Fantasy Basketball Roundup: Can Dyson Daniels and Nikola Vucevic Stay Hot?

A month ago, the fantasy landscape was shrouded in a deep, pillow-like fog. We had ideas about the location of the ground, but there was still a lot of uncertainty – new coaches and plans, different squad construction and player development or regression.

Victor Wembanyama’s torso, head and arms rose upward, making him visible from coast to coast, but the league even questioned his ability to adapt and develop.

We’re now about 20 games into the 2024-25 regular season, so the sample size is decent enough to have more confidence in what we’ve seen, but there’s still a lot of season left.

Here’s what I saw and what I think about whether these trends are sustainable or not:

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After 20 games last season Herbert Jones stood out, posting top-30 production per game during that period. Always known as a defensive expert, Jones appeared to take off on offense in his third season, averaging 12.4 points on 51 percent shooting from the field. He also averaged 1.8 steals per contest.

For the remainder of the season, Jones fared well, but his points and steals dropped to 10.5 and 1.2 per contest, respectively. He was a top 100 player.

I get similar vibes from Dyson Daniels.

This is Daniels’ third year and much of his value depends on his defensive stats. But we know those can be fickle, especially now that the league knows how strong Daniels is on that end of the floor.

Before you start throwing internet tomatoes at me, I will admit that Daniels is a better playmaker than Jones, and that Daniels is making his first start. I’m not saying it’s useless. He will likely continue to lead the league in steals as he now averages 3.1 per game – Jalen Williams is second with 2.1 steals per game.

But Daniels still has trouble shooting. He converts 28 percent from downtown and 64 percent from the line.

I like Daniels, especially because he is a 1/1/1 player and few can offer what he can do. However, I wouldn’t be surprised if he ended up closer to 100th than he is now.

On the other hand, fantasy shooters were on the rise last season Jordan Pooleis the beginning of the year. In 19 games, Poole averaged 17.5 points, 1.9 treys, 2.7 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.2 steals while shooting 40 percent from the field. His 27 percent usage rate was fine, but his efficiency was terrible.

He has improved, but only slightly. While he had seven 30-point games, he also had 35 games with fewer than 20 points, 11 of which were in single digits. His averages over the final 60 games of the season were 17.5 points, 2.5 treys, 2.7 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 1.1 steals while shooting 42 percent from the field.

Those who were able to get off the Poole train early may have benefited, depending on the returns. At least emotional stability was achieved.

Cade Cunningham was another player who got off to a slow start last season. In 21 games, he averaged 22 points, 2.0 treys, 3.9 rebounds, 7.4 assists and 1.0 steals on 41 percent shooting and 32.6 percent usage rate. His turnover rate was 4.4 – good for a bakery, but suboptimal for fantasy. He ranked 151st per game.

Over the last 42 games, Cunningham averaged 22.8 points, 1.8 treys, 4.5 rebounds, 7.6 assists and 0.9 steals while shooting 46 percent from the field and having a usage rate of 31.5 percent . His counting stats haven’t changed much, but his efficiency and turnover rate (3.0) have improved. During this time he was one of the top 65 players.

Sometimes a good or bad early start is an outlier, and sometimes players are what they are.

In the case of Poole and Cunningham, Cunningham had a new coach, so new terminology and philosophy were introduced. He was still the alpha of the Detroit Pistons, he just needed time to acclimate.

Poole, on the other hand, was playing with a new team in a role that was unfamiliar to him. With the Golden State Warriors, he scored, but Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson were above him in the offensive hierarchy, which is different from a team that expects him to be “the guy.”

In 16 games this season, Poole is averaging 21 points, 3.2 treys, 2.3 rebounds, 4.9 assists and 1.9 steals while shooting 44 percent from the field and 42 percent from downtown – after last season only converted 32 percent of his shots from deep. He looks comfortable and should continue to do his thing.

There was a lot of discussion about it Nikola Vucevicis the start of the season. In 22 games, he averaged 20.9 points, 2.2 treys, 10 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 0.9 blocks while shooting 58 percent from the field, 47 percent from downtown and 84 percent from the line. He is a top 10 player in fantasy!

Over the course of his 13-year career, Vucevic finished 11th per game twice: in 2018 and 2020. In 2018, Vucevic attempted 2.9 treys and converted 36 percent. In 2020, he played 44 games with the Orlando Magic and 26 games with the Chicago Bulls.

With the Magic, Vucevic attempted 7.3 treys and converted 40 percent. With the Bulls he increased by 6.6 and made 38 percent. So this is not new territory. Sure, the conversion rate will drop from 47 percent, but a conversion rate in the upper 30 to 40 percent range is within reach.

In 2023, Vucevic converted just 29 percent of his 4.1 attempts. But his team had DeMar DeRozan. Before the start of this season, Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations Arturas Karnisovas said: “The shots we will be chasing are essentially rim shots and open threes. And the only way to do that is to play faster because every time you go up against a tight defense it’s very hard to score.”

The Bulls rank third in offensive pace and have averaged the third-most 3-point attempts (43). Last season they were 26th with 32.1 per game.

Last season, 25.9 percent of Vucevic’s shots were catch-and-shoot treys. This season this value is 32.6 percent. The frequency of open looks (a defender is at least one meter away) increased from 23.3 percent to 29.4 percent.

Vucevic is standing on a heater. There is no doubt about it, but the entire production is not only due to individual excellence. The scheme has changed, which has given him a good start.

I’m worried Tyrese Haliburton. He is shooting a career-low 40 percent from the field and 33 percent from downtown. The sample size is certainly tiny, and the body of work for Haliburton suggests he’s going to get more heated. What is concerning, however, is his ongoing back and hamstring injuries.

Haliburton hasn’t missed a game this season, but he has been seen wearing a heat pack on the bench and “I see with my little eye” that Haliburton isn’t as explosive as he once was.

Below are team stats that can be helpful when streaming:

Field goal percentage allowed

BKN (48.7%) – 30th in pace
IND (48.5%) – 11th in pace
NOP ($48.5) – 26th in pace
CHI (48.4%) – 3rd in pace
LAL (48.2%) – 25th in pace
WHAT (48.1%) – Second in pace
PHI (48.1%) – 23rd in pace
UTA (47.8%) – 13th in pace

3-point attempts/conversion rate allowed

ATL – 42.1 attempts and 38.5% conversion rate, both the highest.
MEM – 40.2 attempts but fourth lowest conversion rate.
SAC – 39.7 attempts and third highest conversion rate.
CHI – 39.5 attempts but 10th lowest conversion rate.
UTA – 39.3 attempts and 13th lowest conversion rate.
GSW – 39 attempts but lowest conversion rate at 32.7%.
MIA – 38.9 attempts and 14th lowest conversion rate.

Offensive rebound rate allowed

POR – 29%
OKC – 28.6%
NOP – 27.8%
WHAT – 26.9%
DEN – 26.8%

Blocks allowed

UTA – 6.9
HOU – 6.5
POR – 6.4
BKN – 6.4
DEN – 6.1
GSW – 6.1

Stealing allowed

POR – 10.3
UTA – 10.1
DET – 9.9
MIN – 9.8
ATL – 9.7
LAC – 9.6
GOAL – 9.6

Assists allowed

CHI – July 29th
DEN – 29.6
NOP – June 28th
LAL – 28.4
UTA – 28

(Photo of Dyson Daniels driving against Alexandre Sarr: Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)