Fantasy basketball takeaways from NBA Opening Night
The NBA is back, and what a night it was to kick off the season! With just two games on the slate Tuesday, a championship banner was raised in Boston, and history was made in Los Angeles. Those moments aside, here's a recap of Opening Night in the NBA.
Knicks @ Celtics
🏀 Celtics trounce Knicks in record-tying fashion
The Boston Celtics celebrated their 18th championship by defeating the New York Knicks 132-109. If you were looking for angry Jayson Tatum, you found him. Tatum led the charge with 37 points, 10 assists and eight 3s, contributing to Boston's NBA record-tying 29 three-pointers. Teammates Derrick White and Jaylen Brown added 24 and 23 points, respectively.
Despite trailing by as many as 35 points, the Knicks saw Jalen Brunson score 22 points, while newcomer Karl-Anthony Towns managed just 12 points with seven boards in 23 minutes.
🚨 Waiver wire alert
Miles "Deuce" McBride looked all the parts of a darkhorse sixth-man of the year candidate. He carried the Knicks in the first half, scoring 14 points (5-for-5, 2-2 3PT, 2-3 FT). He finished with 22 points, four 3s, and two assists in only 25 minutes.
At only 10% rostered, he should be added in all 12 team leagues now that he's likely getting around 25 minutes per night.
👓 Players to watch
I've warned you about drafting Mikal Bridges, and that suspect jumper looks terrible. Bridges went scoreless in the first half, shooting 0-for-5 from the field and 0-4 from three. He settled back in after halftime and finished the contest 7-for-13 from the field and 2-for-7 from deep. He registered a couple of assists but it was otherwise a mediocre showing on both ends from the mid-round fantasy pick.
It's only one game so don't panic about OG Anunoby's forgetful performance of four points (1-7 FG, 0-4 3PT, 2-2 FT) with five boards, three assists and a steal. Playing a team-high 34 minutes (along with Bridges) is encouraging and as long as he's healthy, he'll be one of the better stock aggregators in the league.
Timberwolves @ Lakers
🏀 Lakers win first home opener in eight years — make history in the process
In a historic NBA moment, LeBron James and his son Bronny became the first father-son duo to play together, sharing the court for the Lakers in a 110-103 win over the Timberwolves. Anthony Davis dominated with 36 points, 16 rebounds, four assists and three blocks, while LeBron finished with 16 points, five boards, four assists and two blocks.
Anthony Edwards debuted with 27 points (10-25 FG, 5-13 3PT, 2-3 FT), six rebounds and three assists. Rudy Gobert had 13 points with 14 boards (and got paid), while Julius Randle fell a rebound shy of a double-double, ending his night with 16 points, nine rebounds and four dimes. Several times throughout the game, Randle looked disinterested — which tells me it'll take time for his style to mesh with the Wolves. The Minnesota bench held it down, scoring 36 bench points between Naz Reid, Donte DiVincenzo and Nikeil Alexander-Walker.
😯 Unexpected Developments
The Lakers committing to playing through Davis will do wonders for his fantasy value. He's also been vocal about wanting to be Defensive Player of the Year.
Lakers rookie Dalton Knecht is playing well enough to be in the rotation, but with just 15 minutes in game 1, he'll likely need an injury or a boost in playing time to be fantasy-relevant. I'm surprised he's 34% rostered.
Mike Conley played 20 minutes compared to backup point guard Donte DiVincenzo, playing 31. It's a timeshare worth monitoring because if Conley's age catches up to him, DVV could be the preferred option in real life and fantasy.
Rui Hachimura was aggressive and confident offensively, attacking downhill and easily getting to his spots. He admitted post-game that the Lakers planned to take advantage of Julius Randle standing around, and did he. Hachiumura (53% rostered) ended up with a well-rounded 18 points, five boards, one assist, two steals and a block. He's worth adding in all shallow leagues after impressing in 35 minutes.
Closing buzzer
Opening night gave us a taste of what's to come in this NBA season: a barrage of 3s with a mix of heroics, history and standout (and letdown) performances. For fantasy managers, the key takeaway is not to overreact but to be ready to move on players like Deuce McBride. We're back to the 10-game slate on Wednesday, so happy hooping!
