Basketball Pickups: Lonnie Walker shines as second half starter


There are so many reasons to celebrate today. You can celebrate Halloween (of course). You can celebrate us being a week into the NBA season. Or maybe you’re a manager that has Luka Doncic, Stephen Curry or Dejounte Murray on their roster.

Let’s add to the festivities by going through some players to consider adding to your fantasy squad. Some of these players had great games on Monday and are worth adding moving forward. Others have a chance at playing a larger role on Tuesday due to some injuries. Eiterh way, they can help you add to the win column early in the year.

Caris LeVert- 38% rostered in Yahoo leagues

Cleveland plays the Knicks on Tuesday, which is one of three games on Halloween. Donovan Mitchell is questionable, while Darius Garland and Jarrett Allen have already been ruled out. LeVert posted a 31/5/8 line in their last game and took 28 shots in 44 minutes. If Mitchell misses another game, expect LeVert to once again see a ton of minutes and take a lot of shots.

Talen Horton-Tucker- 22%

THT hasn’t been great to start the season, but he had 16 points and eight assists on Monday to go with just one turnover. Until further notice, he is the starting point guard in Utah, which will give him plenty of chances to put up solid numbers for fantasy managers.

Mason Plumlee- 11%

In one of three Halloween games, Ivica Zubac is questionable. He missed practice on Monday, and if he isn’t able to play, Plumlee will be the only center option against the Magic. He’ll play a ton of minutes if Zubac is out, so keep an eye on the injury report.

Lonnie Walker- 2%

Spencer Dinwiddie didn’t come out of the locker room after halftime on Monday, and Walker started the third quarter in his place. Dinwiddie was eventually ruled out for the night, while Walker ended up scoring 19 points. If Dinwiddie has to miss more time, Walker should continue to start for Dinwiddie, especially with Cam Johnson expected to miss at least a few more games.

Jordan Hawkins- 1%

About 45 minutes before tipoff against the Warriors, Hawkins found that Brandon Ingra (knee) had been ruled out, and he’d be starting in BI’s place. The injury was a shock to everyone, since Ingram was never listed on the injury report before he was ruled out. The rookie ended up finishing with a 14/5/2/2 line and two triples. If Ingram remains out on Wednesday, Hawkins is worth taking a chance on.

David Roddy- 1%

Roddy didn’t have a great stat line on Monday (9/5/2), but he played 29 minutes, which was 10 minutes more than any other bench player for Memphis. He’s worth keeping an eye on in standard leagues, but he may be worth rostering in deep leagues.


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