Fantasy Basketball Recap After Five Weeks: Zion Williamson, LaMelo Ball, Tyrese Haliburton and More

We are about 20 games into the NBA season and a lot has transpired so far. Each of these games has given us valuable fantasy basketball insights for you owners.

Let’s hop straight into some of the biggest stories to start this year.

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Superstar Leap

Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball has been largely regarded as a young star in the league ever since he was drafted. He has shown some very impressive flashes in past years, but injuries and consistency have held him back.

Coming into this year, he has put all of his potential together and truly made a sizeable leap towards being a superstar. On the year, LaMelo is averaging a ridiculous 30 points, 5 rebounds, and 7 assists in 33 minutes of action. He has always been a great all-around player, but this year he has become a more consistent offensive engine.

In his past two games, he put up 85 total points, 11 rebounds, and 19 rebounds. Those are video game numbers, and he has done that all year for a very injured Hornets team.

Though they aren’t a winning team right now, once at full health, I think this team's ceiling got a much-needed boost from LaMelo’s heroics. There aren’t many players in the league that have outperformed LaMelo this year.

Still Struggling

Tyrese Haliburton has been a player that has been consistently talked about, whether that be negative or positive. Last year, Hali jumped off his season looking like an offensive juggernaut and led the Pacers to the most explosive team in the league.

But he experienced a back injury that caused him to struggle. Then he played great in the playoffs, which quieted many conversations about what type of player he is. Now he’s back to struggling, and now the Pacers are a mediocre offense as well.

He has only averaged 15 points per game while shooting 30% from three. The Pacers were never a good defensive team, so if their offense isn’t clicking, it will be hard for them to be good.

These struggles all start with Hali, though; he is the main facilitator and scorer for this team. Nobody knows if it’s previous injuries bothering him or teams just adjusting to the Pacers' rampant pace. Whatever it is, they need to figure it out fast.

They committed a large amount of cash to this core, so it will be interesting how long they let this go on. I believe in Hali and what he can do, but he just has to show it. He isn't getting different looks, so it's on him to figure out how to get back into rhythm.

Taking Advantage of an Opportunity

Scotty Pippen Jr. proved last year that he belonged in the league after a multitude of impressive performances. The only difference this year is that he’s still having those performances but on a contending team.

On November 6, Ja Morant went down with a hip injury, and ever since then, Pippen has been on a tear. He is averaging 13.8 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 5.4 rebounds in 26 minutes a game. He has been an amazing table setter and steady point guard for the Grizzlies. In his most recent performance, he recorded 30 points and 10 rebounds against the Chicago Bulls in 31 minutes. 

Pippen has been a very consistent fantasy contributor, and I think he will be even better when Morant returns from injury. He has many skillsets that complement everyone on the team, so he will be a main part of their rotation for the foreseeable future. He has taken advantage of his opportunity and gotten the most out of it.

Best Bench Player so Far

Ty Jerome has quietly been one of the main engines to the Cavaliers' red hot start. He is playing absurdly well and contributing at a high level. He is averaging 12.6 points, 2.1 rebounds, and 3.8 assists on 59% shooting from the field.

His success has largely been predicated on him being a great driver and then a great facilitator from the paint. He has also not turned the ball over much either, only averaging one a game. 

If Jerome can keep up this type of play, I see no reason why he shouldn’t be considered as a real Sixth Man of the Year candidate. He is a great complement to Darius Garland and is looking like a steal of a contract. He has established himself as a real fantasy contributor and role player this year.

New Year, Same Story

New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson has suffered yet another injury that will hold him out for an extended amount of time. I was one of his biggest advocates, based on his insane physical profile and unstoppable play. The problem is that he can never stay on the floor for enough of the season for anyone to correctly gauge him as a player.

This doesn’t just hurt us fantasy owners; it massively affects the Pelicans. They’ve had numerous seasons derailed because of his injuries.

This is not necessarily to blame Zion, but at some point, you have to call a spade a spade. He is one of the best advantage creators in the league based on the looks he gets consistently at the rim, and the Pelicans tried to build around that this summer. But it seems as though they will have another lost season wondering how good they could have been at full strength.