NBA Stock Watch: Markieff Morris and Zach LaVine on the rise

STOCK UP

Markieff Morris: New coach Earl Watson has made it clear Morris is suddenly the new focus of Phoenix’s offense, which should only be exasperated by T.J. Warren’s season-ending injury. Morris went off for 30-11-6 during Tuesday’s game when he was given a whopping 41:29 minutes. He’s averaged 15.0 field goal attempts over the past three contests and is clearly looking at a much bigger role down the stretch under a new coach and on a Phoenix team playing for the future (it also helps the Suns have a top-five Pace). Morris was a top-70 player last season, and it’s not a stretch to think he can attain similar value moving forward.

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Zach LaVine: I was skeptical to anoint him after two big games, but LaVine is now averaging 20.6 points and 3.8 assists with 2.0 threes on 61.4 FG% over his past five contests, as he’s clearly going to get a major upgrade in minutes for a rebuilding Minnesota team. Over this two-week stretch, LaVine has been a top-40 fantasy player, when he’s averaged more field goal attempts than Kawhi Leonard. It appears LaVine may thrive at shooting guard, and he should be owned in all fantasy leagues, yet his ownership is barely 50 percent right now.

Nikola Jokic: Over the last month, he’s been a top-35 player, when he’s averaged 11.1 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.5 steals while shooting 54.9 percent from the field with just 1.1 tpg. Jokic has been a top-12 player on a per-36 minute this season, and while foul trouble has been a problem at times, there’s no reason for Denver not to give him increased opportunities over the rest of the season. The 20-year-old has been one of the more impressive rookies in the league.

Michael Kidd-Gilchrist: Expected to miss the entire season with a shoulder injury, Kidd-Gilchrist is already back in action, and he’s looked terrific so far. He’s averaged 14.3 points and 10.7 rebounds over three games since returning, shooting 55.2 percent from the field while seeing 32:47 mpg. MKG even made multiple threes in a game for the first time in his career, and while a lack of defensive stats limits his fantasy ceiling, he should be owned in deeper formats. He’s still just 22 years old, and his early return from what looked like a serious injury has been a nice surprise.

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Stanley Johnson: Over the last six games, he’s averaged 15.2 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.0 steals and 1.5 3pt, when he’s been a top-90 player. The rookie has mostly been a disappointment after receiving a bunch of preseason hype, but he’s settling in and even got just his second start of his career Thursday. Ersan Ilysova has struggled of late, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope will be out with an injury at least through the All-Star break, so Johnson is going to get a chance at increased run. He has the talent to make the most of the opportunity.

STOCK DOWN

Andre Drummond: It’s tough to talk down about a player who’s averaged 15.4 points and 12.7 rebounds over the past month, but Drummond has also shot 32.3 percent from the line over this 15-game span, which has prevented him from being a top-250 player. He leads the NBA with 41 double-doubles (the next closest has 34), and Drummond is obviously a beast in points or head-to-head leagues in which you’re punting FT%, but in standard formats, his struggles at the stripe have reached epic levels. Drummond currently ranks No. 121 in 9-cat leagues (one spot behind Taj Gibson). He’s No. 4 in leagues that don’t count FT%.

Deron Williams: Over the last two months, Williams’ FG% has been 39.6 percent, and he hasn’t been a top-200 fantasy player. After a nice start in Dallas, it’s crazy to think Williams’ rank of No. 104 last year might be a best-case scenario for him in 2015/16. DWill‘s career trajectory continues to go in the wrong direction.

Meyers Leonard: He had some nice buzz entering the season, but not only has Leonard not lived up to any hype, he’s been essentially worthless. He’s barely been a top-200 player and isn’t worth owning despite being a top-70 player on a per-36 minute basis last season. Leonard has somehow recorded only six steals over 44 games this year.

Elfrid Payton: His game always projected better for points or H2H leagues and less so in 9-cat standard, but few could’ve predicted Payton’s sophomore campaign going this poorly. Shaky shooting from both the field and the line to go along with a high turnover rate is a tough combo, especially for a point guard who doesn’t hit many threes. Payton had an ADP of 72, and he hasn’t been a top-250 player over the past month.

Roy Hibbert: He continues to start for the Lakers, but Hibbert’s career has been anything but revitalized with the move away from Indiana. His ppg has now dropped in four straight seasons, bottoming out by getting just 5.6 over the past month. Hibbert is still owned in nearly half of Yahoo leagues, but I’d much prefer to take a flier on someone like Alex Len instead.

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