Fantasy Basketball: Tony Parker Struggling
It hasn’t been pretty since San Antonio Spurs point guard Tony Parker has returned from injury for his fantasy basketball owners. For those hoping for a quick transition back to his career numbers of 17 points and six assists it hasn’t happened. None of this is all that surprising considering Parker is 32 and played in 68 games last season plus 66 the year before.
In the five games Parker has been back in the lineup he has posted 9.2 points, 2.2 assists and 1.8 rebounds with 38/20/83 shooting splits. I watched him play against the Suns on Jan. 9 and it wasn’t pretty. He didn’t have a second gear to get into the lane and it allowed the Phoenix players to get into his off the dribble jumper.
He’s put up double figures in the last three games while hitting 17-of-41 shots (41 percent) — still un-Tony Parker like. I’m still holding onto Cory Joseph in multiple leagues and Patty Mills is worth a look. Parker’s only crossed the 30-minute mark in one of the five games.
Other notes from Wednesday night’s action:
- Ban Ankles: Memphis Grizzlies guard Mike Conley and Chicago Bulls center Joakim Noah both couldn’t finish their respective games because of ankle injuries. Noah has been under-performing this year and desperately needs two weeks off. This would be good for his long-term value this season. Hopefully the Conley injury is nothing, but he was seen leaving the arena in a walking boot. This has become fairly common even if the injury isn’t overly serious.
- Two Injury Returns: Toronto Raptors forward DeMar DeRozan and Charlotte Hornets guard Lance Stephenson both made returns from injuries. DeRozan picked up right where he left off dropping 20 points on 9-of-14 shooting in 29 minutes. He added four rebounds, three assists, one steal and one block. On the other hand, Stephenson came off the bench for the Hornets. He only played 18 minutes putting up eight points, two assists and one rebound. If Stephenson doesn’t see big minutes that’s a concern because his fantasy value this season was in the volume of his assists and rebounds, not his efficiency.
- Green Debut: New Memphis Grizzlies forward Jeff Green made his debut for his new team. It was big minutes right off the bat for Green who saw 27 minutes of action — a good sign. The bad? He missed 8-of-11 shots and all four three pointers. Green put up 10 points, three rebounds, two assists and made all four free throws.
- Changes Coming for Pistons? Coach Stan Van Gundy hinted as much after Detroit lost to the Pelicans at home. What are the changes? We have no idea, but he specifically stated he wasn’t happy with how they’ve been starting games. Andre Drummond only played 22 minutes with two points and two rebounds.
- Point Guard Explosions: Nice nights for Philadelphia 76ers guard Michael Carter-Williams and Chicago Bulls guard Derrick Rose. In his last two games Carter-Williams has made 20-of-48 shots, a huge step forward for a guy making 38 percent of his field goals on the season. Not much of a change in where MCW has taken shots these last two games just more makes. It’s unlikely for the solid percentages to stay. Rose posted 32 points after not reaching the 20-point mark in his last nine games. He made 6-of-9 threes — Rose had knocked down six total threes in his last eight games total. That will be helpful. In January Rose’s shooting splits are 37/33/75 and he’s averaging 4.9 assists and three turnovers. It hasn’t been a good year for Rose in fantasy.