We’re about a quarter of the way through the season so this is a special edition of Risers and Fallers.
Let’s take a look at the players who are trending up — and others who are on the down slide — so far this season.
Risers
Nikola Jokic, C, Denver Nuggets
Jokic surely heard all the chatter about how Victor Wembanyama was going to show up and redefine fantasy greatness over the next 10 years, and while that still may come to fruition, Jokic isn’t letting it happen this year. Through 19 games, his scoring, rebounding and assists are all up and he’s averaging career highs in scoring, assists, steals and 3-pointers. He’s also shooting better than 50% from downtown, and the only surprising thing about him is that he’s only averaging 0.7 blocks per game. Don’t be surprised if that number’s not at 1.0 before the season is over.
Karl-Anthony Towns, PF/C, New York Knicks
KAT was a first-round fantasy pick for years, but injuries and playing alongside Rudy Gobert caused him to struggle, as well as fall out of fantasy favor in some circles. And many of us thought his recent move to New York might cause him even more problems while trying to deal with the spotlight and glare of New York City. But KAT has handled it all gracefully and is a fantasy monster once again. Despite not averaging at least a steal and a block per game, he’s shooting the ball very well and averaging a career-best 13.2 rebounds per game, which has helped make him a top-five player this season. Welcome back, KAT!
Jalen Williams, SF/PF/C, Oklahoma City Thunder
Most of us knew Williams was a very good player, but I’m not sure many of us realized he was this good! He might be a better player than teammate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and has put together a top-10 season thus far. He posts quality numbers across the board and won’t hurt you anywhere, turning it over just 2.1 times per game and consistently shooting over 50% from the field and 80% from the free-throw line. He’s only in his third season and should be an automatic fantasy first-rounder next year.
Nikola Vucevic, C, Chicago Bulls
Vuc has been in the league 15 seasons and is 34 years old but just keeps chugging along like the Energizer bunny. He has improved on last year’s scoring by three full points and is hitting one more 3-pointer per game than he did last season, despite playing for a Bulls team that probably isn’t going to make a lot of playoff noise. While I am somewhat worried about a late-season shutdown for the big man, Vucevic doesn’t miss a lot of games and probably isn’t interested in taking many nights off. He’s having a first-round-caliber fantasy season.
Josh Hart, SG/SF, New York Knicks
Hart was a pleasant surprise for Tom Thibodeau’s Knicks last year, but there were thoughts that the arrival of guys like Towns, Mikal Bridges and a healthy OG Anunoby were going to slow Hart’s roll. But that hasn’t happened in the slightest and Hart is playing a ridiculous 37.3 minutes per night, which is three minutes more than he was getting last season. He’s also shooting a career-best 59.8% from the floor, is scoring almost five more points per game than he did last year, and most of his numbers are up across the board. The Knicks don’t have much of a bench, so expect Thibodeau to just keep running his guys out there, Hart included.
Fallers
Draymond Green, PF/C, Golden State Warriors
Mr. triple-single is still doing just that, mostly matching last season’s numbers while somehow averaging a steal, a block and more than a 3-pointer per game. Players who can do that usually have some low-end fantasy value, and while that remains the case for Green, he’s probably not worth holding onto in eight- and 10-team leagues. Green has recorded two double-doubles this season, and the fact he’s got that many is a little surprising. He’s more valuable to the Warriors in real life than he is to fantasy managers.
Jrue Holiday, PG/SG, Boston Celtics
Speaking of being valuable in real life, Holiday is part of the heart and soul of Boston’s strong defense and works alongside Derrick White as one of the best defensive backcourts in the NBA. However, managers want more than 12.6 points, 4.2 rebounds and 4.0 assists out of their starting point guard, and he’s down to 0.8 steals per game this season. Holiday is incredibly important to the Celtics’ success on the court, but he has become a fantasy dud with his move to Boston. The days of him averaging 20 points, seven dimes and two steals are long gone.
Clint Capela, C, Atlanta Hawks
It wasn’t that long ago that Capela averaged 15 points, 14 boards and two blocks for the Hawks back in the 2020-21 season. But young Onyeka Okongwu has helped Capela’s minutes fall to around 22 per game, and the rest of his numbers are following. He’s not even averaging a double-double for the first time since 2017 and he’s down to just one blocked shot per game. Capela still has some fantasy appeal in two-center leagues, but he’s 30 years old and it feels like Okongwu may fully take over for him any day now.
Bobby Portis, PF, Milwaukee Bucks
Portis has been very quiet this season, and while his numbers don’t appear to be too far off what he did last season, he’s not shooting the ball as well as he normally does. He’s hitting just 46.3% of his shots from the field and is shooting just 73.1% from the line, which is barely better than his career-low 72.7% during his rookie season back in 2015. Portis will be 30 in February and might be on the wrong side of Father Time. But he’s also yet to have a pop game this season. There’s time for Portis to turn his season around, especially if Giannis Antetokounmpo has any injury trouble.
Klay Thompson, SG/SF, Dallas Mavericks
Thompson’s history of injuries and surgeries have been well-documented, and I think we can all agree that most of us were rooting for him to right the ship in Dallas this season, playing alongside Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving. There was certainly a chance for that to happen, but Thompson still doesn’t look right. The good news is that he has been relatively healthy, but he’s shooting a career-low 38.9% from the floor and a career-low 36.6% from downtown. Sadly, the numbers don’t suggest that Thompson is still worth holding onto in 12-team fantasy leagues.
