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Hey there our dear RotoBallers. I'm taking over the Weekly Streamers column for Ray who's done a magnificent job and helped us out a lot with his streaming analysis and advice for the past few weeks. Countless close matchups have gone our way because of you Ray, thank you mate! Below you will find my fantasy basketball streamers for Week 14.
I absolutely love the intro to the article which I inherited as it is spot on so I'll keep it, at least for my first week "on the job". This year we'll take more of a holistic approach to streaming, by providing a weekly overview of which teams to look at based on their schedules and what players to consider targeting in advance to maximize the bang for the buck you get out of limited weekly transactions. Streaming is just about maximizing a roster spot with whoever is available after all, it's never about targeting a specific player.
Anybody can go onto their waiver wire, look for the most interesting player with a game the next day, and add him. So we'll be plotting out our moves in advance because being able to target a stream two days out or add two extra games in one transaction is where you can really gain an edge over the average streamer. Hopefully, this weekly overview will help you realize that edge.
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NBA Schedule Guide - Week 14
Week 14 has three key days with just four games apiece - Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday. As a result, we will focus on teams playing on those days and players on those teams who might be available in your league and should help you sneak that extra category or two and win your matchup for the week.
Teams with 4 games:
Brooklyn Nets, Detroit Pistons, Indiana Pacers, Los Angeles Lakers, Memphis Grizzlies, Miami Heat, New York Knicks, San Antonio Spurs, Toronto Raptors, Utah Jazz
Teams with 3 games:
Atlanta Hawks, Boston Celtics, Charlotte Hornets, Chicago Bulls, Cleveland Cavaliers, Denver Nuggets, Golden State Warriors, Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Clippers, Milwaukee Bucks, Minnesota Timberwolves, New Orleans Pelicans, Oklahoma City Thunder, Orlando Magic, Philadelphia 76ers, Portland Trail Blazers, Sacramento Kings, Washington Wizards
Teams with 2 games:
Dallas Mavericks, Phoenix Suns
Number of teams playing each day:
Monday: 22
Tuesday: 8
Wednesday: 20
Thursday: 8
Friday: 14
Saturday: 18
Sunday: 8
Back-to-Backs (beware of older banged up players who might rest):
Denver: Tue/Wed
Indiana: Thurs/Fri
Memphis: Fri/Sat
Miami: Fri/Sat
New Orleans: Tue/Wed
Toronto: Fri/Sat
Utah: Fri/Sat
Teams Playing Twice on Days with Five or Fewer Games (Tue/Thurs):
Indiana, Minnesota, Portland
Teams Playing Three Times on Days with Five or Fewer Games (Tue/Thurs/Sun):
Boston, Orlando
Teams Playing Three in Four Days on the Weekend:
Indiana
Baller Streaming Strategy for the Week
With only 4 games played on Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday, most fantasy teams will have trouble filling out their starting lineup on those days.
Week 14 isn't taking it easy on us streamers with only eight teams playing on Tuesday, two of those teams being Dallas and Phoenix who play just one more game during the week.
If you have the chance of grabbing a guy from either of those teams and then letting them go after their Tuesday's game to pick up someone who can help you for the rest of the week, that could benefit your team. But it's a risky move since by Wednesday good streamer candidates for Thursday and Sunday might already be gone.
That's why we will be focusing on guys from teams who play two or even three games on these scarce-game days.
Triple Threat - Boston and Orlando
The only two teams that play three "quality games" next week are the Boston Celtics and the Orlando Magic, although both teams only play those three games. If your starting lineup is filled on other days, getting one or more contributing players from these two teams might prove crucial in winning your weekly matchup.
Bismack Biyombo, PF/C, ORL (42% Owned) - Strong Cats: REB, BLK, FG%
With Nikola Vucevic out with a fractured hand Bismack has really taken off. He's averaging a double-double in the last two weeks with 10.9 PTS on 61.7 FG% and 90.0 FT%, 10.6 REB, 1.4 AST, 0.3 STL, 1.6 BLK and 1.3 TO in 27 minutes per game. Moreover, he exploded for a career high 21 points on 8-of-9 shooting and 5-of-6 from the line with 13 rebounds, four assists, one steal, two blocks and no turnovers in 33 minutes of his previous game against Washington. If he is the type of player you're looking for in your next weekly matchup, there might not be a better pickup.
Marcus Morris, SF/PF, BOS (31% Owned) - Strong Cats: 3PM, PTS, REB
Marcus Morris has hit nine threes over his last five games and has played consistent minutes in the past three at 25. Furthermore, he erupted against the 76ers in the London special with 19 points on 7-of-13 from the field and 2-of-2 from the charity stripe, three 3-pointers, eight boards, two assists and a steal. As this was the only game Boston played last week, Marcus will remain hungry and try and build upon this performance. He can also get you a few assists and some stocks, help out in FT% with him shooting them at just below 80.0%, and won't drag your turnovers down at just 1.1 on the season. He might hurt your FG% though as he is at 41.5% so far this season.
Jonathon Simmons, SG/SF, ORL (31% Owned) - Strong Cats: PTS, a bit of everything
Simmons has earned the starting gig with the Magic this year, but has been in a bit of a slump lately. He broke out of it in his last game by hitting 8-of-11 from the field and 6-of-6 from the line for 23 points, one three-pointer, five assists and two turnovers in 33 minutes. When he is his normal self, he will contribute a few rebounds and a steal or two in addition to his scoring and he maintains decent shooting averages (46.0 FG%, 75.4 FT%).
Terry Rozier, PG/SG, BOS (24% Owned) - Strong Cats: 3PM, STL, REB
Now Terry is not a great rebounder, and he will not be your pickup if you need help with that category only. But 4.4 per game from a guard who can steal and shoot the three? I'll take it! He also scored in double digits in six straight before turning in duds in his last two. He is producing similar stats to Morris, with a few less boards and blocks and a slight uptick in steals and assists, but he is a PG/SG and is available in a few more leagues than Morris. If you believe he can be the Terry of two weeks ago again next week, he could prove to be a nice pickup.
Deep League Adds from BOS and ORL for the Week:
Mario Hezonja, SG/SF, ORL, (7% Owned) - Strong Cats: 3PM, REB, PTS
D.J. Augustin, PG, ORL, (2% Owned) - Strong Cats: AST, 3PM
Aron Baynes, C, BOS, (3% Owned) - Strong Cats: REB, BLK, FG%
Daniel Theis, PF/C, BOS, (1% Owned) - Strong Cats: REB, BLK/STL, FG%
Double the Trouble - IND, MIN, POR
Minnesota and Portland play on both Tuesday and Thursday with their only other game coming on a nine game slate on Saturday. You could potentially grab someone from these two teams and then hope someone decent is left on the wire on Friday for you to pick up for the rest of the week.
Indiana on the other hand plays on Monday and then is off until their back-to-back stint on Thursday/Friday and then play again on Sunday. Indiana is the only team out of the five who play two or three quality games that plays four games the following week so if it's quantity you're after in addition to quality, they might be your #1 option.
Al-Farouq Aminu, SF/PF, POR (43% Owned) - Strong Cats: 3PM, REB, STL/BLK
Aminu has been a top-100 player this year and is so overlooked that he is still available in over half of Yahoo leagues. He is a three-point threat who rebounds well and gets you decent defensive stats. He is playing 30 minutes a game, hitting two treys, grabbing almost seven boards and getting his owners over 1.5 steals+blocks in that time. Additionally, Al-Farouq posted a double-double with 19 points and 11 boards along with three steals and three 3-pointers in his last game.
Bojan Bogdanovic, SG/SF, IND (43% Owned) - Strong Cats: 3PM, FT%, PTS
Bojan Bogdanovic is your typical three-point specialist. His smooth stroke is what you are getting him for. Heck, his shooting is so good that it's earned him a starting role with the Pacers. Bojan is scoring 13.6 points with 1.9 threes and shooting 84.3% from the line so far this season. He will get you a few rebounds, dimes and steals and won't hurt your FG% as much as one might expect from a player who mostly shoots from beyond the arc at 47.5%. He is playing over 30 minutes per game and his role seems safe.
Deep League Adds from IND, MIN and POR for the Week:
Gorgui Dieng, PF/C, MIN, (37% Owned) - Strong Cats: FG%, REB, STL
Shabazz Napier, PG, POR, (12% Owned) - Strong Cats: AST, 3PM, STL
Lance Stephenson, SG/SF, BOS, (15% Owned) - Strong Cats: REB, a bit of everything
For all those who take me up on some of these suggestions, I hope that the guy you opt for gives you that slight push in the right direction and helps you edge out your league-mate by just one three, rebound or block. Good luck streaming!
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