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Milos Zvekic analyzes Week 1 streaming opportunities for head-to-head fantasy basketball leagues. He reviews the upcoming NBA schedule and players to add.
Can you feel it!? Can you smell it!? Chestnuts roasting on an open fire trigger that happy feeling in my heart as I know the NBA is just a few days away, and on Tuesday we're officially off!
A new season, a new chance, a new challenge, new joys, and new woes. But one thing is not new. It's as old as Fantasy itself. Streaming your way to victory in your weekly matchup!
I hope you drafted smart and left some room for streaming because here come our fantasy basketball streamers for Week 1.
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NBA Schedule Guide - Week 1
With the season starting on Tuesday, no teams play more than three nor fewer than two games this week. We have only two games on our opening day, and with only three games played on Thursday, it is obvious that most fantasy teams will be looking for help on these days. There is also some scarcity on Sunday with just 5 games, so we will be looking into players from teams who play on two of these three days as they are the most likely to help fantasy owners fill out their rosters and get off to a winning start.
Here's the low-down:
Teams with 3 games:
Boston Celtics
Brooklyn Nets
Charlotte Hornets
Chicago Bulls
Dallas Mavericks
Detroit Pistons
Los Angeles Clippers
Los Angeles Lakers
Memphis Grizzlies
Miami Heat
Minnesota Timberwolves
New Orleans Pelicans
New York Knicks
Oklahoma City Thunder
Phoenix Suns
Portland Trail Blazers
Sacramento Kings
Toronto Raptors
Utah Jazz
Washington Wizards
Teams with 2 games:
Atlanta Hawks
Cleveland Cavaliers
Denver Nuggets
Golden State Warriors
Houston Rockets
Indiana Pacers
Milwaukee Bucks
Orlando Magic
Philadelphia 76ers
San Antonio Spurs
Number of teams playing each day:
Monday: 0
Tuesday: 4
Wednesday: 22
Thursday: 6
Friday: 18
Saturday: 20
Sunday: 10
Back-to-Backs (beware of older or banged up players who might rest):
Monday/Tuesday: -
Tuesday/Wednesday: -
Wednesday/Thursday: DET
Thursday/Friday: -
Friday/Saturday: BOS, CHI, NOP, NYK, PHO, SAC, TOR, UTA, WAS
Saturday/Sunday: MIA
Sunday/Monday the following: CHA, GSW, OKC, POR
Days with five or fewer games
Tuesday: 2 games
Thursday: 3 games
Sunday: 5 games
Teams playing on all three days:
No teams play on all three of these days
Teams playing on Tue/Thurs:
Los Angeles Clippers (3 games - Tues, Thurs, Sat)
Teams playing on Tue/Sun:
Los Angeles Lakers (3 games - Tues, Fri, Sun)
Team playing on Thurs/Sun:
Golden State Warriors (2 games - Thurs, Sun)
Teams playing three games over the weekend (from Thursday to Sunday)
None
Baller Streaming Strategy for Week 1
Tuesday (two games) and Thursday (three games) are the hardest days to field a decent team, closely followed by Sunday. The thing is, only three teams play on two of these days and none play on all three. With all teams having either two or three games, there is no real advantage to gain in the number of games either.
That being said, we will focus on the three teams that play two games on these three scarcest days - the Clippers, the Lakers and the Warriors, but will also take a look at players from teams that play on either Tuesday or Thursday
These teams are:
Tuesday: New Orleans and Toronto
Thursday: Atlanta, Detroit, Houston, Milwaukee
Streaming Options for Week 1
Shallower League Streaming Adds for the Week:
Patrick Beverley, PG/SG, LAC, (69% Owned) - Strong Cats: 3PM, STL, AST, a bit of everything but low FG%
Ivica Zubac, C, LAC, (30% Owned) - Strong Cats: REB, FG%, FT%, BLK
Landry Shamet, PG, LAC, (35% Owned) - Strong Cats: 3PM, FT%
Danny Green, SG/SF, LAL (67% Owned) - Strong Cats: 3PM, BLK/STL, FT%
Rajon Rondo, PG/SG, LAL, (43% Owned) - Strong Cats: AST, STL, REB, but poor %s
Dwight Howard, PF/C, LAL, (55% Owned) - Strong Cats: FG%, REB, BLK, STL - poor FT%
OG Anunoby, SG/SF, TOR, (55% Owned) - Strong Cats: 3PM, STL, a bit of everything
Alex Len, PF/C, ATL, (62% Owned) - Strong Cats: REB, BLK, 3PM
De'Andre Hunter, SF, ATL, (40% Owned) - Strong Cats: 3PM, PTS, should get 30 minutes a game
Reggie Jackson, PG/SG, DET, (32% Owned) - Strong Cats: 3PM, PTS, AST, FT%
Derrick Rose, PG, DET, (68% Owned) - Strong Cats: 3PM, FT%, AST
P.J. Tucker, SF/9F, HOU, (41% Owned) - Strong Cats: 3PM, STL, REB
Shallower League Add
Kevon Looney, PF/C, GSW, (44% Owned) - Strong Cats: FG%, REB, STL/BLK
I love Looney's potential. He showed us last year that he can do justice even to the starting C spot for the then reigning champions in the playoffs. That is no easy feat.
During the regular season, he had his minutes limited but still averaged 6.3 PTS on 62.5 FG% and 61.9 FT%, 5.2 REB, 1.5 AST, 0.6 STL, 0.7 BLK, 0.6 TO in just 18 minutes per game. With all the changes to the Warriors roster, he is expected to be the starting center and get 25-30 minutes a game. If he can us that extra time and improve on his last season's stats that's an easy top-100 finish for Looney.
He did miss most of the preseason games with a hamstring issue, but it was played down and it's been reported that Looney is expected to play in the season opener on Thursday. He might be limited, but should still provide some short-term value for this week while being a sneaky-value pickup in most category leagues as well for his FG%, boards and stocks.
Deeper League Add
Nickeil Alexander-Walker, SG, NOP, (17% Owned) - Strong Cats: PTS, 3PM, AST
The rookie has done amazingly well in the preseason, scoring in double digits in all five of his games (average of 15.4 PTS per game) despite averaging just 18 minutes a night. He added 4.0 assists, 0.8 steals and 2.8 3PM in these games and turned quite a few heads.
NAW played great in summer league as well and it seems that him falling to the #17 spot in the draft was a mistake. He is expected to come in off the bench but should lead the second unit and get his fair share of minutes in this rebuilding Pelicans' roster.
If Nickeil can translate his great play from the summer league and preseason into the real thing he could easily be a great pickup, not just for streaming purposes but also for the entire season.
Insanely Deep League Add
Maurice Harkless, SF, LAC, (4% Owned) - Strong Cats: REB, BLK/STL, FG%
With Paul George set to miss the first couple of weeks, Moe could see himself starting and/or playing 25-30 minutes per game. Harkless has a very friendly fantasy game and contributes across the board. His last season averages in Portland were 7.7 PTS with 0.6 3PM on 48.7 FG% and 67.1 FT%, 4.5 REB, 1.2 AST, 1.1 STL, 0.9 BLK and 0.8 TO in 23 minutes per game.
This type of contribution from a player who can be had in 96% of the leagues and who plays on both Tuesday and Thursday can come in quite handy. Furthermore, you can swap him out for another guy after his Thursday's game if you already have a full roster on Saturday.
Do keep in mind though that the Clippers have changed pretty much half of their team so there are a lot of uncertainties surrounding most of their players including Harkless. But that is probably why his ownership is so low. Furthermore, Harkless will probably have a lot less opportunity when PG13 is back so he is more of a short-term pickup.
Other Deep League Options for the Week
JaMychal Green, PF/C, LAC, (6% Owned) - Strong Cats: REB, 3PM, STL/BLK
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, SG/SF, LAL, (7% Owned) -Strong Cats: 3PM, STL, FT%
Avery Bradley, PG/SG, LAL, (6% Owned) - Strong Cats: 3PM, FT%, a bit of everything
Marquese Chriss, PF/C, GSW, (10% Owned) - Strong Cats: REB, BLK/STL
Jordan Poole, SG, GSW, (2% Owned) - Strong Cats: PTS, 3PM
Glenn Robinson III, SG/SF, GSW, (2% Owned) - Strong Cats: a bit of everything (not too much though) + a probable starting gig with the Warriors
Jahlil Okafor, PF/C, NOP, (5% Owned) - Strong Cats: FG%, REB, BLK
Josh Hart, SG/SF, NOP, (2% Owned) - Strong Cats: STL/BLK, REB, 3PM
Nicolo Melli, PF, NOP, (1% Owned) - Strong Cats: 3PM, STL, a bit of everything
Norman Powell, SG/SF, TOR (1% Owned) - Strong Cats: 3PM, FT%, a little bit of everything
Jabari Parker, SF/PF, ATL, (13% Owned) - Strong Cats: PTS, REB, a bit of everything
Deandre Bembry, SG, ATL, (2% Owned) - Strong Cats: REB, STL/BLK
Markieff Morris, PF/C, DET, (13% Owned) - Strong Cats: 3PM, REB, a bit of everything
Luke Kennard, SG, DET, (9% Owned) - Strong Cats: 3PM, PTS, FT%, buyer beware: did miss his last preseason game with knee soreness
Tony Snell, SG/SF, DET, (1% Owned) - Strong Cats: 3PM, FT%
Danuel House, SG/SF, HOU (4% Owned) - Strong Cats: 3PM, a bit of everything
Wesley Matthews, SG/SF, MIL, (8% Owned) - Strong Cats: 3PM, FT%, a bit of everything
Hope you guys enjoyed the article and the advice, and I hope that this will help you win your matchups next week and bragging rights for the week after.
