🖥 TAP TO SAVE 50% WITH CODE THANKS
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

Changing Tides: A Look Into Surprising NBA Playoff Performances

The playoffs are in full swing but it's not too early to look forward to next year's fantasy season.

With teams going all out and putting out their strongest rotations, we can see how teams truly value each of their pieces, so big performances and surprising turns can be taken with more validity than during the last few months of the regular season.

Let's take a look at some of the more surprising performances so far this postseason, and try to analyze what it could mean for their stock in next year's fantasy season.

Holiday Special! Save 50% on any Premium Pass using discount code THANKS. Win more with our DFS, Betting and Season-Long Pass, get expert tools and advice from proven winners! GAIN ACCESS

 

Changing Tides: A Look Into Surprising NBA Playoff Performances

Rajon Rondo, PG, New Orleans Pelicans

So the myth of playoff Rondo is real, and a locked-in Rondo looked fantastic on both ends of the floor in the Pelicans evisceration of the Portland Trail Blazers. He's nearly averaged a triple double this postseason with 11.3/13.3/7.5 splits in the popcorn stats to go with 0.8 steals and 3-pointers apiece, in 35 minutes a game. Rondo showed flashes of this form last season in the 2 games before he got hurt as the Bulls stole the first 2 games from the 1 seed Boston Celtics, and he has played a huge part in the Pelicans success so far this postseason, taking primary ball-handling duties and unlocking Jrue Holiday as a potent off-ball threat.

Outlook: Doesn't move the needle on his value much

Rondo's contract situation does put a question mark on his value next season, as he is an unrestricted free agent and it's unclear whether one good postseason can make up for a few years of regular season track record suggesting that he is not consistently a good player. His effort level wanes during the regular season, and his value next season will depend a lot on his situation more so than his talent and productivity. If he finds himself in a situation where he can consistently get more than 25 minutes a game, he will still be a strong option in punt points leagues, and a great source of steals, assists and out of position boards.

 

Jrue Holiday, PG/SG, New Orleans Pelicans

All Holiday's performance this postseason has done is narrow the still incomprehensible gap between his value and performance and the public perception of Jrue as a player. Holiday has been excellent for quite some time now, yet doesn't get the recognition as a star that many other players worse than him receive. With averages of 27.8/6.5/4.0 in the spotlight of the postseason, it looks like the gap between how good Holiday is and how good people think he is will finally narrow. Unfortunately, this means he will probably be drafted a little more appropriately next year.

Outlook: Won't inexplicably fall as far in drafts next season as he has in the past

Jrue Holiday is a dynamic 2-way guard who can play both on and off ball, and his extremely high steal rate makes him an elite fantasy guard that has been consistently undervalued over the years due to overblown injury concerns and lack of name recognition. The fact that he has racked up 6.5 assists per game this post season playing off the ball shows that even as a 2, he can get dimes, and the elite steal rate won't be going away any time soon. One thing that makes Holiday unique is his out of position FG%, which makes him very easy to slot into a number of builds. Jrue should be valued around where Mike Conley has been the past few seasons ( in the 20s), and next year looks to be the year he will get finally get his due.

 

Derrick Rose, PG, Minnesota Timberwolves

Derrick Rose has been surprisingly productive for the Wolves in their playoff series against the 1-seed Rockets, providing a much needed spark off the bench. Reunited with his old coach Tom Thibodeau from his glory days in Chicago, Rose has gotten a green light to run the offense and he's responded with 14.8 ppg in 24 minutes per game this series. He's also hit 1.3 3s per game, a part of his game that has been severely lacking for him all career.

Outlook: This is a mirage

You can dismiss this as fast as you can because nothing about this performance is sustainable. The 3-point shooting and 52.0 FG% is being buoyed but a ridiculous 71.4% 3-point shooting percentage and Rose has still been as anemic as ever in assists and steals with 2.8 and 0.5 respectively over the 4 game series so far. While this makes for a pretty cool story (Rose performing for his old coach), there is nothing here to suggest that he has turned a corner, and he is still undraftable in most formats next season.

 

Carmelo Anthony, SF/PF, Oklahoma City Thunder

While playoff Rondo has been a thing, Olympic Melo has been proven again and again to be a myth and his performance in the Thunder's first round series against Utah has been an abomination to put it lightly. Melo has averaged just 12.8 points per game on 36.9% shooting and only 1.2 3s per game on a putrid 21.4% 3-point rate. This is Melo we're talking about, so if he's not scoring anymore, then what use does he have?

Outlook: Undraftable

Someone will still take Melo because of the name value, just make sure that someone isn't you. It's telling that in the Thunder's frantic game 5 comeback,  the run was ignited when Melo went to the bench, and he didn't come in until the Thunder had completed the comeback and taken the lead. Melo is a very bad player now, who doesn't contribute in the defensive categories and can't even score much anymore, and he should not be drafted at all next year.

 

More Fantasy Basketball Analysis

that



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

Amon-Ra St. Brown

Expected to Play on Christmas Day Against the Vikings
Connor McDavid

Finishes Battle of Alberta With Five Assists
Karel Vejmelka

Battling Upper-Body Injury
Alexandre Texier

Suffers Upper-Body Injury Against Bruins
Alexander Nikishin

Dealing With Apparent Ankle Injury
Denver Barkey

Exits Early Tuesday
Travis Sanheim

Pulled by Concussion Spotter Tuesday
Cam Whitmore

Out Indefinitely With Deep Vein Thrombosis
Corey Kispert

Lasts for 13 Minutes in Comeback Game
Jaxson Hayes

Makes Early Exit Versus Suns
Gary Trent Jr.

Limited to Five Minutes Tuesday
Matas Buzelis

Exits With Leg Injury Tuesday
Keegan Murray

Sustains Calf Injury Tuesday
Cameron Johnson

Scheduled for MRI After Hurting Right Knee
Chet Holmgren

Suffers Facial Injury Tuesday
Caris LeVert

Upgraded to Available Tuesday
Ron Holland II

Remains Out Against Kings
Robert Williams III

Sits Out Tuesday's Game
Jonathan Isaac

Active Tuesday Night
Javon Small

Returns to Grizzlies Lineup Tuesday
Tristan da Silva

Remains Sidelined Against Portland
Goga Bitadze

Out Against Portland
Vince Williams Jr.

Misses Third Consecutive Game
Cedric Coward

Unavailable on Tuesday Night
Aaron Wiggins

Will Play Against Spurs
Ryan O'Hearn

Pirates Agree on Two-Year Deal
Grayson Allen

Absent for Third Consecutive Game
Zach LaVine

to Miss at Least One More Week
Victor Wembanyama

Ready to Take on Thunder
DK Metcalf

has Two-Game Suspension Upheld
Philip Rivers

to Remain the Starter in Week 17
George Kittle

Dealing With Mid-to-Low Ankle Sprain
Viktor Arvidsson

a Game-Time Decision Tuesday
Ryan Leonard

Available Tuesday
Tom Wilson

in Danger of Missing First Game of the Season
Phillip Danault

Makes Second Canadiens Debut Tuesday
Collin Graf

Available Against Golden Knights
Jack Eichel

Misses Fourth Straight Game
Vince Dunn

Won't Play Tuesday
Deshaun Watson

Will Not be Activated Off PUP List, 2025 Season is Over
J.J. McCarthy

Ruled Out for Week 17
Rome Odunze

Expected to Return This Season
Christian McCaffrey

Another Monster Game for Christian McCaffrey in Week 16
Brock Purdy

Throws for Five Touchdowns in Week 16
TreVeyon Henderson

in Concussion Protocol, Week 17 Status Unclear
George Kittle

Week 17 Availability in Question?
CFB

Jeff Brohm, Eli Drinkwitz "Names of Interest" for Michigan Head Coach
Timothy Liljegren

to Miss Second Straight Game Tuesday
Will Smith

Out Week-to-Week
Jaccob Slavin

Placed on Injured Reserve, Out Week-to-Week
Seth Jarvis

Considered Week-to-Week
Darren Raddysh

Totals Three Points in Monday's Win
Mason Marchment

Scores Twice Monday
Vince Dunn

Injured in Monday's Win
Rashee Rice

Still in Concussion Protocol, Estimated as Non-Participant on Monday
J.J. McCarthy

Listed as DNP on Monday Ahead of Week 17
Ilya Sorokin

to Miss Tuesday's Game
DK Metcalf

Suspended for Two Games Following Confrontation with Fan
CFB

Byrum Brown Entering Transfer Portal
CFB

Bobby Petrino Joining Bill Belichick as North Carolina's Offensive Coordinator
TreVeyon Henderson

Exits Week 16 Victory with Head Injury
Lamar Jackson

Questionable to Return in Week 16 with Back Injury
Willson Contreras

Shipped to the Red Sox
Quinshon Judkins

Done for the Season with Broken Leg
Nick Chubb

Officially Active Against Raiders in Week 16
Gardner Minshew

Won't Return in Week 16
Woody Marks

Officially Inactive for Week 16
Quinshon Judkins

Carted Off in Week 16, Ruled Out with Apparent Leg Injury
Brandon Lowe

Pirates Acquire Brandon Lowe in Three-Team Trade
Shane Baz

Orioles Acquire Shane Baz From the Rays
CFB

Darian Mensah Returning to Duke Next Season
CFB

Josh Hoover Linked to Indiana in Transfer Portal
CFB

Arch Manning Agrees to Reduced Compensation for 2026 Season
Michael King

Padres Bring Michael King Back on Three-Year Deal
Logan Webb

Will Pitch for Team USA in World Baseball Classic
Tarik Skubal

Joins Team USA for World Baseball Classic
CFB

Will Muschamp Becoming Next Texas Defensive Coordinator
CFB

Beau Pribula Set to Enter Transfer Portal

RANKINGS

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