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Welcome to Rotation Watch, Rotoballers! Each week, this article will highlight the players that are gaining minutes in their team's rotation. Fantasy managers want to roster the players that are accumulating stats and racking up the playing time. They want to avoid the players falling out of favor and watching the action from the sidelines.
The trade deadline was more active than many people anticipated, and it created jobs around the league for players buried in their early-season depth charts. With the number of trades, buyouts, and general turnover over the last two weeks, there will be plenty of minutes to soak up. Orlando and Houston created some space in their rotations and will be ones to watch moving forward, but there were plenty of other teams that switched their rotations up last Thursday.
So without further ado, let's start searching those box scores from Mar. 22 to Mar. 28 and look for those hidden gems that grabbed minutes to help your fantasy basketball team achieve the ultimate prize: a championship. These suggestions are the cream of the crop, and if you ever need an extra slice of advice, feel free to reach out to me on Twitter @EuanOrYouOut, and I'll happily talk about some fantasy basketball with everyone.
Editor's Note: Our incredible team of writers received five total writing awards and 13 award nominations by the Fantasy Sports Writers Association, tops in the industry! Congrats to all the award winners and nominees including NBA Writer of the Year, Best NFL Series, MLB Series, PGA Writer and Player Notes writer of the year. Be sure to follow their analysis, rankings and advice all year long, and win big with RotoBaller! Read More!
NBA Playing Time Changes
Theo Maledon - PG, Oklahoma City Thunder
Season: 26.3 Minutes per Game
Week 13: 34.3 Minutes per Game
George Hill has left the building, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is stuck on the trainer's table. This is allowing Theo Maledon his first chance at extended playing time during his rookie season. The 19-year old Frenchman isn't lighting it up in year one, but there have been flashes here and there. On Jan. 29, he scored a career-high 24 points on 8-for-9 shooting while going a perfect 6-for-6 from behind the three-point line.
In Week 13, he averaged 34.3 minutes over three games while averaging 13.7 points, 5.3 rebounds, three assists, 1.3 steals, and three triples. It all came together on Saturday night against the Boston Celtics, however. In 37 minutes, the second-round pick put up 22 points, eight rebounds, four assists, and two steals. As soon as SGA returns, Maledon will fade into the fantasy abyss, but right now, he is worth a flyer in 14-team leagues and especially if he is on the waiver wire in your dynasty league.
Gary Trent Jr. - SG/SF, Toronto Raptors
With Portland (41 games): 30.8 Minutes per Game
With Toronto (3 games): 32.3 Minutes per Game
Trent went to Toronto in exchange for Norman Powell, which will boost his fantasy floor and ceiling for the rest of the year. The third-year wing saw his role dip when CJ McCollum returned to the Trail Blazers lineup. However, he's started all three games since the trade for Toronto and played at least 28 minutes each night. Unfortunately, the fantasy results haven't come through yet, but it's only a matter of time.
Trent is averaging career-highs with 14.6 points, 2.4 threes, and 0.9 steals in his third year. He's also taking 12 shots per game with the Raptors and will find his rhythm soon enough. The 22-year old is a huge stash candidate for the home stretch of the fantasy basketball regular season and will find his groove in Tampa/Toronto just in time to help in a championship chase for your roster.
Jae'sean Tate - SG/SF/PF, Houston Rockets
Season: 28.6 Minutes per Game
Week 13: 34.1 Minutes per Game
Tate's positional flexibility is highly enticing on Yahoo fantasy basketball. The option to essentially play him at any spot other than center means he can add valuable counting numbers to your team on any given night. He's made several appearances in this article this season thanks to the Houston roster's consistent turnover. While Kevin Porter Jr. and Kenyon Martin Jr. have provided some splashy performances since their G-League returns, Tate has been with the team all year.
The rookie has had spike performances, and the Rockets will be looking for those to become a more frequent occurrence. This team doesn't have a lot of interest in winning games, but they need to find out what they have on the future roster. Tate's 10.6 points and 5.5 rebounds aren't winning anyone their weekly matchups right now, but he has a chance to continuing growing in his rookie season. Tate should only be added in the deepest of leagues or traded for in your dynasty formats.
Chuma Okeke - PF, Orlando Magic
Season: 22.0 Minutes per Game
Week 13 (Post-Trade deadline): 33.5 Minutes per Game
Orlando decided to tear it down (again) at the trade deadline. They traded away Aaron Gordon, Evan Fournier, and Nikola Vucevic for future assets and second-chance players. They have some exciting pieces in Jonathan Isaac and Markelle Fultz, but they are out for the rest of the season. Those trades and injuries leave the Magic with a severe lack of offense. Gordon, Fournier, and Vucevic averaged a combined 46.5 field-goal attempts per game. Terrence Ross can't take all of those himself.
Since the deadline, Okeke is proving that he can handle an increased workload. He's scored at least 14 points in four straight games and is averaging 17.7 points, 4.7 rebounds, 1.2 steals, and three makes from behind the three-point line per contest. The Magic find themselves in a familiar position of rebuilding and looking at their roster to see who should be a part of their future. Okeke has the minutes, usage, and talent to show the coaching staff and front office that he will be a productive player in the end for this organization.
Kelly Olynyk - PF/C, Houston Rockets
With Miami (43 games): 26.9 Minutes per Game
With Houston (2 games): 29.5 Minutes per Game
Olynyk was one of the pieces the Rockets acquired from the Heat when they traded Victor Oladipo at the trade deadline. Since he arrived in Clutch City, the 29-year old has been lighting up the fantasy scoreboards. Olynyk's new teammate, Christian Wood, is out with a non-COVID illness, and it's given Olynyk a steady runway to take off in Texas.
In the two games since putting on the Rockets jersey, the Canadian is averaging 20.5 points, 6.5 rebounds, three assists, and two steals per game. He's also taking a career-high 12.5 shots nightly and making two of his 5.5 three-point shots each game. Olynyk should remain a prominent figure in the Houston rotation even after Wood returns to the court.
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