With the NFL regular season concluding this weekend, the NBA’s weekly schedule should be a bit more evenly distributed. For Week 12, a day with five games is considered “light,” which will be the case on Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday. Wednesday and Friday will be the busy days, with ten games on each schedule. Also, Week 12 features an international game, with the Nets and Cavaliers meeting in Paris, and that’s the only game those teams will play. Let’s look at the Week 12 schedule breakdown and some of its noteworthy fantasy basketball storylines.
Week 12 Games Played
4 Games: BOS, CHA, CHI, HOU, IND, LAC, MIA, MIL, MIN, OKC, POR, SAC, UTA
3 Games: ATL, DAL, DEN, DET, GSW, LAL, MEM, NOR, NYK, ORL, PHO, SAS, TOR, WAS
2 Games: PHI
1 Game: BKN, CLE
Week 12 Storylines
— Nets and Cavaliers cross the ocean on a one-game week
The NBA hits Paris during Week 12, with Brooklyn and Cleveland facing off on Thursday. And that’s the only game those teams will play, effectively taking those players off the board for fantasy managers. Combining the travel with the fact that these teams only play once, a star like Donovan Mitchell is essentially off the board in leagues that require weekly lineups to be set before the start of games on Monday. At least in the case of Mitchell, a fantasy manager can take the approach of one outstanding performance from him is on par with a two-game run for another player. That can’t be said for Mikal Bridges, whose fantasy value has taken a significant hit this season.
— Will Victor Wembanyama play in all three games?
The Spurs still have their prized rookie on a minutes limit (24, with the ability to exceed it by a few due to the nature of the game, as was the case on Thursday), and he isn’t playing both ends of back-to-backs. San Antonio plays three games during Week 12, with two of the matchups coming against the Pistons (Wednesday) and Hornets (Friday). With San Antonio finishing Week 12 with a home game against the Bulls on Saturday, the best-case scenario for Wembanyama managers (if he doesn’t play both ends of the back-to-back) is for him to play against the Pistons and Hornets. When the restrictions will be lifted is unknown, but managers may be left to hunt advantageous matchups for now.
— Ten teams finish their Week 12 slates with a back-to-back
Of the ten teams that finish their Week 12 schedules with a back-to-back, nine (Atlanta, Chicago, Golden State, Houston, Memphis, New Orleans, Orlando, San Antonio, and Utah) play on Friday and Saturday, with Milwaukee playing on Saturday and Sunday. A few of these teams will begin Week 12 with some notable injuries, including Franz Wagner, Wendell Carter Jr., and Goga Bitadze in Orlando and Zion Williamson in New Orleans. Atlanta, Golden State, Memphis, New Orleans, and San Antonio only play three games during Week 12, so managers could be looking at two games (or less) from some of their fantasy standouts. The good news is that all five teams finish their Week 11 slates on Sunday, which could provide managers with more information regarding what’s to come on the availability front in Week 12.
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— How soon will the Bulls’ rotation return to normal?
Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic returned from injury on Friday, coming off the bench in the Bulls’ win over Charlotte. Their minutes were restricted, hence the decision to bring the two stars off the bench, even with Chicago playing without Alex Caruso and Patrick Williams. With a rematch set for Monday night in Charlotte, how close to full will the Bulls’ rotation be? And will LaVine and Vucevic be moved into the starting lineup for that game, regardless of other injuries, or will they remain on a restriction themselves? Chicago ends Week 12 with a Friday/Saturday back-to-back, but they have four games overall. So even if a critical fantasy player like LaVine or Vucevic is given a night off, there’s still a decent possibility that managers will get three games of production from them. Another question regarding the rotation: will Coby White’s fantasy value take a hit, and if so, how big?
— How many games will fantasy managers get out of Kevin Durant?
The Suns forward has missed three games with a hamstring injury and is considered questionable for Sunday’s game against Memphis. That game is the first of a back-to-back for Phoenix, which will visit the Clippers on Monday. The Suns play three games during Week 12, and they’re spread out, as they visit the Lakers on Thursday and then Portland on Sunday (January 14). If Durant sits out the Memphis game, could he be ready for Monday? Or would Thursday’s game against the Lakers be a more realistic target? Also worth noting here are injuries to reserves who have helped fill the void, most notably Eric Gordon (questionable Sunday), Nassir Little (out), and Bol Bol (out). The remaining streaming options haven’t been great, and those who have performed well (Grayson Allen) will be difficult to find on most waiver wires.
— Significant injury issues in Boston and Philadelphia
The Celtics and 76ers watched vital players miss time at the end of Week 11. Kristaps Porzingis was poked in the eye during the first quarter of Saturday’s win over the Pacers and did not return. As for the 76ers, center Joel Embiid (knee) and guard De’Anthony Melton (back) sat out Saturday’s loss to Utah, with the latter having missed his team’s last two games. Boston plays four games during Week 12, including a midweek back-to-back against the Timberwolves and Bucks. It’s fair to assume that Al Horford will get one of those games off, but will Porzingis be available? That’s the big question heading into Monday’s rematch with the Pacers. As for Philadelphia, they only play two games during Week 12, which can help get Embiid and Melton back to full strength.
Light Game Days
Tuesday: 5 Games
SAC vs. DET
MIN vs. ORL
POR vs. NYK
MEM vs. DAL
TOR vs. LAL
Thursday: 5 Games
BKN vs. CLE
BOS vs. MIL
POR vs. OKC
NYK vs. DAL
PHO vs. LAL
Sunday: 5 Games
IND vs. DEN
CHA vs. MIA
SAC vs. MIL
LAC vs. MIN
PHO vs. POR
Week 12 Back-to-backs
Sunday (Week 11)-Monday: LAC, PHO
Monday-Tuesday: None
Tuesday-Wednesday: DET, MIN, SAC, TOR
Wednesday-Thursday: BOS, OKC
Thursday-Friday: POR
Friday-Saturday: ATL, CHI, GSW, HOU, MEM, NOR, ORL, SAS, UTA
Saturday-Sunday: MIL
Sunday-Monday (Week 13): IND, MIA