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Spencer Aguiar highlights three fantasy basketball takeaways from the NBA's December 21st slate. This recap focuses on Donovan Mitchell, Emmanuel Mudiay, and Jaren Jackson Jr.
Welcome to the RotoBaller NBA Recap. In this feature, we highlight three fantasy basketball takeaways from last night's slate of NBA games. Friday presented us with a 10-game slate that featured a handful of the top contenders in action. One of the quietly intriguing contests came between the Sacramento Kings and Memphis Grizzlies. Both of these teams are fighting for a playoff spot out West, and the Kings were able to capture a 102-99 home victory. Sacramento was led by 14-year-old Buddy Hield, who scored 28 points to lead the way.
Wait, scratch that original post, I am being told that Hield is actually 26 years old. It was a simple mistake on my part, and I am sure we will get this straightened out before he has his 50th birthday next week.
The Toronto Raptors cruised past the Cleveland Cavaliers 126-110. Kawhi Leonard contributed a season-high 37 points to go along with six rebounds, one assist, one steal and two three-pointers. Head coach Nick Nurse announced after the game that Leonard would sit out of Saturday's contest against the Philadelphia 76ers so be aware of that if you are playing on any of the DFS sites. I know that Leonard has not been cleared for back-to-back contests yet, but it seems strange to me that he chose to play against one of the worst teams in the NBA and bypassed an Eastern Conference heavyweight fight. But with the Raptors being an NBA best 25-9, I won't question their logic. And the Milwaukee Bucks pulled out an impressive road victory at the TD Garden over the Boston Celtics by a score of 120-107. Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 30 points with eight rebounds, five assists, three blocks and one three-pointer on 8-for-13 shooting from the field and 13-for-17 from the charity stripe. The Greek Freak is having a ridiculous season, posting averages of 26.8 points, 12.8 rebounds, 6.1 assists, 1.3 steals and 1.4 blocks on an impressive 59.1 percent from the floor. The Bucks should be viewed as legit contenders out East, and Giannis should be considered the favorite to win the MVP award this season. Our three main takeaways of the night are still to come, so without further ado, let's dive a little deeper into the recap for December 21st.
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Donovan Mitchell: Remains Ice Cold From The Field
Donovan Mitchell scored a season-low three points on Friday against the Portland Trail Blazers, adding seven rebounds, four assists, one block and one steal on 1-for-10 shooting from the floor. With the three-point effort, Mitchell is now shooting a putrid 35.3 percent on 17.8 attempts per game in December and has struggled to find consistency all season.
Category league owners, without a doubt, are feeling the effects of his poor shooting, but his erratic nights from the field aren't a surprise. Mitchell shot 43.7 percent last season on 17.2 attempts per game and is 40.6 percent during his second season on 18.4 shots per contest. If you drafted him to be a volatile scorer that contributes pretty well across the board outside of field goal percentage, you are getting almost precisely the averages that you got from him last season.
If you don't own him and your team is built around field goal percentage as a staple building block of your unit, ignore this next comment. But if you can afford to own an erratic shooter that can fill up most of the stat sheet, Mitchell is an ideal buy-low candidate. His production is almost identical to last season and a few bad nights from the floor won't make or break him. Some owners panic because of these situations, and you should see if you can acquire the second-year stud for a reduced rate.
Emmanuel Mudiay: Provides His Third 30-Point Performance In The Previous Five Games
Emmanuel Mudiay kept up his torrid pace on Friday, dropping 32 points on 12-for-20 shooting against the Atlanta Hawks. Mudiay was able to add one rebound, four assists, one steal and three three-pointers, but the most impressive caveat from the game is that he has now scored 30 or more points three times in his past five games.
New York Knicks players haven't provided much consistency this season, but it appears like Mudiay has run away with the starting point guard gig and has real potential to contribute top-75 return in nine-category leagues. During 11 games in December, the 22-year-old is averaging 20.2 points 3.2 rebounds and 5.5 assists. If you were lucky enough to grab him off the waiver wire, hold onto him and see if he can continue his excellent run of basketball. However, if you don't currently own him, I would be skeptical given his history. It doesn't mean that he won't continue to produce but be careful when it comes to overpaying for him in a trade.
Jaren Jackson Jr.: Disappears After The First Quarter On Friday
Jaren Jackson Jr. scored all 12 of his points in the first quarter versus the Sacramento Kings on Friday, adding six rebounds, two assists, one steal, three blocks and a three-pointer in 24 minutes. Foul trouble continues to be an issue for the rookie, who picked up his fifth foul with 9:36 seconds left in the fourth quarter and wasn't put back into the game until there were 20 seconds left on the clock.
Most of the blame can be placed on head coach J. B. Bickerstaff for mismanaging the game and not getting Jackson Jr. back in earlier, but the 19-year-old does need to clean up some of his overaggression on defense. The fourth pick in this year's draft has been erratic on the year but is still producing top-50 value in nine-category settings in only 25.3 minutes per game. If his minutes can start to tick up slightly, the sky is the limit. There will be a lot of buy-low windows for Jackson Jr. on the season, and I like trying to acquire him anytime he gets into a lull production wise.
