As we get ready to head into the new year, it would be nice if some of the league's premiere big men made a resolution to not get hurt anymore. Injuries continue to pile up, making for some difficult decisions in fantasy basketball.
Let's take a look at the NBA schedule for the next two weeks and see which centers can be of help. It's slim pickings, in general, but here are four big men who are still available in the majority of Yahoo leagues who might be worth adding based on their favorable schedules.
Enes Kanter, Boston Celtics (45 percent available): I know, Kanter doesn't technically qualify here because he is rostered in more than half of leagues. However, it's close and I want to talk about him, so he makes the cut. Despite the Celtics having limited options at center, he has still had a difficult time finding his way onto the floor. He's averaging just 17 minutes a game, which has limited him to averages of eight points and 7.5 rebounds a night.
With that being said, the Celtics are currently playing without promising young big man Robert Williams III (hip), who has missed each of the last seven games. During that stretch, Kanter has seen his playing time increase to 20 minutes a night. While that's still not a ton of minutes, he's been able to average 9.3 points and 10.6 rebounds a game. The Celtics play seven times across the next two weeks, so
As we get ready to head into the new year, it would be nice if some of the league's premiere big men made a resolution to not get hurt anymore. Injuries continue to pile up, making for some difficult decisions in fantasy basketball.
Let's take a look at the NBA schedule for the next two weeks and see which centers can be of help. It's slim pickings, in general, but here are four big men who are still available in the majority of Yahoo leagues who might be worth adding based on their favorable schedules.
Enes Kanter, Boston Celtics (45 percent available): I know, Kanter doesn't technically qualify here because he is rostered in more than half of leagues. However, it's close and I want to talk about him, so he makes the cut. Despite the Celtics having limited options at center, he has still had a difficult time finding his way onto the floor. He's averaging just 17 minutes a game, which has limited him to averages of eight points and 7.5 rebounds a night.
With that being said, the Celtics are currently playing without promising young big man Robert Williams III (hip), who has missed each of the last seven games. During that stretch, Kanter has seen his playing time increase to 20 minutes a night. While that's still not a ton of minutes, he's been able to average 9.3 points and 10.6 rebounds a game. The Celtics play seven times across the next two weeks, so now might be the time to add him is he's still out there in your league.
Chris Boucher, Toronto Raptors (70 percent available): The Raptors' depth chart is ugly right now. They are especially thin up front with Pascal Siakam (groin) and Marc Gasol (hamstring) both sidelined indefinitely. In their absences, Serge Ibaka has been thrust into a starting role. Taking over some of his minutes off the bench is Boucher, who has logged at least 24 minutes in two of the last three games.
He came through in both of those contests, posting at least 21 points, six rebounds and two blocks both times. Across six games in which he has logged at least 20 minutes this season, he has averaged 16.7 points, 7.3 rebounds and two blocks while shooting 54 percent from the field. The Raptors play three times each in Weeks 11 and 12, making Boucher an extremely appealing player to add off waivers.
Dwight Powell, Dallas Mavericks (68 percent available): The good news is that Powell has settled into a starting role for the Mavericks. The bad news is that his playing time continues to fluctuate. Case in point, over his last 10 games, he's played 20 minutes or fewer two times and at least 30 minutes four times. However, he still managed to record averages of 9.9 points, 6.4 rebounds, 0.9 steals and 0.8 blocks while shooting 56.7 percent from the field during that stretch.
The thing with Powell is that his upside will likely remain limited going forward, especially with Luka Doncic now healthy. Still, with the Mavericks scheduled to play three times in Week 11 and four times in Week 12, Powell should at least be on your radar if you need help in the rebounding department. Worst case scenario, he's appealing for his four games in Week 12.
Ian Mahinmi, Washington Wizards (97 percent available): Things were already looking bleak for the Wizards heading into the season. Outside of Bradley Beal, the roster was severely lacking top-end talent. To make matters worse, they have now been decimated by injuries. Their frontcourt is particularly bad right now with Thomas Bryant (foot), Davis Bertans (quadriceps), Rui Hachimura (groin) and Moritz Wagner (ankle) all on the sidelines.
The Wizards have had little choice but to play Mahinmi, who has started and averaged 21 minutes across their last seven games. His numbers might not be eye-popping, but his averages of seven points, 6.4 rebounds and 1.1 blocks are nothing to scoff at in deep leagues. The Wizards are the only team to play four games in both of the next two weeks, so while they could get some reinforcements by the time Week 12 is over, Mahinmi has the potential to provide value until that happens.
