Beast of the Night: Chris Paul posted 26 points, 14 assists, two steals and two three-pointers last night. He shot 75 percent (12-16) from the field and had two turnovers. His hamstring injury was a bummer earlier this month, but CP3 is back to business as usual. His averages are second best to LeBron James this season.
Lines for Discussion:
Joakim Noah: 5-6 FG (83%), 4-4 FT (100%), 14 Pts, 13 Reb, 7 Ast, 3 TO; That’s five consecutive double-doubles for Noah, who is also dishing out 4.6 assists per game in that stretch. He’s clearly found his groove after struggling earlier this season and should continue to roll barring any other injuries.
Ryan Anderson: 6-13 FG (46%), 2-4 FT (50%), 14 Pts, 20 Reb, 1 TO; It wasn’t the most dynamic line, but Anderson found a way to make up for his lack of threes last night by grabbing a career-high 20 boards. He’s maintaining first-round value so far this season.
Michael Beasley: 10-14 FG (71%), 12-12 FT (100%), 2 threes, 34 Pts, 3 Reb, 1 Ast, 1 Stl, 2 TO; His last two games have been solid, which means his owners should be looking to sell high. Beasley’s not the type of guy you take home for the rest of the season, if you catch my drift.
Jared Dudley: 3-8 FG (38%), 6-6 FT (100%), 3 threes, 15 Pts, 5 Reb, 3 Ast; Dudley has looked decent in his last two games, both of which were starts. Let’s see if he can keep things going before raving about a return to relevance.
Mo Williams: 4-11 FG (36%), 4 threes, 12 Pts, 1 Reb, 5 Ast, 2 Stl, 1 TO; Williams has found his role as a scoring spark off the bench for the Clippers. He’s hit at least two three-pointers in each of his last seven games.
Waiver-Wire Watch:
Kyle Korver: 17 Pts, 5 threes, 5 Reb, 3 Ast, 2 TO; He’s always a good bet for threes, but has extra value so long as Luol Deng and Richard Hamilton are out.
Trevor Booker: 14 Pts, 9 Reb, 2 Ast, 3 Stl, 2 Blk; He’s a good source of steals and blocks in deep leagues.
Evan Turner: 12 Pts, 4 Reb, 1 Ast, 1 TO; Turner continues to put up numbers that might be appealing to stash on your bench.
Martell Webster: 7 Pts, 3 Reb, 1 Ast, 1 Stl, 2 Blk, 3 TO; Monitor him for now, as Webster is capable of having decent fantasy value when healthy.
Kawhi Leonard: 12 Pts, 10 Reb, 1 Ast, 2 Stl, 1 Blk, 1 TO; He’s too inconsistent to rely on in most leagues, but he’s worth monitoring.
Austin Daye: 10 Pts, 5 Reb, 3 Ast, 2 Stl, 2 Blk, 2 TO; Daye should be picked up in most leagues.
Mike Dunleavy: 20 Pts, 2 threes, 3 Reb, 3 Ast, 1 Stl, 1 TO; He’s been hot lately but owners should be wary of his notoriously fragile health.
Derrick Favors: 8 Pts, 6 Reb, 1 Ast, 1 Stl, 1 TO; Favors is worth a short-term add if you need a big man.
Josh Howard: 11 Pts, 1 three, 7 Reb, 4 Ast, 3 TO; Howard is worth a look if you need a swingman, but his health is always a concern.
Delonte West: 25 Pts, 5 threes, 3 Reb, 6 Ast, 2 Stl, 3 TO; His production was helped by a blowout victory, but West has increased appeal so long as Jason Kidd is out.
Injuries:
D.J. White (knee): expected to play tonight
Gerald Henderson (back): ditto
Luol Deng (wrist): day-to-day
Richard Hamilton (groin): day-to-day
Anthony Parker (back): out tonight
Daniel Gibson (neck): ditto
Ty Lawson (ankle): monitor his status
Darko Milicic (illness): day-to-day
DeShawn Stevenson (knee): out tonight
Carmelo Anthony (ankle, wrist): doubtful tonight
Thabo Sefolosha (foot): day-to-day
Jameer Nelson (concussion): earliest return date would be Feb. 6
Jason Richardson (knee): day-to-day
Spencer Hawes (Achilles): day-to-day
Steve Nash (thigh): day-to-day
Al Jefferson (ankle): could miss a couple more games; day-to-day
Raja Bell (groin): day-to-day
Andray Blatche (calf): out 3-5 weeks
MarShon Brooks (toe): out tonight; monitor his status
Nicolas Batum (knee): monitor his status
O.J. Mayo (ankle): probable tonight
For Tonight:
See if Jerryd Bayless gets another start tonight, as the Raptors host the Hawks.
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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