The Box Score: Five NBA Numbers that Stood Out on Wednesday: Victor Wembanyama, Jabari Smith Jr., Stephen Curry and More

Another day, another slew of NBA stats to sift through. Yesterday, we had the most exciting rookie in years notch an achievement, a few players getting an extended run, and a superstar brought down by the circumstances.

Here are five numbers (or sets of numbers) that stood out Wednesday night and the fantasy basketball impact or lesson we can take away.

Advanced stats are from NBA.com. Defensive rankings against positions are from FantasySP and Fantasy Pros.

Victor Wembanyama – 16 Points, 12 Rebounds, 10 Assists, 21 Minutes

Wemby had his first career triple-double. It’s not surprising for him to put up such a gaudy stat line, but look at his time on the court: He did all this damage in less than two full quarters of basketball.

It’s good he can be efficient like this because Wembanyama’s playing time has gone down recently. He hasn’t played 30 minutes in a game since Dec. 17 and has averaged just 24 minutes per game over the ensuing eight games.

Fantasy Impact

If the Spurs are being careful with Wemby, it’s probably smart for his long-term health. Big men wear down faster, especially in the knees and feet, and keeping the 7’4 rookie under managed minutes until he gains strength isn’t a bad idea on one of the worst teams in the league.

We want to see him play, though! From Nov. 12 through Dec. 17, Wemby had 12 double-doubles in 16 games and played at least 30 minutes in 12 of those games (though not all the same 12 as the double-doubles).

If his minutes will be managed over the rest of the season, Wembanyama is a player to look to trade unless you’re in a keeper league. If someone will offer another star at a position of need, I would explore trading the big man who may be limited over the remainder of the season.

Andrew Nembhard – 26 Minutes; T.J. McConnell - 22 Minutes 

Those minute totals are more important than any other stat for these guys (although McConnell’s 14 points to Nembhard’s two is also interesting). Tyrese Haliburton is expected to miss a few weeks at least, and someone needs to fill the minutes of the best player on the team.

These two point guards are bench/rotational players, but they may get high-value playing time over the next few weeks with the star out.

Fantasy Impact

Nembhard averages 19.7 minutes per game and McConnell 15.7, but the latter got a big bump in playing time in Monday’s game when Haliburton went down (25 minutes to Nembhard’s 12).

The man who plays more obviously has more value, and it might be even more of a bump than most reserves who get extra playing time.

Haliburton is 23rd in the league in scoring (23.6) and leads all players in assists (12.5). Indiana plays at one of the fastest paces in the league, giving all their players extra opportunities to rack up stats. The point guard usually has the ball in his hands most and draws the biggest benefit.

Both guys are available in a lot of fantasy leagues but may be snatched up soon. They are great players to stream for a few weeks until Haliburton returns, at which time they can be safely released back into the free agency pool.

Stephen Curry – 25 Minutes, 15 Points

I want to talk about playing time again and what a blowout can do to player stats. The Warriors have often been the team dominating others, but they were beaten 141-105 by the Pelicans on Wednesday. No one on Golden State played more than Jonathan Kuminga’s 28 minutes.

Moses Moody and Trayce Jackson-Davis led the team with 21 and 19 points, respectively. No one on the Pelicans scored more than 21. What a “blah” game.

Fantasy Impact

This is about stars letting down fantasy owners despite a lot of points, not Curry on this night (he was on the losing end, but the lesson still applies). This happens in fantasy football when a team jumps out to a big lead and stops throwing, leaving the quarterback lacking in production while his team controls the game.

It is something to keep in the back of your mind when setting your lineup. It’s awesome to have a star with a great matchup, but there’s a risk of his team walloping on their weak opponent and limiting the playing time of starters. The same consideration must be made when betting player props.

It’s hard to tell when a blowout will happen, though we can make predictions. It’s just a reminder that a great matchup doesn’t mean your guy is going to put in his best work. Or, as in Curry’s case, his team will get beat up, and the star will hit the bench to avoid further bruising (figuratively speaking).

Jabari Smith Jr. – 18 Points, 15 Rebounds

The third overall pick last year, Smith was fairly anonymous in his rookie season despite playing solid basketball. The sad state of his team was owed more than a little credit for that oversight.

The Rockets are playing .500 ball now and fighting for play-In position.That’s nothing magical, but it’s a huge step for a team that tied for the second worst record in the league last season. Smith fits into a winning basketball team with the overall impact he has on the game.

Fantasy Impact

Smith has increased nearly every relevant box stat from his rookie season to this one. Most of the gains are marginal, and no numbers stand out as much as his shooting percentages: Smith has raised his field goal percentage from 40.8% to 47.3% and his 3-point percentage from 30.7% to 38.4%.

Shooting percentage matters in some fantasy leagues, but this is more of a real-life improvement than a fantasy improvement. Smith is available in at least 15% of leagues on both ESPN and Yahoo; snatch him up immediately if he is in your free agency pool. Smith is getting better and more efficient; he should continue to improve in all aspects of the game.