Yahoo Fantasy Basketball: Are Damion Lee and Jaxson Hayes worth adding?

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Big days in the NBA throw up some weird performances, and Tuesday, we definitely got some eye-openers.

Plenty of fantasy GMs are scrambling to figure out if they should add guys like Jaxson Hayes and Damion Lee after their standout performances. Let’s dig into those lines and see what fantasy managers should do.

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We hadn’t seen Jaxson Hayes in an NBA game before the Pelicans hosted the Warriors. We left that game thinking the Pelicans may have landed themselves a future star.

To recap, the rookie centre out of the University of Texas, played 24 minutes and scored 19 points with a stunning 82 per cent shooting.

Outside of an end of half heave, Hayes attempted all of his shots right around the rim, as you can see in the shot graphic below, hence the high efficiency.

Why did Hayes play?

The Pelicans were missing their starting power forward Zion Williamson. Coupled with the loss of starting centre Derrick Favors, as well as Jrue Holiday, it afforded some end of the rotation guys to get in and strut their stuff.

Hayes had 30.1 fantasy points and outplayed starter Jahlil Okafor.

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Favors has a history of knee issues and I wouldn’t be surprised to see Hayes leapfrog Okafor into the backup role. If the Pelicans continue to struggle, they are 0-4, Hayes could see his minutes rise.

If you are in a league that is deeper than usual, I would feel okay about grabbing Hayes just to see if he can provide some value in the short-term, at the very least.

Damion Lee’s restrictions

On the other side of the court in that same game, Damion Lee lit it up. He finished with 23 points and 11 rebounds, with a 23 per cent usage in 28 minutes.

That totalled 37.20 fantasy points. Lee is on a two-way contract for the Warriors and he was helped by Jacob Evans’ adductor injury in this game.

The two-way contract limits Lee’s overall appeal. Until the G-League season starts he can play for the Warriors every night.

However, once that season kicks off he is only permitted to spend 45 days with the main squad.

Not 45 games, 45 days, including travel days. Given the Warriors hard cap restraints, they can only convert him to a full contract if they waive Marquese Chriss. This isn’t out of the realms of possibility.

For now, while Evans is hobbled, Lee can be a deep league guy. He is talented, but this feels like an unrepeatable performance.

If you do add Lee, Steph Curry’s brother in law, be very careful who you drop. That drop could be more impactful than adding Lee to your squad.

Understanding the reasons behind big performances is just as important as looking for those said performances and with Hayes and Lee, you can see why.

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