This article is part of our NBA Start/Sit series.
Week 14 brings us the most conducive type of schedule for fantasy purposes, as there are no teams with any fewer than three games. The tally is slightly favored in terms of teams with three games, but there are still plenty of four-game clubs to scour the rosters of and find some lower-rostered viable options to consider for starting lineups.
Each week, we'll aim to highlight a pair of Start candidates for your fantasy rosters that may shape up as some of the tougher calls of the week to make, with the focus usually being on players with a start or roster rate of 50% or less in Yahoo leagues. We'll also typically hone in on players with four-game weeks in an attempt to maximize opportunities for production.
Likewise, we'll spotlight one Sit candidate at each position that would normally not be a consideration for a spot on your bench, with the focus often on players with fewer game opportunities during the coming week.
TEAMS WITH FOUR GAMES: Atlanta Hawks, Charlotte Hornets, Dallas Mavericks, Detroit Pistons, Indiana Pacers, Memphis Grizzlies, Milwaukee Bucks, Minnesota Timberwolves, Oklahoma City Thunder, Phoenix Suns, Portland Trail Blazers, San Antonio Spurs
TEAMS WITH THREE GAMES: Boston Celtics, Brooklyn Nets, Chicago Bulls, Cleveland Cavaliers, Denver Nuggets, Golden State Warriors, Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Clippers, Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat, New Orleans Pelicans, New York Knicks, Orlando Magic, Philadelphia 76ers, Sacramento Kings, Toronto Raptors, Utah Jazz, Washington Wizards
Without further ado, let's examine some of the tougher
Week 14 brings us the most conducive type of schedule for fantasy purposes, as there are no teams with any fewer than three games. The tally is slightly favored in terms of teams with three games, but there are still plenty of four-game clubs to scour the rosters of and find some lower-rostered viable options to consider for starting lineups.
Each week, we'll aim to highlight a pair of Start candidates for your fantasy rosters that may shape up as some of the tougher calls of the week to make, with the focus usually being on players with a start or roster rate of 50% or less in Yahoo leagues. We'll also typically hone in on players with four-game weeks in an attempt to maximize opportunities for production.
Likewise, we'll spotlight one Sit candidate at each position that would normally not be a consideration for a spot on your bench, with the focus often on players with fewer game opportunities during the coming week.
TEAMS WITH FOUR GAMES: Atlanta Hawks, Charlotte Hornets, Dallas Mavericks, Detroit Pistons, Indiana Pacers, Memphis Grizzlies, Milwaukee Bucks, Minnesota Timberwolves, Oklahoma City Thunder, Phoenix Suns, Portland Trail Blazers, San Antonio Spurs
TEAMS WITH THREE GAMES: Boston Celtics, Brooklyn Nets, Chicago Bulls, Cleveland Cavaliers, Denver Nuggets, Golden State Warriors, Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Clippers, Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat, New Orleans Pelicans, New York Knicks, Orlando Magic, Philadelphia 76ers, Sacramento Kings, Toronto Raptors, Utah Jazz, Washington Wizards
Without further ado, let's examine some of the tougher start/sit decisions for Week 14:
Guards
Start: Vince Williams, Grizzlies
50% start rate
The Grizzlies have been decimated by key absences all season, pushing many of their complementary players into larger roles. Williams is one such example, already averaging career highs across the stat sheet this season while seeing his minutes jump to 23.6 per contest from his rookie-season figure of 7.0 a year ago. Inefficiency on the offensive end has been a problem, but Williams is starting to heat up as evidenced by his 42.1 percent three-point shooting across his last seven games. Williams is averaging 13.7 points, 6.4 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.7 steals across 33.3 minutes per contest in that span as well while holding down a starting role at small forward, but he remains guard eligible as well in Yahoo leagues and is undoubtedly worth a look heading into a four-game week.
Start: Luke Kennard, Grizzlies
31% roster rate
The Grizzlies theme persists with Kennard, who's slated to continue operating as Memphis' starting shooting guard this week, as Desmond Bane (ankle) is still nowhere close to returning. The veteran sharpshooter has been effective during his ongoing seven-game starting stint, putting up 13.0 points (on 52.5 percent shooting, including 53.7 percent from distance), 4.0 assists and 3.4 rebounds across 28.6 minutes per game. With six straight double-digit scoring efforts going into the four-game schedule and better assist production than usual due to starting point guard Marcus Smart (finger) also being out for the foreseeable future, Kennard is very much in play.
ALSO CONSIDER: Malik Beasley, Bucks
(33% start rate)
Sit: Austin Reaves, Lakers
59% start rate
Reaves has been a solid component of the Lakers' starting five, but he unsurprisingly deals with some inconsistent opportunities since he shares the floor with a pair of megastars in LeBron James and Anthony Davis. D'Angelo Russell has also heated up significantly of late and reclaimed his starting point guard spot, reinserting a third high-usage option into the first unit. As such, Reaves is putting up a solid-but-replaceable 13.0 points, 4.8 assists and 2.6 rebounds across his last eight games, and he's averaging a modest 8.8 shot attempts per game in that span compared to 11.1 over the first 36 contests of the season. Whether his downturn persists remains to be seen, but given his slotting in the Lakers' offensive pecking order and the fact he has only three games to work with, Reaves can be considered for a one-week benching.
Forwards
Start: Saddiq Bey, Hawks
40% start rate
Bey is a bit of a tough sell coming off a nightmarish 0-for-12 performance from the field against the Cavs on Saturday, but that is very much an outlier that should be forgotten in short order. Rather, it's more prudent to focus on Bey's overall body of work and the fact Trae Young is going to likely miss multiple games on the Hawks' four-game Week 14 schedule due to being in concussion protocol. Bey averages an impressive 19.5 points, 6.6 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.2 steals per 36 minutes with Young off the floor this season, and with De'Andre Hunter (knee) also remaining out at least Monday, Bey will open the week in the starting small forward role he's been filling in Hunter's absence.
Start: Obi Toppin, Pacers
40% roster rate
Toppin proved to be a bit of a mixed bag as a Week 13 start recommendation, as he dealt with a calf injury that limited his production in a couple of games. However, with Indiana heading into a second straight four-game week and Toppin looking back to himself Sunday against the Suns with a 13-point, six-rebound, one-assist effort in 26 minutes off the bench, he's back under consideration this week. Pascal Siakam's acquisition from the Raptors isn't a deal-breaker when it comes to Toppin, either, as the latter was already coming off the bench, and judging by Sunday's playing time, Toppin will still maintain a solid second-unit role.
ALSO CONSIDER: David Roddy, Grizzlies (5% roster rate); Jabari Walker, Trail Blazers
(29% roster rate)
Sit: Cameron Johnson, Nets
56% start rate
Johnson has been an adequate contributor overall this season, but he'll work with just three games this coming week and is mired in a significant funk. The fifth-year wing is averaging just 9.6 points (on 33.3 percent shooting), 3.4 rebounds and 3.1 assists across his last seven games, numbers that certainly would warrant a seat on the bench under any scenario. Johnson will naturally snap out of the doldrums sooner or later, but even when he's been clicking this season, the 15.0 points, 4.9 rebounds and 2.5 assists he was averaging before the current slump is replaceable by a four-game option.
CENTERS
Start: P.J. Washington, Hornets
41% start rate
Washington has always had a bit of an enigmatic quality to his game, as the fluctuations in his production can leave fantasy managers befuddled at times. However, the 2019 first-round pick remains a solid scorer and rebounder, and he's been back on the first unit for the Hornets' last two games after an extended stint on the bench. Washington produced 20 points, six rebounds and a steal across 28 minutes in the first of those two starts, and it's also worth noting he's netted 12 double-digit scoring efforts off the bench this season.
Start: Dereck Lively, Mavericks
47% start rate
Lively has put together back-to-back encouraging performances after returning from a five-game absence due to an ankle injury, averaging 11.0 points, 11.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists across 27 minutes in that first pair of contests while shooting 90.9 percent. As long as the rookie big man can avoid the injury bug and foul trouble, he's a good bet to offer some solid multi-category production – Lively has 14 double-digit scoring efforts, 11 double-digit rebound tallies, seven double-doubles and 12 multi-block games across his first 31 NBA contests.
ALSO CONSIDER: Marvin Bagley, Wizards
(34% start rate) (three games)
Sit: Daniel Gafford, Wizards
54% start rate
Gafford just returned Sunday from a two-game absence due to a concussion and was adequate with 15 points, seven rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block across 30 minutes. However, that's one of the big man's higher-percentile offensive performances, with the 15 points serving as his fourth-highest figure of the season. Gafford was averaging a modest 8.3 points, 7.1 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 2.0 blocks in the nine games before the head injury, and although he does remain a consideration if you're attempting to boost your blocks in a category format, his overall numbers typically aren't indispensable when he's on less than a full schedule.
