RADIO
Justin Carter looks at fantasy basketball players who can be dropped in Week 2. These are players who've struggled so far in the 2019-20 NBA season.
We're almost done with the second week of this NBA season, somehow. By now, you're starting to have a lot of questions about certain players on your roster and what you should do with them. Hold them for a little longer and see if things get going? Drop them so you can pick up that hot waiver wire add?
That's what I'm here to help with in my weekly fantasy basketball drop list, a look at players who are 30 percent owned or more and can be dropped in some or all formats. Every Friday, we'll look at why it's fine to move on from certain players based on their recent play.
Let's look at players who you can consider dropping so far. Remember: every league is different and we're working on a pretty small sample size this early in the year, so make sure you evaluate what options you have to replace these players before you actually drop them.
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The Fantasy Basketball Drop List
Zach Collins - (PF/C, Portland Trail Blazers) - 39% Owned
Baller Move: Drop in 12-team leagues unless you have an open IR spot
I like Zach Collins, but his shoulder injury is going to sideline him for multiple weeks and his performance before the injury just isn't encouraging enough for me to bother with wasting a bench spot on him.
Collins is averaging nine points, four rebounds, and two assists per contest. Those rebound numbers in particular just aren't going to do it for a big in fantasy basketball, and with Hassan Whiteside exceeding statistical expectations in Portland, I'm not sure I see Collins returning to a role that's big enough to justify a roster spot. Maybe keep an eye on him if you drop him, because he does have the talent to be successful, but for now I think it's safe to move on.
Dewayne Dedmon - (C, Sacramento Kings) - 50% Owned
Baller Move: Drop in 14-team leagues
Huge Dedmon fan in a vacuum, but the whole thing with the Kings just isn't working. Dedmon started four games for Sacramento, with his best game being an 11-point, six-rebound effort against the Jazz. There's room in fantasy for a guy who puts up those numbers on a consistent basis, but nothing about Dedmon's start has been consistent, and he was moved to a bench role against the Hornets, playing just four minutes and finishing with one rebound and no points.
That's the kind of game that can just destroy you if you had him in your starting lineup, and it seems impossible to justify playing him at this point if the Kings are going to give Richaun Holmes 35 minutes at center. Maybe it was just a situational thing -- the Kings don't really have much in the way of bigs with Marvin Bagley III out -- but...ugh, I just can't trust Dedmon at this point.
Coby White - (PG, Chicago Bulls) - 50% Owned
Baller Move: Drop in 12-team leagues
I don't like owning rookies in re-draft leagues, especially not this early in the season and when they play for a team that's been as disappointing as the Bulls.
White might sustain a volume that makes you think he's playable in shallower leagues, but his efficiency -- or, rather, his lack of efficiency -- is going to kill your percentages. And after opening his NBA career with a 17-point and a 25-point game, he's averaged just seven points, three rebounds, and 1.7 assists over the last three games. That seems a lot closer to the future norm for White than his hot start did.
Add in the logjam of this backcourt. Tomas Satoranky hasn't been that good either -- stay tuned to the rest of this column! -- but he's still getting minutes. Zach LaVine is always going to play 30-plus minutes at the two. Kris Dunn is still playing decent enough to get minutes. It's hard to justify playing White at this point and there's likely a safer option on the wire.
Tomas Satoransky- (PG/SG, Chicago Bulls) - 46% Owned
Baller Move: Drop in 12-team leagues
Speaking of Bulls guards, let's talk about Satoranky. I'm not ready to move on from him in 14-team leagues but as someone who has him in a 12-team league right now, I'd definitely consider
Satoranky started 54 games last year for the Wizards. In those starts, he averaged 10.7 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 6.2 assists per game while shooting 40.4 percent from three. He was a prime candidate to be a breakout player this year based on that and his new role as the starting point guard for the Bulls.
Instead, Satoransky is floundering. Through five games, he's averaging fewer minutes than he played last year and his 5.8/2.0/4.4 points, rebounds, assists line isn't close to what was expected.
Satoransky is shooting just 27.8 percent on two-pointers, which has to improve at some point. That's why I'm still holding on in deeper leagues, but in leagues where there are plenty of waiver options, I'd stay away from Satoransky.
Mikal Bridges - (SG/SF, Phoenix Suns) - 47% Owned
Baller Move: Drop in 10-team leagues or shallower
I'd still rather have Bridges than most waiver options in 12-team leagues, but if I'm playing in a shallower league, I think I'd take my chances on the wire now.
Bridges is a player who should have taken a leap in his second year, but early on its not materializing. It still could -- hence him being the player on this week's list who I'd most like to keep -- but 3.4 points, 2.6 rebounds, and 0.8 assists per game while playing just 18.4 minutes per game is not a good sign.
In fact, we're now at consecutive games with Bridges seeing just 15ish minutes of play. Against the Warriors, for instance, Bridges took just three shots in 15 and a half minutes of action as the Suns -- who are somehow 3-2 -- continue to give heavy play to their starters, with Kelly Oubre Jr., Devin Booker, and Dario Saric all playing over 30 minutes. If the three starters who Bridges could theoretically be backing up rarely come out of the game, how much run can the second-year player realistically get? And with Cameron Johnson playing well, will Bridges even be the first non-big off the bench moving forward? Lot of questions. No easy answers so far. Hold Bridges in a 12-teamer, but feel free to drop him in anything smaller.
