January 10, 2017

JT looks at fantasy basketball risers and fallers for Week 12 of the NBA season, following the conclusion of Week 11 of the 2016 - 2017 fantasy basketball season.

Throughout the season, players get hot and see an increased role while others struggle and fight to stay relevant. Experienced fantasy players know this happens every year.

In this weekly column, we’ll showcase those who have taken important steps forward and those who have taken steps back. These are the risers and fallers in the top-100 heading into Week 12 of the NBA season.

Editor's Note: New users that sign up on FantasyAces, make a $20 deposit, and enter any game will receive BOTH our full season NBA and NFL Premium Passes for free, a $119.99 value. Just email [email protected] with your new FantasyAces username - and boom, that's it! We will email you with your Premium Passes.

Post-Week 11 Fantasy Basketball Risers

RISER - LaMarcus Aldridge (PF/C, SAS)

LaMarcus Aldridge has been on his best stretch of the season, putting up 23.3 points, 9.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.5 blocks on 78.0% from the field (39-of-50) in the past week. He returned first round value last week because of the efficiency on high usage. The addition of Pau Gasol in San Antonio had both players off to a slow start from the fantasy perspective, but they’ve been productive in the past month. Although, there’s no way Aldridge keeps his shooting at this sparkling percentage. He likely won’t get any hotter than this, so if you could find a taker in exchange for a top-20 asset, that would be ideal.

RISER - Tobias Harris (SF/PF, DET)

Stan Van Gundy has been tinkering with his lineups since the Pistons were struggling to put together wins with their starting unit. One move that’s worked, Tobias Harris as the first man off the bench in which he’s looked great. He’s posted 19.2 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.7 threes in the six games he’s come off the bench. The move looks like it’ll stick, but the Pistons have been 3-3 since that time so it’s possible it could change down the line. Harris has been better of the bench than as a starter, so let’s cross our fingers.

RISER - D’Angelo Russell (PG, LAL)

D’Angelo Russell has been fierce since returning to the Lakers lineup. In the last six games, he’s averaging 19.8 points, 5.0 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 2.0 steals and 2.7 threes on 44.4% from the field and 79.3% from the line. That’s good enough for third round value over that span. His return has limited Lou Williams and should continue to produce as long as he’s healthy. Luke Walton and the franchise want him to succeed, so it should be fun owning him from here on in. I could easily see him finishing in the top-50 when it’s all said and done. He should be even better in the second half.

Post-Week 11 Fantasy Basketball Fallers

FALLER - Derrick Favors (PF/C, UTA)

The Utah Jazz are finally healthy and have their starters back, but Derrick Favors has been mostly a disappointment this season. To be fair, Quin Snyder has been cautious in ramping up Favors’ workload so they don’t hamper Favors’ bothersome knee. He’s had two strong games since returning with 15 points, six rebounds, three steals and two blocks in 34 minutes against the Wolves. That’s a bit more like it. He’s shown signs of life recently, so he does make sense as a buy-low option with the expectation of second half return.

FALLER - Robin Lopez (C, CHI)

Fred Hoiberg has opted to go with smaller lineups and the Bulls have been better winning 3-of-4 in in the past week. That means Robin Lopez is the odd man out seeing under 30 minutes in over that time. He had a great start to the season, but has only posted 7.3 points, 6.1 rebounds, 1.2 blocks and little else in the last 10 games. He’s not the greatest buy-low candidate and can be cut in shallow formats, but it’s still a tough hold for the deeper leagues.

FALLER - Rodney Hood (SG/SF, UTA)

Rodney Hood hasn’t been the same since dealing with a stomach issue. He’s put up 8.9 points, 2.6 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 0.2 steals and 1.2 threes on 33.0 FG%/70.0 FT% since dealing with an illness. That’s good enough for 29th round value, which is awful. You have to believe he’s going to pick it up at some point, but if you’re battling for a playoff spot, he could probably be cut in standard formats until he gets it going.