James Harden is unreal. Over his last 10 contests, he is averaging 40.8 points per game. Kobe Bryant (three times) and Michael Jordan (twice) are the only other players to score at least 400 points over a 10-game stretch in the last 30 years.
During the month of December, Harden scored 546 total points, 115 more than any other player (Paul George was second). For fantasy owners in both points and category leagues, he’s closing in on the top overall spot in terms of value (I’d still take Anthony Davis for No. 1 by the slightest margin) and there aren’t many players who are better to build around in daily leagues.
Harden is gunning for a second MVP and absolutely belongs in that conversation. Any talk of his unworthiness for a second trophy can only add fuel to his fire, which bodes well for employing him in the fantasy basketball world.
The Rockets are in action tonight against the Warriors in a night of great matchups. The Nuggets are visiting the Kings, while the Spurs will host Kawhi Leonard and the Raptors in the small forward’s first game back in San Antonio since being traded.
Let’s take a look at some more stats and notes surrounding these matchups, along with a few trends from around the league:
- Eric Gordon won’t play for the Rockets for the second straight contest, keeping the door ajar for Austin Rivers to continue playing a major role. Rivers has been busy since signing with Houston, averaging 35.6 minutes per game (only Harden and P.J. Tucker have received more MPG since Rivers made his debut).
- DeMar DeRozan is enjoying a solid season for the Spurs, but beware of inserting him into daily lineups tonight against his former team. Leonard will play and DeRozan has struggled when going up against the two-time Defensive Player of the Year. Over the last four seasons, DeRozan has made just 28 of his 58 attempts when playing against Leonard and has only attempted 19 free throws.
- Since the start of December, no player has seen more minutes per game (39.3) than Wizards guard Bradley Beal. With John Wall out, expect Beal to continue to be among the league leaders in court time.
- D’Angelo Russell had arguably the best game of his career for the Nets on Wednesday, scoring 22 points and dishing out 13 assists while committing just one turnover. Since Christmas Day, only six players have a higher usage rate than the former No. 2 overall pick and if Russell can keep the turnovers down, his fantasy value will continue to rise.
Fantasy questions? Take to the comment section below or tweet me at @CW_Crouse.
Missed an earlier edition of Fantasy Hoops? Check out the entire series here.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
I think that DeRozan is going to have a really strong game against the Raptors tonight.
I think the Raptors will win, but DeMar should have a great game.
Should I hold on to Trae Young?
I’d consider trading Trae Young. In 9-cat leagues, the turnovers and shooting percentage kill his value. He still has some unwarranted hype stemming from his top-5 pick status. See if you can use that to land someone who has a more balanced game.
Wilt Chamberlain averaged 50 points per game for an entire season. Conceivably he had 500 points over a 10 game stretch. The writer should learn some history before reporting inaccuracies as facts.
That should’ve said within the last 30 years, not all-time. It’s fixed now.
Good! Accuracy is important when dealing with facts.
Points are irrelevant without the context of FG%. 40 points on 30% shooting will lose a game. 40 points on 50% shooting is amazing. 40%/ 50% / 90% on 3FG% / FG% / FT% should be the goal
Definitely don’t play DeRozan… Uhhh… Yeah. Triple doubles stink.