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Another week. Another injury. Another disappointing player. Another disappointed owner.
New week. New values on the wire. New players will get a chance to shine. New opportunity for owners to hit a home run with a free agent. Want to be one of them? Keep reading.
Here are today's Week 7 deeper league waiver wire pickups for your fantasy basketball teams.
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The Clippers lose another starter! Who will fill Griffin's shoes?
After Danilo Gallinari, Milos Teodosic and Patrick Beverley the Clippers have been shaken up by another injury. And it's to their biggest star an probably best player. Blake Griffin has suffered an MCL sprain and it could keep him sidelined for up to two months. With so many players missing, coach Doc Rivers has to rely on some players that you wouldn't have taught will have any fantasy value before the season started. We already talked about Wesley Johnson and Sindarius Thornwell last week, and even though they play majority of their minutes in the backcourt in contrast to Griffin, his injury does further boost their value. But who are the new blimps on the fantasy radar in Blake's absence?
Sam Dekker, SF/PF, LAC, 7% Owned in Yahoo! leagues
Despite playing less than 10 minutes per game in 16 out of 19 games for the Clippers this season, Sam Dekker could prove a valuable asset to any team that cares about their field goal percentages, threes, rebounds and defensive stats. Last season in Houston, Dekker averaged 6.5 PTS with 0.8 3PM on 47.3 FG% and 55.9 FT%, 3.7 REB, 1.0 AST, 0.5 STL, 0.3 BLK and 0.5 TO in just 18 minutes per game.
Dekker has been getting more playing time recently, playing 13 minutes per game over his last six. With Blake gone, Sam could see an even bigger uptick and could be in line for minutes in the 20s. If he uses the chance that is coming to him, the 18th overall pick from the 2015 draft could help fantasy owners who are currently desperate for someone fresh from the free agent pool.
Montrezl Harrell, PF/C, LAC, 4% Owned in Yahoo! leagues
Another former Houston project, and a part of the Chris Paul deal, Montrezl Harrell has been playing even less than Dekker. A total of 110 minutes over 13 games didn't really give him room to show what he can do. But similarly to Dekker, Montrezl gave us a glimpse of what he's made of last season in Clutch City. In 18 minutes per game, Harrell averaged 9.1 points on 65.2% from the field and 62.8% from the charity stripe, 3.8 boards, 1.1 dimes, 0.3 steals, 0.7 blocked shots and 0.8 turnovers. He even posted a couple of double-doubles.
If the absence of Griffin opens up 20-25 minutes per game for Harrell, he could become a constant double-double threat who gets his owners decent FG% and defensive stats without hurting too much anywhere else. If you're pretty desperate and need a player like Montrezl, he does have some short term upside.
PG battle in The Big Apple - Old School vs. New School.
The New York Knicks have finally found a new home for Carmelo Anthony this summer and hit the reset button on their franchise. The first rookie pick of the "new age" in New York is the #8 overall pick from this year's draft, French youngster Frank Ntilikina. After being called out for selecting Kristaps Porzingis from the #4 pick two years ago, and The Unicorn shutting up all the non-believers, the critics have been far less vocal with the Knicks' pick this time around.
But Ntilikina hasn't been given the keys to the Knicks' offense just yet. Instead he got a mentor to compete with for the minutes at the point. Jarrett Jack, a veteran with 13 years of NBA experience has been chosen to guide their future star through the start of his NBA career. But what does that mean for fantasy owners?
Jarrett Jack, PG/SG, NYK, 6% Owned in Yahoo! leagues
Jack has been putting in some real decent performances lately, letting the world know he's still got it. In the last 14 days, Jack has been playing 29 minutes a game and blessing his owners with 7.6 point and 0.7 three-pointers on 46.0% from the field and no misses from the line, 3.3 rebounds, 6.6 dishes, 0.6 steals, no blocks and 1.7 turnovers.
He did however have a dud in his last game with just 5 points on 2-of-7 shooting, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, one three-pointer, two turnovers and nothing else in 21 minutes. Out of the two, Jack is currently playing a more important role and is a better short-term option for deep league owners in need of assists, but I could see his role diminish in favor of young Ntilikina as the Knicks give up chase for the playoffs and steer their efforts towards developing their players for the future.
Frank Ntilikina, PG, NYK, 10% Owned in Yahoo! leagues
The French rookie hasn't been deserving of a roster spot out of very deep or dynasty leagues so far this season with averages of 4.7 PTS, 0.4 3PM, 34.3 FG%, 64.3 FT%, 1.8 REB, 3.3 AST, 1.4 STL, 0.2 BLK and 2.0 TO in 19 minutes per game. But his upside in steals and assists is definitely there. If he can adapt to the NBA and start to produce decent stats along with improved shooting and less turnovers he would definitely turn some heads.
The Knicks will most probably give their franchise PG prospect more run as the season progresses, so if you can weather the storm and make your fantasy league's playoffs with Ntilikina on your roster learning his way to fantasy relevancy, he might repay your patience heavily when the "loser goes home" rounds start.
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