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Amidst the craziness that has been the form of Kevin Durant, a second year player by the name of Jeremy Lamb has been quietly putting together a fantasy relevant in Oklahoma City.
In today’s edition of “All Wired Up”, I’ll delve into the fantasy strengths of potential waiver wire gold like Lamb and the Milwaukee Bucks’ Ersan Ilyasova.
»Jeremy Lamb, SG, Oklahoma City Thunder (1.8 percent owned on ESPN.com)
18 points (7-10 FG, 0-0 FT), 4 three-pointers, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, 0 steals, 0 blocks, 2 turnovers vs. Heat
Jeremy Lamb wasn’t considered the best piece the Thunder got back in October 2012 in the James Harden trade – that honour was reserved for Kevin Martin, who bolted Oklahoma City after one season. Lamb was considered a nice player, but not necessarily someone who was ready to contribute in the near future.
Fast forward one season and Lamb has entrenched himself into Martin’s bench scorers role and is quietly carving a niche for himself on the best team in the NBA and very soon, into the hearts of fantasy owners across the world.
Over the course of the season Lamb is averaging 22.3 minutes per game, but recently those numbers have seen a bump, getting 24.5 minutes in the last month and sitting at 25.5 minutes per game in his last four games.
In those last four games, all Thunder wins by the way, Lamb has scored over double digits in three of them. He’s also hit eight three-pointers in those games, averaging 14 points, 3.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.0 steals, all while shooting at 52.3 percent from the field.
In Wednesday’s statement win over Miami (let’s be honest, it was more of a demolition), Lamb played a season high 34 minutes and was a key component to the Thunder’s big win. His minutes may drop off slightly when Russell Westbrook returns, but based on his season averages, it’s nothing to worry about.
Overall, Jeremy Lamb is guy who should be owned in all 12 team leagues or deeper, while he’s sitting on the border for 10 team leagues. If I had the roster space in a 10 teamer, I’d be adding Lamb and see where this recent spate of good form takes us.
Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports
» Ersan Ilyasova, SF/PF, Milwaukee Bucks (45.0 percent owned):
27 points (7-15 FG, 10-10 FT), 3 three-pointers, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 0 steals, 0 blocks, 0 turnovers vs. Suns
He’s back?
No, Ron Burgundy didn’t contribute to this post, but such is the uncertainty over the play of Ersan Ilyasova that no other punctuation would suffice. Earlier this month, I wrote about how disappointing Ilyasova had been this year and as a result of everyone reading my article (of course), his ownership has dropped all the way down to 45 percent.
Now is this time to execute a true buy low on Ilyasova, grabbing him off the wire in the hope that his mini-breakout extends itself into his yearly second half explosion.
His 27 points against Phoenix were a season high for the Turkish big man, but it’s more of an indication of what he can do if he gets his head on straight.
His last week has been decent, averaging 14.8 points and 7.8 rebounds per game in four games. Granted, his field goal percentage has been putrid in those four games (and all season to be honest), converting only 32.3 percent of his field goal attempts.
The really interesting thing about his numbers in the past week is the per-36 stats. Those numbers tell a fantastic story for prospective Ilyasova owners. The stats extrapolate to 20.0 points and 10.5 rebounds per 36 minutes, which if he was to start getting those minutes, would be an absolute steal.
Ilyasova absolutely must be owned in all leagues 12 teams or deeper and if you are sitting pretty in 10 team leagues, he’s worth the risk.