This article is part of our NBA Barometer series.
Gaining Value
Justise Winslow, MIA: Winslow has been thriving in his role as the primary ball handler for the Heat in the absence of Goran Dragic (knee), a role that's led to the third-year pro racking up a trio of 20-point efforts, including a near triple-double, in three of his last four games. The 22-year-old has also complemented his offense with an uptick in steals, compiling 11 swipes alone over that four-game period.Malik Beasley, DEN: Gary Harris' hip injury played a significant part, but Beasley's recent surge has put him on the fantasy map moving forward. The 22-year-old appears to have carved himself out a sizable backcourt rotation role with contributions that include three 20-point efforts in the last four games and six straight double-digit scoring tallies overall. Beasley has seen no fewer than 26 minutes during those outings, and he's now shooting 46.2 percent from the field, including 40.6 percent from three-point range – both career highs.
Tomas Satoransky, WAS: John Wall will miss the remainder of the season due to Achilles surgery, thrusting Satoransky into a starting point guard role he's proven capable of handling in the past. The 27-year-old got his new first-unit tenure off to a great start with 20 points, six assists and four rebounds across 32 minutes versus the Hornets on Saturday night, and he'll see plenty of run moving forward as long as his health endures.
Honorable mention: Bradley Beal, WAS; Darren Collison, IND; Derrick White
Gaining Value
Justise Winslow, MIA: Winslow has been thriving in his role as the primary ball handler for the Heat in the absence of Goran Dragic (knee), a role that's led to the third-year pro racking up a trio of 20-point efforts, including a near triple-double, in three of his last four games. The 22-year-old has also complemented his offense with an uptick in steals, compiling 11 swipes alone over that four-game period.Malik Beasley, DEN: Gary Harris' hip injury played a significant part, but Beasley's recent surge has put him on the fantasy map moving forward. The 22-year-old appears to have carved himself out a sizable backcourt rotation role with contributions that include three 20-point efforts in the last four games and six straight double-digit scoring tallies overall. Beasley has seen no fewer than 26 minutes during those outings, and he's now shooting 46.2 percent from the field, including 40.6 percent from three-point range – both career highs.
Tomas Satoransky, WAS: John Wall will miss the remainder of the season due to Achilles surgery, thrusting Satoransky into a starting point guard role he's proven capable of handling in the past. The 27-year-old got his new first-unit tenure off to a great start with 20 points, six assists and four rebounds across 32 minutes versus the Hornets on Saturday night, and he'll see plenty of run moving forward as long as his health endures.
Honorable mention: Bradley Beal, WAS; Darren Collison, IND; Derrick White; SAN
Losing Value
Tim Frazier, NOP: Elfrid Payton returned from a finger injury Monday and played 24 minutes, meaning a normal workload isn't far off. That leaves Frazier to return to the second unit and likely logging minutes in the low 20s on average moving forward. That's still a serviceable amount of playing time, but given that Frazier's usage is typically modest to begin with, his numbers should be in for a decline as compared to some of the production he was able to generate during his just-concluded starting stint.FORWARDS
Gaining Value
Kyle Anderson, MEM: Anderson sports a well-earned reputation as a defensive specialist who's capable of the occasional solid offensive performance. However, he's picked it up on that end of the floor over the last seven games, scoring in double digits on six occasions while shooting an eye-popping 70.4 percent over that span. Anderson is supplementing that scoring with a career-high 6.0 rebounds and 2.9 assists for the season, and he's taking a career-high 6.3 shot attempts per game.Julius Randle, NOP: Nikola Mirotic's prolonged absence has given Randle, already a starting-quality player, extended minutes with which to do plenty of damage. The talented scorer has put up between 23 and 33 points in his last four, and he's eclipsed 20 points in five of six overall. Three of those contests have also qualified as double-doubles, as Randle is now banging the boards to the tune of 9.4 rebounds per game, the second-highest figure of his career.
Honorable mention: Paul Millsap, DEN
Losing Value
Rodney McGruder, MIA: McGruder was running hot earlier in the season, but he's seen a noticeable downturn of late. The third-year wing started December off with four double-digit scoring efforts in the first five games, but he went on to reach 10 points only once in the subsequent seven games. McGruder even went scoreless over 23 minutes against the Pelicans on Dec. 23, and he could conceivably shift out of the starting small forward job of Derrick Jones, Jr. continues to emerge.CENTERS
Gaining Value
Willy Hernangomez, CHA: Hernangomez is set for a multi-week run as the starting center now that Cody Zeller has gone down with a broken hand. The third-year big has proven capable of handling extra minutes well in the past, such as when he averaged a solid 8.2 points and 7.0 rebounds across 18.4 minutes in 22 games during his rookie 2016-17 campaign in New York. He'll likely be in for a larger allotment of playing time in his upcoming stint with the first unit, which should afford him plenty of opportunity to display his strong shooting and rebounding skills, while even occasionally spacing the floor with a three-point attempt.Luke Kornet, NYK: Kornet has made waves the last three games, taking advantage of absences on the part of both Mitchell Robinson (ankle) and Enes Kanter (back). Kornet has seen between 27 and 34 minutes over his last three games, and while that playing time won't be sustainable over the long term, he's making it increasingly difficult to be kept out of the picture even when the frontcourt returns to full health. The 7-foot-1 Kornet is shooting a 48.1 percent on 3.3 three-point attempts per contest for the season, including 62.5 percent over the last three games.
Honorable mention: D.J. Wilson, MIL
