It's time for another Fantasy Hoops Mailbag as we head into the final six weeks of the regular season. Kevin Love, Russell Westbrook, Josh Green, Patrick Williams and the Lakers stars all make the cut this week.
How good is Kevin Love's fit in Miami? - Raji von Arx (@kemosabe73)
Answer: I think Love is a fine addition to any team looking to make a push in the playoffs and he gives a team already loaded with three-point threats another one to bring off the bench. He also gives the Heat a healthy body to help fill in the gaps with guards Kyle Lowry, Tyler Herro and Victor Oladipo all injured, despite the fact he's a forward.
Love's not going to make much of a fantasy impact but is averaging 8.5 points, nearly 7.0 rebounds and 1.7 triples per game in just 20 minutes. And he'll be a good locker-room presence and will actually contribute on the floor, unlike Udonis Haslem. While Love's not quite as old as Haslem at 34 years, he's not young, either. The Heat simply wanted a competent veteran big man who can play and guard multiple positions and knock down some three-pointers when needed. And that's exactly what they got.
Is Josh Green a hold? - AubiwZ (@abu_ibz)
Answer: Had Green not had those two disappointing games just before the break I doubt we'd be talking about this. But he hit just 3-of-11 shots for six points, four rebounds
It's time for another Fantasy Hoops Mailbag as we head into the final six weeks of the regular season. Kevin Love, Russell Westbrook, Josh Green, Patrick Williams and the Lakers stars all make the cut this week.
How good is Kevin Love's fit in Miami? - Raji von Arx (@kemosabe73)
Answer: I think Love is a fine addition to any team looking to make a push in the playoffs and he gives a team already loaded with three-point threats another one to bring off the bench. He also gives the Heat a healthy body to help fill in the gaps with guards Kyle Lowry, Tyler Herro and Victor Oladipo all injured, despite the fact he's a forward.
Love's not going to make much of a fantasy impact but is averaging 8.5 points, nearly 7.0 rebounds and 1.7 triples per game in just 20 minutes. And he'll be a good locker-room presence and will actually contribute on the floor, unlike Udonis Haslem. While Love's not quite as old as Haslem at 34 years, he's not young, either. The Heat simply wanted a competent veteran big man who can play and guard multiple positions and knock down some three-pointers when needed. And that's exactly what they got.
Is Josh Green a hold? - AubiwZ (@abu_ibz)
Answer: Had Green not had those two disappointing games just before the break I doubt we'd be talking about this. But he hit just 3-of-11 shots for six points, four rebounds and four assists in 38 minutes last Monday (Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving both played) and then hit just 2-of-8 shots for six points, two rebounds and two three-pointers (Kyrie was out) on Wednesday.
Prior to those two duds, Green had scored 23, 17, 14, 29, 12 and 15 points in his other February games. It's probably good news that the Mavericks lost those two games, and it's also a good sign that Green played 38 minutes in Monday's game that included both Kyrie and Luka. The Mavs have to know they can't win with just two guys doing all the heavy lifting and they need to find ways to get Green more involved.
The Mavericks play Thursday and Sunday, and then have three games the following week. I'd at least hold him through Sunday and I'd suggest giving him the following week, as well. It's possible that he falls off the map with Luka and Kyrie doing it all by themselves, but if that happens the Mavs can probably kiss the playoffs goodbye.
Do you ever see a world in which Patrick Williams becomes a featured player on offense? - Mr Kelder (@KelderMr)
Answer: I was never a Williams guy and then some colleagues piqued my interest and eventually suckered me into a mini buy-in. But he's just never really lived up to the hype no matter how much the Bulls have tried to make him a priority. I'm not going to say never, but if it hasn't happened by now (and it hasn't), I'm not sure it ever will. He's somehow managed just 10.2 points and 4.4 rebounds despite playing 29 minutes per game in 58 starts. He could probably use a change of scenery.
Is Justin Holiday a decent get for the Mavs? I feel like he isn't any better than what they already have, but I don't know much about the guy. - Keith C (@keefdon)
Answer: Is he a decent get? Yes. Is he more of the same? Yes. You have to think Tim Hardaway Jr. and Reggie Bullock would have lesser roles on almost any team in the league than they have in Dallas, and all Holiday's going to do (in my opinion) is slow the roll of rookie Jaden Hardy. Holiday was getting more than 25 minutes a game for the Kings this season but shot just 35 percent and averaged 8.3 points, 1.5 assists, 2.0 three-pointers and less than 1.0 steal in his 25 games. Prior to that he was in Indy for two-and-a-half seasons and never averaged more than 11.0 points.
As if you didn't already know, guys named Luka and Kyrie are handling most of the guard minutes in Dallas and while Holiday's a decent addition in reality, I'd be shocked if he does anything in terms of fantasy. He's been toiling in the league since 2012 and has never been worth rostering in fantasy, so I don't know why that would change playing behind Luka, Kyrie and Green.
Is making the playoffs important to LeBron James? - Kenny Williams (@ksw2011)
Answer: Kenny, first of all, thanks for your continued support and coming through with questions for this column every week. Secondly, that's a question for LeBron. And since he's probably not going to answer either one of us, I'll just take a guess. I think LeBron really hates missing the playoffs and having his streak broken after 13 straight seasons with a miss in 2018-19 really ticked him off. He's got a new streak of two straight postseasons going and the Lakers are clearly on the bubble this year.
If he doesn't think the Lakers can win in the playoffs, he's not going to care about missing them as much as one would think. But with no draft pick to speak of, making the playoffs and seeing if he and Anthony Davis can do some damage still has to be his top priority. Especially since the Lakers have made some moves by adding D'Angelo Russell, Malik Beasley, Jarred Vanderbilt, Rui Hachimura and Mo Bamba.
The No. 13 Lakers are still 2.0 games behind the No. 10 Thunder, but just 3.5 games behind the No. 6 Mavericks. The Mavs play six straight games at home out of the break and are going to try to make a run, but I doubt the Lakers are going to just give up. LeBron still cares about making the playoffs and will do as much as his body and ankle will let him through the end of the regular season. And with the new additions along with LeBron and AD, if they can get into the playoffs they still have the talent, at least on paper, to beat anyone in a multi-game series.
Who is the best add in Portland with Anfernee Simons out? Shaedon Sharpe or Cam Reddish? - Good Joe (@Kramermurphy)
Answer: Sharpe is the guy. Reddish has yet to prove anything and Sharpe may come in highly motivated the rest of the way after his All-Star Weekend snub for the Rising Stars Game. There's no guarantee that Sharpe ends up being "the guy," but he's the one I would take a flier on in case it happens. Reddish did play well last Tuesday when he hit 7-of-12 shots for 18 points and four triples, but did nothing else in his fifth 30-minute game of the season.I'd rather roll the dice on Sharpe.
How far do you think the Lakers will go? The trades seem better and better as long as Anthony Davis quits pouting. - Stlmattdavis (@stlmattdavis)
Answer: Hi, Chew! First of all, they need to make the play-in tourney and then the actual playoffs. If both of those things happen, as I mentioned above, anything is possible. But even with the new additions there are questions about Darvin Ham's abilities as a coach, as well about how well all the new pieces will gel together.
The reality is that no matter how bad the Lakers have looked this season, playoff LeBron and AD, along with Russell and Beasley, is a foursome that no team is going to want to face in a multi-game series. Can they come back, shock the world and win the Western playoffs? Yeah, they can. But they need to get there first. And if they do, I just don't think they'll be able to play well enough and stay healthy enough to get it done. But it will be fun to watch them try, and they'll look like a strong opponent against anyone, at least on paper.
Who has the bigger impact in fantasy and real life: Russell Westbrook or Kevin Love? - jerry rye (@JerryRye)
Answer: Love feels like a role player off the bench for the Heat, while Westbrook could end up starting for the Clippers if he can beat out Terance Mann for the point guard job. Like the Lakers, the Clippers will look very good on paper with a lineup of Westbrook, Paul George, Kawhi Leonard, Marcus Morris and Ivica Zubac with Mann, Eric Gordon, Norman Powell and Mason Plumlee coming off the bench.
Even if Westbrook comes off the bench, he's going to get 30 minutes a game and lead a solid second unit for the Clippers. Westbrook needed a new change of scenery and the Clippers look like one of the deeper teams in the league. Regardless of whether he starts or comes off the bench, Westbrook is going to make an impact in both reality and fantasy -- for better or for worse. Whether he has enough left in the tank to take the Clippers to the next level remains to be seen, but the Clippers are going to run him out there for a ton of minutes and see what happens. These playoffs are setting up to be a doozy.
