It's been a busy week for sports fans, and at this stage of the season, fantasy basketball has perhaps taken a backseat to NCAA brackets and fantasy baseball drafts.
But with about a month left to play in the NBA regular season, there's still plenty of hoops left. As we inch closer to the end of the season, you will notice some major movement in the Top 130 rankings as injuries and hot/cold streaks carry more weight in a shorter time span.
• With both Kevin Durant and Serge Ibaka effectively out for the remainder of the regular season, there are suddenly plenty of pickup candidates on the Oklahoma City Thunder. We'll start with Enes Kanter, who should already be owned, but might be hanging around on some waiver wires. Kanter averaged 20.2 points and 12.2 rebounds over his past six games prior to suffering an ankle injury that forced him to miss Friday's contest against the Atlanta Hawks. He won't help much on the defensive end, but Kanter is going to pay big dividends for anyone in need of points, boards and percentages down the stretch. Proving that he's fully recovered from the ankle scare, Kanter went out and posted 27 points and 12 boards on Sunday against the Miami Heat. Frontcourt mate Steven Adams has flirted with fantasy value for stretches, but should provide more consistency now that he's locked in for 30-plus minutes per game with Ibaka on the shelf. He's averaged a productive 11.6 points, 11.4 rebounds and 1.2 blocks over his past five games, and is one of my favorite pickup candidates for those in need of big man stats the rest of the way. Last but not least, preseason sleeper favorite Anthony Morrow has exploded during Durant's latest absence with 13.6 points, 0.7 steals and 3.2 3-pointers over his past 10 games. Morrow is one of the league's most efficient 3-point shooters, and is a must own for anyone looking to boost their 3s and points the rest of the way.
• The past week was filled with frustrating injuries and DNPs due to rest, but owners need to stay patient with players such as Anthony Davis, Klay Thompson, DeMarcus Cousins, Isaiah Thomas, Greg Monroe, Tyreke Evans, Ricky Rubio and Tobias Harris, who have all missed games over the past week. I'm most concerned about Rubio and Harris due to their lengthy injury history, but it looks like all eight will suit up early or midweek. I'm far less optimistic about Jamal Crawford (calf), Terrence Jones (lung), Nikola Pekovic (ankle), Ryan Anderson (knee) and Brandon Knight (ankle), though I would continue to hold Knight, Crawford and Jones unless you are desperate for immediate production.
• Sticking with injury news, fantasy owners hope to see Jimmy Butler and Dwight Howard return from major injuries over the next week or two. Butler, who has missed his past 11 games with an elbow injury, is expected to be in the lineup either Monday or Wednesday. Nikola Mirotic and Aaron Brooks may not be as productive as they've been with Butler sidelined, but both have solidified their status in the Bulls' rotation and remain quality options moving forward. Over in Houston, Howard has been out since late January, which has allowed Josh Smith, Donatas Motiejunas and Terrence Jones to all have value in his absence. If Howard is able to return with no setbacks, Smith and Motiejunas will lose the most value, but Jones' injury status is the big wild card here. He's clearly been the most productive of the three in recent action, and would retain his value even with Howard back in the lineup if he's able to keep himself on the court.
• A few weeks ago I called Nerlens Noel a young Ben Wallace, but he's actually started to flash some surprising offensive skills with 17.0 points, 8.8 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 2.0 blocks with great percentages over his past five games. Part of his offensive outburst could simply be due to lack of firepower in the Philadelphia 76ers' offense, but Philly isn't getting an offensive juggernaut anytime soon and Noel has to be considered a top-25 option the rest of the way. He'll be extremely sought after in fantasy leagues next season, and should be considered a top keeper league candidate.
• Dwyane Wade's recent explosion might be the second most impressive run since the start of March (Russell Westbrook is first, obviously). With 26.9 points 5.1 assists and 2.0 steals per game, Wade looks to have summoned his former self as the Heat battle for a playoff spot. With just 2.5 games separating them from Boston, Indiana and Charlotte for the final two spots in the East, Wade figures to stay hot as long as he can avoid an injury.
• We can add David West to last week's list of players who are on the chopping block after he's averaged just 8.8 points, 6.1 rebounds and 1.0 blocks through 11 games in the month of March. There's really no reason that West shouldn't be putting up 15/8 with this roster, but we can't ignore his underwhelming numbers to date. Meanwhile, Roy Hibbert, who dropped out of the ranks last week, has suddenly found himself back in again with 14.0 points, 6.4 rebounds and 1.2 blocks per game.