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As always, I have taken a look ahead at the NBA schedule for next week, and here are the fantasy basketball streamers for Week 17.
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NBA Schedule Guide - Week 17
Tuesday has 10 games and Saturday has 11 games, so most teams will have their starting rosters filled already. With Sunday having just two games, this is the day most fantasy teams will be in a tough spot. All other days have between five and seven games played so it is reasonable to assume that fantasy GMs will need help on these days as well.
Here's the low-down:
Teams with 4 games:
Charlotte Hornets
Chicago Bulls
Golden State Warriors
Minnesota Timberwolves
New York Knicks
Oklahoma City Thunder
Phoenix Suns
Toronto Raptors
Teams with 3 games:
Atlanta Hawks
Boston Celtics
Brooklyn Nets
Cleveland Cavaliers
Dallas Mavericks
Denver Nuggets
Detroit Pistons
Indiana Pacers
Los Angeles Clippers
Los Angeles Lakers
Memphis Grizzlies
Miami Heat
New Orleans Pelicans
Orlando Magic
Philadelphia 76ers
Portland Trail Blazers
Sacramento Kings
San Antonio Spurs
Utah Jazz
Washington Wizards
Teams with 2 games:
Houston Rockets
Milwaukee Bucks
Number of teams playing each day:
Monday: 10
Tuesday: 20
Wednesday: 12
Thursday: 14
Friday: 14
Saturday: 22
Sunday: 4
Back-to-Backs (beware of older or banged-up players who might rest):
Monday/Tuesday: NYK, PHO
Tuesday/Wednesday: LAL, MIN, POR, SAC
Wednesday/Thursday: GSW, TOR
Thursday/Friday: DET
Friday/Saturday: CHA, CHI, CLE, DEN, OKC, ORL, PHI, SAS
Saturday/Sunday: -
Sunday/Monday the following: -
Days with SEVEN or fewer games
Monday: 5 games
Wednesday: 6 games
Thursday: 7 games
Friday: 7 games
Sunday: 2 games
Teams playing on at least three of these days:
Minnesota Timberwolves (4 games - Tues, Thurs, Fri, Sun)
Charlotte Hornets (4 games - Mon, Wed, Fri, Sat)
Chicago Bulls (4 games - Mon, Wed, Fri, Sat)
Oklahoma City Thunder (4 games - Mon, Wed, Fri, Sat)
Golden State Warriors (4 games - Mon, Wed, Thurs, Sat)
Toronto Raptors (4 games - Mon, Wed, Thurs, Sat)
Utah Jazz (3 games - Mon, Wed, Fri)
Teams with a GOOD START to the week (three games from Monday to Thursday)
Golden State Warriors (4 games - Mon, Wed, Thurs, Sat)
New York Knicks (4 games - Mon, Tues, Thurs, Sun)
Phoenix Suns (4 games - Mon, Tues, Thurs, Sun)
Toronto Raptors (4 games - Mon, Wed, Thurs, Sat)
Teams with a GOOD END to the week (three games from Thursday to Sunday)
-
Teams with a POOR START to the week (one or no games from Monday to Thursday)
Indiana Pacers (3 games - Tue, Fri, Sun)
Boston Celtics (3 games - Tue, Fri, Sun)
Atlanta Hawks (3 games - Tue, Fri, Sun)
Orlando Magic (3 games - Tue, Fri, Sat)
Denver Nuggets (3 games - Tue, Fri, Sat)
Philadelphia 76ers (3 games - Tue, Fri, Sat)
Cleveland Cavaliers (3 games - Wed, Fri, Sat)
San Antonio Spurs (3 games - Wed, Fri, Sat)
Teams with a POOR END to the week (one or no games from Thursday to Sunday)
Milwaukee Bucks (2 games - Tues, Thurs)
Houston Rockets (2 games - Tues, Thurs)
Los Angeles Lakers (3 games - Tues, Wed, Sat)
Sacramento Kings (3 games - Tues, Wed, Sat)
Portland Trail Blazers (3 games - Tues, Wed, Sat)
Utah Jazz (3 games - Mon, Wed, Fri)
Baller Streaming Strategy for Week 17
Tuesday (with 10 games played) and Saturday (11 games) are the days with the most games so we will be almost disregarding them. All other days have five to seven games apart from Sunday, which has just two. The trouble with teams that play on Sunday (Atlanta, Boston, and Indiana) is that they all play only once before Friday, and that game is on Tuesday, which is quite packed already. So players from these teams in most cases become streamers on Friday.
The only other team that plays on Sunday is Minnesota. The Wolves play on Tuesday as well, but also play on both Wednesday and Friday, so their players could be considered as week-long streamers. They will feature in our options for the week.
In addition to Minnesota's players, we will be looking at players from teams that play on at least three days with seven or fewer games (Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Sunday).
There are seven teams in total teams that play three games on these days:
- Minnesota Timberwolves (4 games - Tues, Thurs, Fri, Sun)
- Charlotte Hornets (4 games - Mon, Wed, Fri, Sat)
- Chicago Bulls (4 games - Mon, Wed, Fri, Sat)
- Oklahoma City Thunder (4 games - Mon, Wed, Fri, Sat)
- Golden State Warriors (4 games - Mon, Wed, Thurs, Sat)
- Toronto Raptors (4 games - Mon, Wed, Thurs, Sat)
- Utah Jazz (3 games - Mon, Wed, Fri)
Furthermore, with the trade deadline approaching (Feb 10), I would advise fantasy managers to keep their weekly adds and their options open for as long as possible, as trades could open up minutes for unrostered players and make them much more appealing for not just streaming, but also the rest of the season.
Streaming Options for Week 17
Shallower League Streaming Adds for the Week (Rostered in 25-75% of Yahoo leagues):
Jarred Vanderbilt, PF/C, MIN, (68% Rostered) - Strong Cats: FG%, REB, STL/BLK
Jaden McDaniels, PF, MIN, (32% Rostered) - Strong Cats: 3PM, STL, REB -
Malik Beasley, PG/SG, MIN, (29% Rostered) - Strong Cats: 3PM, PTS, STL
Patrick Beverley, PG/SG, MIN, (31% Rostered) - Strong Cats: AST, 3PM, PTS, STL, BLK
PJ Washington, PF/C, CHA, (67% Rostered) - Strong Cats: REB, 3PM, STL
Mason Plumlee, PF/C, CHA, (55% Rostered) - Strong Cats: REB, STL, FG%
Ayo Dosunmu, PG, CHI, (58% Rostered) - Strong Cats: 3PM, AST, STL, a bit of everything
Coby White, PG/SG, CHI, (48% Rostered) - Strong Cats: 3PM, AST, PTS, FT% - buyer beware: missed his previous game (Feb 4) with an adductor strain
Javonte Green, PG/SG/SF, CHI, (27% Rostered) - Strong Cats: REB, FG%, STL/BLK, a bit of everything
Otto Porter Jr., SF/PF, GSW, (27% Rostered) - Strong Cats: REB, 3PM, STL - buyer beware: missed his previous three games with a lower back issue and is questionable for Monday
Kevon Looney, PF/C, GSW, (33% Rostered) - Strong Cats: REB, FG%, STL/BLK
Chris Boucher, PF/C, TOR, (73% Rostered) -Strong Cats: REB, STL/BLK
Royce O'Neale, SG/SF, UTA, (42% Rostered) - Strong Cats: 3PM, STL, REB, a bit of everything
Hassan Whiteside, PF/C, UTA, (31% Rostered) - Strong Cats: REB, STL/BLK, FG% - positive circumstance: playing big minutes with Rudy Gobert out
Shallower League Add
Jarred Vanderbilt, PF/C, MIN, (68% Rostered)
Strong Cats: FG%, REB, STL/BLK
I'm not sure how shallow a league must be if Vanderbilt is still available, but Yahoo says that he can be had from the waivers in almost 1/3 of leagues, so I guess that must be true. Anyways, if Jarred is available in your league, run - don't walk. He is a top-75 player on the season and has been top-40 in the past two weeks with averages of 10.6 PTS on 65.1 FG% and 69.2 FT%, 8.6 REB, 1.7 AST, 2.3 STL, 0.7 BLK, and 0.9 TO.
His big man stats are incredible, with those steals highlighting how valuable he is to fantasy teams.
And with those four games next week and him playing on Sunday as well, both his streaming and ROS value is just too good to pass up in most leagues.
Deeper League Add
Javonte Green, PG/SG/SF, CHI, (27% Rostered)
Strong Cats: REB, FG%, STL/BLK, a bit of everything
With the Bulls having injury woes with their guards, Javonte is coming up big. He is ranked at #64 in the last two weeks with averages of 11.6 points with 0.3 threes on 58.8% from the field and 79.2% from the charity stripe, 4.1 boards, 1.3 dimes, 1.4 steals, 1.0 blocks, and 0.3 TO.
A rotisserie dream, Green contributes across the board and hurts you nowhere. Furthermore, he has been piling up those stocks like crazy and if he can keep that up, his value ROS could be safe, even if Chicago gets some of their players back.
His form and the Bulls' schedule for next week make Green a decent option in most leagues.
Insanely Deep League Add
Trent Forrest, SG, UTA, (0% Rostered)
Strong Cats: STL, AST
Buyer Beware: his minutes and usage could be in jeopardy with the starters returning
This is a hell of a dice-roll, with Trent only being remotely fantasy-relevant in the last few weeks. But with Joe Ingles out and Jordan Clarkson missing the previous two games, he has stepped up.
In the two games without these two guys, Forrest has averaged 13.0 PTS with 0.5 3PM on 71.4 FG% and 83.3 FT%, 2.0 REB, 7.5 AST, 2.0 STL, no blocks, and 0.5 TO. This has him way up at #32 for the past seven days. However, this is an incredibly small sample size, and his 0% rostership agrees with this assumption.
However, fantasy GMs in the deepest of leagues often don't have the luxury of waiting a couple of games for a guy to prove he is reliable, so for those managers, the time to jump on Forrest is now. He plays three games from Monday unill Friday, and if he disappoints, he is just one click away from becoming a streaming spot once again.
Other Deep League Options for the Week
Rostered in less than 25% of Yahoo leagues
Naz Reid, C, MIN, (6% Rostered) - Strong Cats: FG%, REB, STL/BLK
Jaylen Nowell, SG, MIN, (2% Rostered) - Strong Cats: PTS, 3PM, AST, REB, STL - buyer beware: his minutes and usage could be in jeopardy with the starters returning
Taurean Prince, SF/PF, MIN, (14% Rostered) - Strong Cats: a bit of 3PM, REB, STL
Cody Martin, SG, CHA, (11% Rostered) - Strong Cats: 3PM, STL, REB, a bit of everything
Gary Payton II, PG/SG, GSW, (8% Rostered) - Strong Cats: STL, FG%, 3PM - buyer beware: in poor form
Jonathan Kuminga, SF/PF, GSW, (10% Rostered) - Strong Cats: REB, PTS, a bit of everything
Juan Toscano-Anderson, SF/PF, GSW, (2% Rostered) - Strong Cats: REB, AST, STL
Moses Moody, SF, GSW, (1% Rostered) - Strong Cats: 3PM, PTS, REB - buyer beware: only started playing regular minutes in his last three games
Damion Lee, SG/SF, GSW, (1% Rostered) - Strong Cats: 3PM, a bit of STL, REB
Precious Achiuwa, SF/PF/C, TOR, (11% Rostered) - Strong Cats: REB, STL/BLK
Eric Paschall, PF/C, UTA, (1% Rostered) - Strong Cats: a bit of 3PM, REB, PTS - buyer beware: his minutes and usage could be in jeopardy with the starters returning
Trent Forrest, SG, UTA, (0% Rostered) - Strong Cats: STL, AST - buyer beware: his minutes and usage could be in jeopardy with the starters returning
Jared Butler, SG, UTA, (0% Rostered) - Strong Cats: 3PM, AST - buyer beware: his minutes and usage could be in jeopardy with the starters returning
Let's get that playoff spot clinched!
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