Big shout out to maleopold15 over at Sports Thoughts for his help in the help of creating a new series. He reports on the NBA, MLB, and the NFL. We are each helping each other out on our new fantasy series, mine for the NBA, and his for the NFL. Go check out the full blog at Sports Thoughts or his first fantasy article discussing breakout players for Week 12 at Week 13 Fantasy Football Pick ‘Em.

This is a new weekly series that will be published every Sunday, previewing who will be the best fantasy players of the next week. Maleopold15 and I will select our ideal fantasy starting fives heading into the week.

Last Week

Last week, Maleopold selected Stephen Curry, James Harden, Lebron James, Anthony Davis, and Demarcus Cousins who averaged a combined: 23.3 Points, 6.8 Rebounds, 5.5 Assists, 1.2 Steals, and 0.6 Blocks.

I selected Kyrie Irving, James Harden, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Blake Griffin, and Nikola Jokic who averaged a combined: 18.8 Points, 4.9 Rebounds, 4.7 Assists, 1.1 Steals, and 0.5 Blocks.

Maleopold won all five statistical categories, so he wins week seven.

Me-1, Maleopold-1

Point Guard

ST: Kyrie Irving

Okay! I’ll pick Irving already! He’s one of my favorite point guards in the league, but I’ve put him behind Damien Lillard and Stephen Curry in past weeks. The Celtics have some tough matchups on the horizon, and I think Irving can put the team on his back with loads of points and assists.. at least I hope so.

Shooting Guard

ST: Klay Thompson

Honestly, I’m not too sure about this one. James Harden is by far the best SG in the league, but I just don’t like his matchups this week. So I see the Warriors are going against some teams with poor perimeter defense,  and Thompson is the perfect guy to take advantage of that. He scores an incredibly consistent 20 ppg, and I think he can keep that up or better this week.

Small Forward

ST: Giannis Antetokounmpo

What can’t this guy do? In an incredibly deep position, the “Greek Freak” excels with his long wingspan and athletic prowess. He can get boards and has some unblockable range, too. With a relatively favorable schedule ahead for the big man, I expect a big week

Me: Paul George

Just days after scoring only two points against the Dallas Mavericks on 1/12 shooting, George broke out for 36 points. While his scoring may be hot right now, that’s not even the most desirable part of his game. Great for fantasy, George is averaging over 2.5 steals per game this season. If you want a guaranteed win in the steals category every week, George is key.

Power Forward

ST: Anthony Davis

See above. Davis is an all-around talent that has been doing work for the Pelicans since he first entered the league. He’s a corner stone for the organization and he has built some good chemistry with Cousins over the past nine months or so. He only gets better from here

Center

ST: Nikola Jokic

Maybe my favorite center in the league, I think the young man is pretty underrated. Besides a tough matchup with Cousins on Monday, Jokic is going to clean the boards and put home some easy layups during the remainder of the week. Keep an eye on this kid.

Me: Demarcus Cousins

With Antony Davis playing below expectations right now, look for Demarcus Cousins to step up big in his team’s next couple games. With matchups against the Warriors, Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets, Joel Embiid and 76ers, and his former team, the Sacramento Kings, Cousins will be under a lot of pressure next week. Even with the high volume of games, look for Cousins to score big in all of the games.