Tobias Harris has never been the most popular player in the eyes of Sixers fans, mostly due to how they believe that the Sixers chose to keep Harris over Jimmy Butler in the 2019 offseason (but it's more likely that they chose to extend Ben Simmons over keeping Butler). Whatever the case may be, Harris has failed to justify his gargantuan five-year, $180 million contract.
The Celtics will often put Kristaps Porzingis on poor/non-shooters to let him roam as a helper, so pretty bad sign for how Tobias Harris is playing lately that Boston decided to employ that strategy against him last night. pic.twitter.com/7PUAm1S4Ns
— Jackson Frank (@jackfrank_jjf) February 28, 2024
Especially now that Joel Embiid is hurt and the team needs someone to step up alongside Tyrses Maxey to keep the team afloat. Harris has averaged just 10.8 points a game while taking 13.3 shots a night ever since coming out of the All-Star break. His -10 average plus/minus during this stretch tells you all you need to know.
Brandin Podziemski - G, Golden State Warriors
Podziemski did something that no one thought was possible, he managed to send (arguably) the second-greatest shooter of all time to the bench. Unfortunately for Podz though, Klay Thompson has been playing his best basketball of the season since becoming the team's sixth man and it's clear that this benching has lit a fire inside of him.
Chris Paul is also back, and the aforementioned Andrew Wiggins is finally looking like himself again, so you shouldn't expect Podziemski's numbers to get any better. He probably will remain in the starting lineup until the playoffs, but expect him to average under 10 points a night, as he has put up just 9.4 PPG with 38% shooting since taking Klay's starting job.
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