Julian Champagnie is playing over 28 minutes a night and has emerged as one of the league’s top 3-point specialists.
As we head into Week 3 of the fantasy basketball season, one early-season narrative continues. The injury list keeps getting longer. Ja Morant has a Grade 2 hamstring strain and will miss at least four weeks. Anthony Edwards had knee surgery Thursday and could be out two months or more. Jaren Jackson Jr. tore his MCL and has a timeline of six-to-eight weeks. Chet Holmgren has a small patellar tendon tear in his right knee, costing him eight-to-10 weeks. Kawhi Leonard (knee) is out three-to-four weeks and Tyrese Haliburton will miss at least two weeks with a hamstring injury too — all bad. Check out my injury roundup for more details.
Moving on to some good news: Coby White (calf) is off the injury report for Monday, and Brandon Ingram (Achilles) was assigned to the Clippers’ NBA G League affiliate Saturday. Let’s get to the pickups!
Every league is different, so I’m focusing on players under 50% rostered on Yahoo.
One piece of general advice for this week: don’t rush to make a streaming move before Wednesday. Tuesday has no games (Election Day in the United States), so the best streaming nights come later in the week.
Who’s in My Rotation
Shallow leagues (about 50% to 30% rostered)
Pelle Larsson – SG/SF, Miami Heat (33% rostered)
Larsson is a good pickup for anyone in 9-cat leagues. He ranks 86th coming into Monday, averaging 11.8 points, 3.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 1.2 steals with just 1.0 turnover in 29.5 minutes. His current shooting splits are a robust 49/40/89 with a true shooting percentage of 67%. We’ll see how long the Heat continue to start Klay Thompson. It’s clear to anyone that Larsson is the better player currently. He should be rostered in far more leagues, especially with Miami playing four games this week, with two on lighter slates (Thursday and Sunday). Miami also has a Wednesday-Thursday back-to-back where vets could rest.
Zaccharie Risacher – SF, Dallas Mavericks (36% rostered)
The former No. 1 overall pick of the 2024 NBA Draft looks like a completely different player in Dallas. Shoutout to Dusty May for giving him the minutes and role to prove what he can do. Risacher ranks sixth in total stocks this season, averaging 3.7. The defensive numbers on top of the rebounds (6.0) and scoring nearly 10 points a game in 30 minutes make him a must-roster player. He’s a top-60 player in 9-cat and top 90 in points leagues. Dallas has four games this week, but I would hold him for the foreseeable future if he’s available on waivers.
Ja’Kobe Walter – SG/SF, Toronto Raptors (39% rostered)
Walter has taken off since Kawhi Leonard (knee) went down. In the four games since, he’s at 14.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 3.5 3s in about 31 minutes. He’s starting in place of Leonard and has been a top-50 player in 9-cat. Toronto only plays three games this week, but with Leonard set for a multi-week absence, Walter should be rostered in all formats, especially 9-cat.
Julian Champagnie – SF/PF, San Antonio Spurs (31% rostered)
Tobias Harris’ calf injury has boosted Champagnie’s fantasy value. He’s playing over 28 minutes and has emerged as one of the league’s top 3-point specialists. His 3.3 3s rank 11th and his 3-point percentage ranks 21st in the NBA. His defense has been the real surprise. He’s averaging 1.2 steals with a block. Like the others, he’s a must-roster for me ahead of Week 3 because San Antonio plays four games and Harris doesn’t appear close to returning.
Collin Gillespie – PG, Phoenix Suns (43% rostered)
Gillespie is a schedule add for those in leagues like High Score. Phoenix plays four times, including two of the lighter nights (Thursday and Saturday). His numbers aren’t amazing, but he’s the best playmaker on the roster outside of Devin Booker. He leads the Suns in assists despite coming off the bench and is sporting a very strong 19% usage rate. Gillespie is slightly better in points leagues than 9-cat, but it’s close. He’s averaging 9.0 points, 5.8 assists, 3.0 steals and 2.3 3s in 26.5 minutes. You don’t have to worry about the turnovers and poor FG% in High Score, so add him if he’s there.
Saddiq Bey – SF/PF, New Orleans Pelicans (33% rostered)
Bey’s last performance was his best of the season: 25 points on 9-for-13 shooting and 4 steals in 26 minutes off the bench Saturday against Atlanta. For the season, he’s up to 15.2 points, and though he hasn’t surpassed 26 minutes, he remains a reliable reserve with their bench looking pretty thin from a scoring perspective. New Orleans plays four times. I prefer Bey in 9-cat where he’s just inside the top-100 in per-game value.
Terrence Shannon Jr. – SG/SF, Minnesota Timberwolves (29% rostered)
Minnesota picked up Shannon’s team option Friday and with Edwards out, he’ll have a steady role in Timberwolves’ rotation. Despite Shannon coming off the bench and a couple of off nights in consecutive games, fantasy managers can expect 3s, with middling rebounds and assists in around 20 minutes. Minnesota plays four times this week, and his usage should stay around 18-20%, a healthy percentage for bench depth across formats.
Deeper leagues (under 30% rostered)
Scoot Henderson – PG, Portland Trail Blazers (16% rostered)
Henderson moved into the starting lineup Saturday at Utah and had 14 points, 3 rebounds and 3 steals in 31 minutes. It’s a huge opportunity for the former No. 3 pick, who was buried on the depth chart before Morant’s injury. In his first game without Morant, he went more than 30 minutes. If he continues to start, he needs to be rostered, especially in points leagues.
De’Anthony Melton – SG, Golden State Warriors (31% rostered)
Golden State plays only three games this week, but two are on light nights — Thursday and Saturday. I’d pick Melton up around Wednesday to get those games. He had 21 points on 6-for-8 from 3-point range with 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals in 27 minutes of Sunday’s win over the Clippers, but Stephen Curry rested, so don’t count on that playing time continuing. Still, he’s been a valuable bench piece on both ends and on a light slate, he’ll give you some counting stats.
Nolan Traore – PG, Brooklyn Nets (9% rostered)
Brooklyn exercised Traore’s option Thursday, and with Mikel Brown Jr. (17% rostered) resting and Egor Dëmin (ankle) to be reevaluated in one week, Traore is getting some run. On Sunday, he had 16 points with 4 3s and 6 assists in 30 minutes against Indiana. The Nets play four games, with a Saturday-Sunday back-to-back to close out Week 3. Keep tabs on the injury report, but Brown is unlikely to suit up for at least one of that back-to-back set over the weekend.
Jordan Goodwin – PG/SG, Phoenix Suns (4% rostered)
A deep cut, Goodwin is an option on Thursday and Saturday if you want to stream. He’s providing a mix of stats across categories and with such low rostered status, he’ll likely be there for those in 12-plus team formats. So far this season, the combo guard is providing 8.8 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 2.3 3s and 1.8 steals in 21 minutes. He’s a top-90 player in 9-cat right now, just saying.
Watching
- Aday Mara, C, Oklahoma City Thunder (39% rostered)
- Jusuf Nurkić, C, Utah Jazz (44% rostered)
- Cam Spencer, PG/SG, Memphis Grizzlies (13% rostered)
- Isaiah Stewart, PF/C, Memphis Grizzlies (10% rostered)
- Keaton Wagler, SG, LA Clippers (35% rostered)
- Daniss Jenkins, PG/SG, Detroit Pistons (17% rostered)
- Obi Toppin, SF/PF, Indiana Pacers (24% rostered)
Week 3 Schedule
No games are scheduled on Tuesday because of Election Day. Outside of then, Thursday has the fewest games of the week with two: Orlando at Phoenix and Miami at Golden State. Saturday and Sunday (seven games each) are the best alternative options for streaming this week. All of the other days are too packed to fit in a fringe roster-type player. Unless there’s a significant injury or event, of course. Every team plays Monday, and 28 play Wednesday. That’s why I wouldn’t make streaming moves before Wednesday.
- Monday: 15 games
- Tuesday: 0 games
- Wednesday: 14 games
- Thursday: 2 games
- Friday: 9 games
- Saturday: 7 games
- Sunday: 7 games
Teams to target
- Phoenix Suns, Orlando Magic, Golden State Warriors, Miami Heat: They’re the only teams playing on Thursday, with a game on either Saturday or Sunday. If you need 3s on the light slates, Klay Thompson (10% rostered) is an option for deep leagues. For Golden State, I’d take a look at Brandon Williams (4%) and Gui Santos (12%). For the Suns, also look at Luke Kennard (2%) and Dillon Brooks (44%).
- Four games (18): Atlanta Hawks, Boston Celtics, Brooklyn Nets, Cleveland Cavaliers, Dallas Mavericks, Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat, Milwaukee Bucks, Minnesota Timberwolves, New Orleans Pelicans, Oklahoma City Thunder, Philadelphia 76ers, Phoenix Suns, Portland Trail Blazers, Sacramento Kings, San Antonio Spurs, Utah Jazz, Washington Wizards.
