With Halloween in the rear view and Daylight Savings on the horizon, Kawhi Leonard and Jimmy Butler witnessed Ricky Rubio (4 years/$55 million) and Klay Thompson (5 years/$70 million) reach contract extensions with their respective clubs. I'm a big fan of players working for their next contract. Others fitting that description include Tobias Harris, Enes Kanter, and Brandon Knight.

HOUSE OF THE RISING SUNS

Miles Plumlee found himself in foul trouble. Enter Alex Len. The second year center scored a career-high 10 points (4-6 FG, 2-3 FT) and grabbed a career-high 11 rebounds in a career-high 32 minutes off the bench. It was an encouraging game against the champion Spurs and provided some evidence that Len is in fact a basketball player. Might as well throw him on your watch list in the event he figures it out and can stay healthy. Offensively, he's only effective on the dive and as the garbage man, so the points will fluctuate when given the minutes. Make no mistake, Len is a quality rebounder who'll likely split minutes with Plumlee and whoever else coach Jeff Hornacek runs at center, namely Markieff Morris.

Isaiah Thomas led the team in scoring (23 points) and field goal attempts (17) in 29 minutes off the bench. He scored 18 of his 23 points (10-17 FG, 0-3 3Pt, 3-4 FT) in the second half and 10 points in the fourth quarter. Much like Taj Gibson in Chicago, Thomas is the one sitting pretty in Phoenix. Coming off the bench allows him to scorch second units and should either guy in front of him miss substantial time, Thomas' minutes and responsibility increase drastically. While Eric Bledsoe and Goran Dragic sport average usage rates, 20.1 and 21.2 respectively, Thomas' 32.1 usage rate in 12 fewer minutes ranks him 11th among all players who've played at least 20 minutes on the young season. Interestingly enough, all three guards have been on the court for only seven minutes and recorded a defensive rating of 71 and pace of 89 possessions per 48 minutes, per NBA.com. It's still too early to make anything of such a small sample size.

Goran Dragic started this regular season 0-of-4 from behind the arc. During the preseason, Dragic connected on 5-of-18 three-pointers. I'm concerned, but not surprised. Last season, Dragic shot 29 percent from deep without Channing Frye on the court. Two seasons ago, he shot 32 percent on three-pointers while Channing Frye sat the entire year with an enlarged heart. With Channing Frye in Orlando, he's forced to rely on Markieff Morris and Anthony Tolliver in the pick-and-roll game.

Gerald Green (Yahoo! ownership 85%, ESPN ownership 25%), averaging 21.5 minutes per game, should be in line to lose minutes when P.J. Tucker returns from his three-game suspension. Through two games, Green provided low level fantasy production with Jeff Hornacek depending on his three point guards to eat up minutes. I'd dump him for someone getting minutes like Kentavious Caldwell-Pope or Michael Kidd-Gilchrist.

HOSPITAL WARD

Four days into the season, Derrick Rose stopped the hearts of many Bulls fans when he suffered a sprained left ankle. He didn't return to the contest, but X-rays were negative. Prior to his evacuation, Rose contributed 20 points (8-16 FG, 2-6 3Pt, 2-3 FT), four rebounds and four assists in 25 minutes. The prudent move for Rose and the team is to keep him out of tonight's game in Minnesota, providing him three days of rest before their subsequent matchup Tuesday against Orlando. It was a minor injury, so owners need not panic.

Courtney Lee felt the full force of a Roy Hibbert knee to the back of his head at the end of the second quarter and did not return. Memphis' starting shooting guard scored 12 points (4-5 FG, 1-1 3Pt, 3-3 FT), grabbed four rebounds and dished out two assists in 16 minutes prior to the unfortunate diagnosis of a mild concussion. He'll need to pass league protocol before returning to the court, calling into question his availability tonight in Charlotte. Tayshaun Prince started the second half and played 17 minutes of uninspiring basketball after failing to come off the bench in the first half. Quincy Pondexter led all reserves with 23 minutes and failed to score. Vince Carter played just six minutes. Truth be told, don't worry about Lee's replacements in the interim.

K.J. McDaniels played well before exiting with a hip injury. He said after the game, "I played through it and it just got worse. It was severe." He failed to provide any blocks or steals, but registered 12 points (5-7 FG, 2-3 3Pt) in 14 minutes. The long distance shooting was a nice surprise. He's scheduled to have the hip area looked at today.

Taj Gibson sprained his left ankle in the fourth quarter but did return to close out the game, playing every minute of the overtime period. It's very possible the foot swells up, so monitor any Gibson news prior to tonight's game in Minnesota.

M.I.A.

Check out the notables who didn't participate last night.

• Chicago
  • Jimmy Butler (thumb)
• Indiana
  • David West (sprained right ankle)
  • George Hill (knee contusion)
  • C.J. Watson (bruised right foot)
• Los Angeles Lakers
  • Ryan Kelly (sore right hamstring)
• Philadelphia
  • Michael Carter-Williams (right shoulder)
• Phoenix
  • P.J. Tucker (suspension)

ROTATION NOTES

Kawhi Leonard returned from an eye infection and started in place of Marco Belinelli. He was limited to 24 minutes and missed all five shot attempts, but countered by converting all six free-throws and grabbing eight rebounds in limited duty. Austin Daye replaced Matt Bonner in the starting lineup after not playing in the season opener. Bonner received a DNP-CD against the fast-paced Phoenix Suns.

Luc Richard Mbah a Moute returned for the Sixers after missing the opener. He scored six points (2-5 FG, 0-2 3Pt, 2-4 FT), grabbed three rebounds, recorded two assists, and one steal and led all Sixers' reserves with 25 minutes off the bench. It's a veritable buffet offering one helping of food. Should K.J. McDaniels miss time with his hip, Mbah a Moute will be an interesting fantasy option in deep leagues.

Reggie Jackson is expected to return Saturday night for the Thunder from a sprained right ankle. He's only owned in 77 percent of Yahoo! leagues. Given the circumstances, that number should be closer to his ESPN ownership of 96 percent.

FANTASY LINE OF THE NIGHT

Rudy Gay's 40-point performance on 13-of-19 shooting was sensational. However, LeBron James provided much more than points, finishing the overtime victory against the Bulls with 36 points (14-30 FG, 1-3 3Pt, 7-9 FT), eight rebounds, four assists, four steals, and one block in 42 minutes. He even managed to limit his turnovers to a respectable three. My only concern with James for this season is the selective games of rest towards the end of the year. Having already played 43 and 42 minutes in Cleveland's back-to-back stint, James and the Cavaliers have three days off before returning to action in Portland.

ROOKIE OF THE NIGHT

During the Sixers broadcast, commentator Marc Zumoff mentioned a possible minute restriction on Nerlens Noel, which startled me as I was under the assumption there would be no restriction for the rookie. Well, Noel played 35 minutes for the second straight game and recorded his first career double-double, finishing with 14 points (7-11 FG), 10 rebounds, three blocks, two assists, and one steal. It'll be interesting to see how coach Brown handles Noel this season and how he'll jell with Michael Carter-Williams running the show instead of Tony "Wrecking Ball" Wroten.

NEAR TRIPLE-DOUBLE

Mike Dunleavy registered 14 points (5-10 FG, 4-7 3Pt), nine rebounds, team-high eight assists, two blocks, and one steal in 40 minutes against the Cavaliers last night. Jimmy Butler was absent for the second straight game and Derrick Rose left an offensive void late in the game. Dunleavy has proven in the past he's capable of such eye-popping stats. His problem has always been consistency.

Brandon Knight recorded 13 points (2-8 FG, 1-4 3Pt, 8-10 FT), eight assists, seven rebounds, and two steals in 29 minutes against the Sixers. The stat-stuffing is all you can ask from Knight, shooting just 7-of-25 from the field after two games. Of note, he played 10 fewer minutes than in Wednesday's season opener and only Jabari Parker played more than 30 minutes. Ten Bucks played at least 16 minutes and 12 played in total. When you give Jason Kidd depth, he'll make sure to use every square inch of nonexistent talent that would appease only the deepest fantasy leagues around.

Darren Collison continues to play Isaiah Thomas-like minutes in Sacramento. In 38 minutes, he contributed 17 points (6-14 FG, 0-3 3Pt, 5-6 FT), eight assists, eight rebounds, and three steals, effectively shutting up those expecting Ramon Sessions to steal the job, myself included. He's only owned in 77 percent of Yahoo leagues and his job feels safer than Detroit's Brandon Jennings.

BOX SCORE HIGHLIGHTS AND ODDITIES

With Patty Mills (shoulder) sidelined through January and the Phoenix Suns running a three point guard system, Tony Parker played 38 minutes last night, something he did four times last season. Parker also hit both three-point tries and sits a perfect 6-of-6 from downtown on the season. If you're looking for mirages, you've come to the right place.

Tristan Thompson recorded 13 rebounds, 12 of the offensive variety, in 36 minutes off the bench. For reference, Thompson grabbed five offensive boards in overtime and one of his regulation rebounds occurred after Pau Gasol swatted his shot and Thompson tracked it down. He proved last year he's a low-end double-double play, averaging 11.7 points and 9.2 rebounds per game. His issue derives from nonexistent production outside of those two categories. Well on Friday night, Thompson chipped in two blocks and two assists after zeroing out those secondary categories against the Knicks two nights ago. As long as Anderson Varejao is in the mix and you don't play in leagues that reward double-doubles, I'd hold off on Two-Cat Thompson.

Hollis Thompson attempted a career-high 19 field goals, knocking down just six. A predominately passive perimeter player, Thompson found himself attacking the paint and finished the game with 15 points and two three-pointers in 35 minutes. He's the only adequate three-point shooter in Philadelphia, solidifying his role in the starting lineup for the time being.

John Henson blocked six shots in 21 minutes. The opposition, Philadelphia, blocked five shots as a team.

Blake Griffin and LaMarcus Aldridge seem dead-set on incorporating the three-pointer into their offensive arsenal this season. While their teams didn't face each other, both guys sank top-of-the-key three-pointers. Griffin finished 2-of-2 from deep and Aldridge concluded 1-of-3 on the evening. Griffin also sank 11-of-12 from the charity stripe, exclaiming to the fantasy world that he's ready to provide first round value this season.

Jeremy Lin quelled any concerns fantasy owners may have had, piling up 17 points (7-13 FG, 3-6 3Pt), team-high nine assists, and one steal in 35 minutes against the Los Angeles Clippers. Every player will slump at some point this season. Just because they do so in their first two games doesn't mean they're destined to have a terrible season.

The Lakers managed to shoot 51 percent from the field, but ultimately lost to the Clippers, 118-111. I bring this up because they were wearing sleeved jerseys. The player most affected, Carlos Boozer, shot 3-of-9 from the field. Some of that is skill. On the opposite end of the spectrum, the Phoenix Suns defeated the San Antonio Spurs, 94-89, sporting their customary orange sleeved jerseys. Built like a linebacker Eric Bledsoe shot 3-of-15 from the field and missed six uncontested shots, clearly inhibited by the bicep-strangling jerseys.

The Sixers didn't score for the final eight minutes and twenty seconds against the Bucks and were outscored 20-7 in the fourth quarter. Tony Wroten recorded eight turnovers, half of his team's output.

DAN FORDEN AWARD*

O.J. Mayo showed signs of life, scoring a game-high 25 points (8-13 FG, 5-7 3Pt, 4-6 FT) in 28 minutes off the bench. With two solid back-to-back games, Mayo is back on fantasy radars. My concerns are twofold: 1) this outburst came at the mercy of the Philadelphia 76ers, who former Buck, Caron Butler, absolutely torched last season and 2) Jason Kidd's minute's distribution make it difficult for me to confidently add any Bucks' player off the waiver wire. Watch list guy, yes. Definite, indisputable add, not so fast, a.k.a hold the mayo.

QUOTE OF THE NIGHT

"If we were 0-70, then I would probably panic."

- Byron Scott

NIGHTLY LEADERS

Points

1. Rudy Gay, F, SAC: 40 points (13-19 FG, 3-4 3Pt, 11-13 FT)
2. Blake Griffin, F, LAC: 39 points (13-23 FG, 2-2 3Pt, 11-12 FT)
3. LeBron James, F, CLE: 36 points (14-30 FG, 1-3 3Pt, 7-9 FT)

Rebounds

1. Kevin Love, F, CLE: 16 rebounds (2 offensive)
2. Larry Sanders, C, MIL: 15 rebounds (1 offensive)
3. Zach Randolph, PF, MEM: 13 rebounds (7 offensive)
4. Joakim Noah, C, CHI: 13 rebounds (2 offensive)
5. DeAndre Jordan, C, LAC: 13 rebounds (4 offensive)
6. Tristan Thompson, PF, CLE: 13 rebounds (12 offensive)

Assists

1. Chris Paul, G, LAC: 10 assists (1 turnover)
2. Jeremy Lin, G, LAL: 9 assists (4 turnovers)
3. Darren Collison, G, SAC: 8 assists (3 turnovers)
4. Brandon Knight, G, MIL: 8 assists (3 turnovers)
5. Mike Dunleavy, F, CHI: 8 assists (3 turnovers)

Steals

1. Tony Allen, G, MEM: 5 steals
2. LeBron James, F, CLE: 4 steals
3. Kevin Love, F, CLE: 4 steals

Blocks

1. Pau Gasol, F, CHI: 6 blocks
2. John Henson, C, MIL: 6 blocks
3. Larry Sanders, C, MIL: 4 blocks

Three-Pointers

1.  O.J. Mayo, G, MIL: 5-7 3Pt
2. Mike Dunleavy, F, CHI: 4-7 3Pt
3. Damian Lillard, G, POR: 4-8 3Pt

Minutes

1.  LeBron James, F, CLE: 42 minutes
2. Kevin Love, F, CLE: 41 minutes
3. Mike Dunleavy, F, CHI: 40 minutes

*The Dan Forden Award is given to the player with the best long-distance shooting performance. It is named the Dan Forden Award after Dan Forden, audio technician for the Mortal Kombat series and the guy who popped up from the bottom right corner of the game and excitedly proclaimed "Toasty!"