Fantasy Basketball-Starting 5-January 16

Last night in the NBA was the lightest schedule in the season so far as just 6 teams were in action. Most of the league is getting ready for their MLK Jr. Day games when the NBA will feature 11 games including some afternoon hoops since most people will be off of work.

Since it was a Sunday, I’m sure there were many people’s games still in the balance and there were definitely some who stepped up and closed out the week well. Here’s the highlights from last night in 3 lists of 5, plus a list of guys to check for in your league to see if they’re available for the coming week. Check out our injury ward update (coming soon) as well, which will give you the latest on all the injuries that have mounted across the league.

Paul Millsap led the Jazz over the Nuggets Sunday in Denver earning him our MVP-for-a-day in a lightly scheduled night in the NBA. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)

5 Sunday Stars

1. Paul Millsap-Uta: Millsap had 26 points, 12 rebounds, 3 assists, a block, and a steal in the Jazz victory in Denver. The Jazz moved to 8-4 while the Nuggets slip to 8-5.

2. Tim Duncan-SA: Duncan led the Spurs past the visiting Suns to keep San Antonio’s record spotless at home. Their overall record is 9-4 with all 9 wins at the AT&T Center. Duncan finished with 24 points, 11 rebounds, 4 assists, a steal, and 2 blocks.

3. Marcin Gortat-Phx: Gortat’s been playing beastly for the Suns lately. He’s grabbed at least 10 boards in his last 4 games, but had his most during that stretch last night with 15. He added 24 points and a block but the Suns still slid to 4-8.

4. Greg Monroe-Det: Monroe continues to be the bright spot in the Pistons dark season. Last night he put up 25 points, 8 rebounds, an assist, steal, and a block. The Pistons didn’t give him enough help though and they fell to 3-10 by losing to Golden State in Detroit.

5. David Lee-GS: Lee led the Warriors to a road win raising their record to 4-8. He finished with 24 points before fouling out and had 6 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 blocks as well.

5 Solid Starts

1. Monta Ellis-GS: Ellis helped Lee secure GS 1st road win of the year with 22 points, 7 assists, and 2 rebounds.

2. Steve Nash-Phx: Nash had 20 points, 10 assists, a rebound, and a steal as he continued his recent strong play.

3. Tayshaun Prince-Det: Prince had his best game of the year with 20 points, 7 boards, an assists, and a block.

4. Al Jefferson-Uta: Jefferson had 18 points and 12 rebounds to go with an assist and 2 blocks.

5. Danillo Gallinari-Den: Gallinari hit 2-6 from the field but sank all 12 of his FT to finish with 18 points, 4 assists, and 4 rebounds.

5 Sorry Shooters

1. Channing Frye-Phx: Frye went scoreless in 18 minutes. He took 7 shots but finished with only 2 rebounds to show for his whole night’s effort.

2. Rudy Fernandez-Den: Fernandez played just 9 minutes but finished scoreless after missing all 3 shots he took. He did have 2 assists, a steal, and a block.

3. Gary Neal-SA: Neal didn’t play long (9 minutes) but was able to get off 6 shots in that short amount of time. He made just 1 of 6 and finished with 2 points, 1 assist, and 1 rebound.

4. Dorrell Wright-GS: Wright finished with 11 points, 11 boards, 3 steals, and 2 assists. The bad news is he shot 3-13 from the field and hit just 1 of the 6 3-pointers he attempted.

5. Tony Parker-SA: Parker had a great game with 17 points, 9 assists, 4 rebounds, a steal, and a block but shot just 8-20 from the field and 1-3 from the charity stripe.

5 to think about adding for week 4

1. Mo Williams-LAC: Williams is a little bit iffy with a sore foot, but the Clippers are the only team with 5 games this week. With CP3 ailing he should get increased minutes and me an asset in assists and points. Williams is currently owned in 19% of leagues.

2. Kawhi Leonard-SA: Leonard’s Spurs play 4 games this week. They head to Florida for the Miami-Orlands swing Tue/Wed and then come home for Sacramento and finish with the Rockets on the road. Leonard has stepped into the Spurs starting lineup and played big minutes for them over the last several games. His shooting percentage is normally high and is scoring 10-15 points with 5-8 boards and an assist or to. He also can contribute steals (2 per game average since entering the starting lineup.) He’s available in 81 percent of leagues.

3. Kemba Walker-Cha: Walker had 23 points in his first start while contributing across the board and helping the Bobcats win. Now that he’s in the lineup he should get plenty of run to score, create, and get the peripheral hustle stats as well.

4. Samuel Dalembert-Hou: Speaking of points and rebounds. Dalembert will ustually get 10 of each a night and throw in 2 or 3 blocks. Hes the starting C for Houston who plays 4 games this week and he’s available in 35% of leagues.

5. Ivan Johnson-Atl: Johnson is under-sized PF who the Hawks are starting to rely on for big minutes down the stretch. He played 21 and 26 in his last 2 games and put up double digit points in both of them, adding 10 rebounds in his last game. If you’re desperate for boards and points or want a speculative add, he’s available in over 99% of leagues.