What’s New

Who is trending up? Which rotations are changing? What’s the latest with the notable injuries around the NBA?

Here’s a look around the league at the most fantasy relevant news and notes for all 30 teams:

Atlanta Hawks

Bogdan Bogdanovic (26.5% available) has been superb over the past six games. He has averaged 23 PPG, 3.4 RPG, 2.2 APG, and 1.4 SPG in 29 MPG. Trae Young scored 40 points for the fourth time in March on Wednesday, tied for the second-most in a calendar month in Hawks history. Only Dominique Wilkins had more with five 40-point games in Feb. 1988.

Boston Celtics

Robert Williams III will miss four to six weeks following surgery to repair a torn meniscus on Wednesday. Those looking for a well-rounded stat line should consider Daniel Theis (60% available) has averaged 14.7 points, 11.4 rebounds, and 2.4 assists per 40 minutes since returning to the Celtics at the deadline.

Brooklyn Nets

Get Andre Drummond (43.7% available) if you can. He has averaged 15.5 PPG, 11.3 RPG, 1.0 APG, 2.0 SPG, and 1.0 BPG in 26.2 MPG over the past four games and solidified the center position for the Nets.

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Charlotte Hornets

Kelly Oubre Jr. (42.4% available) has been struggling statistically recently. He’s has averaged 9.4 PPG and 3.5 RPG in 18 MPG, shooting 44.2% from the field over the past 11 games. However, he did score 21 points, shooting 72% from the field against the Knicks Wednesday night, so he may be turning things around.

Chicago Bulls

Fantasy managers who have Nikola Vucevic on their roster have had a roller coaster season. Billy Donovan recently mentioned publicly that the Bulls should involve him more. Vucevic averaged 19 PPG, 9.0 RPG, 3.0 APG, 1.5 SPG, and 1.0 BPG over the past four games,. He had a usage rate of 29% on Tuesday night against the Wizards

Cleveland Cavaliers

The Cavaliers will be without Evan Mobley for the next three games and Kevin Love (70% available) will benefit from it the most. He has averaged 13.4 PPG, 7.2 RPG, and 2.2 APG this season.

Dallas Mavericks

Luka Doncic has been a statistical monster in March. This month, he scored 30 or more points nine times. Dwight Powell is also having a great month. He’s averaged 12 PPG, 6.1 RPG and 1.6 APG in 25.3 MPG. He is available in 94% of ESPN leagues and plays a key role for the surging Mavericks.

Denver Nuggets

Nikola Jokic collected 449 points, 191 rebounds, 119 assists, 25 steals, and 21 block over the month of March. He is the first player to finish top-10 in all five categories in a calendar month since Kareem Abdul-Jabbar did it in March 1976. Abdul-Jabbar also won the MVP award that season despite the Lakers not making the playoffs.

Detroit Pistons

Marvin Bagley III (40% available) should be rostered. He has averaged 16 PPG, 7.2 RPG, 1.2 APG, and 1.0 SPG over his past 13 games. The tanking Pistons team should unleash Bagley III in their final games. Also Cade Cunningham became the first player to post multiple 30-point games for Detroit since Grant Hill had six straight from 1994 to 1995.

Golden State Warriors

Jordan Poole (14% available) is having a breakthrough season and has become a legitimate contender Most Improved Player. He has averaged 28 PPG, 5.0 RPG, and 5.7 APG over the past seven games.

Houston Rockets

Kevin Porter Jr. (29% available) became the youngest player in Rockets history to have a triple double on Wednesday night at 21 years old. He averaged 16.5 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 6.3 APG and 1.0 SPG in 32.4 MPG in March.

Indiana Pacers

Terry Taylor is worth adding in deeper and should continue to see significant minutes for a tanking Pacers team. He averaged 13.3 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 1.3 APG and 1.0 SPG in 29.3 MPG over the last six games played exceptionally well.

LA Clippers

Isaiah Hartenstein (88.3% available) has provided fantasy managers with top-50 value in category formats over the past two weeks. He’s averaged 12 PPG, 7.0 RPG, 6.0 APG, 1.3 SPG and 1.5 BPG. He is expected to see steady minutes the rest of the season.

Los Angeles Lakers

Malik Monk (70% available) has been one of the best offensive players for the Lakers as of late. He has averaged 24.7 PPG, 1.7 RPG, 3.7 APG, and 1.0 SPG in 31 minutes over the past three games. With LeBron James and Anthony Davis, Monk will continue to be heavily utilized. — Moody

Memphis Grizzlies

With Ja Morant likely to miss the rest of the regular season, De’Anthony Melton (82.5% available) has thrived in his increased role. He has averaged 20 PPG, 5.0 RPG, and 1.3 APG in 22.6 MPG over the past six games. Melton has also made 30 triples over that span.

Miami Heat

If you need points and triples consider adding Max Strus (99% available) in deeper formats. He’s averaged 11 points and 3.0 triples per game in two consecutive starts.

Milwaukee Bucks

The fantasy value of Brook Lopez (60% available) continues to rise at the expense of Bobby Portis. Lopez has averaged 12.5 PPG, 4.3 RPG, 1.0 APG, and 1.0 BPG in 25.7 MPG over his past four games. Meanwhile Portis has only averaged 7.0 PPG, 9.3 RPG, and 1.0 APG in 21.4 MPG this season.

Minnesota Timberwolves

Anthony Edwards is currently a top-50 player in category formats He became the youngest player in league history to make 200 triples in a season and the third-youngest player to reach 1,000 field goals, behind LeBron James and Kevin Durant. Edwards has averaged 19.2 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 4.1 APG, and 1.5 SPG over his past 11 games.

New Orleans Pelicans

Jonas Valanciunas had an outstanding year for the Pelicans, who have played with out Zion Williamson all season. Valanciunas has averaged 20 PPG and 12.5 RPG this season, producing for fantasy managers despite dealing with a sore foot the past few games.

New York Knicks

Obi Toppin (97% available) has averaged at least 10 PPG, 5.0 RPG and 2.0 APG in 23.3 MPG over five of his past six games, making him an interesting choice for deeper formats.

Oklahoma City Thunder

Aleksej Pokusevski (90% available) is an intriguing deep-league player If you need assistance in those statistical categories. He has averaged 13.2 PPG, 6.2 RPG, 6.2 APG, and 1.0 SPG in 32.4 MPG.

Orlando Magic

Franz Wagner (30% available) had an excellent rookie season, despite the Magic’s poor record. He has averaged 16.4 PPG, 4.0 RPG, 3.3 APG, and 1.1 SPG over the past seven games. Another excellent streamer is Markelle Fultz (90% available). Fultz has averaged 15.3 PPG, 4.7 APG, 1.7 RPG, and 2.7 SPG over the past three games.

Philadelphia 76ers

Tobias Harris has finally settled into a good rhythm after struggling to adjust to James Harden‘s arrival in Philadelphia. Harris has averaged 18 PPG, 7.0 RPG, 4.0 APG, and 1.0 SPG over the last four games, while shooting a phenomenal 53.4% from the field.

Phoenix Suns

Fantasy managers trying to win a championship have greatly benefited from the return of Chris Paul. Paul has averaged 17 PPG, 11.7 APG, 3.7 RPG, and 1.0 SPG in his first three games back and Phoenix has the best record in the league. It’s possible that the Suns will give him fewer minutes as they prepare for the postseason.

Portland Trail Blazers

If you’re looking for a player to fill out your team, Keon Johnson (99.7% available) is worth considering. Johnson has averaged 12 PPG, 3.0 RPG, and 2.0 APG in 29.6 MPG over the past four games and the rookie will likely see more action with the season coming to a close.

Sacramento Kings

If you need a streamer at power forward, Trey Lyles has been playing well as a starter recently and has an impressive per-game average in various statistical categories. He has averaged 14 PPG, 8.1 RPG, and 2.6 APG over the past seven games.

San Antonio Spurs

Devin Vassell (89% available) could be a compelling option for managers in deeper formats. He has averaged 13.4 PPG, 3.6 RPG, 2.3 APG, and 1.4 SPG in 31.4 MPG this season.

Toronto Raptors

Pascal Siakam has had an outstanding season, becoming one of the league’s top all-around players. Siakam recorded his first triple-double of the season on Wednesday night against the Timberwolves and has averaged 26.3 PPG, 8.2 RPG, and 6.0 APG over his past six games. Siakam will be a key piece to many fantasy championship teams.

Utah Jazz

Donovan Mitchell scored 33 points and had six assists against the Clippers Tuesday night, his 17th game this season with 30 points and five assists.

Washington Wizards

The Wizards are out of the playoff picture and Kyle Kuzma remains sidelined. As a result, Deni Avdija (90% available) will see significant minutes. He has averaged 14 PPG, 7.4 RPG, and 3.6 APG in 29.2 MPG over the past five games.

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Before Tuesday’s win in Washington, the Chicago Bulls had only won four of their previous fifteen games. The playoffs are five games away. Now is not the time to be plagued by sloppy turnovers, horrible defense, and inefficient shooting.

This Bulls team is better than that and they finally reminded us of their early-season poise, grit, and clutch shooting in possibly the best win of the season Thursday night against the playoff-bound Los Angeles Clippers.

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The Chicago Cubs are in a really weird situation. They are clearly not better than the Milwaukee Brewers or St. Louis Cardinals so they have no shot at winning the NL Central in 2022. They also had a very bad year in 2021 which is partially why they traded Javier Baez, Anthony Rizzo, and Kris Bryant away. That is why the signing of Marcus Stroman came off as weird.

However, as weird as it is, the Cubs added a great pitcher who has had a lot of success in Major League Baseball. He is also a verbal presence on social media which makes him a polarizing player off the field. There is nothing wrong with that at all as it is really good for the game.

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If you reach 1000 games in the National Hockey League, you know that you have had a really long career and you know that you had a really great career. Of course, Jonathan Toews is able to say that about his time with the Chicago Blackhawks as he reached 1000 on Thursday.

The Chicago Blackhawks were shut out by the Florida Panthers by a final score of 4-0 so you know that Captain Serious won’t be happy about that but he certainly will always remember his 1000th forever. There has been a lot of success that spanned those 1000 games.

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CHICAGO — When Chicago Bulls forward DeMar DeRozan returned to the locker room on Thursday night — having just willed the Bulls to a 135-130 overtime victory over the LA Clippers with a season-high 50 points — his teammate, Zach LaVine, sat and waited to present him with the game ball.

However, as DeRozan went to retrieve his prize, the rest of the team went into a frenzy, mobbing him and dousing him with water bottles in celebration of another clutch performance.

DeRozan scored 17 points in the fourth quarter and added 10 more in overtime to lead the Bulls to a 16-point second half comeback over the Clippers. It was his second career 50-point game and first since Jan. 1, 2018.

“The win is more meaningful,” DeRozan said after the game. “I wanted to win this game badly. You see how tight the [playoff] race is. Every single game is extremely important and we have no more room to be dropping any more games. That’s just my mentality.”

A win Thursday looked unlikely for the Bulls as the fourth quarter winded down. They trailed by three points with 7.2 seconds remaining when DeRozan got fouled by Clippers guard Terrance Mann away from the play on an inbounds pass, setting him up for a free throw that made it a two-point game.

The Bulls put the ball in DeRozan’s hands again for the final play and he got fouled by Paul George on a 3-point attempt. He knocked down the first two free throws but missed the third, sending the game into overtime.

DeRozan finished 17 of 26 from the field, 2 of 2 from 3 and 14 of 15 from the free throw line on Thursday with six assists and five rebounds.

“DeMar is unbelievable. After the game he said ‘sorry for missing the free throw,'” Bulls coach Billy Donovan said. “We wouldn’t have been in OT if it wasn’t for the things he did.”

The Bulls certainly needed DeRozan’s performance to lead them to victory and to keep pace in a crowded Eastern Conference playoff picture.

Chicago is just 7-11 since the All-Star break, but has won three of the past four games to stop its free fall in the standings. The Bulls are currently No. 5 in the conference, a 1/2 game ahead of the Raptors for the No. 6 seed and three games ahead of the Cavaliers to avoid the play-in tournament.

The Bulls’ next three games — Miami, Milwaukee and Boston — are against teams ahead of them in the conference.

“No matter who we play now, it’s going to be this type of physicality, atmosphere, aggression, being desperate to win, competing,” DeRozan said. “You’re going to get everybody’s best blow. You can’t run from anything. As a competitor, I always want to play the best of the best.”

DeRozan is in the middle of a career year in his first season in Chicago, but his production in March had slipped compared to the rest of the season. He had been averaging 25.8 points on 53.5% true-shooting this month entering Thursday’s game, a 10 point drop in both categories compared to his 34.2 points on 63% true-shooting in February.

DeRozan became the sixth player in Bulls history to score 50 points in a game, and first since LaVine did so in April 2021.

DeRozan also capped off one of the most prolific individual scoring months in NBA history. There were nine 50-point games in March, as many as there were from October to February this season combined, according to research by ESPN Stats & Information.

“That guy for us is special,” Donovan said. “He really is. I give him a lot of credit… the fact that he can mentally focus in and lock in on what he wants to get done and how he plays. Even just seeing him at the end of regulation, miss that free throw, he was bothered.

“Some of those guys they’re wired in a way that they have an unbelievable level of focus and concentration. And whether things slow down for them or their concentration is heightened, it’s pretty amazing to see him do.”

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WNBA icon Swin Cash, NBA stars Manu Ginobili and Tim Hardaway, former longtime NBA head coach George Karl and West Virginia head coach Bob Huggins are among those reportedly set to be inducted in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame class of 2022.

A formal announcement of the 16-member 2022 class is expected Saturday, but The Athletic first reported news on the five inductees Thursday.

Cash, currently an executive with the New Orleans Pelicans, was a three-time WNBA champion, a four-time WNBA All-Star and a two-time Olympic gold medalist with Team USA.

Ginobili was a four-time NBA champion, a two-time All-Star and a former NBA Sixth Man of the Year during his 16-season career with the San Antonio Spurs.

Hardaway played on five NBA teams, and was a five-time NBA All-Star and a five-time All-NBA selection, including an All-NBA First Team appearance in 1997.

Karl coached five teams across 27 seasons, reached 22 postseasons and is sixth all time in NBA career wins. He was the NBA Coach of the Year for the 2012-13 season.

Huggins has coached several schools across more than four decades, is a two-time NCAA coach of the year and has accumulated more than 900 career wins.

The 2022 class is slated to be enshrined in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame on Sept. 10.

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CHICAGO — Chicago Bulls guard Lonzo Ball will restart the rehab process on his left knee in hopes of playing again before the end of the 2021-22 season.

The Bulls had “pulled back” Ball’s rehab process for the past 10 days, shutting him down from sprinting when his knee did not respond to the recovery program following arthroscopic knee surgery in January. The team is ready to begin increasing Ball’s activity again, but coach Billy Donovan acknowledged the process will be gradual.

“With the amount of time that he had off to let things calm down, we’re not going to go 0-to-60,” Bulls coach Billy Donovan said before Thursday’s game against the LA Clippers.

Ball, who has not played since Jan. 14, does not have a lot of time left to return to the court again this season. Following Thursday’s game, there are 10 days remaining in the regular season and the Bulls have five games left.

Donovan did not rule out the possibility of Ball returning to play in the playoffs without playing in a regular-season game, but he emphasized Ball’s health will determine his status.

However, despite the tight timeline Donovan said no one has ruled Ball out for the season or told the team there is not enough time for him to ramp up to play again. If he responds to the treatment program and can begin running again soon, the team is optimistic he could be ready to return soon.

“[Ball’s] the driver behind a lot of this, he really wants to play,” Donovan said. “He wants to get back to playing. Obviously he’s also going to be smart in terms of how he’s feeling. He’s going to be realistic and the doctors are going to put their heads together. Certainly everyday that goes by and time that passes by, we’re moving closer and closer ’til the end of the season.”

The Bulls could use a boost from Ball at both ends of the floor.

In 35 games, he is averaging 13.0 points, 5.4 rebounds and 5.1 assists while shooting 42.3% from 3 on 7.4 attempts per game. Since Ball’s injury, the Bulls are 18th in offensive efficiency and 24th in defensive efficiency, per NBA.com.

“We’d have to see some significant progress that he’s made physically so that we feel good he can go in there and play and contribute and help,” Donovan said. “But I haven’t gotten anything [from team doctors] close to shutting him down or anything like that.”

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Chicago White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson will miss the first two games of the regular season after his three-game suspension, stemming from an incident at the end of the 2021 season, was reduced to two games, a source confirmed to ESPN.

During a bench clearing incident with the Detroit Tigers in late September, it was determined that Anderson, 28, made contact with umpire Tim Timmons. He was suspended for three games but appealed the decision, allowing him to finish the regular season and participate in the postseason.

His appeal was heard earlier this week where his suspension was reduced to two games. He’ll miss the White Sox games on April 8 and 9 in Detroit against the Tigers.

Anderson tweeted about the suspension on Thursday morning.

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Wisconsin sophomore guard Johnny Davis will enter the 2022 NBA draft and forgo his remaining college eligibility by hiring an agent, he told Malika Andrews on ESPN’s NBA Today on Thursday.

“After taking some time off and discussing everything with my family and coaches, I have decided to pursue a lifelong dream by declaring for the NBA draft with the intent of hiring an agent,” Davis said.

Davis, the No. 9 prospect in the ESPN 100, was named Big Ten Player of the Year and a consensus All-American after averaging 19.4 points, 8.4 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 34 minutes per game.

“This season was an unbelievable ride,” Davis said. “People didn’t expect us to have the season we had, but the players in our locker room and our coaching staff always knew we had the potential to be a special team.

“With so many great teams and players in our league, it was obviously a huge honor to win Big Ten Player of the Year, but winning the Big Ten regular-season title and playing in the NCAA tournament was so much sweeter. I would like to think NBA teams saw a player who is tough, who competes on both ends of the court every single possession and who will do whatever it takes to help my team win. Every time I step on the floor, I want to be the best player.”

Davis led Wisconsin to a Big Ten championship, which the Badgers shared with Illinois after losing at home to Nebraska in the final game of the regular season. The Badgers led by 10 points at halftime, but relinquished the lead when Davis went down with an untimely ankle injury, which continued to hamper him in the postseason.

“I wasn’t 100%, but I felt confident that If I played, we still had a great chance of winning the Big Ten Conference tournament as well as advancing in the NCAA tournament,” Davis said. “I wanted to be out there with my guys to give it everything I had.”

Davis is a finalist for some of the most prestigious postseason awards in college basketball, including the Wooden, Naismith and Lute Olson awards, all of which are presented annually to the top player in Division I men’s basketball.

Davis grew up in La Crosse, Wisconsin — 143 miles from Madison — and was named the state’s Mr. Basketball. He was also an all-star quarterback and played alongside twin brother Jordan, a wide receiver. Jordan Davis is a key reserve on the basketball team at Wisconsin.

Johnny Davis’ ascent from three-star high school recruit to arguably the best player in college basketball was remarkable. He was part of the USA Basketball team that won a gold medal at the FIBA U19 World Cup in Latvia this past summer, but few expected him to emerge as a potential top-10 pick just a few months later with the Badgers.

“Coach [Greg] Gard and my teammates believed in me and gave me the confidence and opportunity to have a much larger role than my freshman season,” Davis said. “Deep down I always knew I could be this caliber of player, but my success and experience with Team USA last summer took my confidence to another level and I just carried that into this season. I trust the work I have put in over the years, and I have been fortunate to work every day with arguably my toughest defender, my twin brother, Jordan, for as long as I can remember.

“I think NBA teams can learn that the path to the NBA is not the same for all players. I wasn’t highly ranked in high school, and I went to Wisconsin to change the narrative surrounding our program. My dad always told me that production will always trump potential and to keep my focus on playing hard and winning, and that has stayed with me.”

Drawing comparisons from NBA scouts to Jalen Suggs, the No. 5 pick in the 2021 draft, Davis has rebounding, defensive versatility and toughness that put him on NBA radars early on as Wisconsin defeated Houston to win the Maui Invitational in November, with Davis scoring 30 points in the final and winning MVP honors.

He continued to shoulder a heavy scoring load for the Badgers in Big Ten play, emerging as his team’s primary ball handler and one of the best pick-and-roll and midrange scorers in college basketball, while hitting 37 3-pointers and 155 free throws in 31 games.

“I know the pace and style of play in the NBA is different, but I think that suits my skill set extremely well,” Davis said. “My ability to get by my defender, athleticism and strength to finish at the rim, and being a three-level scorer combined with added spacing in the NBA will give me the opportunity to be successful.

“… My hope is to effectively fill whatever role is asked of me by my next team, which hopefully results in our team winning games. I ultimately want to be one of the reasons an NBA team becomes a championship organization.”

The NBA draft combine will be May 16-22 in Chicago, and the draft will be June 23 in Brooklyn, New York.

Jonathan Givony is an NBA draft expert and the founder and co-owner of DraftExpress.com, a private scouting and analytics service used by NBA, NCAA and international teams.

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