Michael Waterloo | Mon, Jan 18th 2021, 11:06am EST

Fantasy Basketball Category Analysis: Week 5

It’s Tuesday. You know what that means.

This basketball season feels a lot like fantasy baseball in 2020, no? It’s a competition to see who can stay healthy each week and not have games postponed due to COVID. Will a stoppage come? We shouldn’t be surprised if one happens, but for now, we continue.

Every other week, we’ll be looking at players who are widely available and rostered in fewer than 60 percent of fantasy leagues on Yahoo. We’ll be focusing on eight-cat leagues because turnovers are a waste of a category, to be honest. We’ll be looking at players who can help you in each of the eight categories that you can get before your league-mates catch on.

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The eight categories we’ll focus on each week are:

Points
Rebounds
Assists
Steals
Blocks
Threes
Field-goal percentage
Free-throw percentage

Let’s get to it.

Points

Tyrese Maxey (SG – PHI): 47% rostered
The Sixers have been hit hard by rescheduled and postponed games, forcing them to play with a limited roster on more than one occasion. They even had to play with seven despite having “eight” players dressed. The positive during this time — if you want to say that — is that Maxey has absolutely shined. Seth Curry, who was red hot in his own right to start the season, will be back soon, but Doc Rivers will have to find a way to keep Maxey on the court.

Rebounds

Onyeka Okongwu (PF/C – ATL): 3% rostered
Okongwu made his NBA debut on Friday against the Jazz, and while he was limited to 14 minutes due to left foot inflammation, the big man from USC showed what he was capable of with four points, five rebounds, two assists, and one steal. This is a deep-league and dynasty add only, as Okongwu will be brought along slowly, and the frontcourt is crowded in Atlanta until they move one of John Collins or Clint Capela. Mini-Bam Adebayo has arrived.

Assists

Immanuel Quickley (PG – NYK): 37% rostered
Why is Quickley’s rostership percentage so low? Over his past three games, Quickley has 59 points and 15 assists for the Knicks. The rookie out of Kentucky has made his case to start over Elfrid Payton in the not-so-distant future, which will result in his rostership percentage shooting through the roof.

Steals

Xavier Tillman (PF – MEM): 7% rostered
Imagine every team in the league passing on Tillman in the first round of the NBA Draft. It’s kind of laughable, but it’s good for Memphis fans. Tillman has been a bright spot for the Grizzlies, who have dealt with injuries to their two best players this year. While Ja Morant is back for Memphis, Jaren Jackson Jr. is still on the shelf. Tillman should maintain his value until JJJ returns. He reminds me of a young Draymond Green, and he has seven steals over his past three games.

Blocks

Marc Gasol (C – LAL): 27% rostered
Gasol looks old, and he hasn’t done much on the Lakers’ offensive end (not that he’s needed). That said, been quietly productive on defense. He’s also fifth in the league in blocks to this point, making him usable in eight- and nine-cat leagues.

Threes

Justin Holiday (SG/SF – IND): 33% rostered
We are keeping Holiday in this spot because it’s kind of absurd that his rostership numbers haven’t changed. A lot has changed from two weeks ago, as Victor Oladipo is no longer a Pacer, and the newly acquired Caris LeVert is now out indefinitely with a scary mass on his kidney. Holiday will continue to get as much run as he can handle in Indianapolis. He’s averaging more than two three-pointers made per game on the year.

Field-Goal Percentage

Nic Claxton (C – BKN): 1% rostered
Here’s another one for the deep leaguers out there. With the recent trade of Jarrett Allen, we have a new Jarrett Allen on the Nets. Claxton won’t return until March, so this is purely an add-and-stash option if you have an available IR spot. Claxton is better than DeAndre Jordan and should work his way into a regular rotation spot — if not a starting spot — once he returns.

Free-Throw Percentage

Obi Toppin (SF/PF – NYK): 31% rostered
Toppin recently made his debut, which is great, but it was because he was battling a calf issue. We know these can linger. The Knicks have done the right thing (that’s weird to write) by slowly bringing him along. Once he’s unleashed, though, he can offer production across the board. Toppin should get the majority of his time at small forward with how well Julius Randle is playing. Toppin was a 70-percent shooter from the line in college.