Around The NBA: Fantasy Basketball News and Notes From 10/30

We are a little short on news from the association, but we do have plenty of game notes for you to sift through as well as an update on Stephen Curry.

News

• Stephen Curry is going to miss at least the next game against the Lakers with his sprained ankle. He is listed as day-to-day. Charlie Bell will likely get the start in place of Curry, but also look for Reggie Williams to get some time at the two guard with Monta Ellis running the point some.

Game Notes

• John Wall played much better in game two than his first one. Wall scored 28 points, had nine assists, five rebounds and made two three-pointers. Wall looked like he had been in the NBA for years last night, and he’s only going to get more comfortable as the season goes on.
• In the first two games of the year it was Francisco Garcia who looked impressive, but last night it was Omri Casspi’s turn for the Sacramento Kings. Casspi scored 20 points and had four boards and two steals to go with it; most significant was the fact that he made six three-pointers in seven attempts. Casspi is certainly capable of scoring in bunches, but I think you’re going to see a rotating group of guys playing second fiddle to Tyreke Evans on any given night for the Kings.
• Daniel Gibson and Ramon Sessions are certainly taking advantage of Mo Williams' absence right now. Sessions scored 21 points last night and Gibson added 20 of his own, along with seven assists. It’ll be interesting to see what happens when Williams comes back.  I wonder if it will be Anthony Parker who actually takes the biggest hit in playing time.
• The Knicks might be starting Landry Fields, but it’s clear that Wilson Chandler is the second best offensive player on this team right now. For the second time in three games Chandler put up 22 points. This time he added 16 rebounds, three blocks and two steals. If this guy is still floating around your waiver list he’s a must add at this point.
• We are going to have a piece on Derrick Rose up on Monday, and let me tell you, a game like he had last night is going to make me look real bad, but I’ll still sticking to my guns. Rose is certainly lighting up the scoreboard so far this year, but he’s also averaged 29 shots per game. That’s not going to continue. What’s more encouraging is that he got a couple threes and a couple steals, something he didn’t do last year.
• Jason Kapono has gone from starting to not playing in just three games. Meanwhile, Andres Nocioni is the starting small forward for the time being. I think when it’s all said and done though, Andre Iguodala will switch over to small forward and Lou Williams may end up at the shooting guard spot. Williams is off to a very nice start, adding 18 more points last night.
• Last night was the kind of production I was expecting to see from O.J. Mayo this year. A lot of people believe he is primed to take the next step towards becoming a star. We saw a glimpse of what that could look like last night as Mayo went off for 29 points and threw in seven rebounds, five assists and three steals. He also showed his range, hitting five three-pointers. It was a fantastic night for Mayo and hopefully there will be more where that came from.
• Al Harrington had seemed a bit off his game in the first two contests he played this year, coming off the bench for Denver. But last night he found his shot and made five three-pointers on his way to 28 points and 10 rebounds. Unfortunately, Harrington is a bit inconsistent, so he’ll have games like this and then disappear a couple nights later. But there is no doubt he has the potential for big games.
• Carlos Delfino and Corey Maggette have been locked in a battle for the starting small forward position, but Delfino made a big statement for himself last night. Carlos got 42 minutes on the floor and made the most of it by hitting five three-pointers and finishing with 23 points. The fact is that both of these guys are capable of nights like this and it will get frustrating to guess which one gets it on which night, but they’re both worth owning in all league formats.
• With proven scorers like Delfino and Maggette around, Brandon Jennings seems to be taking the next step in his game. Last night he posted his first career triple-double with a 20 point, 10 rebound, 10 assist night. Jennings only took eight shots, which is unusual for him, but he took good shots and let his teammates do the rest as he racked up the assists. This is definitely a good sign for Jennings' fantasy owners.
• In his first two games, Marcus Thornton wasn’t showing the sleeper potential that so many experts touted him as having. But we got to see it on display last night as he was given his first significant playing time of the year with 30 minutes, and he answered by scoring 17 points and getting seven rebounds. Unfortunately for Thornton owners, Marco Belinelli’s defense is better than Thornton's and that may keep Thornton out of the starting lineup. But he’ll keep seeing good minutes if he keeps producing with them.

For more fantasy analysis like this check out The Rotoprofessor.