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Box Score Breakdown -- Wednesday, October 29th

Tuesday was but an appetizer to Wednesday's jam packed, full slate of games, with 24 teams in action. Naturally, there were players going crazy, and others driving their fantasy owners crazy, but as always, the Box Score Breakdown will have you covered.

ADD ME! ADD ME!

Although his value is set to be reduced considerably within the next three weeks, for now, Tony Wroten of the Philadelphia 76ers is a must add in all leagues - providing you can wear his horrible efficiency stats. Starting in place of Michael Carter-Williams on Wednesday, Wroten scored 22 points (9-21 FG, 1-4 3Pt, 3-8 FT) with eight rebounds, seven assists, and three steals in 35 minutes. With a roster of devoid of talent and the fact the Wroten is owned in just seven percent of ESPN leagues and 31 percent of Yahoo league, mean the time is now for you to add him to your roster, at least until we see MCW back on the court.

DROP HIM LIKE HE'S HOT

As with yesterday's "drop him like he's hot", it's too early to be calling for an outright drop of players you spent a valuable draft pick on, but if you grabbed Perry Jones III after you heard he would be the replacement at small forward while Kevin Durant is out, you would be left wondering how someone could be so unproductive in 31 minutes. Jones scored just three points (1-9 FG, 0-3 3Pt, 1-2 FT) with three rebounds in those minutes and I'd venture a guess there will be some other options on your waiver wire who will likely be better options. As with all of these recommendations, the size of your league is of paramount consideration.

M.I.A.

These guys all sat out Wednesday's action.

  • Bucks
    • Kendall Marshall (DNP-CD)
  • 76ers
    • Luc Mbah a Moute (personal)
    • Michael Carter-Williams (shoulder)
  • Pacers
    • C.J. Watson (foot)
    • David West (ankle)
    • George Hill (knee)
  • Nets
    • Brook Lopez (foot)
  • Wizards
    • Martell Webster (back)
    • Nene (suspended)
    • Bradley Beal (wrist)
  • Heat
    • Josh McRoberts (toe)
    • Danny Grange (DNP-CD)
  • Bulls
    • Jimmy Butler (thumb)
  • Knicks
    • Andrea Bargnani (hamstring)
    • Jose Calderon (calf)
  • Timberwolves
    • Kevin Martin (ankle)
  • Pistons
    • Meeks (back)
    • Greg Monroe (suspended)
  • Nuggets
    • J.J. Hickson (suspended)
  • Lakers
    • Nick Young (thumb)
    • Xavier Henry (DNP-CD)
  • Suns
    • P.J. Tucker (suspended)
  • Warriors
    • David Lee (hamstring)
  • Thunder
    • Kevin Durant (foot)
    • Reggie Jackson (ankle)
    • Anthony Morrow (knee)
    • Jeremy Lamb (back)

CASUALTY WARD

Thankfully, we escaped any major injuries, with the only health concern coming out of Wednesday's games being Patrick Beverley's strained hamstring. Beverley left the action after logging 31 minutes and scoring seven points (3-6 FG, 1-3 3Pt) with two rebounds, two assists, and one steal and at the time of writing, it is unknown if it will cause him to miss any time. We'll consider him questionable for now. If he does miss, Isaiah Canaan would likely start, but all in all, it means that even more of the ball-handling responsibilities will fall to superstar, James Harden, something his owners have to relishing after two dominant performances to start the season.

BOX SCORE HIGHLIGHTS AND ODDITIES

The NBA is back and it's time to delve a little deeper into the stats that our favorite, (and not so favorite) players put up.

The major takeaway from the Bucks' first game is that Jason Kidd is still going to be a frustrating coach for our purposes in fantasy basketball world. Kidd started Brandon Knight, Jared Dudley, Khris Middleton, Jabari Parker, and Larry Sanders, leaving Giannis Antetokounmpo and Ersan Ilyasova to come off the bench. One thing that is certain is that Brandon Knight is the team's point guard. Kendall Marshall didn't get off the bench, while Knight led the Bucks with 22 points (5-17 FG, 2-4 3Pt, 10-10 FT), eight rebounds, 13 assists, and one block in 39 minutes. The field goal percentage was ugly, but he could rack up big numbers this year and be a candidate to this season's Kyle Lowry -  a late round point guard who vaults into the top 30.

Are we living in a world where Michael Kidd-Gilchrist shoots 75 percent from the floor? It appears so, as MKG dropped 17 points (6-8 FG, 5-6 FT) with eight rebounds, three assists, and three blocks in 34 minutes. He's available in a lot of leagues, but if this form keeps up, he wont be for long, so if you want defensive numbers, it's not crazy to add the third year man from Kentucky.

Kemba Walker hit a three to send the game against the Bucks to overtime, then hit the game winner with five seconds left to lead all scorers with 26 points (9-26 FG, 3-9 3Pt, 5-11 FT) and added six rebounds, five assists, one steal, and one block in 39 minutes.

While George Hill is out with his knee issue, Donald Sloan could be an interesting add in most leagues. Bearing in mind it was against the Sixers, Sloan had 16 points (6-13 FG, 1-4 3Pt, 3-4 FT), 10 rebounds, six assists, and one steal in 34 minutes and there's only Rodney Stuckey to relieve him, so expect fairly consistent minutes.

Kyle Korver was lights out, hitting six of his seven three-point shots for 20 in total and a bonus three blocks. He only hit one shot that wasn't from beyond the arc and is almost a top 10 player in leagues counting three-pointers and three-point percentage. Don't let him rot on your waiver wire.

Al Horford made a triumphant return from his torn pectoral muscle, double-doubling with 12 points (6-15 FG), 13 rebounds, three assists, one steal, and three blocks in 31 minutes. People may have got a big steal with Horford sliding into the fourth round of many drafts.

Amir Johnson was superb for the Raptors, blocking four shots to go with a double-double of 16 points (7-15 FG, 2-2 FT) and 10 rebounds. He's the Raptors' starting power forward for this season and is a solid fantasy player, although is often overlooked. This shouldn't be considered too much of a surprise.

No Brook Lopez for the Nets, so that allowed Mason Plumlee to start, but he racked up four fouls in just 11 minutes and wasn't much of a factor. In stepped Mirza Teletovic, who unsurprisingly, let it fly from deep, pouring in 20 points (8-11 FG, 4-6 3Pt) with six rebounds and two blocks in just 23 minutes. One wonders if that sort of line is reproducible when Lopez returns and Plumlee stays on the court, but for now, if you need triples, you could do a lot worse.

Still with the Nets, Deron Williams looked spry and productive, getting 19 points (6-16 FG, 0-3 3Pt, 7-7 FT) with eight assists, and two steals in 39 minutes. The ankles didn't look like an issue and we can only hope things stay this way.

Rajon Rondo beat his return timetable to start his team's opener and got close to a triple-double with 13 points (6-9 FG, 1-3 3Pt, 0-4 FT), seven rebounds and 12 assists, with one steal and one block in 30 minutes. Marcus Smart still played 28 minutes, while Avery Bradley (30 minutes) and Marcus Thornton (14 minutes) rounded out the guard rotation. Smart will still have low-end standard league value for his ability to get steals, of which he had four in his NBA debut.

Chris Bosh looked like Toronto Chris Bosh, double-doubling with 26 points (9-18 FG, 3-4 3Pt, 5-5 FT) and 15 rebounds in 39 minutes. The more interesting note from the Heat, was the fact that Norris Cole started over Mario Chalmers and looked good doing it. Cole had 23 points (9-15 FG, 3-7 3Pt, 2-2 FT) with three rebounds and two assists, and while it's a nice line, I wouldn't be dropping anyone of value for him just yet, particularly in 10 team leagues. Let's see how he looks in the Heat's next matchup.

The Bulls-Knicks matchup was a 104-80 blowout, which is actually flattering to the Knicks, so its hard to read much from the numbers. Considering Derrick Rose, who plays for Tom Thibodeau, played just 21 minutes, you can assume this was not your normal rotation.

As mentioned in the offseason, Nikola Pekovic appeared to be on a minutes limit, even with Marc Gasol going off on the other end. Pekovic played just 29 minutes, scoring five points (2-9 FG, 1-2 FT) with eight rebounds and one block, while Gorgui Dieng had six points (3-4 FG), eight rebounds and three blocks in 19 minutes. This could be a messy situation for fantasy owners, with neither guy asserting themselves to assure 100 percent ownership.When Pekovic does get injured, Dieng is an obvious must-add.

I mentioned Gasol going off, and go off he did, scoring 32 points (12-17 FG, 8-10 FT) with nine rebounds, three assists, two steals, and two blocks in 37 minutes. Remember, Gasol was a top 15 player in 2012-13, so this is not a flash in the pan anomaly.

Dwight Howard had his second straight double-double and surprisingly didn't murder your team's free throw percentage. Dwight had 22 points (10-16 FG, 2-3 FT) with 10 rebounds and two blocks, fouling out after 32 minutes. More often than not, the free throws will be an unclimbable mountain.

It only took Derrick Favors 27 minutes to notch three steals and four blocks, as well as 16 points and seven rebounds in a dominant performance.

The Rudy Gobert anticipation was not warranted, with the Frenchman getting two points (1-1 FG), three rebounds and one steal in 20 minutes. If there's a hot guy on your wire, I would consider cutting bait in a shallow league.

Brandon Jennings started at point guard, but only played 20 minutes, scoring four points (2-4 FG) with four rebounds and two assists compared with D.J. Augustin , who played 28 minutes. Augustin had 15 points (5-10 FG, 2-6 3Pt, 3-4 FT) with six rebounds and three assists and a timeshare could be brewing. I wouldn't be hasty in cutting ties with Jennings, but if your roster construction allows it, Augustin is a nice speculative add.

Ty Lawson started, despite his hamstring issue in the preseason, but looked out of sorts completely. He scored just three points (1-7 FG, 1-2 FT) with five assists in 33 minutes. It may be worth throwing a very low-ball offer at his owner to see if they are panicking yet.

Timofey Mozgov played 25 minutes as the starter at center si the clear choice over JaVale McGee and Jusuf Nurkic. He double-doubled and added to blocks and may still be available in your league. Have a sneak peak at the wire and see if you can add him to your squad.

Ed Davis outplayed Carlos Boozer at power forward, scoring 14 points (6-10 FG, 2-5 FT) with nine rebounds, two steals and two blocks in 32 minutes, compared with Boozer's four and four in 23 minutes. Bear in mind, Boozer outplayed Davis on Tuesday, so don't overspend to get Davis onto your roster as Boozer still projects to be the better player.

Isaiah Thomas led the three-headed Phoenix point guard monster in scoring with 23 points (9-11 FG, 5-7 3Pt, 0-2 FT) and three assists in just 20 minutes. Goran Dragic and Eric Bledsoe were both still productive and it looks like all three guys will be ownable in all leagues.

Draymond Green started for David Lee and put up a nice double-double of 12 points (4-7 FG, 2-2 3Pt, 2-4 FT) and 10 rebounds in 34 minutes. He also played center with Andrew Bogut limited to 18 minutes with a migraine.

In the backcourt, it was Darren Collison who started and looked the much better player, scoring 13 points (4-12 FG, 1-4 3Pt, 4-6 FT) with four rebounds, eight assists, and five steals in 36 minutes. By contrast, Ramon Sessions played just 10 minutes and it makes it hard to recommend Sessions over Collison in any format based on Wednesday's rotation.

Russell Westbrook did his best to win the game himself for the Thunder, leading all scorers across the NBA with 38 points (11-26 FG, 1-2 3Pt, 15-16 FT), six assists and three steals in only 32 minutes. We are going to see some monster lines from Westbrook while Durant is out especially if Reggie Jackson and Jeremy Lamb continue to miss time.

FANTASY LINE OF THE NIGHT

Tuesday night, it was consensus top four pick Anthony Davis. Wednesday, another top four guy shone, with Steph Curry blowing up with 24 points (7-17 FG, 2-9 3Pt, 8-9 FT), 10 rebounds, five assists, and six steals in 36 minutes. His shooting touch wasn't quite there, but it's hard to argue with the peripheral stats and we are going to be in for a high class season if the best players keep putting up the best lines. It's your move now, LeBron James.

ROOKIE OF THE NIGHT

With the number one and number two draft picks debuting Wednesday, odds were high one of them would post the line of the night. But, it was a guy drafted number 48, way back in 2012, that would steal the limelight. Kostas Papanikolaou of the Houston Rockets had 12 points (4-7 FG, 4-6 3Pt), two rebounds, four assists, one steal, and one block in 22 minutes off the bench. He played 20 minutes in the opener Tuesday and is a guy that must be owned in any league with 14 teams or more as Houston is thin behind Trevor Ariza at small forward.

NIGHTLY LEADERS

Points

  1. Russell Westbrook, G, OKC, 38 points
  2. Marc Gasol, C, MEM, 32 points
  3. Kobe Bryant, G, LAL, 31 points

Rebounds

  1. Kenneth Faried, F, DEN, 17 rebounds
  2. Chris Bosh, C, MIA, 15 rebounds
  3. Zach Randolph, F, MEM, 13 rebounds
  4. Al Horford, C, ATL, 13 rebounds
  5. Lance Stephenson, G, CHA, 13 rebounds

Assists

  1. Brandon Knight, G, MIL, 13 assists
  2. Rajon Rondo, G, BOS, 12 assists
  3. John Wall, G, WAS, 11 assists

Steals

  1. Steph Curry, G, GSW, 6 steals
  2. DeMar DeRozan, G, TOR, 6 steals
  3. Darren Collison, G, SAC, 5 steals

Blocks

  1. Roy Hibbert, C, IND, 7 blocks
  2. Derrick Favors, C, UTA, 4 blocks
  3. Amir Johnson, F, TOR, 4 blocks
  4. Al Jefferson, C, CHA, 4 blocks
  5. Serge Ibaka, F, OKC, 4 blocks
  6. Andrew Bogut, C, GSW, 4 blocks

Three-Pointers

  1. Kyle Korver, G, ATL, 6-7 3Pt
  2. Wes Matthews, G, POR, 5-9 3Pt
  3. Isaiah Thomas, G, PHX, 5-7 3Pt
  4. Marcus Morris, F, PHX, 5-9 3Pt

Minutes

  1. Al Jefferson, C, CHA, 40 minutes
  2. Marcin Gortat, C, WAS, 40 minutes
  3. Lance Stephenson, G, CHA, 40 minutes
  4. Arron Afflalo, G, DEN, 40 minutes