Hello! Welcome back! The worst of the NBA Cup-related scheduling confusion is now behind us, so hopefully, we can just focus on what should be a fun final three games.
I went deep last week on how the NBA Cup schedule impacted Fantasy, so we should be able to spend only a couple of sentences on that this week. Fantasy-wise, Week 9 is straightforward: there are fewer games than usual and no games at all on Tuesday* or Wednesday, so any extra games you can fit into your Fantasy lineup will matter more. Weekly managers target teams with extra games. Daily managers, target teams playing on Friday's and Sunday's small three-game slates (no team plays both days).
*The NBA Cup Championship is on Tuesday, but will not count towards Fantasy matchups
As always, the players in this article must be rostered in less than two-thirds of CBS leagues. Players are listed in the order that I recommend adding them, assuming they are equally good fits for your team.
Adds for all leagues
Herb Jones, Pelicans (67% rostered)
Jones, at 67% rostered, is basically the universe's way of begging me to include him in this column. Longtime readers will know of my deepest affection for the skinny second-round fourth-year defensive ace. He just returned from a month-long absence due to a shoulder injury and has been atypically points-y in his first few games back. But even if the 16 points per game of his first three appearances doesn't last (and it already dropped in Game 4 Thursday night), he's still worth rostering due to his ability to contribute nearly three stocks per game. Last season, he got up to 1.5 3s per game, and he chips in enough rebounds and assists to avoid causing any harm. Also, the Pelicans are apparently cursed (do you have an alternative explanation for how many things have gone wrong for them this year?), so he should continue to get extra minutes and usage while his teammates miss games.
Goga Bitadze, Magic (57% rostered)
Wendell Carter has been back for eight games now, and Bitadze continues to start. This marks the first time in Bitadze's six-year career (citation needed) that a coach has had the ability to bench Bitadze and chosen not to. Coach Jamahl Mosley has elected to go with a twin towers approach, starting Carter alongside Bitadze. Paolo Banchero (oblique) nominally plays power forward most often, but he's versatile enough that it's conceivable all three players could start simultaneously as long as Franz Wagner (oblique) is still out. Banchero is due for a re-evaluation soon, with the expectation that he'll return shortly thereafter. Bitadze's current role appears safe at least until Banchero returns, and possibly even longer – until Wagner returns in mid-to-late January.
I spent all those words focused on Bitadze's role because that's always been the only question with him. He's an excellent, well-rounded, per-minute Fantasy producer. Since Carter has returned, Bitadze is averaging 11-10-3 with 1.1 steals and 1.9 blocks. And he's taken on a much larger role in the first two games without Wagner. As long as Bitadze is playing good minutes, he's an all-league must-add. And he's currently playing good minutes.
Vasilije Micic, Hornets (34% rostered)
LaMelo Ball (calf) and Tre Mann (back) are both expected to miss at least another week, giving Micic at least a few more games as the starting point guard. Even including the dreadful "let's see if rookie KJ Simpson can handle it ok, good to know he definitely cannot" dud game on December 3, Micic is still averaging 12-3-7 with 2.2 3s through his six starts. And those numbers look a lot better without the December 3rd experiment, which seems unlikely to be repeated. It's rare to find this many assists on the waiver wire. Even if he turns into a pumpkin after Ball and Mann come back, the short-term boost in assists is valuable enough to prioritize him above the two potentially long-term additions below.
T.J. McConnell, Pacers (33% rostered)
Looking through McConnell's box scores lately, my reaction is a combination of the Arrested Development "her?" and the Star Wars "they fly now?". T.J. McConnell scores now? Him? It's not just the 30-point explosion last Sunday, either. McConnell has scored at least 12 points in six straight and in nine of his last 11. He's averaging 14.2 points during that stretch, along with his typically solid assists and steals contributions. And he's doing this while playing just 22.2 minutes per game. McConnell's biggest drawback was always his low scoring, but if Indiana has found a way to get more points out of him, then one of Fantasy Basketball's best handcuffs can be rostered even without an injury to Tyrese Haliburton.
Max Strus, Cavaliers (21% rostered)
Strus (ankle) is close to making his season debut. As is common knowledge for anyone reading the fifth player blurb on a mid-December Fantasy basketball article, the Cavaliers' team build is basically "four stars and hope." Last year, they decided that Strus was their best option to round out the starting lineup. He was third on the team (including the stars) in minutes per game. He was second on the team (excluding the stars) in FGA. The roster hasn't meaningfully changed, and I still view Strus as the best fifth starter. There may be some ramp-up time, and we should always be careful not to assume a player will simply recreate their career-best season. That said, I wouldn't be surprised if he eventually settled in close to last season's 12-5-4 with 2.4 3s and 0.9 steals.
Justin Champagnie, Wizards (8% rostered)
It's pretty rare for a fourth-year undrafted pro who still hasn't hit 700 career minutes to casually drop a top 70 Fantasy week. Taking advantage of a decimated roster that's what East-coast Champagnie (his twin, a Spur, is in the "other recommendations" below) just accomplished. We should be highly skeptical of his ability to maintain this kind of production, but we also shouldn't ignore it. Ride this wave for as long as it lasts.
Royce O'Neale, Suns (39% rostered)
It looks like Kevin Durant (ankle) is trending towards returning soon, possibly in time for Friday's game, so this recommendation may already be too late to help anyone. When Durant is playing, O'Neale is an end-of-the-other-recommendations-list-level guy. But O'Neale has put up 19-7-2 with 4.7 3s in the three games Durant has missed, making him an easy all-leagues start. If Durant remains out, keep riding O'Neale.
Other recommendations: Rui Hachimura, Lakers (57% rostered); Caris LeVert, Cavaliers (42% rostered); Al Horford, Celtics (46% rostered); Kevin Huerter, Kings (26% rostered); Moe Wagner, Magic (48% rostered); Julian Champagnie, Spurs (54% rostered); Anthony Black, Magic (21% rostered); Obi Toppin, Pacers (21% rostered)
Just Say No
Kelly Olynyk, Raptors (19% rostered)
Olynyk made his season debut last week, and his roster rate immediately doubled. He actually played pretty well, and managers who started him are probably pleased with his output. But, folks, come on. He played just 14, 15, and 12 minutes in his first three appearances. He's not going to continue averaging double his career per-minute averages in steals, blocks, and 3s – as he did in his first two games. If his per-minute productivity normalizes without a massive minutes boost, he's nowhere near the Fantasy radar.
Last season, Olynyk and Jakob Poeltl only played together for nine games. During those, Olynyk averaged 10-4-3 with 1.6 steals, 0.6 blocks, and 0.6 3s. That's not worth a roster spot in most leagues. He probably needs more like 24ish minutes to remain rosterable in deep leagues and closer to 29-30 to crack a standard league lineup. That's most likely not happening while the Raptors are healthy. If Olynyk's roster rate was in the low-single-digits, then sure, there would be some managers who could consider taking a chance on him. But his roster rate is already way above where it should be – if he's still available in your league, I'm confident your league isn't deep enough for you to consider him.
Deep league special
Duncan Robinson, Heat (14% rostered)
Robinson got promoted into the starting lineup three and a half weeks ago, and his minutes and production increased as a result. The data is a little muddled due to the various injuries the Heat have dealt with – most notably to Nikola Jovic, who missed eight of those 11 games with an ankle injury – and Robinson's numbers have definitely been worse in the games Jovic has played in. That said, Robinson is averaging 12-3-3 with 2.4 3s in 25 minutes since the promotion. I'd absolutely rather add Cason Wallace if he's still available, but his roster rate is bordering on too high for this section, and I already covered him last week.
Other recommendations: Cason Wallace, Thunder (19% rostered); Brandon Clarke, Grizzlies (13% rostered); Matas Buzelis, Bulls (18% rostered); Davion Mitchell, Raptors (12% rostered)