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There are eight players averaging 30+ points as of Sunday night: Luka Dončić, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Kevin Durant, Donovan Mitchell, Stephen Curry, Damian Lillard, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and Jayson Tatum.
Meanwhile, there are nine players averaging 2.0+ blocks per game. Their names are not as often in the headlines: Myles Turner, Ivica Zubac, Brook Lopez, Nicolas Claxton, Bol Bol, Bismack Biyombo, Mitchell Robinson, Anthony Davis, and Kevin Durant. As you can tell by KD’s appearance on both of those lists, he’s still a cheat code.
The scarcity of blocks goes deeper than these headline numbers, but it’s enough to underscore the value of Raptors rookie Christian Koloko. He blocked six shots on Sunday and earned the headline nickname ‘No-No Koloko’ from Rotoworld’s Jared Johnson, after hitting career highs in points (11), rebounds (seven), and of course blocks.
Pascal Siakam is out a minimum of two weeks with a strained right adductor/groin, an unfortunate turn of events for a darkhorse MVP candidate. The silver lining has been Koloko’s play, especially if it doesn’t impede Chris Boucher, who still led Toronto’s reserves on Sunday in minutes (22), points (eight), and blocks (two).
Speaking of backup big men, Brandon Clarke also made a case for rostership on Sunday with 16 points on 7-of-8 FGs with five rebounds, two blocks (see above), one assist, and one steal in 21 minutes. Clarke’s typically terrific FG% was on display tonight, and he’s basically mirroring last season’s elite 64.4% shooting from the filed. His role has been dented by Santi Aldama, who is breaking out as a stretch-frontcourt option, and we’ve yet to even see Jaren Jackson Jr. (knee). The reason Clarke deserves mention as a pickup is that Steven Adams exited this game with a right ankle injury. He did return and played well, but said afterward that the injury was “still there,” and that he’d “make it work.” If he’s out on Monday, Clarke could be in play despite the fact that every single team is playing on Monday.
Rui Hachimura scored 15 points on 7-of-12 shooting in 22 minutes off the bench vs. Memphis on Sunday, though he couldn’t prevent his team’s fifth loss in six games. Hachimura is cast from a different mold than guys like Clarke and Koloko, and has collected only two total steals in 233 minutes played this season. He’s blocked a shot in five of his past six games, to his credit, but hasn’t had multiple swats in any of those games. With minutes hovering in the mid-20s and a bench role that seems unlikely to change while Kyle Kuzma is healthy, there’s little incentive to add Hachimura in fantasy leagues. It doesn’t help that he rarely assists teammates (1.0 per game), or that he’s regressed from the arc at a career-worst 23.5%.