From Deep: Did anyone see these 3 early-season fantasy basketball trends coming?

The three-ball has become arguably the staple of scoring in the NBA — so we figured we’d take some shots from way downtown, too. Here, fantasy basketball analyst Dan Titus will break down the three things fantasy managers need to know. Or, he’ll break down multiple three-point pieces of advice, analysis and more — it just depends on how open he is From Deep.

In today’s season debut edition, I’ll discuss three teams doing three unlikely things through the first week (plus) of the NBA season.

The Chicago Bulls are leading the race in pace

The Bulls have been running the fastest-paced offense in the NBA through four games, a significant development under HC Billy Donovan.

Unlikely to the fullest.

Last year, the Bulls ranked 28th in the league (96.7) in Pace and were primarily middle-of-the-pack during Donovan’s tenure.

So what’s changed?

Not having to initiate offense in the mid-range through DeMar DeRozan is the first thing that comes to mind. The Bulls have been getting more possessions through quicker decision-making and ball movement, as their passes per game increased from 286.7 per game last season to 314.6 per game so far this season, per NBA Advanced Stats. While DeRozan’s subtraction typically would result in more volume for Zach LaVine, Coby White and Nikola Vučević, their shot volume is consistent with last season. The difference is LaVine, White and company are attempting more 3s — a consistent theme we’ve seen this season across the NBA. The Bulls are averaging 44 3-point attempts per game, which is top-three in the league.

From a fantasy perspective, Vučević and LaVine’s numbers are improving from a year ago, while White has established himself as a 19-4-4 player. Josh Giddey’s playmaking and facilitating are working well, as he’s pacing to have his best fantasy season. He’s currently sitting at 122nd in per-game value in category formats.

The question is, will this fast-paced, 3-point-focused strategy be sustainable? We’ll see!

The Charlotte Hornets are a top-10 offense?!

It’s easy to attribute Charlotte’s early season success to the LaMelo Ball effect; the Hornets are a completely different team…

Source link : https://ca.sports.yahoo.com/news/from-deep-did-anyone-see-these-3-early-season-fantasy-basketball-trends-coming-184458451.html

Author : Yahoo Sports

Publish date : 2024-10-31 18:44:00

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