Fantasy Basketball Starting Lineup Changes - Week 9

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

Killian Hayes - PG, Detroit Pistons

ESPN: 27.2% rostered

Week 6: 25:00 Minutes per Game

I'll start things off this week with Killian Hayes. Obviously, with the news coming a few weeks back that Cade Cunningham has been ruled out for the remainder of the season, Hayes seems to be one of the biggest beneficiaries, logging 25+ minutes in each of his six games.

Hayes played 34 minutes against the Sixers on Wednesday night, finishing with 12 points, two rebounds, four assists, a steal, and a block. While fantasy owners will be looking for a bit more out of him, it's worth noting that the Sixers rank tops in the NBA in point guard efficiency. Hayes does enough to fill up the stat sheet for him to be a potential value waiver pickup in all formats.

Onyeka Okongwu - C, Atlanta Hawks

ESPN: 10.4% rostered

Week 6: 21:20 Minutes per Game

A bit late on the draw here as Clint Capela is eyeing a return to the Hawks lineup on Friday, but Okongwu has surely done enough for fantasy owners to be optimistic regarding his upside.

Okongwu finished with 18 points, 11 rebounds, an assist, and five!!! blocks across 40 minutes against the Bulls on Wednesday night. While it's unlikely that he'll play 40 minutes again in the near future, he's a good grab even if he's playing 23-27 minutes as Capela's backup.

Tim Hardaway Jr. - SG/SF, Dallas Mavericks

ESPN: 13.9% rostered

Week 6: 26:20 Minutes per Game

Last but not least, I'll take a look at Tim Hardaway. Hardaway feels like another guy I'm a bit late on the draw on, as he was lighting it up just a few weeks ago, while his shooting has come back down to reality a bit, he's still someone to keep an eye on.

The reason is, he's played an average of 33.2 minutes per game over his last five. Last night against the Timberwolves, the Mavericks were without Maxi Kleber, Dorian Finney-Smith, and Josh Green. While Smith and Green may be back in just a few days, Kleber should be out for a bit which inevitably opens up the door for more Hardaway minutes.

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