SAC 116, UTA 111: DeRozan Goes Supernova With 41 Points
Destiny Williams
Math Teacher & Basketball Coach ยท Atlanta Hawks fan
DeMar DeRozan Goes Nuclear, Jazz Youth Movement Steals the Show in Sacramento Upset
Final: Kings 116, Jazz 111
Look, I don't want to overreact to one game, but this is exactly what I tell my kids in study hall about probability and small sample sizes. One night doesn't make a season. That said, what we saw in Sacramento tonight was genuinely worth paying attention to.
| Player | ESPN FP | Yahoo FP | Tonight | Season Avg | +/- Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DeMar DeRozan | 68.0 | 66.3 | 41/4/11 | 18.8/3.0/4.0 | +22.2 |
| Cody Williams | 63.0 | 55.9 | 34/7/7 | 7.0/2.8/1.5 | +27.0 |
| Precious Achiuwa | 46.0 | 41.7 | 20/11/1 | 9.2/6.3/1.3 | +10.8 |
| Killian Hayes | 44.0 | 37.0 | 16/5/8 | 4.9/2.3/3.7 | +11.1 |
| Isaiah Collier | 32.0 | 35.5 | 21/5/3 | 11.6/2.5/7.2 | +9.4 |
| Oscar Tshiebwe | 29.0 | 29.1 | 9/8/1 | 4.7/4.5/0.8 | +4.3 |
| Andersson Garcia | 24.0 | 27.7 | 3/11/3 | 5.0/7.3/1.7 | -2.0 |
| Brice Sensabaugh | 26.0 | 25.6 | 22/3/0 | 13.5/3.0/1.6 | +8.5 |
| Elijah Harkless | 26.0 | 24.2 | 13/1/4 | 5.2/1.4/2.1 | +7.8 |
| Daeqwon Plowden | 16.0 | 21.8 | 10/4/2 | 8.4/3.3/1.2 | +1.6 |
The DeMar DeRozan Special
DeMar DeRozan didn't just have a good night. He had a "remind everyone why you're All-NBA First Team" night. 41 points on 11-21 shooting with 11 assists? That's not coincidence, that's vintage DeMar running the offense through his mid-range game and making everything fall. The 18-21 free throw line tells you all you need to know, too. He was attacking, he was getting fouled, and he was in complete control.
The thing is, +22.2 points compared to his season average means this was roughly 120% better than we normally see from him. That's ceiling, not floor. If you've got him, great night. Don't expect him to drop 41 and 11 every time out, though. He's a consistent 19/4 guy who will give you steady fantasy value, not a 40-point guy. Tonight was special circumstances.
Cody Williams Just Made a Statement
Now here's where it gets interesting. Cody Williams at +27.0 pts versus his season average is legitimately alarming for Jazz ownership, which is exactly why he's getting added. The dude dropped 34 points on efficient shooting (12-20 FG, 7-8 FT) with 7 rebounds and 7 assists. For a guy averaging 7 PPG, that's not a blip, that's a breakout.
But let's be real about what happened here. The Jazz got down early and let it go in the fourth. Cody Williams got volume minutes (38 minutes) and got fed the ball. He's got the talent to sustain some of this, but jumping from 7 PPG to 34 PPG isn't normal. He's a deep league flier at best right now. Don't go dropping solid guys to grab him thinking you found a league winner.
The Role Player Renaissance
Precious Achiuwa getting 41.7 Yahoo FP in 33 minutes is textbook glue guy performance. 20 points on 10-15 shooting, 11 rebounds, 2 steals. That's efficiency and effort. He's up 3.2% in ownership and rightfully so, but again, this is volume work against a depleted Jazz squad. In normal circumstances against normal rosters, he's closer to his 9/6 season average. Still a solid add if he's available in your league, but don't expect this every night.
Killian Hayes at 37 Yahoo FP is another one worth tracking. 16 points, 8 assists, 4 threes on 38 minutes? That's a point guard getting real run and being productive with it. The assists are real, the shooting is there (4-3 from deep). If the Kings are giving him legitimate minutes, there's fantasy value hiding here.
The Jazz Youth Movement Showed Up
Isaiah Collier dropped 21 on 9-21 shooting with 3 assists in 24 minutes. That's inefficient volume, not a breakout. He's still a rookie essentially (well, not an actual rookie according to the data, but you know what I mean), still figuring it out. The ownership dropped for Ace Bailey and honestly, that makes sense. When young guys get playing time, the opportunity shifts around.
Oscar Tshiebwe did his thing off the bench, 9/8 with 3 steals in 22 minutes. That's the rebounder and defender doing exactly what you expect. He's not a fantasy guy in most formats, but if you need boards and steals late, he's there.
What Actually Matters Moving Forward
The Kings won without most of their rotation. Malik Monk, Keegan Murray, De'Andre Hunter, Zach LaVine, and Domantas Sabonis were all out. That means volume got redistributed. DeMar DeRozan ate because there was room to eat. Precious Achiuwa got 33 minutes because there were minutes to get. When the full Kings squad comes back, these numbers compress.
Same thing on the Jazz side. This was a second unit game. Don't get fooled into thinking tonight's performances are what to expect going forward.
The Bottom Line
Add Precious Achiuwa if he's sitting in free agency. He showed he can be productive when given the opportunity, and the Kings might actually keep playing him. Drop Ace Bailey without guilt. He's out of the rotation and getting minutes stolen by younger guys with higher upside.
DeMar DeRozan owners sit tight. You got an excellent night out of him. That's what All-NBA guys do sometimes. Bank it and move on.
Everything else from tonight? One game. Great theater, bad data point.