NBA Category Strategy: Help from Downtown

Three of the Spurs' four games occur on nights with fewer than seven games league-wide. Boris Diaw has played the most games for the Spurs since the lockout season, making him the most reliable stream candidate. He appears immune to any coach Gregg Popovich rest chicanery. However, the Spurs play a league-low 13 games in January, so resting players may not be Popovich's immediate concern.

The Lakers are the only team to play on Saturday and Sunday, while the Bulls play four times before Saturday. If you feel inclined to maximize your chance of accumulating stats, consider rostering a Bulls player for the first five days of the week before transitioning to a Lakers player for the weekend if you find yourself struggling in a head-to-head matchup.

The Mavericks and Rockets begin a stretch of five games in seven nights beginning on Tuesday. Dallas plays a league-high 18 games and five back-to-back sets in January. Coach Rick Carlisle already rested four of his five starters last week the night after a double overtime game, and more rest could be on the way based on the dense schedule. Dwight Howard missed the previous game with lower back tightness, and if interim coach JB Bickerstaff rests Howard on the upcoming back-to-backs, Clint Capela's weekly value rises.

The Celtics, Bulls and Bucks play four games in five nights this week but none has a home-home back-to-back.

The Nuggets play eight straight home games beginning Sunday. Danilo Gallinari shoots nine percent worse on three-pointers at home, and Kenneth Faried shoots nine percent worse from the field in four more minutes per game at the Pepsi Center. Both are trends worth monitoring the next two weeks.

POINTS
Gerald Green (SG)
The Heat plays four road games this week and nine road games in their next ten contests. Green performs better away from AmericanAirlines Arena (table below), paving the way for an extended hot streak. Saturday night, Tyler Johnson (shoulder) didn't play and Dwyane Wade strained his left shoulder and played through the ailment. Johnson's shoulder has been a problem since early December, costing him half of the last 16 games. Assuming Johnson misses time, Green vaults to the top of the points list this week because the playing time should scale appropriately.

ASSISTS
Dennis Schroder (PG)
Schroder compiled 22 assists in the three games since rejoining the rotation, 12 more than Jeff Teague in that span. Two of the Hawks' upcoming opponents (Milwaukee and Brooklyn) have allowed more than 24 assist per game over the past 10 games, finding themselves in the bottom five of the league during that stretch. In the same timeframe, Milwaukee and Charlotte, the Hawks' third Week 12 opponent, have ranked in the bottom four in defensive rating at over 107 points allowed per 100 possessions. While the three-game slate detracts from Schroder's weekly value, Teague sustained a left ankle injury Saturday night and his play this season may be linked to a lingering ankle problem. Whether or not Teague misses time, Schroder has shown the ability to rack up assists in limited action. And if Schroder pans out, he'll benefit from three straight four-game weeks after Week 12, assuming he's still on the Hawks.

Donald Sloan replaced Shane Larkin in the second-half starting lineup Saturday, and with good reason. Sloan leads the Nets with 5.5 assists in 20.6 minutes per game in Jarrett Jack's absence. Larkin sports team-lows in Net Rating (negative 22.2) and Pace (91.5) since joining the starting lineup, and his impact hasn't been as dramatic as expected. Sloan is a serviceable assist add if you've exhausted other options.

STEALS
P.J. Tucker (SF)
Tucker has recorded a steal in nine straight games. He's averaging 34.3 minutes per game since Eric Bledsoe tore his left meniscus on Dec. 26, which ranks second on the team behind Brandon Knight, offering the illusion of comfort when deciding which Suns player to pick up. Coach Jeff Hornacek largely utilizes Tucker as the Suns' power forward when using smaller lineups, and it allows the stout defender to disrupt passing lanes and disarm inadequate ball handlers on the block. If you're concerned that Tucker's been playing with a thigh bruise, target Tony Allen. He's recorded 12 steals in the last five games while seeing extensive minutes due to Mike Conley (Achilles) and Courtney Lee (hip) injuries.

BLOCKS
John Henson (C)
Henson continues to block shots in limited minutes, swatting at least one in nine straight games. The Bucks play five games in seven nights beginning Sunday. Even though Henson hasn't played more than 21 minutes in any of the previous five, he's averaging 1.2 blocks per game while shooting 77 percent from the field. Cody Zeller, last week's snub, has blocked a shot in five straight games should Henson's limited statistical output discourage you.

THREE-POINTERS
Patrick Beverley (PG)
Beverley has made a three-pointer in 20 straight games while shooting 45 percent from downtown over that span. He hasn't missed a three-pointer in four straight games. Ty Lawson was pilfering Beverley's playing time before netting a three-game suspension, and the Rockets have won two straight without Lawson, tilting the scales back in Beverley's favor. Less than eight percent of his three-point attempts have been fired with a defender closer than four feet, per NBA.com player tracking, thanks mainly to James Harden's presence and gravity.

Mirza Teletovic is my other nominee. While the Suns play three games this week, Teletovic has made 2.6 threes per game in the last seven in fewer than 20 minutes per night. His fluctuating role and minutes are concerning, and with Markieff Morris back in the rotation, all bets are off when it comes to Hornacek, Brandon Knight and P.J. Tucker notwithstanding. However, Teletovic has played substantial minutes as the center, resulting in many open looks from deep.