Dr. A's Fantasy Basketball Weekend Recap: Load Management Outbreak, Mitchell Returns + More News and Notes

While you were watching some exciting (and infuriating) NFL football on Sunday, the Clippers and Pelicans rested everybody, the Lakers announced they'd be doing the same on Monday and one of the NBA's busiest load-management weekends in history mercifully came to a close. 

Let's take a look back at the weekend and see what fantasy managers may need to prepare for as we head into Week 16 of the NBA season.

Lots of Rest For the Wicked

The Clippers decided to rest Kawhi Leonard, Paul George and Reggie Jackson on Sunday against the Cavaliers and the result was probably just as you'd imagine it to be. The Cavs opened up a 31-15 first-quarter lead and never looked back.

Oddly, and frustratingly to most, starters Nicolas Batum, Norman Powell, Ivica Zubac and Terance Mann all played very limited minutes, with only Amir Coffey getting big run (38 minutes, 18 points). This was a load-management disaster any way you look at it and a lot of fantasy matchups were decided because of the guys who sat and the fill-in starters who played so few minutes. Marcus Morris (ribs), John Wall (abdomen) and Robert Covington (personal) were also out for the Clippers.

The Cavs welcomed back Donovan Mitchell (groin) after he missed five of his last six games, which was interesting, given that the Clippers were resting everyone. He had 11 points in 20 minutes, Darius Garland had a double-double, and Cedi Osman had the big night with 29 points, knocking down 11-of-13 shots and 7-of-7 three-pointers. Osman can get hot and do things like this occasionally but in the long run, he's a tough pill to swallow. This entire game was a fantasy and DFS disaster and I'm just glad it's over. 

Brandon Ingram (toe), C.J. McCollum (thumb/rest) and Zion Williamson (hamstring) were all missing for the Pelicans in the second of a back-to-back set and Giannis Antetokounmpo had his way with them on Sunday, racking up 50 points and 13 rebounds on 20-26 shooting after the Bucks opened up a 37-19 lead in the first quarter. Giannis has played in four straight games now and, not surprisingly, the Bucks won all four games and six of their last seven. Like the Clippers, it looks like the Pelicans just decided to pack it in and take the L last night. 

Other notable players who took some time off over the weekend: Jonas Valanciunas (ejected on Saturday), Jusuf Nurkic (calf), Josh Hart (hamstring), Desmond Bane (knee), Kristaps Porzingis (ankle), Alperen Sengun (illness), Jalen Green (calf), Kevin Porter Jr. (foot), Robert Williams (ankle), Marcus Smart (ankle), Ben Simmons (knee) and OG Anunoby (wrist). 

Unfortunately, I'm afraid the resting could even ramp up as we approach the All-Star break later this month. In other words, you're going to want to check the RotoWire news feed and injury report early and often before setting lineups the rest of the way. 

Monday already looks like a load-management fiasco...

LeBron James (ankle), Anthony Davis (foot), Luguentz Dort (hamstring), Anunoby, and Landry Shamet (foot) have already been ruled out for Monday.

Luka Doncic (ankle), Joel Embiid (foot), Trae Young (ankle), Simmons, Nurkic, Hart, and Rudy Gobert (groin), are all questionable, while T.J. Warren (shin) is doubtful.

On the other side of the coin, Porzingis, Andrew Wiggins, Josh Richardson and Lonnie Walker are listed as probable for Monday. Act accordingly.

Other Sunday News

The Hornets somehow beat the Heat and the Pacers lost in Memphis. T.J. McConnell absolutely disappeared on Sunday, missing all five of his shots, failing to score and finishing with just seven assists and five turnovers. He came into this one on fire but let his managers down in a big way.

The clock is ticking on McConnell. The Pacers don't play again until Thursday (Lakers) and it's possible that we could see Tyrese Haliburton (elbow/knee) back for that one. As soon as Haliburton is back, McConnell is likely going bye-bye. If you want to drop him for more games played or a hot free agent, it's probably time, but man, it was a nice run over the last three weeks.

Buddy Hield was another fantasy disaster for the Pacers on Sunday, hitting 1-of-4 shots for three points, while Bennedict Mathurin continued his climb in the Rookie of the Year race with 27 points and eight boards to lead Indy.

Jaren Jackson Jr (28 points, five blocks) and Ja Morant (27-10-15 triple-double) were two of the few stars that actually came through with big games on Sunday. The Pacers play three games this week starting on Thursday and the Grizzlies also have three games this week.  

Saturday's Action

Saturday featured a great game between the Celtics and Lakers in Boston and LeBron James was clearly fouled on a layup attempt at the end of the game and should have gotten free throws. The call was missed, the game went to overtime and the Celtics got the win.

LeBron is now just 117 points behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the all-time NBA scoring record, but he'll have to wait until Tuesday before resuming the chase. In case you missed it above, LeBron and AD will sit on Monday against the Nets but should play on Tuesday at New York. 

Saturday also featured the Sixers and Joel Embiid hosting the Nuggets and Nikola Jokic, and the Sixers got the 126-119 win as Embiid took over in the fourth quarter. He finished with 47 points, 18 rebounds and a full stat line, while Jokic just missed a triple-double with 24 minutes, eight rebounds and nine assists in the tough loss. 

Other players who got it done on Saturday included...

• Magic forward Moritz Wagner scored 27 points against the Bulls, but don't get too excited. He hadn't scored more than nine points in his previous six games and the 27 marked a season high. Just keep an eye on him in case this becomes a regular thing. 
• Anthony Edwards had 34 points for the Wolves and is rolling, averaging 26.9 points, 5.8 rebounds, 4.9 assists, 1.4 steals and 3.2 three-pointers on 46 percent shooting in January. He's seemingly getting better every week.
  • Meanwhile, Karl-Anthony Towns was spotted with a walking boot while watching the 49ers-Eagles game on Sunday. Still no definitive update on when, exactly, KAT may be back in action.

• Daniel Gafford scored a season-high 21 points with 12 rebounds and five blocks for the Wizards but is about to take a hit with Porzingis due back Monday. This was Gafford's best game of the season and I'll need to see him do it again before taking the bait. 
• Chris Paul had a season-high 31 points with seven rebounds and 11 assists in an overtime win against the Spurs. Maybe CP3 is about to get it going for the second half, but you have to think more rest is coming for the 37-year-old, especially when Devin Booker (groin) is back. The Suns are hanging around as the No. 9 seed and could easily make a playoff run at any time. They're just 1.0 games behind the No. 5 Timberwolves in the West. This looks like a nice sell-high moment on Paul in terms of fantasy. 
• Keldon Johnson (34 points) and Jeremy Sochan (30 points) both went off for the Spurs and while KJ should already be rostered everywhere, Sochan has been playing well enough to also be added across the board. Unfortunately, the Spurs play just three games this week. 
• Lauri Markkanen went off for 29 points in Saturday's eight-point win over the Mavericks to cover the spread by a half-point. Unfortunately, he'll be a tough start this week as the Jazz play just two games. The Celtics also play just twice this week, making things tough on Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown managers. 
• Spencer Dinwiddie filled in nicely for Doncic and racked up 35 points after going for 36 on Thursday. Luka isn't a lock for Monday, and if he's out, Dinwiddie is a must-play in all formats, including DFS. 
• Precious Achiuwa got a start for Anunoby and went off for 27 points, 13 rebounds, two steals, a block and a three-pointer, and has been playing very well over the last week. With Anunoby already ruled out on Monday, Achiuwa is almost a must-play in DFS. And with the Raptors going four times this week, Achiuwa is probably worth grabbing in all formats. 
• Kelly Olynyk was back from his ankle injury on Saturday and played just 15 minutes. There's no need to rush out and pick him up, as Walker Kessler has probably replaced him with his strong play over the last month and most of the season. And Utah only has two games this week, meaning Olynyk belongs on waivers for now.

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