Kings 112, Knicks 101: Precious Achiuwa posts 49.8 fantasy points
Tommy Flanagan
Journeyman Electrician ยท Boston Celtics fan
Precious Achiuwa Just Became Your Favorite Waiver Wire Steal
Look, I've been watching basketball for 29 years and I've seen enough bench guys put up one decent game to know the difference between a fluke and something real. What Precious Achiuwa did Wednesday night against the Knicks? That's the latter. The dude dropped 49.8 Yahoo points on a 7.5 PPG average. We're talking +12.5 points, +8.5 boards. He played 38 minutes, went 7-14 from the field, grabbed 14 rebounds, and somehow nobody in your league is talking about it yet. Well, they are now, because his ownership just jumped 4.3 percent and you need to get ahead of this.
The Kings won 112-101 and the depth guys did the heavy lifting. This wasn't a game where one star carried the load, which means there's actual opportunity on this Sacramento roster right now. Achiuwa being available at 7.4 percent owned is criminal.
Tonight's Top Performers
| Player | Yahoo FP | Tonight | Season Avg | vs Avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Precious Achiuwa | 49.8 | 20/14/2/2/2 | 7.5/5.5/1.2 | +12.5/+8.5/+0.8 |
| DeMar DeRozan | 43.7 | 27/6/5/1/0 | 19.1/3.4/3.9 | +7.9/+2.6/+1.1 |
| Russell Westbrook | 38.7 | 19/6/11/0/0 | 14.8/6.5/7.0 | +4.2/-0.5/+4.0 |
| Mikal Bridges | 33.1 | 19/3/1/2/1 | 16.1/4.6/4.3 | +2.9/-1.6/-3.3 |
| Karl-Anthony Towns | 31.3 | 13/4/1/5/0 | 20.9/11.5/2.9 | -7.9/-7.5/-1.9 |
The Winners
Precious Achiuwa is the story. 49.8 points on a 7.5 average is the kind of breakout that actually matters. He's not a volume shooter, he doesn't have the usage, so this wasn't some random explosion that's never happening again. Fourteen boards in 38 minutes tells you the Kings are leaning on him, and the matchup against New York's interior defense was brutal. If this is the role he's getting, he's a league-winner pickup.
DeMar DeRozan stayed in character as a closer, dropping 27 points on 12-of-13 from the line. That's elite free throw volume for a guy averaging 19.1 PPG. He hit +7.9 above his season average and played 40 minutes. The Knicks had no answer for his mid-range game, and that's not a fluke, that's just who he is.
Russell Westbrook finally did Westbrook things right. Eleven assists on a 7.0 average is massive, and he stayed out of foul trouble while doing it. Thirty-eight points of Yahoo production feels sustainable when a third of it is coming from his assists.
The Letdowns
Karl-Anthony Towns got cooked. Thirteen points on 5-14 shooting with just one assist is bad for a guy averaging 20.9 PPG. The Kings' defense got in his head early and he never recovered. He's still someone you need on your team, but this is a reminder that even All-NBA talent gets held down sometimes.
Mikal Bridges shot 6-for-20 and still squeaked out 33 points of value because he hit his free throws and got steals. That's fine, not a disaster, but he wasn't the dominant force the Knicks needed him to be.
The Trends
Achiuwa played massive minutes and that's the key. Sacramento is giving him 38 minutes against a playoff-level defense. That's not third-string big man stuff, that's rotation player territory. If Sabonis is dealing with anything or if the Kings just like Achiuwa's interior rebounding matchup, this becomes sustainable.
Westbrook getting 39 minutes with the Kings is also worth monitoring. He's filling a point guard role in a way that's actually functional, not just a triple-double chase. That feels real.
The Moves
Add Precious Achiuwa immediately if he's available. Seriously. Ownership is still under 8 percent and he just showed he can give you 40+ Yahoo points in a start. Even if it dips back down, you're getting a rotation player at waiver prices.
Drop someone you don't believe in for Achiuwa. If you're holding a guy who's not getting minutes or you drafted on name value, that's your guy.
Trade target: If Karl-Anthony Towns is on your bench or you're not confident in him, try to sell after a down game like this. Some team is going to panic and overpay for regression to the mean. He'll bounce back against easier competition.
Next Up
Sacramento plays again soon and Achiuwa should maintain big minutes if the Kings stick with this rotation. New York needs to figure out their interior defense real quick or every team with a functional big man is going to hunt them. Watch Towns' next game closely, because one off night doesn't mean anything, but two in a row tells you something's up.