Strong strains of eye viruses, Anthony Davis injury scares, explosions from fantasy sleepers, Monday's preseason action had it all. The Box Score Breakdown for Monday, October 20th is locked and loaded.
STOCK RISING
Kyrie Irving -- To be honest, there were a ton of guys I could have gone with for my 'Stock Rising' analysis, but it's hard to go past what Irving has been doing. Although his average draft position sits inside the top 20 on both ESPN and Yahoo, so the scope to rise isn't huge, Irving has been showing the type of play that landed him as a first round draft choice last preseason. Against the Bulls, Irving scored 28 points (10-19 FG, 1-3 3Pt, 7-8 FT) with three rebounds, seven assists, and two steals in 39 minutes, making it back-to-back games he has gone over 20 points on at least 53 percent from the field. The presence of LeBron James and Kevin Love could actually have a positive influence on Irving's numbers and we've seen his ability to elevate his play when surrounded by elite talent - evidenced by his recent FIBA World Cup MVP and All-Star game MVP last season. I would not be shocked in the slightest if Irving ended up at the back end of the top 10 by season's end, and if you see him slide out of the first two rounds, which I have multiple times, snap him up.
STOCK FALLING
Joakim Noah -- The odds of Noah replicating his 2013-14 were low at best, but the way he's looked so far in preseason, you'd say that the chance of that happening are almost non-existent. Noah is getting drafted inside the top 30 on both ESPN and Yahoo, but with Pau Gasol now in Chicago, I wouldn't want any piece of Noah that high. Against the Cavaliers, Noah scored six points (2-4 FG, 2-4 FT) with seven rebounds, five assists, one steal, and one block in 24, making it four straight games of not reaching double figures in scoring. In five preseason games, Noah has averaged just 6.4 points with 7.4 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 1.0 blocks per game in 24 minutes. He's taken only 4.0 shots per game as most of the low post shots are going to Gasol. While the peripheral stats are nice, it's hard to grab a guy inside the top 30 who scores less than 10 point a game, which could be a possibility for Noah. The Bulls may win more, but Noah's numbers look sure to take a dip.
M.I.A.
These guys all sat out Monday's action.
- Chicago
- Jimmy Butler (thumb)
- Washington
- Paul Pierce (knee)
- John Wall
- Glen Rice Jr.
- Philadelphia
- Nerlens Noel
- Luc Mbah a Moute
- Michael Carter-Williams (shoulder)
- Brooklyn
- Brook Lopez (foot)
- Kevin Garnett
- Milwaukee
- Ersan Ilyasova (knee)
- Larry Sanders (surgery)
- Brandon Knight (groin)
- Charlotte
- Marvin Williams
- Al Jefferson
- Lance Stephenson
- Dallas
- Raymond Felton (ankle)
- San Antonio
- Kawhi Leonard (eye)
- Tim Duncan
CASUALTY WARD
Anthony Davis left Monday's game with a sprained rest, but thankfully for fantasy owners and Pelicans' fans, it's nothing to be concerned about. Davis wanted to go back in, but the Pelicans' coaching staff made the wise call not to risk any further issues by holding him out. Davis has missed 33 games in his first two NBA season due a variety of injuries and is trying to shake the injury-prone tag this season. He's still a bona fide top four draft pick.
Jose Calderon left Monday's game with a calf strain after four minutes, but the injury is not serious and he shouldn't miss any time.
BOX SCORE HIGHLIGHTS AND ODDITIES
It's the preseason, so there are a ton of lines that don't always add up, but here, I'll touch on a few that stood out Monday.
DeMarcus Cousins completed the rare Shawn Kemp triple double in the loss to the Spurs, racking up 32 points (12-14 FG, 8-13 FT), 11 rebounds, and 10 turnovers. He also added four assists, two steals, and one block in 36 minutes and was in serious consideration for fantasy line of the night, but the 10 turnovers killed it. He now has 19 turnovers in the past two games, which is insane and will not continue at that rate. Cousins has a chance to challenge for top five fantasy value by season's end as his game matures.
Derrick Rose is beginning to look a bit like the old Derrick Rose, scoring 30 points (12-18 FG, 4-5 3Pt, 2-2 FT) with five rebounds, three assists and zero turnovers, something which plagued him last season. He did all of that in just 24 minutes, and now has shot over 50 percent from the field in the last two games. I still won't be grabbing him inside the top 30, but his game is starting to come back into focus.
K.J. McDaniels blocked another four shots Monday. Four. From a shooting guard! He also added five points (1-4 FG, 0-2 3Pt, 3-4 FT) with three rebounds in just 16 minutes. The rookie now has eight blocks in the last three games in just 60 minutes combined. His value is going to be tied very closely his block numbers, but you'll be hard pressed to find as many swats at the end of drafts, especially from a guard.
Mason Plumlee came extraordinarily close to a 20-20 game, finishing with 20 points (8-11 FG, 4-12 FT), 17 rebounds, one assist, two steals, and one block in 30 minutes, replacing Brook Lopez at center. We know of Lopez's fragility, so Plumlee is going to be in a position to get games like this at times this season, especially early on while Lopez nurses his foot sprain. A massive night like this will not be the norm by any stretch of the imagination, but as a pick outside the top 100, the risk is minimal.
O.J. Mayo came out of nowhere to drop 24 points (7-13 FG, 6-10 3Pt, 4-4 FT) with three assists and one steal in 31 bench minutes and this sort of outburst does nothing but increase my concern over Jason Kidd's rotations. He's actually scored in double digits in the last three games, including nine total three pointers, but his value will only be in points and triples if he has value. I'd be staying well away.
When Gary Neal gets close to a triple double, you know it's the preseason. Neal had 21 points (7-17 FG, 2-4 3Pt, 5-6 FT) with nine rebounds and seven assists in 36 minutes starting a shooting guard Monday. With Lance Stephenson sitting, the minutes were there for Neal to take advantage of and while this is Neal's second 20 point outburst of the preseason, it doesn't make me want to draft him in any 12 team league.
Paul Millsap bounced back from a horror showing against the Pistons on Saturday with a chock full line. The All-Star forward had 21 points (6-12 FG, 0-3 3Pt, 9-10 FT) with six rebounds, four assists, two blocks, and three steals in 38 minutes. After shooting nine percent from the field and 30 percent from the line in Saturday's contest, it was good to to see him hit 50 percent and 90 percent respectively. He's a safe top 30 selection in drafts.
With Marvin Williams out of the lineup, thankfully, Cody Zeller took full advantage and posted a line that shows what he could be capable of. The second-year man scored 18 points (8-11 FG, 2-3 FT) with eight rebounds and five assists in 30 minutes and if he does supplant Williams, he'll be worth a look in all leagues. Bear in mind though, these numbers came without Al Jefferson.
FANTASY LINE OF THE NIGHT
Anderson Varejao -- The big Brazilian had an awesome fantasy night and now seems entrenched as the team's starting center. Varejao had 22 points (10-13 FG, 2-2 FT), eight rebounds, two assists, two blocks, and two steals in just 23 minutes. As always, Varejao is a risky pick due to his injury history. If you grab him late and he does this regularly, I implore you to trade him before the curse strikes him down yet again.
ROOKIE OF THE NIGHT
Kyle Anderson -- Anderson has been starting for the Spurs with Kawhi Leonard sitting and has turned it on in the last two tilts. Against the Kings, Anderson scored 14 points (5-10 FG, 1-3 3Pt, 3-4 FT) with five rebounds, two assists, one block, and three steals in 30 minutes. His fantasy value is miniscule this season, but, for dynasty formats, his game projects to that of someone like Nicolas Batum, a player who touches every category. If he gets minutes this season, he'll be worth a look.
NIGHTLY LEADERS
Points
- DeMarcus Cousins, C, SAC, 32 points
- Derrick Rose, G, CHI, 30 points
- Kyrie Irving, G, CLE, 28 points
Rebounds
- Mason Plumlee, C, BKN, 17 rebounds
- Kevin Love, F, CLE, 13 rebounds
- DeMarcus Cousins, C, SAC, 11 rebounds
- Omer Asik, C, NOP, 11 rebounds
- Mirza Teletovic, F, BKN, 11 rebounds
Assists
- Kemba Walker, G, CHA, 8 assists
- Jarrett Jack, G, BKN, 8 assists
- Kyrie Irving, G, CLE, 7 assists
- Gary Neal, G, CHA, 7 assists
- Tyreke Evans, G, NOP, 7 assists
Steals
- Tyreke Evans, G, NOP, 5 steals
- 10 players tied with three steals
Blocks
- K.J. McDaniels, G, PHI, 4 blocks
- Hassan Whiteside, C, MEM, 3 blocks
- Micheal Eric, F, MIL, 3 blocks
- Bismack Biyombo, C, CHA, 3 blocks
Three-Pointers
- O.J. Mayo, G, MIL, 6-10 3Pt
- Derrick Rose, G, CHI, 4-5 3Pt
- Tim Hardaway Jr, G, NYK, 4-6 3Pt
- Mike Scott, F, ATL, 4-6 3Pt
Minutes
- Garrett Temple, G, WAS, 42 minutes
- Kyrie Irving, G, CLE, 39 minutes
- Kyle Korver, G, ATL, 39 minutes