X
Lost password?

Don't have an account?
Gain Access Now

X

Receive free daily analysis

NFL
NBA
NHL
NASCAR
CFB
MLB
MMA
PGA
ESPORTS
BETTING

Already have an account? Log In

X

Forgot Password


POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Import Your Leagues
Weekly Rankings
Compare Any Players
Projections
Articles & Tools
Weekly Planner
24x7 News and Alerts

Unexpected Early Season NBA Fantasy Stars

Arkeno looks at some players off to unexpectedly hot starts in the 2016-17 NBA season. Follow RotoBaller for more fantasy basketball strategy, rankings, and waiver adds.

So here you are.  You are on top of your league with an unexpectedly hot start from a player you drafted in the 4th round or later -- or perhaps didn't draft at all.  Do you keep riding the wave or look to sell high?  Today we'll take a look at a group of players who weren't drafted in the top tier, but are putting up stats like it, and what to expect from them going forward.

 

Unexpected Early Season NBA Fantasy Stars

Myles Turner - Ranked 11th Overall / 14.6 Points / 7.0 Rebounds / 1.0 Assists / 1.0 Steals / 2.3 Blocks / 0.4 Threes

Simply put, Turner has been killing it.  With his ADP being around 75 his production is staggering.  Not only is he scoring high teens with great percents, he is also bringing in over two blocks while nearly averaging a steal a game.  The production is clearly top 25 worthy but can he sustain it?  My answer is yes!  If you have watched any of the Pacers games, you can clearly see how much this defense relies on him to protect the rim.  Guards funnel perimeter players to the middle so that Turner can start the block party.  His touches seem to be fairly regular and his touch is really special for a big man.  The only worry you could have is the fact that the Pacers have been so unpredictable.  This might lead to a change in style of player or rotation down the line, but from the looks of it this big man is ready to carry as must responsibility as the team is willing to give.

 

Rudy Gay – Ranked 18th Overall / 22.3 PPG / 6.5 Rebounds / 2.5 Assists / 1.4 Steals / 0.8 Blocks / 1.3 Threes

Rudy might be having the best start of his NBA career.  As a heavy offensive threat, he has found a way to expand his game this year and really give you some production across the board.  During the off season this summer Rudy did state that he will not be exercising his player option and will become a free agent in the summer of 2017.  His great start might be something that makes the Kings second guess putting Rudy on the trade market.  If they choose to stick it out they could lose him for nothing which makes his future uncertain.  The production has a great chance of maintaining throughout this season, but that is based on the assumption that he will stay in Sacramento or be traded to a team that needs his all-around input and not just his offense.

 

Avery Bradley – Ranked 20th Overall / 18.5 Points / 8.3 Rebounds / 3.6 Assists / 1.1 Steals / 0.4 Blocks / 2.4 Threes

This might be the biggest surprise of them all.  It isn’t the fact that Bradley is playing well, it’s the quality of the production.  With Al Horford and Jae Crowder out Bradley has seen minutes at Shooting Guard, and Small Forward.  Not only has this lead to an increase in minutes but Bradley is also averaging 8.3 rebounds which is second only to the ridiculous Russell Westbrook among guards.  Simply put, Bradley is playing out of his mind, but what will his production be once the team is back to full strength?  I am willing to believe that his numbers will go down across the board, but not by much.  You couldn’t complain much about a player putting up these numbers that you drafted in the second round.  Not only is Bradley as must own but he should be fetching a top 15 player at this point.

 

Otto Porter – Ranked 24th Overall / 15.2 Points / 7.8 Rebounds / 1.7 Assists / 1.1 Steals / 0.8 Blocks / 1.0 Threes

Porter started off playing pretty well, but as of late has been on fire.  Most of this can be attributed to the Wizards playing a pretty tight rotation with very little depth on the wings.  The Wizards need all the production they can get so they will keep going to Porter until the well runs dry.  Porter will have very steady numbers and every once in a while he might give you a great game with tons of counting stats as well as percents.

 

Steven Adams – Ranked 32nd Overall / 9.9 Points / 8.5 Rebounds / 0.8 Assists / 1.87 Steals / 1.0 Blocks / 0.0 Threes

Throw it down big fella throw it down.  This is what Adams does and is highly effective at.  While most of his dunks aren’t ally-ops the big man has great timing is almost always in perfect position for Russ to throw a great bounce pass for a dunk.  So far in the season Adams has found himself being one of Russell’s primary targets which is great news for his owners.  The one knock on Adams is that he doesn’t have much block upside, but the fact that he isn’t killing your FT% this year is HUGE!  Finding bigs that can give you a double double without hurting FT% is like finding a winning lottery ticket, it just doesn’t happen.  If you can get your hands on this big man, go for it, because the production will only get better.

 

Dwyane Wade – Ranked 45th Overall / 17.0 Points / 4.1 Rebounds / 2.9 Assist / 1.7 Steals / 0.5 Blocks / 1.2 Threes

Wade has shown some really impressive flashes so far this season.  He has been able to increase his shooting around the perimeter without taking too heavy of a dip in his FG%.  The 1.7 steals a game is a really big plus once you combine that with his 1.2 threes a game.  Wade provides grate scoring output while at the same time delivering great defensive stats.  In a perfect world, Wade could keep this up all season, but in reality it is more than likely that he will miss some time this year.  You should also take into consideration his career three point FG% being 28.6% in comparison to this year’s 35.3%.  The sample size is small but you are running the risk of Wade regressing to the mean which would also kill his FG% and total three-point output.  I would sell high.

 

Rodney Hood – Ranked 50th Overall / 17.4 Points / 4.4 Rebounds / 1.9 Assists / 0.9 Steals / 0.4 Blocks / 2.4 Threes

Hood is in a very interesting situation.  He has been playing far ahead of his 111 ADP and doesn’t look to be slowing down any time soon. Even with the highest usage player on the team coming back he seems to be pretty set in his role.  Hood might be the player on the team that benefits the most from Alec Burks injury as he has very little competition for minutes.  Hood has been shooting lights out at 48% from the field and I think he can keep this up.  If you drafted him this season, as long as he doesn’t get hurt, Hood can easily continue to be one of the pieces that pushes your team over the top.




POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Import Your Leagues
Weekly Rankings
Compare Any Players
Projections
Articles & Tools
Weekly Planner
24x7 News and Alerts

REAL-TIME FANTASY NEWS

Josh Jacobs

Saves Fantasy Performance With Two Touchdowns Against Cardinals
Javonte Williams

Records Second 100-Yard Rushing Game in Week 7
Darren Waller

Suffers Pectoral Strain, Will Undergo MRI
Jake Ferguson

Scores Two TDs Despite Return of Top Dallas Receiver
Rashee Rice

Heavily Involved in Debut, Scores Two Touchdowns Against Raiders
Christian McCaffrey

Carries Niners Offense Again, has First 100-Yard Rushing Game
D'Andre Swift

Goes for Season-High 124 Rushing Yards in Week 7 Win
CeeDee Lamb

Tops 100 Receiving Yards in First Game Back From Injury
Keenan Allen

Turns Back the Clock in Dominant Week 7 Outing
Trey McBride

Explodes for 10 Catches, 74 Yards, Two Touchdowns in Loss
Jayden Daniels

to Undergo MRI on Monday
Kyler Murray

Cardinals Commit to Kyler Murray as Starter When Healthy
Oronde Gadsden

Enjoys Spectacular Showing in Week 7
Justin Herbert

Salvages Big Fantasy Performance in Ugly Loss at Home
Jaxson Dart

Four Touchdowns Not Enough in Loss to Broncos
Jonathan Taylor

Produces Another Three-Touchdown Outing
Bo Nix

Scores Four Touchdowns in Improbable Comeback Win
Toumani Camara

Gets Four-Year Contract Extension from Portland
Shaedon Sharpe

Blazers Agree on a Contract Extension
Jayden Daniels

Won't Return in Week 7
Kevin Durant

Lands Two-Year Contract Extension with Houston
George Springer

Returns to Lineup for Game 6 of ALCS
Domantas Sabonis

to Miss at Least a Few Games, Will be Re-Evaluated in One Week
Jayden Daniels

Questionable to Return in Week 7 Against Cowboys
Spencer Knight

Takes on Ducks Sunday
Shakir Mukhamadullin

Sharks Place Shakir Mukhamadullin on Injured Reserve
Kasperi Kapanen

Exits With Injury Sunday
Jonathan Lekkerimaki

Suffers Injury Sunday
Chris Olave

Scores Twice While Evading Injury
Filip Chytil

Injured on Sunday
Teddy Blueger

Hurt in Sunday's WIn
A.J. Brown

Back on Track With Two Touchdowns Sunday
Jason Dickinson

Remains Out Sunday
CFB

Colorado State Fires Head Coach Jay Norvell After Four Seasons
CFB

Florida Fires Head Coach Billy Napier After Four Years
Nils Lundkvist

Expected to Miss Time
Pierre-Luc Dubois

to Remain Out Sunday
Jacob Bryson

in Concussion Protocol
Niko Mikkola

Hurt in Saturday's Loss
Shayne Gostisbehere

Exits Saturday's Action With Lower-Body Injury
Mark Stone

Suffers Apparent Wrist Injury
Chase Elliott

Can Chase Elliott Deliver Another Clutch Win to Make Championship 4?
William Byron

Seeks First Win at Talladega to Overcome Las Vegas Crash
Chase Briscoe

Likely to Finish Worse Than he Starts
Kyle Larson

Despite No Wins on Drafting Tracks, Kyle Larson is Improving
Tyler Reddick

Despite Winning at Talladega, Tyler Reddick's Drafting Record Is Not So Hot
Ross Chastain

Poor Qualifying Makes him a Strong DFS Option at Talladega
Chris Buescher

Excellent Crash Avoidance Could Reap Dividends at Talladega
Ty Gibbs

If Ty Gibbs' Team Executes a Better Strategy, he Could Win at Talladega
Daniel Suarez

Hopes for Clutch Talladega Win to Remain in the NASCAR Cup Series
Josh Berry

Might Contend at Talladega
Austin Dillon

Doesn't Lead Enough at Talladega to Contend for Wins
Frederick Gaudreau

to Be Sidelined for 4-6 Weeks
Kaiden Guhle

to Miss 4-6 Weeks
Patrick Kane

Ruled Out for Sunday
Noah Hanifin

Not Ready to Return Saturday
Brandon Montour

Takes Leave of Absence
Joel Kiviranta

Out Indefinitely With Lower-Body Injury
Hampus Lindholm

a Game-Time Call Saturday
Rob Dillingham

Timberwolves Exercise Team Option on Rob Dillingham
Scotty Pippen Jr.

to Undergo Surgery, Out at Least 12 Weeks
New York Knicks

Knicks Cut Ties with Garrison Mathews
Dallas Mavericks

Dalano Banton Waived by the Mavericks
Miami Heat

Precious Achiuwa Waived by Miami
Dallas Mavericks

Mavericks Waive Dennis Smith Jr.
Macklin Celebrini

Has Multi-Point Outing Friday
Brendan Donovan

Undergoes Sports Hernia Surgery
George Springer

Exits Game 5 Early After HBP on his Knee
Jackson Chourio

Back in Game 4 Lineup Against Dodgers
Iván Herrera

Ivan Herrera Has Bone Spurs Removed From his Elbow
Brendan Allen

Set For UFC Vancouver Main Event
Reinier de Ridder

Reinier De Ridder A Favorite At UFC Vancouver
Mike Malott

Looks For His Third Consecutive Win
Kevin Holland

Set For UFC Vancouver Co-Main Event
Aiemann Zahabi

Looks For His Seventh Consecutive Win
Bradley Beal

Set to Make Clippers Debut in Preseason Finale
Marlon Vera

Returns At UFC Vancouver
VJ Edgecombe

Set to Return for Preseason Finale
Jeremy Sochan

Won't Play in Season Opener
Jasmine Jasudavicius

Looks To Extend Her Win Streak
AJ Green

Bucks Agree to Contract Extension
Manon Fiorot

Looks To Bounce Back
Aoriqileng

Aori Aoriqileng Looks To Rebound
Cody Gibson

Looks To Get Back In The Win Column
Jaylen Brown

Considered Day-to-Day with Hamstring Tightness
Kyle Nelson

Set For Lightweight Bout
Matt Frevola

Set To Open Up UFC Vancouver Main Card
Jaden Ivey

Will Miss Four Weeks After Knee Surgery
Paul George

Expected to Miss Season Opener
Joel Embiid

Set to Make Preseason Debut on Friday
CFB

Curt Cignetti Signs Eight-Year, $11.6 Million Extension With Indiana
Carlos Rodón

Carlos Rodon Unlikely to Be Ready for Opening Day After Elbow Surgery
Anthony Santander

Removed From ALCS Roster With Back Injury
Jackson Chourio

Aggravates Hamstring, Pulled Early in Game 3 of NLCS
Aaron Judge

Will Not Need Elbow Surgery
Anthony Volpe

Won't be Ready for Start of Next Season
Gerrit Cole

Won't be Ready for Opening Day Next Year
Milwaukee Bucks

Chris Livingston Waived by the Bucks
Keegan Murray

Nique Clifford Shines in Keegan Murray's Absence
Cooper Flagg

Continues to Start at Point Guard
CFB

Jermod McCoy Officially Out for Alabama Matchup
CFB

Jam Miller Questionable to Face Tennessee
CFB

Arizona State QB Sam Leavitt Probable For Saturday
Anthony Volpe

Undergoes Left-Shoulder Surgery
CFB

Jayden Gibson No Longer with Oklahoma Program
Emmanuel Clase

to be Banished for Life After Gambling Allegations?
Alex Bregman

Plans to Opt Out of Contract With Red Sox

RANKINGS

QB
RB
WR
TE
K
DEF
RANKINGS
C
1B
2B
3B
SS
OF
SP
RP