As I began to work on this article, I realized I do not have any particularly interesting Thanksgiving stories. The closest would be the time I went out for White Castle Thanksgiving night, only to spend Black Friday with food poisoning. Needless to say, I did not eat a hamburger until after Valentine’s Day.
I considered opening this article with a discussion of the things I am thankful for, but if Facebook has taught us anything, it has taught us people care about what other people are thankful for about as much as they care about other people’s fantasy teams. Thankfully for this article, my dog Lucy bailed us out this year with a funny Thanksgiving story.
While we were eating Thanksgiving dinner I noticed Lucy was underneath the table where he cut the turkey, licking the floor. I knew we had dropped a little bit of turkey on the floor, so I did not think anything of it until Lucy came up to our dinner table a little while later. When I pet Lucy, I realized her entire head was wet. The rest of her was dry, only her head was wet.
It turned out some of the juice from the turkey had leaked off of the cutting board, through a crack in the table and onto the carpet. Lucy was licking the juice off the carpet while more juice dripped onto the top of her head. If she had been smart she would have just licked the juice from the bottom of the table, instead he she missed out on even more juice, and just made a sticky mess. I wish I would have taken a picture; she had a faux hawk with her fur sticking straight up on her head.
If you are wondering what all of this has to do with fantasy basketball, here it is: I think a lot of fantasy players are like Lucy when it comes to pickups. They try to ride the hot pony, as my buddy Ken likes to say, but they pay little attention to the upcoming schedule. They get some of the juice, but they could get even more if they just looked a little closer.
One of the things I tried to do with this article is identify players who are playing well and have favorable upcoming schedules. One of the other things I tried to do, as I did last week, if find schedules that are favorable in one particular area. You cannot always pick up guys who play the Lakers, 76ers and Magic all in one week, but you can find schedules that are good for assists, three pointers or rebounding. This article looks ahead to the week from Monday, December 1 to Monday, December 8.
J.J. Redick, Los Angeles Clippers (Home vs. Timberwolves, Home vs. Magic, Home vs. Pelicans, Home vs. Suns) Redick is averaging career-lows in points, field goal percentage and three-point percentage. As a result, he has been dropped in many shallow leagues. Redick has played better lately, with double-digit scoring in four consecutive games. Redick has shot 18-of-39 from the field and 12-of-26 from beyond the arc over that time, and there is a good chance things are about to get even better. The Clippers have four consecutive games at the Staples Center, where Redick shot .490 percent from the field and .421 on threes last season compared to .420 and .367 on the road. He also has the benefit of facing the Timberwolves and Suns, who are among the five-worst teams in the NBA this season in opponent field goal percentage from 20-24 feet. The Timberwolves and Magic are also among the five-worst in opponents’ percentage from 25-29 feet, while the Timberwolves, Magic and Pelicans are all in the bottom half of the league in defensive efficiency.
Jameer Nelson, Dallas Mavericks (Road vs. Bulls, Road vs. Bucks, Home vs. Suns, Home vs. Bucks) Like Redick, Nelson is averaging nearly two made three-pointers per game, has been shooting better lately and faces a couple of teams who have struggled to defend the three. The matchup with the Bulls is not ideal, though it will be better if Derrick Rose is out.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Detroit Pistons (Home vs. Los Angeles Lakers, Road vs. Celtics, Home vs. 76ers, Home vs. Thunder) I actually was not planning to recommend another shooter here, because the Pistons’ upcoming schedule is favorable for the entire team. All of the bigs are owned, however, so we will go with Caldwell-Pope. He is averaging 1.8 3PM this season, and while the Lakers, Celtics and 76ers cannot really defend anything this season, they are particularly poor against outside shots.
Jose Calderon, New York Knicks (Home vs. Nets, Home vs. Cavaliers, Road vs. Hornets, Home vs. Trail Blazers) Like J.J. Redick, Calderon should be owned in all leagues regardless of the schedule. Also like Redick, Calderon’s upcoming schedule plays directly into his skill set. The Cavaliers, Nets and Hornets have allowed the third, fifth and ninth-most assists per game this season. Calderon has averaged 6.8 apg over his career.
Marreese Speights, Golden State Warriors (Home vs. Magic, Home vs. Pelicans, Road vs. Bulls, Road vs. Timberwolves) As I pointed out above, the Bulls are not a great matchup. That is, they are not a great matchup unless you need rebounds. The Bulls and Pelicans have each allowed 43.9 rebounds per game to opponents, tied for fourth-most in the league. Speights has come on of late, recording at least five rebounds in three consecutive games and six of his last seven.
Picking up hot players with favorable schedules is a good way to have your cake and eat it too. Or perhaps I should say, get all of the turkey juice without letting any drip on your head.