Let’s give it some love Scottie Barnes. Of Jakob Poeltl Left out, Barnes started at center and responded with a stat line that few players in history have ever produced: 23 points, 25 rebounds, 10 assists, 3 steals and a block. On the one hand, this stellar performance came out of nowhere as he had just 27 rebounds in his previous four games combined. And yet, this outing personifies why Barnes is one of the most unique, elite players in fantasy basketball, because he can do absolutely anything, seemingly at any time.
When you look at Barnes’ game log, the first thing you notice is how all over the place his production is. Barnes has scored 14 or fewer points in three of his last five games and five of his last 10. That’s an unusually erratic score from a top-20 fantasy player, and the rest of his numbers are similarly up and down. Sometimes he has nights where he has double-digit rebounds, and sometimes he has nights where he barely has any rebounds; he had four threes in a game against the Knicks a month ago and no threes in his last four games; his three steals on Sunday are as many steals as he had in his previous five games. Just three games earlier, Barnes had managed just six points, six rebounds and one assist in a game.
However, it is in totality that you can appreciate how great Barnes is, even if it can be frustrating to have him around at times. Think of Scottie Barnes as a fantasy slot machine that keeps paying out money regularly even if you don’t win the jackpot with him. Sure, you get occasional lines from him that are fair to mediocre and you wonder if he’s actually overrated, but you also get excellent defensive stats and unique stats that are a boon to your team even if you can’t possibly rely on them. Add to that the fact that Barnes hasn’t missed a game this season and there are very few players in all of fantasy basketball who have provided more value than him this season.
Barnes could very well go for 14 rebounds and 5 rebounds in his next game and it wouldn’t be the least bit unusual, which is a very strange thing to say about one of the best players in fantasy. But Barnes’ value lies not only in his ability to produce in every category, but also in his ability to make great outings on all of his outings. He’ll never consistently reach the peaks that other higher-ranked players will, but Barnes is also one of the few players in the league capable of putting up a 23-25-10 line, and that’s something to admire.
Other notes:
One game after scoring 21 points, Keon Ellis came back down to earth and produced 2 points and no steals, assists or rebounds against Lakers. This was his second straight start and while the prospect of him getting regular playing time for once is interesting, he’s too unreliable to be anything more than a streamer at this point.
Not to be left behind, Marcus Slim also had a dud on Sunday, scoring 0 points in 21 minutes. He’s still primed to be a solid player over the next month Austin Reaves however, is recovering from a calf injury.
Brook Lopez scored 7 points, 7 rebounds, 2 steals and a block on Sunday. He has previously scored 31 in his game and seems like a very good player to own Ivica Zubac is coming back from his ankle sprain.
Jaren Jackson Jr. has found new life Zach Edey out and scored 31 points, 8 rebounds and 4 blocks on Sunday. He’s been playing great lately, which is a welcome change considering how anemic his production was before Edey got hurt.
Bilal Coulibaly played well on Sunday, collecting 14 points, 8 rebounds, 3 steals and 2 blocks. This is a typical Coulibaly stat and while he gets hurt all the time and is hard to trust, his ability to do a little bit of everything will always be attractive.
Bub Carrington had 12 points, 7 assists, 4 rebounds and 8 turnovers (yikes) in his last game. He has been quietly playing well lately, although it is difficult to have much enthusiasm for him for so long C.J. McCollum plays for him.
bumped into the couch, Sandro Mamukelashvili was still serviceable with 13 points, 6 rebounds and 2 steals against the Warriors. In his current situation, he is just a streamer.
Daniel Gafford had 11 points, 7 rebounds and a block in a spot start against the Kings. If he can return to a regular starting job, he would be a great player to add.
Tim Hardaway Jr. scored 20 points in his start on Saturday and has scored at least 19 points in his last four games. You’re not going to get much more than points and threes from him, but with Cameron Johnson, Aaron Gordon And Christian Braun Due to injuries, Hardaway Jr. should get heavy playing time in the near future.
Anthony Black continued his rise over the weekend, collecting 38 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 blocks against Denver. Naturally, his production has been helped Franz Wagner And Jalen Suggs is out, but Black has looked simply incredible lately and should be kept even when the Magic are back at full strength.
Jordan Poole scored only 1 point on Saturday. It was an aberration, but his role with the Pelicans leaves little to be desired, especially for so long Zion Williamson gets off the couch at the same time as him. He is not someone who should be owned by fantasy leagues.
Jay Huff had 11 points, 1 rebound and 3 blocks in 22 minutes on Saturday. The good news is that Huff is still blocking jerks at a steady pace. The bad news is that he doesn’t do anything else at all and his minutes have dropped over the past week, leaving him just a streamer in most leagues – albeit a valuable one.
Ryan Rollins returned to the starting five for Milwaukee and had 20 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists and 5 threes. It was strange when he was removed from the starting lineup, but his production should be good regardless of his role.
Jarett Allen had just 6 points, 4 rebounds and a block over the weekend. He makes for a good buy-low considering the average season he’s had.
Dylan Harper did good things against the Jazz, with 7 points, 12 assists and 7 rebounds against the Jazz. That’s two of three games in which Harper has collected double-digit assists. His production this year will be hampered by how deep San Antonio is, but he looks like he could be a fantasy beast someday.
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