Fantasy Basketball Starting Lineup Changes - Week 4

Welcome to Rotation Watch, Rotoballers! Each week, this article will highlight the players gaining minutes in their team's rotation. Fantasy managers want to roster the players that accumulate stats and rack up the playing time. They want to avoid the players falling out of favor and watching the action from the sidelines.

With the new season here, Rotation Watch is well... back in the rotation. With new rotations and players bouncing around from season to season, it's important to take note of who's "in" and who's "out". I've been consistently updating my data model to account for minutes over the 2022-2023 regular season, as well as each player's last four games, and their stats based on who's on and who's off the floor (accounting for injury, etc.).

So without further ado, let's start searching those box scores and look for those hidden gems that grabbed minutes to help your fantasy basketball team achieve the ultimate prize: a championship. Of course, these suggestions are the cream of the crop, and if you ever need an extra slice of advice, feel free to reach out to me on Twitter @LucidMediaDFS.

NBA Playing Time Changes

Norman Powell - SG/SF, Los Angeles Clippers

ESPN: 21% rostered

Week 1: 24:42 Minutes per Game

I'll start off this week's column with a guy whose fantasy value seemed to plummet over the last year or so. Being a daily fantasy player, I was a huge fan of Norman Powell in Toronto and Portland as a mid-range/value small forward I could always fit into my lineups. He now resides in L.A. and is overshadowed by the "big dogs" like Paul George and Kawhi Leonard.

However, Leonard has been in and out of the lineup due to injury, George is day-to-day with a left-hand contusion, and the Clippers' starting shooting guard, Luke Kennard, is doubtful for tonight's game in Detroit. Powell played just 18 minutes on Tuesday night but had seen a slight minutes boost (+1 minute in his last five games) before that. He is scoring-dependent so I would favor him in points-based leagues, but he should be in the starting lineup tonight and will likely be a must-stream for me if Paul George is ruled out.

John Konchar - SG, Memphis Grizzlies

ESPN: 2.5% rostered

Week 1: 26.36 Minutes per Game

After filling in nicely early on in the season while Dillon Brooks was sidelined, Konchar is now back in the fold as it appears that Desmond Bane has a Grade 2 sprain on his right big toe. With Bane out two to three weeks minimum, Konchar will likely fill the void in Memphis' starting lineup.

Konchar had played roughly 23 minutes per game in the last four games prior to Bane's injury. Across the last two games, though, Konchar has played 37 minutes in each. While he's not going to light the scoreboard up, he's seemingly a double-double threat with that kind of playing time, averaging eight points and 8.5 rebounds in those two games. He can certainly help you out in category leagues if you need someone to help you hold down the shooting guard position over the next few weeks.

De'Anthony Melton - PG/SG, Philadelphia 76ers

ESPN: 14.1% rostered

Week 9: 24:30 Minutes per Game

I'm a bit late on the draw here, which is odd from me being a Philly fan, but James Harden is in a walking boot and off the court for at least a month, I'll look for the guy who's taken over his spot in the Philly starting lineup: De'Anthony Melton. The 24-year-old guard is still coming into his own in Philadelphia, averaging 8.8 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 2.7 assists in the young season. You could say some of that can be attributed to his three-point field-goal percentage regressing from 37.4% in 2021-22 to 33.3% through the first 14 games of the year.

Melton had a back issue last weekend, missing Saturday's game against Atlanta and coming off the bench and playing just 20 minutes on Sunday against Utah. However, he started the three games prior, averaging 30.66 minutes per game since Harden went down with his injury. While Melton's usage will be capped as he plays fourth fiddle to the likes of Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, and Tobias Harris, his rebound and assist upside cannot be understated and should be on a roster until Harden returns.

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