<\/p>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n
We dig into shifting rotations, uncovering which players deserve more attention or are falling out of favor.<\/p>\n
Week 8 Storylines of Note<\/p>\n
– Three of the six teams playing on Monday are guaranteed to have three games on their Week 8 schedules.<\/p>\n
For those competing in leagues that separate Weeks 8 and 9, this is an important fact. The Pacers, Timberwolves and Kings are guaranteed to play three games during Week 8, which makes their less-heralded fantasy options a bit more valuable. While most of the Pacers have underwhelmed in fantasy basketball this season, does someone like Jay Huff (25 percent rostered, Yahoo!) or T.J. McConnell (15 percent) hold greater value since they\u2019ll play three games?<\/p>\n
The same can be asked of Kings rookie Maxime Raynaud (14 percent), who made his first career start on Saturday and did nothing to suggest that he should not retain that role for the foreseeable future. As for the Timberwolves, Jaden McDaniels (46 percent) and Donte DiVincenzo (44 percent) are still available in more than 50 percent of Yahoo! leagues. Seeking out those players on league waiver wires before Monday\u2019s game would be a good idea.<\/p>\n
– Phoenix and San Antonio could have three games during Week 8, but that\u2019s still to be determined.<\/p>\n
Whether five teams are playing three games in Week 8 depends on the Suns and Spurs. Both will play NBA Cup quarterfinal games on Wednesday, with the former visiting the Thunder and the latter visiting the Lakers. If Phoenix and San Antonio lose, their next regular-season game could be scheduled for December 11, 12, 14 or 15. December 11 can probably be ruled out, as asking teams to play a back-to-back under those circumstances feels unlikely. If their second game falls on either the 12th or 14th, that would make for three games in Week 8 for both teams. The best way for this to become a non-issue would be for the Suns and Spurs to advance to the semifinals scheduled for Saturday, December 13.<\/p>\n
– The four NBA Cup quarterfinal losers will play their second game on December 11, 12, 14 or 15.<\/p>\n
While the West quarterfinals are scheduled for Wednesday, December 11, the East will play its quarterfinals the night prior. Orlando hosts Miami, followed by the Raptors hosting the Knicks. Regardless of what happens in those matchups, all four Eastern Conference teams will play two games in Week 8. That\u2019s good news for Orlando\u2019s Paolo Banchero and New York\u2019s OG Anunoby, as they returned from groin and hamstring injuries on Friday. Not having to deal with a jam-packed schedule immediately upon returning should benefit both fantasy managers and those players, and it should also mean fantasy managers can rely on those players to be active in each of their respective teams\u2019 Week 8 contests.<\/p>\n
– Will Memphis get Ja Morant back during Week 8?<\/p>\n
Morant, who has not appeared in a game since November 15, is doubtful for Sunday\u2019s game against the Trail Blazers. That status represents an upgrade for the point guard, so does it mean anything for Week 8? The Grizzlies only play once in Week 8, hosting the Jazz on Friday. One game of Morant is better than none, and this could be a good time for the Grizzlies to work him back into the lineup. His availability affects Vince Williams Jr. and Cam Spencer the most, with the former having filled the starting point guard role in Morant\u2019s absence. However, Spencer has provided superior fantasy value despite coming off the bench, due mainly to Williams\u2019 poor percentages and turnovers.<\/p>\n
– Will the Warriors have Stephen Curry and Jimmy Butler III at all?<\/p>\n
While the Warriors play twice during Week 8, their first game isn\u2019t until that Friday against the Timberwolves. Golden State plays its second game of the week two nights later in Portland. How does that schedule affect the availability of the team\u2019s two best offensive players? After suffering a quad contusion, Curry missed the Warriors\u2019 final home game before their three-game road trip and did not travel. Sunday\u2019s game against the Bulls will be the fifth that he\u2019s missed. <\/p>\n
As for Butler, Saturday\u2019s win over the Cavaliers was the second he has missed due to a sore knee. Add in Draymond Green\u2018s midfoot sprain, and the Warriors have been without their three most important veterans. Could all three return to action during Week 8? If so, Curry and Butler would be especially impactful with the Warriors playing twice over the final three days.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"After seven weeks in which there were light game nights in short supply, NBA teams should be able…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":332928,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[557],"tags":[64,63,590,85],"class_list":["post-332927","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nba","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-nba","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/332927","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=332927"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/332927\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/332928"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=332927"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=332927"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=332927"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}