RADIO
Welcome to the RotoBaller NBA recap. In this feature, we highlight three fantasy basketball takeaways from the previous night's slate of NBA games. Week 2 of the NBA season is off to quite a start as there were 11 games on Wednesday docket. While only two of the night's games were decided by five points or less, a lot of storylines came out of the results. Toronto and Milwaukee remained undefeated while Chicago along with the Los Angeles Lakers picked up their first victory. In the meanwhile, Cleveland (0-4) lost its third game by 12 or more points to maintain their NBA-worst scoring margin at minus-14.5 points a game.
Stephen Curry and Giannis Antetokounmpo had to be co-players of the night. Curry, who missed just nine of 24 shots, drained 11 three-pointers and dropped in 51 points in Golden State's 144-122 victory over Washington. It was Curry's sixth career game of 50 or more points and the 10th time that he made at least 10 treys. Antetokounmpo posted his first triple-double of the campaign -- and 10th of his career -- with 32 points, 18 rebounds along with 10 assists versus Philadelphia. With the performance, Antetokounmpo became the first player since Wilt Chamberlain to tally four-straight games of 25-points and 15 rebound to open the season.
Let's look at the rest of our fantasy highlights (and lowlights).
Wesley Matthews: Rejuvenation Continues
Despite the fact that the Mavericks fell to the Hawks after blowing a 26-point second quarter lead, the story of the game was that Matthews continued to play at his highest level in years. Matthews, who made his first three shots of the game, produced a season-high 23 points on 9 of 21 shooting from the field.
Matthews has now scored 20 points in back-to-back games for the first time since Jan. 1-3. He has reached double figures in his first four games of the season, averaging 19.3 points on 40.0% shooting from the field as well as 34.9% from beyond the arc. While those numbers are not eye-popping, the number of shots he is taking is, especially from three-point range.
Matthews has put up 55 shots over the last three games, including 19 or more attempts in two of those three contests -- he did not attempt 19 shots in a single game last season. The 10th-year pro has always taken a lot of threes over his career, but never at the current rate of 66.2%. He is currently averaging a career-high 3.8 triples a game as he has made at least four shots from long distance in each of the last three games, including five of 11 last night versus the Hawks.
Scoring and shot attempts are not the only thing that the 32-year-old has seen an uptick in. Matthews is currently getting to the line more often than normal. His 3.3 free throw attempts a game would be the third highest amount in his career if he kept up the pace the entire season. He is also on pace to set career highs in assists per game and assists-to-turnover ratio.
Matthews is currently 88th in the league in fantasy scoring at 28.2 points a game, which is kind of surprising as he really only contributes points and three-point shooting. While Matthews -- as long as he stays healthy -- will continue to contribute points and three-pointers for fantasy owners, it is hard to imagine that the volume will be there the whole season. Dirk Nowitzki (ankle) and Harrison Barnes (hamstring) have yet to play this season. Barnes, the team's leading scorer last year, could return on Friday while Nowitzki won't be back until the calendar changes to November, but once they're back on the court they should resume their share of the scoring for Dallas.
Damyean Dotson: Off To A Surprising Start
It looks like it is going to be another long season for the New York Knicks (1-4). While the Knicks are struggling on the court, they do have some solid fantasy players on their roster with Tim Hardaway Jr., Trey Burke, Noah Vonleh, Enes Kanter, Kristaps Porzingis, Courtney Lee and Emmanuel Mudiay. Porzingis, Lee and Mudiay have not played this season due to injuries.
Allonzo Trier, Kevin Knox, and Mario Hezonja -- to a lesser extent -- are also intriguing. Dotson could join that list soon.
Dotson scored 20 points on 8-for-14 shooting from the field in the loss to the Heat. The 24-year-old, who drained three of eight three-pointers, also grabbed 10 rebounds to go along with two assists, one block, and a steal. It was his first double-double of the season and the third in his last seven games dating back to last season.
After not playing in the first two games of the season, Dotson has been productive and efficient. He has scored in double figures in each of his three contests while making at least two trifectas in those games. The second-year pro is currently averaging 14.7 points, 6.7 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.7 steals a game. He is shooting 48.6% from the floor and 42.9% from beyond the arc for an incredible shooting efficiency of 61.4%.
This is a strong start for the 2017 second-round draft pick out of Houston. However, it is hard to forecast the player that the gifted 6-foot-6 wing can become as it is unlikely he will continue to receive nearly 30 minutes a game, especially when Knox returns from his ankle injury. One thing is for sure, Dotson is capable of filling up the stat sheet no matter the amount of playing time he receives. Inconsistent scoring may be his biggest issue.
Tristan Thompson: Struggles Shooting
Thompson had his worst shooting game thus far, although it is early. Thompson missed nine of 10 shots and finished with just two points in the Cavaliers loss to the Nets. Still, he had a decent game as he grabbed 11 rebounds -- seven offensive -- and doled out a season-high four assists.
Thompson shooting 1-for-10 from the field is really only noteworthy because he is probably the Cavaliers' second most prominent player, behind Kevin Love, particularly in terms of fantasy basketball. Also, it marked just the 10th time he put up that many shots over the last two seasons which includes postseason games.
While Thompson won't put up huge offensive numbers this year, he will likely have the best chance to boost his career scoring average as he should get several opportunities to put up shots whether in the post, on lobs or off of put-backs.
Regardless of his offensive production, Thompson is a quality fantasy player due to his rebounding prowess. The 27-year-old already has one double-double and three double-figure rebound games this year.
