With the vacations within the rearview mirror, the NBA slate has a extra acquainted look in Week 12. There are three days, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday, with double-digit video games, with Thursday being the sunshine sport day. Sadly, fantasy managers have lots of accidents to navigate, together with Denver’s Nikola Jokić and San Antonio’s Victor Wembanyama. As is all the time the case, availability and scheduling will have an effect on how managers craft their rosters for what they hope will likely be a profitable week. Let’s take a look at the Week 12 schedule and a few of its key storylines.
Week 12 Video games Performed
4 Video games: ATL, BOS, CHA, CHI, DEN, GSW, HOU, LAC, MEM, MIA, MIN, NOR, NYK, OKC, ORL, PHI, PHX, POR, SAS, TOR, UTA, WAS
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3 Video games: BKN, CLE, DAL, DET, IND, LAL, MIL, SAC
Week 12 Again-to-backs
Sunday (Week 11)-Monday: DEN, DET, OKC, PHX
Monday-Tuesday: None
Tuesday-Wednesday: LAL, MEM, NOR, ORL, SAS, WAS
Wednesday-Thursday: CHA, CHI, UTA
Thursday-Friday: None
Friday-Saturday: BOS, LAC
Saturday-Sunday: MIA, MIN, SAS
Sunday-Monday (Week 13): BKN, PHI, SAC, TOR
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NBA Minutes Report: Accidents to Nikola Jokic, Austin Reaves, extra have modified panorama
We dig into shifting rotations, uncovering which gamers deserve extra consideration or are falling out of favor.
Week 12 Storylines of Notice
– Thursday is the sunshine sport day of Week 12.
Thursday is the one sport with fewer than six video games on the schedule, with it being a four-game evening. Three of the eight groups in motion, Charlotte, Chicago and Utah, will likely be coping with a back-to-back. All three have some availability considerations. The Hornets have been hit onerous by accidents within the frontcourt, with Ryan Kalkbrenner, Moussa Diabaté and Mason Plumlee all lacking the group’s remaining sport of Week 11. Plumlee underwent surgical procedure and is taking a look at a long-term absence, however fantasy managers will likely be extra involved about Kalkbrenner and Diabaté anyway. PJ Corridor has made a couple of begins, and he could have worth in deep leagues given the accidents and the Hornets’ four-game Week 12 schedule.
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As for Chicago, their most vital accidents have occurred on the perimeter, with Josh Giddey and Coby White sidelined. Giddey will likely be re-evaluated in two weeks after straining his left hamstring, whereas White’s proper calf harm will maintain him out for at the least one week. With these two off the board, Tre Jones, Ayo Dosunmu and Kevin Huerter will all have elevated fantasy worth in Week 12, and the Wednesday/Thursday back-to-back shouldn’t be a problem for any of them, supplied they get by way of Chicago’s first two video games of Week 12 unscathed.
Lastly, there’s Utah, which has not wanted the excuse of a back-to-back to sit down key gamers up to now. Lauri Markkanen and Jusuf Nurkić have been sidelined on a number of events, and Keyonte George missed the group’s New 12 months’s Day loss to the Clippers. It is not the “foolish season” but, however gamers like Kyle Filipowski, Brice Sensabaugh and Isaiah Collier stand to tackle added significance throughout Week 12.
– Be prepared to maneuver on from fringe Lakers on the finish of video games on Friday.
Not solely do the Lakers play simply three video games in Week 12, however they will not be lively on both Saturday or Sunday. Whereas the absences of Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura could complicate issues for some fantasy managers, others are prone to conclude that they are higher off scouring the waiver wire for worth throughout the remaining two days of Week 12 than holding onto Marcus Sensible or Jake LaRavia. The Lakers’ three video games are towards New Orleans, San Antonio and Milwaukee, starting with a Tuesday/Wednesday back-to-back.
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– Miami, Minnesota and San Antonio finish Week 12 with Saturday/Sunday back-to-backs.
These three groups could show most respected to fantasy managers on the finish of the week since they’re going to be lively on Saturday and Sunday. Whereas a participant like Minnesota’s Mike Conley will not be nice to have, since he hasn’t been taking part in each video games of back-to-backs, some intriguing choices needs to be out there in most leagues. Miami’s Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Nikola Jović, and San Antonio’s Julian Champagnie are three who could have added worth towards the tip of Week 12, because of each their manufacturing and accidents to different rotation gamers.
– How lengthy will the Spurs be with out Victor Wembanyama?
Relating to the Spurs, will Wembanyama be out there in any respect throughout Week 12? And if that’s the case, what number of video games will he play? Whereas San Antonio is scheduled to play 4 video games, it has two back-to-backs, which can restrict the 7-foot-4 phenom to 2 video games at most if he can play to start the week. After escaping extreme injury to his left knee throughout Wednesday’s win over the Knicks, Wembanyama is taken into account day-to-day and can journey with the group to Tuesday’s sport in Memphis.
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That is adopted by video games towards the Lakers (Wednesday), Celtics (Saturday) and Timberwolves (Sunday) to conclude Week 12. Luke Kornet was excellent in Saturday’s loss to the Path Blazers and will likely be a starter so long as Wemby is out. How a lot he performs when allowed to start out will depend on how effectively he and Kelly Olynyk play. Olynyk was higher on Friday towards the Pacers, so he performed extra, and the roles reversed the next evening towards Portland.
– Brooklyn will not play its first sport of Week 12 till Wednesday.
Whereas the Lakers are the group to keep away from on the finish of Week 12, the Nets will not supply a lot worth firstly of the week. Brooklyn will not play its first sport till Wednesday, the primary of three video games on the group’s slate. And the final, Sunday in Memphis, is the primary of a back-to-back with Brooklyn visiting Dallas the next evening. The back-to-back may loom massive for Michael Porter Jr., Nic Claxton (who’s at present away from the group for private causes), Cam Thomas and Terance Mann. The “foolish season” is not right here but, however gamers like Egor Dëmin and Danny Wolf could have added fantasy worth on the finish of Week 12. As for its starting, that will not be the case.
