What does Kristaps Porzingis’ torn ACL mean for fantasy basketball owners?
On Tuesday night, New York Knicks fans and fantasy basketball owners alike suffered a devastating blow.
Early in the second quarter in their game against the Milwaukee Bucks, All-Star big man Kristaps Porzingis landed awkwardly after a dunk and immediately crumpled to the floor, grabbing at the back of his left knee. After he underwent an MRI at a local hospital, the Knicks confirmed everyone’s worst suspicions: He was done for the year with a torn ACL.
It’s a devastating blow both to the playoff chances of the Knicks and to fantasy owners who invested an early-round pick in Porzingis and now must scramble to replace him. Unfortunately, unless the rest of your leaguemates are asleep at the wheel, you aren’t going to find someone on the waiver wire who’s matching the 7-footer’s 22.7 points, 6.6 rebounds, league-leading 2.4 blocks and 1.9 triples.
The most obvious beneficiary of Porzingis’ injury for fantasy purposes is Michael Beasley, who opened the second half of New York’s 103-89 loss against Milwaukee at power forward after Zinger went down. Beasley’s playing time had been trending downward recently, but he finished with nine points on 3-of-11 shooting, six rebounds, two assists and a block in 24 minutes against the Bucks. Considering his production throughout December and January — 15.6 points on 52.5 percent shooting, 6.0 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 0.6 steals, 0.6 blocks and 0.6 triples in just 22.4 minutes per game — the Kansas State product is a must-own in leagues of all sizes moving forward.
The rest of the Knicks’ frontcourt rotation, however, remains far less clear. Enes Kanter re-opened a cut in his mouth Tuesday and had it restitched Wednesday, according to ESPN.com’s Ian Begley, putting his status for Thursday’s game against the Toronto Raptors up in the air. New York shipped third-string center Willy Hernangomez to the Charlotte Hornets on Wednesday for Johnny O’Bryant and two second-round picks, according to ESPN.com’s Adrian Wojnarowski. And New York “continues to take calls” about backup center Kyle O’Quinn heading into Thursday’s trade deadline, per Begley.
Whenever Kanter returns, he’ll shoulder the heaviest load in the frontcourt moving forward. If O’Quinn remains on the Knicks past the trade deadline, he could receive a boost in fantasy value, too. And given the unlikelihood of New York finding a taker for exiled center Joakim Noah, he may wind up getting his wish and receiving more playing time after the trade deadline, particularly if the Knicks do move O’Quinn.
While Kanter is owned in a majority of ESPN.com leagues (88.3 percent), both Beasley (44.3 percent) and O’Quinn (5.0 percent) are widely available. It’s worth taking a flier on either of them — Beasley first — as we wait to see how New York’s frontcourt rotation will shake out sans Porzingis and/or following the trade deadline.
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Unfortunately, Porzingis’ ACL injury wasn’t the only concern for the Knicks on Tuesday night. Tim Hardaway Jr., who missed 20 games earlier this season with a stress injury in his left leg, departed early against Milwaukee after Giannis Antetokounmpo accidentally kicked him in said leg, according to Marc Berman of the New York Post. While X-rays came back negative, it’s unclear whether he’ll undergo further testing in the coming days to ensure he didn’t aggravate the earlier injury. Regardless, Courtney Lee — who’s owned in only 36.9 percent of ESPN.com leagues — is a must-add in the wake of Porzingis’ injury and a potential Hardaway Jr. absence.
Ultimately, Porzingis’ injury should alter the Knicks’ thinking over the final two months of the season. While they could have (wrongfully) fancied themselves potential playoff contenders and approached the trade deadline as buyers prior to Tuesday night, Porzingis’ absence guarantees they’re heading straight toward the lottery. As such, the Knicks now plan to “focus their attention on playing younger players like Frank Ntilikina and Trey Burke,” according to Begley. Both Ntilikina (1.7 percent owned) and Burke (1.2 percent) are available in almost all ESPN.com leagues at the moment, but both could emerge as potential difference-makers down the stretch as New York shifts into tank mode.
All ownership percentages via ESPN.com. All average draft position info via FantasyPros. All rankings via Basketball Monster are based on nine-category leagues and are current heading into Wednesday, Feb. 6.