If you were going to pick a backcourt pairing who could possibly go off for 50 point games during the season, Klay Thompson and Steph Curry would be right up the very top of the list, competing with Mo Williams and Corey Brewer for equal favoritism (don't laugh, both Williams and Brewer have dropped 50 in a game in the last 12 months). Steph saw Klay's 52 and tried to go better, but ended up one short. It matters not. The Warriors are awesome. And hopefully, so is your fantasy team.

THOSE EVER RELIABLE MILWAUKEE BUCKS

A couple of days ago, I extolled the virtues of Khris Middleton. Today, I not only stand by that, but double-down. Middleton needs to be owned in all leagues. Stat. A 21 point, seven rebound, seven assist and three steal night will cement that, which is what Middleton did against the Lakers on Wednesday. From a team where the only valuable fantasy option was Brandon Knight a month ago, Jason Kidd has settled down his rotations and has his team playing lights out. In addition to adding Middleton, if Giannis Antetokounmpo is floating free, you need to grab him as well. A career-high 25 points with one steal and two blocks came from the overtime victory against the Lakers, and for a guy who is shooting guard eligible, getting 2.0 blocks in his last four games is an amazing bonus. Those tricky Bucks, a playoff team and a newly discovered fantasy goldmine.

M.I.A.

These guys all sat out Wednesday's action, for one reason or another.

• Pacers
  • Donald Sloan (DNP-CD)
  • Lavoy Allen (knee)
• Hawks
  • Thabo Sefolosha (calf)
• Nuggets
  • Jameer Nelson (Achilles)
  • Randy Foye (DNP-CD)
• Celtics
  • Kelly Olynyk (ankle)
• Nets
  • Sergey Karasev (DNP-CD)
• Raptors
  • James Johnson (hamstring)
• Thunder
  • Kevin Durant (toe)
• Pelicans
  • Jrue Holiday (leg)
• Bulls
  • Mike Dunleavy (ankle)
• Rockets
  • Dwight Howard (knee)
• Lakers
  • Ronnie Price (DNP-CD)
  • Jordan Hill (hip)
• Bucks
  • Larry Sanders (suspended)
  • Ersan Ilyasova (groin)
  • Zaza Pachulia (calf)
• Heat
  • Shawne Williams (hip)
  • Udonis Haslem (DNP-CD)
  • Dwyane Wade (hamstring)
• Timberwolves
  • Shabazz Muhammad (abdominal)
• Magic
  • Aaron Gordon (foot)
• Spurs
  • Tiago Splitter (illness)
• Grizzlies
  • Vince Carter (foot)
• Jazz
  • Rodney Hood (foot)
• Mavericks
  • Rajon Rondo (facial fracture)

FANTASY LINE OF THE NIGHT

I couldn't go any other direction than Steph Curry. Curry just narrowly missed his career high, scoring 51 points (16-26 FG, 10-16 3Pt, 9-11 FT), adding four rebounds, four assists, and one steal in 37 minutes, in the Warriors come from behind destruction of the Mavericks. At this point, I would take Curry over every player bar Anthony Davis and James Harden in fantasy. Yes, even over Kevin Durant.

ROTATION NOTES AND QUIRKS

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope managed just three minutes due to a sore Achilles, but thankfully, it's not a serious injury and if he misses any time, it'll be minimal. Jodie Meeks and Caron Butler will get bumps, but not enough, nor for long enough, for me to grab them in standard leagues.

George Hill returned to the starting lineup and continued his per-minute bonanza, scoring 20 points with six assists in 26 minutes. If he's still on your waiver-wire, he must be owned, even with the current minutes restriction. C.J. Miles replaced Solomon Hill at the three, and hit four threes and is likely to have much more value than Hill from here on out. Given his streakiness and injury history, Miles is more a short-term add than long-term, but if he hits four three-pointers and nabs three steals like he did Wednesday, you'll take that short-term production.

Brian Shaw struck again, keeping Jusuf Nurkic on the bench for the final 18 minutes of Wednesday's contest, despite the fact that the rookie had 14 points, seven rebounds, one steal and three blocks in 21 minutes. Crazy potential, crazy coach. Those numbers are useful in all leagues, but the upside is palpable and if you can afford to take a few figurative zeroes, Nurkic is a nice add. If Shaw gets fired, a new coach could unleash the Bosnian Beast, and if that happens, look out.

Jared Sullinger was benched for the second time in three games due to missing the start of morning shootaround. Someone buy Sully an alarm clock! He still got 21 minutes off the bench, scoring 14 points with seven rebounds ad should be back starting for the next game. Until, at least, he hits the snooze button one too many times. Tyler Zeller got the start, but will likely make his way back to the bench for the next Celtics' game. Marcus Smart played 41 minutes and it appears that it's go time for Smart for the rest of the season. He scored just four points, but you love the 10 rebounds, eight assists, and three steals. The future is now.

Deron Williams and Brook Lopez both remained on the bench for the Nets, but played 33 and 28 minutes respectively and their status as a starter shouldn't impact their value as long as they get the minutes. Both guys were a little down, but that doesn't mean you give up.

Terrence Ross got hot, and consequently got 29 minutes, hitting five three-pointers for 23 points. I'm not getting overly excited, as he is just a points and threes type of guy, who is in a bench role. Until all of those things change, he can remain on waiver-wires. With Ross scorching, Greivis Vasquez was limited to 21 minutes and he hasn't really excited since entering the starting lineup. There is low-end 12 team league value there, but the ceiling is not high.

With no Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook went for 45 points with six rebounds and six assists in 40 minutes and as long as KD sits, you love what Russ can do. Dion Waiters started again and played 33 minutes, but once KD returns, there's not a lot Waiters offers in standard leagues, and Reggie Jackson is officially unownable in standard leagues, unless you have the capacity to stash. Four points and six rebounds will not cut it in leagues less than 14 teams.

Four Lakers' starters played less than 23 minutes in an overtime game, with only Wayne Ellington going over that mark. Ellington played 38 minutes and scored 19 points, and if you are prepared for some duds, he's a nice add. Guys like Robert Sacre, Tarik Black and Ryan Kelly, who all started, have zero value for most leagues. Jordan Clarkson, who struggled for two points in 23 minutes, still has value, but with this team one of the bigger messes in the league, anything is possible. Carlos Boozer, and Ed Davis both played big minutes, and balled out, with Boozer scoring 28 points and Davis grabbed 20 boards. Outside of Clarkson and Ellington, and even that is touch and go, no one is worth owning in standard leagues for the most part on this team.

John Henson played 38 minutes in the overtime victory, finally going over the 30 minute mark. That will likely end when Zaza Pachulia and/or Ersan Ilyasova return in the next few days, but you ave to like the four blocks he provided.

Hassanity is real. Hassan Whiteside had 24 points with 20 rebounds, three steals and two blocks. Whiteside is not owned in all leagues yet, somehow, but is the most surprising waiver-wire star since Linsanity all those years ago.

Kevin Martin played 40 minutes, and took 23 shots, scoring 30 points, but that impacted Andrew Wiggins' production. Wiggins took only eight shots for  six points and it feels inarguable that Martin's return will continue to impact Wiggins' output. He's not drop worthy, but don't expect January 2015 Andrew Wiggins as often now.

Gorgui Dieng played 27 minutes to Nikola Pekovic's 21 minutes and Pekovic said he was still dealing with ankle pain. Do not drop Dieng in leagues, even though he's on the bench. He is a much better fantasy player than Pekovic and the injury specter looms large over the Montenegrin. Zach LaVine returned to action and played eight minutes. His fantasy relevance is kaput.

With Aaron Gordon nursing a sore foot, the Magic added Evan Fournier back to the starting lineup, going with three guards and playing Tobias Harris at the four. All five starter notched double digits in scoring and if this lineup was to stick, it makes all players relevant in most leagues. Lord Elfrid Payton bounced back, playing 40 minutes and scoring 14 points with nine assists. He was poor the two previous games and if he was dropped, see if he fits your team.

Marco Belinelli returned to action after his lengthy absence due to a groin injury, playing 17 minutes off the bench. It's only deep leaguers that need pay any attention to Belinelli.

Jeff Green got only 21 minutes, but still was productive, scoring 13 points with a steal and block, and with Courtney Lee and Tony Allen still underwhelming, it feels like a blip.

Dante Exum continues to start, but continues to struggle. Exum has now totalled six points in his last five starts, going scoreless in three of those games. If you added him in standard leagues or even 14 team leagues, I don't like the chances of it working out. His backup, Trey Burke, is thriving in his new role, scoring 21 points in 31 minutes. If he is available, and he is available in a lot of places, he's a solid add.

The big man battle in Utah continued on and Rudy Gobert starting the second half Tuesday did not carry through, as Enes Kanter actually played the most minutes of the Jazz's triumvirate of talls. Kanter had 16 points and 10 rebounds, while Gobert had eight points, six rebounds, two steals and two blocks in 25 minutes, but both guys have value in standard leagues. The worry with Gobert is the limited minutes which crop up from time to time.

Al-Farouq Aminu played 25 minutes off the bench, and now has averaged 26 minutes in his last four games. He's someone to watch, given his ability to rack up defensive numbers. With Rajon Rondo (face) out indefinitely, J.J. Barea got his second straight start, scoring 10 points with four rebounds and five assists in 28 minutes and if you need some dimes in the next few weeks, Barea is available almost everywhere and should be added in every deep league.

BOX SCORE HIGHLIGHTS AND ODDITIES

Roy Hibbert had one of his better games, scoring 16 points with 12 rebounds and three blocks and through all the frustration, he needs to be owned everywhere. Just remember this next time he goes fr four and three.

DeMarre Carroll returned to the starting lineup and scored 14 points and as I always like to say, he sits on way too many waiver-wires.

Aside for Nurkic, all Nuggets' starters played over 30 minutes, with Kenneth Faried bouncing back with a 17 points, 11 rebound double-double. But, as always, Brian Shaw lurks to ruin our fantasy lives.

Avery Bradley is on a hot streak, scoring double-digits in nine straight games, hitting at least one three-pointer in 15 of his last 16 games. He's also getting steals, averaging 1.4 steals in his last seven. In short, Bradley may be available in your league and is worth a look.

Eric Gordon struggled for the first time in a while, hitting only 3-of-12 shots, but did add seven assists and until the injury bug bites, you have to keep owning Gordon.

Joakim Noah posted one of the oddest lines of the season, scoring one point with 19 rebounds and three assists. Noah is now averaging 12.2 boards in his past six games, but his scoring is still struggling, averaging only 7.7 pints on the season, severely cramping his fantasy value.

Josh Smith and Donatas Motiejunas both excelled in Dwight Howard's absence and if either guy is available, they are the clear pickup, especially over a guy like Terrence Jones, who played just 14 minutes. Smith is a head-to-head beast at times, and now, appears to be one of those times. He had nine points, 13 rebounds, four assists, two steals and two blocks. Hate Smith all you want, but your fantasy team may be able to benefit significantly from these sort of numbers.

Brandon Knight returned from a one game absence, and scored 24 points with seven rebounds and eight assists. With how well he's played this season, that sort of line is ho hum, a bizarre line of thinking given who Knight has been throughout his career.

Mo Williams added 10 assists off the bench, while Ricky Rubio had nine assists in his 23 minutes. As Rubio's minutes increase, Williams' will decrease, but you still may get one or two more standard league relevant performances from Williams.

Both Tim Duncan and Kawhi Leonard feasted on the Magic and their newly found fast pace, while Manu Ginobili added 13 points, six rebounds and 10 assists in 29 bench minutes. Before trading away Spurs' players because of fears about Gregg Popovich resting guys down the stretch, take some time to have a look at what Pop did for his number one seeded Spurs team last season. Spoiler alert - he didn't rest his guys.

Zach Randolph restarted his double-double streak, even hitting a three-pointer and the amazing season of Z-Bo continues.

NIGHTLY LEADERS

Points

1. Steph Curry, G, GSW, 51 points
2. Russell Westbrook, G, OKC, 45 points
3. Kevin Martin, G, MIN, 30 points

Rebounds

1. Hassan Whiteside, C, MIA, 20 rebounds
2. Ed Davis, F, LAL, 20 rebounds
3. Joakim Noah, C, CHI, 19 rebounds

Assists

1. Manu Ginobili, G, SAS, 10 assists
2. Kyle Lowry, G, TOR, 10 assists
3. Mo Williams, G, MIN, 10 assists

Steals

1. Thaddeus Young, F, MIN, 5 steals
2. Kawhi Leonard, F, SAS, 4 steals
3. Seven players tied with 3 steals

Blocks

1. Serge Ibaka, F, OKC, 6 blocks
2. John Henson, C, MIL, 4 blocks
3. Roy Hibbert, C, IND, 3 blocks
4. Jusuf Nurkic, C, DEN, 3 blocks
5. Draymond Green, F, GSW, 3 blocks

Three-Pointers

1. Steph Curry, G, GSW, 10-16 3Pt
2. O.J. Mayo, G, MIL, 5-8 3Pt
3. Terrence Ross, F, TOR, 5-11 3Pt
4. Wayne Ellington, G, LAL, 5-12 3Pt

Minutes

1. Khris Middleton, F, MIL, 45 minutes
2. Ty Lawson, G, DEN, 43 minutes
3. Giannis Antetokounmpo, F, MIL, 42 minutes
4. Serge Ibaka, F, OKC, 42 minutes
5. Victor Oladipo, G, ORL, 42 minutes