Category Strategy: Hood, Simmons Ready to Help in Scoring

Category Strategy: Hood, Simmons Ready to Help in Scoring

This article is part of our Category Strategy series.

It's been a crazy first two weeks, including horrific injuries, fights, rookie explosions, and the delayed emergence of some high pre-2017 lottery picks. With so much happening, it's easy to lose sight of how early it is. Lots of important players have already been added, but some of the season's biggest steals may still be out there. Keep working the wire, and try to avoid overreactions.

Two weeks into Draymond Green's breakout campaign, he was not yet near his seasonal average in rebounds, assists, or steals. Two weeks into Paul George's breakout season, he was averaging only 11.4 points and 4.0 rebounds – anyone who had picked him up at that time likely did so thinking he was a three-point specialist, as he was averaging more than two per game.

Speaking of specialists, that's what this article is for! Let's go category by category, and identify some players who can help your fantasy teams.

In general, we'll focus on players available in at least 50% of leagues in ESPN, Yahoo!, and CBS. That said, since the ownership can vary significantly from one site to the next, sometimes we have to fudge those rules a bit, especially early in the season.

POINTS

Jonathon Simmons, Magic
(Ownership: ESPN – 24%; Yahoo! – 50%; CBS – 44%)

Simmons is averaging 16.7 points per game this season, and 21.3 per game over his past three contests. He's the Magic's sixth man, and his minutes are a little lower and more variable

It's been a crazy first two weeks, including horrific injuries, fights, rookie explosions, and the delayed emergence of some high pre-2017 lottery picks. With so much happening, it's easy to lose sight of how early it is. Lots of important players have already been added, but some of the season's biggest steals may still be out there. Keep working the wire, and try to avoid overreactions.

Two weeks into Draymond Green's breakout campaign, he was not yet near his seasonal average in rebounds, assists, or steals. Two weeks into Paul George's breakout season, he was averaging only 11.4 points and 4.0 rebounds – anyone who had picked him up at that time likely did so thinking he was a three-point specialist, as he was averaging more than two per game.

Speaking of specialists, that's what this article is for! Let's go category by category, and identify some players who can help your fantasy teams.

In general, we'll focus on players available in at least 50% of leagues in ESPN, Yahoo!, and CBS. That said, since the ownership can vary significantly from one site to the next, sometimes we have to fudge those rules a bit, especially early in the season.

POINTS

Jonathon Simmons, Magic
(Ownership: ESPN – 24%; Yahoo! – 50%; CBS – 44%)

Simmons is averaging 16.7 points per game this season, and 21.3 per game over his past three contests. He's the Magic's sixth man, and his minutes are a little lower and more variable than we'd typically prefer, but he's getting the job done. Furthermore, though he's played 25 minutes or less in half his games, he's averaged 30.5 minutes over his last two, so there's a chance that his minutes are on the rise. His field goal percentage will probably come down slightly from its current 3.3 percent figure, but he could continue to keep it pretty high. Simmons has thus far outperformed Terrence Ross and can be added in all formats.

Rodney Hood is widely available in ESPN leagues, though he's too heavily owned in Yahoo! and CBS leagues to feature here. If he's available, he's the top add for points this week. The same can be said for Jeremy Lamb, who should be owned in all leagues until Nic Batum (elbow) returns, which is probably still several weeks away. Hood is a better add for scoring, but Lamb is a better all-around fantasy contributor.

Other suggestions:Jeremy Lamb, Hornets; Rodney Hood, Jazz; Austin Rivers, Clippers

THREE-POINTERS

Marco Belinelli, Hawks
(Ownership: ESPN – 13%; Yahoo! – 42%; CBS – 33%)

Belinelli's three-point shooting is borderline comical. The Hawks' sixth man is averaging 3.1 made threes per game. Just two seasons ago, 3.1 threes per game was what Damian Lillard averaged when he ranked third in the league, behind only Steph Curry and Klay Thompson. Belinelli is averaging his 3.1 made threes in only 27.1 minutes per game. The NBA's three-point era is insane. While Belinelli is not nearly an overall contributor on the level of Lillard, Curry, or Thompson, in this new NBA, it's completely possible that Belinelli's three-point production maintains close to its current rate. He's currently shooting 55 percent from behind the arc, and that will surely drop, but multiple threes per game at a less-efficient clip is still a realistic expectation moving forward.

J.J. Redick (back) warrants attention here, as he's getting dropped in a lot of leagues following his back injury. Dropping Redick qualifies as one of those overreactions I was advising against at the top of this article, at least in 12-team leagues. If he was dropped in your league, scoop him up.

Like Hood and Lamb, Ryan Anderson is widely available on ESPN, but not Yahoo! or CBS. He's a volume three-point shooter getting a lot of minutes, and warrants wider ownership.

Other suggestions:J.J. Redick, 76ers; Ryan Anderson, Rockets; Kelly Oubre, Wizards; Justin Holiday, Bulls; Austin Rivers, Clippers; Kelly Olynyk, Heat; Kyle Korver, Cavaliers; J.J. Barea, Mavericks

REBOUNDS

Tyreke Evans, Grizzlies
(Ownership: ESPN – 23%; Yahoo! – 50%; CBS – 83%)

Evans should be added regardless of whether or not your team needs rebounds, but rebounds are his greatest contribution. The ninth-year vet has a rocky relationship with the fantasy community, exploding onto the scene as a rookie, and waning in and out of fantasy importance ever since. But while it may feel like we've been playing this game with Evans forever, he's only 28, and he's found a great landing spot as the Grizzlies' sixth man. The bench role is helping him to keep his scoring high -- 13.3 PPG and 17.3 PPG over his last three -- and he's contributing in threes, assists, and steals, as well. But the real kicker is his 6.3 rebounds per game. While that's not a ton overall, it ranks sixth among small forwards who lack power forward eligibility.

Domantas Sabonis has been incredible with Myles Turner (concussion) out, posting double-digit rebounds over the last five games, and double-doubling in four of those. He's clearly earned a bigger role once Turner returns, but the whole Pacers' frontcourt has been playing well, so we'll see how Nate McMillan goes about doling out minutes for Turner, Sabonis, and Thad Young. Sabonis is worth adding, but outside of keeper leagues, be careful who you drop for him. Turner could return as early as this weekend.

Other suggestions:Domantas Sabonis, Pacers; Justin Holiday, Bulls; Tyson Chandler, Suns; Alex Len, Suns; John Collins, Hawks

ASSISTS

T.J. McConnell, 76ers
(Ownership: ESPN – 8%; Yahoo! – 21%; CBS – 24%)

McConnell may not score much, but he's a great facilitator, and his court-time has skyrocketed since the Sixers put Markelle Fultz (shoulder) on ice. While Fultz was active, McConnell averaged 15.0 minutes per game. In the three games since, he's averaging 28.3 per game. He's handing out 7.3 assists per game during that stretch, and he's also adding contributions in threes and steals. Fultz is out indefinitely, and if the way the 76ers have handled injuries to their previous first-round picks is any indication, Fultz is likely to remain sidelined for a lengthy period of time.

Other suggestions:Spencer Dinwiddie, Nets; Jerian Grant, Bulls; Kris Dunn, Bulls; Tyler Ulis, Suns; Mike James, Suns

STEALS

Kris Dunn, Bulls
(Ownership: ESPN – 9%; Yahoo! – 39%; CBS – 62%)

Dunn (finger) finally made his Bulls debut Saturday. The second-year guard put forth a solid, 22-minute effort, scoring eight points and adding four rebounds, three assists, and three steals. In order to have standard-league fantasy value, he'll probably need more minutes than that, but if he gets them, he can be a mischievous thief. Dunn improved steadily throughout his rookie season, and was particularly effective on defense. In March, the month in which he averaged the most minutes, he snagged 1.6 steals per game in just 19.5 minutes. It's possible he could take over the starting point guard duties, and if he did, he'd also become a strong source of assists – though it is not yet clear how realistic that is.

Other suggestions:T.J. McConnell, 76ers; Bogdan Bogdanovic, Kings; Terry Rozier, Celtics; Lucas Nogueira, Raptors; Cory Joseph, Pacers

BLOCKS

Jakob Poeltl, Raptors
(Ownership: ESPN –16 %; Yahoo! – 20%; CBS – 32%)

Poeltl hasn't played much, averaging only 20.5 minutes per game, but he has at least one block in every game since the opener. The low minutes, even with Jonas Valanciunas missing time, are not ideal, and he doesn't do a ton outside of rim-protecting, but blocks are always hard to find on the waiver wire. Poeltl also adds some rebounds, and he's an efficient shooter – though he hardly gets enough attempts for that to matter.

Poeltl's teammate, Lucas Nogueira, is another very good shot-blocker. Nogueira isn't going to block five shots every game like he did Monday, but that game is a sign of his potential. Any time Nogueira is getting extra run because either Valanciunas (ankle) or Serge Ibaka (knee) is out, he's probably worth using in standard leagues.

Other suggestions:Skal Labissiere, Kings; Lucas Nogueira, Raptors; Dragan Bender, Suns

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Alex Rikleen
Rikleen writes the NBA column "Numbers Game," which decodes the math that underpins fantasy basketball and was a nominee for the 2016 FSWA Newcomer of the Year Award. A certified math teacher, Rikleen decided the field of education pays too well, so he left it for writing. He is a Boston College graduate living outside Boston.
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