We covered Dante Exum, Isaiah Hartenstein, Donte DiVincenzo and a couple more obvious pickups last week, but here’s another handful of names trending up:
Trayce Jackson-Davis (13%)- Six minutes into Tuesday’s game against Boston, I “Tweeted” or “X’d” to go monitor the rookie after he single handedly turned Golden State’s fortunes around against the Celtics.
But he didn’t stop there, he ended up playing 29 minutes and closed out the game with big play after big play, finishing with 10 points, 13 rebounds, one assist and three blocks in 29 minutes. I’ve been working from Rotowire on the side to pay my bills and one of my tasks this season was to cover the Santa Cruz Warriors in the G League, so I was able to get an early idea of how good this kid is.
Coach Steve Kerr raved about him after the game, noting that he’s definitely going to be in the rotation from here on out. The Warriors are 28th in the NBA in shot-blocking, and that’s something TJD can bring to the table. Chris Paul also noted that the Warriors need his athleticism, and that’s something Kevon Looney can’t provide, as he’s one of the slowest players I’ve ever laid eyes on.
“I’ve been pretty easy on him,” Paul said. “I finally sort of went nuts on him in Portland. Then he just started killing. I’m not saying that’s why, but I think he has the capability of what you’ve seen. … He changes shots. His athleticism is something we need.”
TJD was also awesome in the prior game, putting up 14 points, eight rebounds, three assists, two steals and one block in just 18 minutes. With Draymond Green stuck in an anger management course for the next few weeks, the time to add TJD was yesterday. Don’t wait any longer.
Isaac Okoro (13%)- I’ve never really been a fan of Okoro’s fantasy game, but here we are. The Cavaliers are going to be without Darius Garland and Evan Mobley for a while, making an already thin rotation even more bleak. Okoro used to be someone who needed a lot of minutes to have value, but he’s starting to shine as a perimeter shooter and I didn’t realize that he’s capable of playmaking the way he’s shown.
Over his last two games, Okoro has averaged 14.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 2.0 three-pointers in 32.0 minutes per game. His combined steal and block rates are average with 0.9 steals and 0.4 blocks in 25 minutes this season, but with the workloads he’s gonna be seeing, I think there’s plenty of reason for optimism.
One last angle to consider here is that the Cavs could be toying with the idea of a full-blown rebuild. Garland and Donovan Mitchell are both better suited to have the ball in their hands as opposed to sharing it, and defensively they simply aren’t good enough and have to rely on their centers to bail them out. Mitchell already has one foot out the door and is hoping the Knicks will swoop in, and he won’t even entertain the idea of an extension.
Jarrett Allen is going to draw significant interest, mostly because Mobley almost has to move to center full time with his inability to be a threat outside the paint offensively. If the Cavaliers start unloading, Okoro could hit another gear.
Isaiah Jackson (18%)- This one is a bit more speculative. Jalen Smith has been out since Nov. 27 but could return Wednesday. Does he reclaim his backup role right away? I’m not so sure, but this is a situation to monitor closely. Everyone in the fantasy industry knows that Jackson has considerable upside, as frustrating as he was last season.
Over his last six games, Jackson has produced 6th(!) round value in only 18 minutes per game with averages of 12.8 points, 5.7 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 0.8 steals and 1.0 blocks.
“I’m really proud of Isaiah for being ready and understanding our frontcourt depth, especially to start the year, was really heavy…” Tyrese Haliburton said. “Isaiah has done a great job of being prepared when his number was called.” When the NBA’s hottest point guard singles you out, then you’re doing something right. Let’s hope Rick Carlisle sees the same.
Aaron Nesmith (13%)- Nesmith is never going to be the most exciting fantasy player because he’s typically a low-usage player and he’s not going to make the highlight reels. However, his role is trending up and he gets a bump in value whenever the Pacers are down a starter with injuries piling up for the Pacers.
Over his last six games, Nesmith has been an 11th-rounder in 25 minutes per game with averages of 12.0 points, 2.8 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 0.7 steals, 1.0 blocks and 2.2 three-pointers. He’s one of those players that you can just throw into your weekly lineups and forget about him while he quietly goes to work.
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