2023-24 Fantasy Basketball Week 8 Risers and Fallers

What's up, RotoBallers? Welcome back to the Week 8 edition of my weekly fantasy basketball risers and fallers!

We're now officially done with the In-Season Tournament and the regular season is in full swing. If things haven't gone your way yet in your fantasy leagues, don't lose hope! Every week, I'm here to help you with my risers and fallers picks.

With that being said, let's look at the risers and fallers from Week 8 of the NBA season.

Fantasy Basketball Risers: Week 8

Coby White - G, Chicago Bulls

Is this the end of Zach LaVine in Chicago? The 28-year-old has been out due to a foot injury and the Bulls have been exploring a potential LaVine trade with the Lakers or Sixers. This has opened up the door for Coby White to finally showcase his true potential like he did at the end of the 2019-20 season. White was averaging his usual 13.4 points per night on mediocre efficiency in the 18 games before LaVine's injury, but he has been completely dominant since then.

Left is Zach LaVine in his last 5 games. Right is Coby White in his last 5 games.

16.8 PPG 26.8 PPG
4.6 RPG 6.4 RPG
4.4 APG 5.8 APG
52/35/80% 54/57/90% pic.twitter.com/Z1h8E9quIs

— StatMuse (@statmuse) December 13, 2023

He's now averaging 40.2 minutes per night, which has led to him averaging 26.2 points, six rebounds, and six assists while shooting 50.5% from the field and 53.4% from deep. Those shooting splits are unsustainable, but his usage percentage could get even higher if DeMar DeRozan and/or Nikola Vucevic get dealt, too. If all three get traded, White will remain as the only real scorer on the team, and he could have an awesome statistical year as a "Tank Commander".

Dante Exum - G, Dallas Mavericks

Dante Exum had all the potential in the world when he was drafted fifth overall by the Jazz in the 2014 NBA draft, but he was plagued by injuries and he only played in 163 games from 2015-16 to 2020-21 (27 games per season). His days in the NBA looked over when he was waived by the Rockets in 2021 and had to spend two years in the EuroLeague with Barcelona and Partizan. It was with the latter that he found true success, which caused the Mavericks to give him one last chance.

I haven’t seen Dante Exum hoop like this since he was my rival in 2k15 MyCareer

— dean 🦂 (@DeanScorpion_) December 13, 2023

Exum was a low-key bench player with the Mavs until Kyrie Irving's injury, and he has averaged 21.7 points and 5.3 assists per night on ridiculous shooting splits since then, which includes a masterful performance against the Lakers where he went 7-9. He got some time with the starting lineup right before Kyrie's injury, so it's fair to assume that Exum could remain in the starting five once Kyrie comes back.

Brandin Podziemski - G/F, Golden State Warriors

Last season Draymond Green "punched" the Warriors out of true contention, and now this season he's pretty much "punched" the Dubs out of the playoffs. He'll be suspended for a long time due to his actions during the game against the Suns, but this could be a good thing for the Warriors' long-term future.

Jonathan Kuminga, Moses Moody, and Brandin Podziemski have shown flashes of greatness, and Podziemski could get even more minutes due to Klay Thompson's struggles. The NBA world moves fast, and it seems like Klay is struggling to keep up. Podziemski is averaging 16 points and 8.5 rebounds per night over his last two games. Draymond's suspension will give him more minutes, but if Klay gets benched, he could benefit even more.

Fantasy Basketball Fallers: Week 8

Spencer Dinwiddie - G, Brooklyn Nets

Spencer Dinwiddie had a pretty slow start to the season, averaging 12.3 points on mediocre shooting in his first 12 games. But then, Dinwiddie had a good four-game stretch two weeks ago that gave fantasy managers some hope. His efficiency was still below average, but he upped his PPG to 21.8 and also averaged 5.5 rebounds and 9.5 assists per night.

But he has regressed since then. The efficiency is still the same, while the PPG has dropped down to 14.8. The APG has dropped to 6.4, and he's back to averaging three rebounds per game, which is close to his career average. He usually plays better in December compared to other months, so things could get even worse.

Andrew Wiggins - F, Golden State Warriors

Andrew Wiggins looked like he was finally starting to salvage his poor season after a 29-point, 10-rebound performance against Sacramento on November 28. The former number-one overall pick was having by far his worst season as a pro before that game (11.8 PPG on 41.7% shooting), but that performance provided a small glimmer of hope.

And then he slammed his finger in a car door (not joking), which caused him to miss two games. Since then, he has been averaging 8.0 points on 26.7% shooting from the field. Stuff like this is why I truly believe the Warriors sold their soul to the devil in exchange for that run of dominance from 2015 to 2022.

Gary Trent Jr. - G/F, Toronto Raptors

We conclude this list with yet another player who we thought was beginning to turn around a disappointing season before falling off once again. I remember vividly when Raptors fans said Trent Jr. could become their next franchise star after they traded for him. Unfortunately for Raptors fans, his improvement was very slight, and then he plateaued before downright regressing this season.

Gary Trent Jr. last season vs this season

• 17.4 PPG - 10.6 PPG (-6.8 PPG)
• 1.6 SPG - 0.7 SPG (-0.9 SPG)
• 43% FG - 39% FG (-4% FG)
• 37% 3PT - 36% 3PT (-1% 3PT)
• 84% FT - 59% FT (-25% FT)
• 56% TS - 49% TS (-7%TS)

ROUGH decline on a contract year pic.twitter.com/pYstJIInHg

— MVP43🐐 (@StepBackPascal) December 10, 2023

Yes, his statistical regression could be attributed to his new bench role, but it doesn't excuse his terrible field goal percentage. He shot 37.9% from the floor in his first 12 games before going on a solid four-game stretch to end November. December hasn't been kind to Trent Jr., however, as he has been averaging just 5.8 points while shooting 28.1% from the floor and 20% from deep since the start of the month.

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