Fantasy Basketball Risers and Fallers: Week 3

Karl Rasmussen looks at fantasy basketball lineup risers, targets, fallers and avoids going into Week 3. These can be lineup sleepers and busts for your teams.

We are in the midst of the third week of the fantasy basketball season and it’s time to take a long, hard look at your roster. It’s still early in the season, but sometimes that’s the best time to make moves, otherwise, you may miss out on someone in the midst of a breakout year. However, it’s important to note that it’s not quite time to sell low on some of your under-performing stars as the sample size is still quite small.

It’s always a bad feeling watching a high draft pick struggle, or someone who you expected a breakout year from fall short of your high expectations, but at some point, it will be time to cut ties with that player. I don’t believe this week is the right time to do that, unless there is someone of must-own value on the wire. Patience is a virtue in fantasy basketball, but it’s important to have an idea of what your leash on a player looks like. If the player’s situation is murky and he will be in a dogfight for playing time, perhaps it’s time to consider dropping him in favor of an emerging star on the wire.

Here we are going to have a look at some players who have been hot as of late, and others who are struggling. It’s Week 3, and here are our risers and fallers for early on in the season:

Week 3 Fantasy Basketball Risers

RISER: Nemanja Bjelica (F, SAC)

Bjelica has been sensational over the past week as the Kings continue to play at a high level. Bjelica is averaging 19.2 points, 9.0 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.5 blocks and 1.8 steals per game over his past four outings. He’s also been electric from three-point range, knocking down 13 threes during that span. If Bjelica is still on the wire in your league he should be picked up immediately as he has been on a complete tear as of late.

RISER: JaVale McGee (C, LAL)

JaVale McGee has been one of the biggest surprises of the season. The Lakers newly acquired center has been sensational over the past week, posting averages of 15.4 points, 6.4 rebounds and 3.0 blocks. He’s locked in right now and getting an average of 26.1 minutes per game this year, so he has the chance to continue his high level of play. McGee leads the league in blocks per game this season and should be picked up in leagues where he is available as he doesn’t have much competition for the starting center job in Los Angeles.

RISER: Buddy Hield (SG, SAC)

Buddy Hield has been on fire over to start the 2018-19 season, but even more so this past week. Over the past seven days, Hield is averaging 23.3 points, 7.8 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 2.5 made three’s per game. He hasn’t scored less than 22 points over the past week and has played more than 35 minutes in each of the past four outings. He’s benefiting from the absence of Bogdan Bogdanovic but Hield appears to be in the midst of a breakout campaign. If Hield is still sitting in your league’s waivers, now is the time to strike.

RISER: Pascal Siakam (PF/C, TOR)

Siakam is coming off of an outstanding week of basketball in which he has seen a large uptick in minutes. Over the past week, he has logged 33+ minutes in three of the Raptors four games. He’s posting averages 14.0 points, 8.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 2.3 steals over the past seven days. He posted a huge game in which he scored 15 points and corralled 15 rebounds in what was a monster double. Siakam could very well be available on the wire in your league and he is worth a look if you can snag him.

Week 3 Fantasy Basketball Fallers

FALLER: Cedi Osman (SF, CLE)

After a very encouraging start to the season, Osman struggled over the past week. Over his past four games, he shot just 31.8% from the field, including going 6-for-18 from deep. The injury to Kevin Love will keep Osman as a key part of the rotation but he is proving that he is prone to inconsistency. The Osman hype might have been extreme after his hot start, and he is certainly coming back down to earth now.

FALLER: Joe Ingles (SF, UTA)

Joe Ingles opened the 2018-19 campaign with a bang as he logged two monster performances to kick off the season. Since then he has struggled mightily, averaging 9.8 points, 6.2 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game over his past four outings. During that span, he’s shot at a clip of 30.9% from the field and 29.2% from deep. Ingles is still seeing a lot of minutes and should not be considered a drop candidate just yet, but his recent run of outings has been discouraging, to say the least.

FALLER: Taurean Prince (SF, ATL)

Taurean Prince has been abysmal over his past two outings, but has still strung together a strong season overall. He’s totaled just 14 points over his past two games, on an inefficient 4-for-23 from the field, good for a 17.4% field goal percentage. He’s also netted just 2-of-11 three’s in that span and has turned the ball over seven times. Prince is still one of the top offensive options on the Hawks, but his past two games have been a major let down to owners.

FALLER: Gordon Hayward (SG/SF, BOS)

Gordon Hayward is still working his way back from one of the most brutal injuries in NBA history, but he’s coming off an extremely disappointing week. Hayward is averaging just 8.7 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.7 assists over his past three games. The Celtics star is shooting just 38.4% from the field over that span and knocked down just 3-for-11 three-point attempts. His minutes are hovering around 24 per night and it’s hard to imagine them rising any time soon based on the nature of his injury. Hayward owners should be holding out in hopes of better days in the future.

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