Beast of the Night: Ray Allen was in beast mode last night, finishing with 28 points, three rebounds, four assists, two steals and six threes. He shot 67 percent (8-12) from the floor, 100 percent (6-6) from the free-throw line and had three turnovers. The dude stayed in good shape during the extended offseason and it’s shown in the first two games of the season. Through two games, Allen is averaging 39 minutes per outing, which isn’t sustainable. Expect his minutes (and production) to be capped soon.
Lines for Discussion:
Kevin Love: 6-18 FG (33%), 19-24 FT (79%), 31 Pts, 20 Reb, 2 Ast, 3 TO; Not a perfect line by any means, but the 31/20 line is peachy keen. Love will have no problem returning first-round value this season.
Gerald Wallace: 8-11 FG (73%), 8-9 FT (89%), 1 three, 25 Pts, 8 Reb, 5 Ast, 2 Blk, 1 TO; Wallace is off to a blazing (sorry, had to) start this season and seems set to build on the strong season he had with Portland for 23 games in 2010-11.
Paul Millsap: 7-15 FG (47%), 4-6 FT (67%), 18 Pts, 8 Reb, 1 Blk, 1 TO; He came off the bench behind Derrick Favors, which is a bit alarming. That said, even if Favors holds the starting gig, Millsap will get enough run to produce usable fantasy lines, especially on nights when Favors struggles. Millsap’s owners shouldn’t panic.
DeMarcus Cousins: 7-18 FG (39%), 2-5 FT (40%), 16 Pts, 11 Reb, 2 Blk, 4 TO; Cousins is promising, but his first two games are reminders of his weaknesses. Through those two outings, Cousins is shooting 41 percent from the field and 55 percent from the line, and he has zero assists and six turnovers.
Waiver-Wire Watch:
Vladimir Radmanovic: 17 Pts, 3 threes, 3 Reb, 5 Ast, 4 Stl, 1 TO; He got extra run thanks to a blowout of the Nets, so there isn’t too much to get excited about here.
Jeff Teague: 13 Pts, 3 threes, 3 Reb, 3 Ast, 2 TO; He started, as expected, and finished with a decent line in just over 24 minutes of work. Scoop him up if you have room, as Teague remains a strong sleeper.
MarShon Brooks: 17 Pts, 3 Reb, 1 Ast, 1 Stl, 1 Blk; The kid’s got talent and should be monitored closely going forward.
Keyon Dooling: 18 Pts, 4 threes, 1 Stl, 3 TO; This won’t be the norm for Dooling. He’s best left in your league’s free-agent pool.
Norris Cole: 20 Pts, 4 Reb, 4 Ast, 3 Stl, 3 TO; Some fantasy owners will probably drop too much value to grab Cole, which is understandable. In normal-sized leagues, he’s worth a gamble if you have dead weight to spare, but is probably better to just keep an eye on from a distance for now.
Udonis Haslem: 4 Pts, 12 Reb; Through two games, Haslem is averaging 31:48 per game. He has value if you need rebounds on your bench, but that’s about all we can presume for now.
Jon Leuer: 14 Pts, 8 Reb, 1 Ast, 2 Stl, 2 Blk, 1 TO; With a depleted frontcourt, Leuer got 20:15 of run and did plenty with it. Keep an eye on him for now.
Derrick Favors: 8 Pts, 6 Reb, 1 TO; The line wasn’t great, but he started and is definitely worth stashing.
Enes Kanter: 5 Pts, 11 Reb, 1 Blk; He got extra run last night, thanks to a blowout loss. Monitor Kanter’s production closely going forward.
Troy Murphy: 11 Reb, 4 Ast; Through three games, Murphy’s averaging 5.0 points, 9.0 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 0.7 blocks. Not shabby, but keep an eye on how Andrew Bynum‘s nearing return affects his minutes (26:11 per game so far) and production.
Injuries:
Chris Wilcox (shoulder): left last night’s game early; day-to-day
Mickael Pietrus (knee): won’t see action until early January
Drew Gooden (suspension): served his one-game suspension last night
Wesley Matthews (hip): monitor his status
Maurice Evans (knee): had his knee drained Monday; day-to-day
Paul Pierce (heel): day-to-day
D.J. Augustin (ankle): aggravated his ankle injury Monday; day-to-day
Jeff Pendergraph (knee): about a week away from practice
Carlos Delfino (wrist): day-to-day
Luc Mbah a Moute (knee): day-to-day
Kendrick Perkins (wrist): should be fine, but monitor his status
J.J. Barea (hamstring): day-to-day
Mike Bibby (back): expected to play tonight
For Tonight:
Jarrett Jack makes his season debut after serving his one-game suspension. He should have his share of big lines this season.
Keep an eye on the Favors/Millsap situation, as the Jazz visit the Nuggets.
The Knicks visit the Warriors, which should lead to nice fantasy lines, despite Warriors coach Mark Jackson‘s emphasis on defense.
Throughout the season, be sure to leave your questions, comments, concerns, trade offers, roster problems and more in the comments below.
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