Dr. A's Fantasy Basketball Recap: News, Notes and Observations from the Weekend

Unfortunately, injuries seem to be more prevalent this season than in the past, although we also say that every season. Whether they're up or down isn't really the point. Setting fantasy lineups and managing fantasy teams is as difficult as it's ever been with so many guys resting or getting hurt. Therefore, I'll kick this off with some injury news heading into a nine-game MLK Day slate on Monday.

• James Harden overcame his sore heel and played in Sunday's second game of a back-to-back. The Sixers got the win over the Lakers behind Joel Embiid's 35 points and 11 rebounds and Harden came through with 24 points, seven rebounds, 13 assists, a steal, a block and four three-pointers. 
• LeBron James played through his sore ankle and backed up a first half of 22 points, four rebounds and six assists to finish with 35 points, eight rebounds and 10 assists on 15-of-23 shooting.
  • Russell Westbrook, who came through with a 20-14-11 triple-double, had the ball in the game's final seconds, lost the handle against Embiid and then had his horrific shot attempt blocked to end the game in a one-point loss. He said it was a shot attempt after the game but I really thought he was trying to pass it to the open man in the corner. Either way, anyone who was watching is asking the same question this morning. Why didn't LeBron have the ball at the end of the game?

• LeBron is now just 364 points behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the all-time scoring title and became the second player in history to score 38,000 points. 
• Luka Doncic took Sunday night off due to a tender ankle, along with the fact he's been playing crazy minutes and simply needed a break. He actually looked human on Saturday when he scored a season-low 15 points, marking just the second time he hasn't scored 20 this season. He was off in that one, hitting just 7-of-19 shots, 0-of-5 three-pointers and 1-of-6 free throws.
  • Luka and the Mavs don't have a back-to-back set again until Feb. 10 and 11 at Sacramento, so there is hope he'll play in his next 11 games before potentially missing one of those. That weekend set against the Kings is a week before the All-Star break so it's also possible the Mavs just let him go until the break. Either way, Doncic missing a Sunday night game probably cost a lot of fantasy managers a win this week in head-to-head leagues. 
• Damian Lillard scored 40 and Jerami Grant, Jusuf Nurkic and Anfernee Simons each scored exa tly 20 points in the easy win over Dallas on Sunday.
  • Spencer Dinwiddie led the way with 28 points and nine assists for the Mavs, and Christian Wood played through his ankle injury and went off for 23 points and tied his season high with 16 rebounds, although he only hit 8-of-22 shots. The Mavs are now 0-5 without Luka this season, to no one's surprise.
• Ja Morant is questionable for Monday's game against the Suns due to a sore left hip and is probably still celebrating his dunk that was heard 'round the world on Saturday night against the Pacers. He recently missed a couple games with a thigh issue and managers will want to make sure he's good tonight before rolling him out there. The good news is that the Grizzlies play at 6 p.m., so we should know more about his status well in advance of the tip

• Jaylen Brown has already been ruled out for Monday due to a groin injury and will miss his third straight game. Malcolm Brogdon went off for 30 points and four triples on Saturday, as Derrick White (neck) left that one after just four minutes. White is listed as probable for Monday but Brogdon should still play a big role with Brown out. Brown's return date is unknown as he was initially projected to miss "about a week."
• Giannis Antetokounmpo (knee) is listed as probable for Monday after sitting out on Saturday, but the Bucks play again on Tuesday. Obviously, he's a sit candidate in any back-to-back situation. But with just three games this week, my hope is the Bucks let him play in all three of them. 
• DeMar DeRozan missed his third straight game on Sunday and Zach LaVine picked him up with 27 points in an easy win over the Warriors. Nikola Vucevic went ballistic in this one with a career-high 43 points, 13 rebounds, four steals and five three-pointers on 18-of-31 shooting. Unfortunately, the Bulls only play one time this week. 

• Nikola Jokic (wrist) sat out on Friday but was back in the lineup on Sunday for a buzzer-beater against the Magic for Denver's sixth straight win. While you were watching Sam Hubbard's unthinkable fumble return for the Bengals, Jokic stepped back and buried a three-point dagger with 0.2 seconds left on the clock to give the Nuggets the win. Unbelievable.

• Jokic had another triple-double, Aaron Gordon scored 25 and the Nuggets got a balanced attack for the come-back win. The Nuggets go back-to-back on Tuesday and Wednesday, and it wouldn't be shocking to see Joker sit on Wednesday against the Timberwolves. The Nuggets have won 16 of their last 19 games and 13 in a row at home. 
• Fred VanVleet is iffy for Monday at New York due to lower-back soreness after he hit just 1-of-9 shots for three points on Saturday. Malachi Flynn could draw a start if FVV is out, while Scottie Barnes should be in line for a big game if VanVleet can't go. As we'll talk about later, the Raptors have a five-game week starting on Monday at New York.
• Bradley Beal (hamstring) is questionable for Monday's tilt with the Warriors after missing his last eight games. He practiced on Sunday and my guess is he'll play for the Wizards in that one. 

Notes from Sunday's games

• Julius Randle hit 15-of-24 shots on his way to 42 points, 15 rebounds and four three-pointers in an easy win over the Pistons. The Knicks play four times this week and Randle should be in line for a monster run. He will also be celebrating the passing of Knicks legend Bernard King on the team's all-time scoring list. Jalen Brunson stayed hot on Sunday with 27 points and is another four-game monster-in-waiting this week. 
• Kawhi Leonard had 30 points and a vintage stat line on Sunday while Terance Mann went off for a career-high 31 points and five three-pointers on 12-of-16 shooting. Mann has scored in double digits in five of his last six games.
  • John Wall has been ruled out for the next two weeks with an abdominal strain and the Clippers play four times this week. Both Mann and Reggie Jackson are worth grabbing if you're looking for a games-played angle, but Jackson had fallen out of the rotation recently. He played 15 minutes on Sunday, but Mann is the guy you'll want to make a priority.
• Kenyon Martin Jr. is only rostered in only 2.9 percent of ESPN leagues and had 22 points and nine boards on 9-of-14 shooting on Sunday in a start. The Rockets play three times this week, making him worth a look. But Kevin Porter Jr. sat this one out with a foot injury and Jalen Green served a one-game suspension, helping Martin to his big night.
• Josh Giddey tied his career high with 28 points, nine rebounds and nine assists in another win on Sunday, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander also scored 28 and Luguentz Dort went off for 22 points in a win over the Nets. The Thunder have been beating good teams lately and have pretty much played themselves out of the Victor Wembanyama sweepstakes. 

• Last week in this space, I recommended that Royce O'Neale be grabbed everywhere due to the Kevin Durant injury. O'Neale went off for 11 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists, a steal and two three-pointers in the loss to OKC. The Nets go four times this week and O'Neale is only rostered in 31 percent of ESPN leagues. Go get him. 
• Harrison Barnes -- possibly being showcased for a trade -- had 29 points and four triples for the Kings, De'Aaron Fox scored 23 and Domantas Sabonis added 18 points, 18 rebounds and eight assists in an easy win over the Spurs. Davion Mitchell also got loose for 19 points on 7-of-8 shooting and is worth keeping an eye on. 
• Jakob Poeltl scored 23 points, his second-highest total of the season, with seven boards and two blocks. Keldon Johnson scored 29, Tre Jones had 16 points, seven rebounds and eight assists, and Jeremy Sochan had 15 points and eight rebounds. Josh Richardson also got hot for 21 points, four assists and four three-pointers in the loss but the Spurs only have two games in the upcoming week.   

The schedule is wacky this week

It's not often that you see a week in which one team plays five games, several play four times, and others only play once or twice. But that is where we are with MLK Day and a visit to Paris. 

Full schedule breakdown

Five Games: Raptors

Four Games: Hawks, Nets, Cavs, Nuggets, Warriors, Pacers, Clippers, Lakers, Grizzlies, Heat, Timberwolves, Pelicans, Knicks, Suns

Three Games: Celtics, Hornets, Mavericks, Rockets, Bucks, Thunder, Sixers, Blazers, Kings, Jazz, Wizards

Two Games: Magic, Spurs

One Game: Bulls, Pistons (play Thursday in Paris)

Obviously, you'll want to avoid adding streamers from the Magic, Spurs, Bulls and Pistons this week. And you'll want to load up on Raptors, as well as players from the teams going four times. Raptors like Flynn, Chris Boucher and Precious Achiuwa are all worth a look if you need warm bodies for your lineups. 

Monday's games start with the Celtics at Hornets at 1 p.m., so be sure to set your lineups early!