As we ease into March we’re starting to see the first teams who qualify as championship contenders under Phil Jackson’s proposed 40/20 rule, which legitimizes teams who reach at least 40 wins before losing 20. Of course, this isn’t a hard and fast rule, but rather a rough estimate to see which teams we could be taking seriously. There are only four teams who have achieved this feat this season: the OKC Thunder, CLE Cavaliers, BOS Celtics, and NY Knicks. Throughout the NBA, only four teams have won a championship despite not qualifying for the 40/20.
But it’s tough to look at teams like the DEN Nuggets and think that they aren’t contenders, especially when they’re anchored by the current most dominant force in all of basketball in Nikola Jokic. The same sentiment can be applied to other teams such as the Bucks or Warriors, who house a game-breaking superstar but don’t have the standout record as one of the four teams listed above.
We’re shooting the Three Lists of Threes today for your weekly dose of fantasy tips: Buy-lows, sell-highs, and streams.
Here are some streams we can consider.
Stream ’em
Jonas Valanciunas, C, Sacramento Kings
Valanciunas isn’t exactly someone who’s widely available, but there’s an off-chance he’s just sitting there unclaimed in your waiver wire. He wasn’t exactly rosterable before last night’s 30-minute performance in which he delivered double-double with seven stocks while shooting 70%. Prior to this game, in which he replaced Domantas Sabonis who will be re-evaluated in a week due to a hamstring sprain, Valanciunas had been utterly ineffective and not worth a second look.
Brice Sensabaugh, SF/PF, Utah Jazz
We’re basically in silly season territory with Lauri Markkanen sitting out the past four games with a phantom injury. The second-year Buckeye has delivered six straight double-digit scoring performances, with two of them being 21 point outings and multiple threes. Sensabaugh has a strong case to be held for the rest of the season as long as he keeps seeing this much floor time.
Kyshawn George, SG/SF, Washington Wizards
Like Sensabaugh, Kyshawn George could emerge as a valuable fantasy asset down the stretch (I guess we’re there already) despite Khris Middleton’s arrival in Washington. George has 12 stocks in his last three games and is worth a look.
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