TOR 139, CHI 109: TOR Demolishes CHI, Matas Buzelis Shines
Jake Morrison
Computer Science Student ยท Dallas Mavericks fan
Raptors Steamroll Bulls 139-109: Poeltl and Barrett Lead Toronto's Balanced Attack
Toronto just put on a clinic in Chicago. Final score doesn't even tell the story of how thoroughly the Raptors dominated, dropping 139 on a Bulls team that looked lost defensively for 48 minutes. This wasn't close and honestly, it's the kind of game where fantasy value gets weird because everyone's eating but the volume feels diluted.
| Player | ESPN FP | Yahoo FP | Tonight | Season Avg | +/- Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Matas Buzelis | 34.0 | 35.9 | 19/7/1 | 16.1/5.6/2.1 | +2.9 |
| Jakob Poeltl | 37.0 | 33.6 | 17/8/2 | 10.1/7.7/2.1 | +6.9 |
| RJ Barrett | 37.0 | 31.8 | 23/4/2 | 19.0/5.5/3.3 | +4.0 |
| Scottie Barnes | 31.0 | 30.9 | 18/7/3 | 18.7/7.9/5.4 | -0.7 |
| Sandro Mamukelashvili | 34.0 | 30.3 | 17/4/5 | 10.8/4.9/1.8 | +6.2 |
| Immanuel Quickley | 33.0 | 28.9 | 10/2/7 | 17.1/4.1/6.0 | -7.1 |
| Ja'Kobe Walter | 31.0 | 27.3 | 18/4/1 | 6.4/2.3/1.1 | +11.6 |
| Collin Sexton | 29.0 | 26.9 | 14/2/5 | 14.6/2.0/3.4 | -0.6 |
| Brandon Ingram | 29.0 | 26.0 | 18/5/4 | 21.9/5.6/3.8 | -3.9 |
| Rob Dillingham | 29.0 | 23.0 | 15/0/4 | 4.8/1.8/2.2 | +10.2 |
The Real Winners: Poeltl and Barrett
Jakob Poeltl (33.6 Yahoo FP) was the story. In just 20 minutes, he absolutely demolished the glass with 8 boards while adding 17 points on ridiculously efficient 7-10 shooting. That's +6.9 points above his season average in limited minutes. This is what happens when a team is rolling and the paint gets soft. Poeltl feasted, and honestly if Toronto keeps playing like this, his minutes could tick up depending on matchups. He's locked in your lineup if you have him, and if you don't and somehow he's available, that's a pickup in any league size.
RJ Barrett (31.8 Yahoo FP) also went off with 23 points, 4 boards, and 2 assists on 9-15 shooting. That's just solid efficient scoring. He was +4.0 on his season average and did it in 26 minutes. Not flashy but exactly what you want from a second option in a blowout.
The Chaos Guys Who Came From Nowhere
Look at Ja'Kobe Walter (27.3 Yahoo FP, +11.6 pts vs avg). He went 4-6 from the field with 8 free throws made. That's a solid role player getting run in a win and going absolute bananas from the line. This is the kind of game where a bench guy gets extended minutes, runs hot, and suddenly shows up in your waiver wire trending adds. In a vacuum, 27.3 Yahoo points is real, but remember his season average is 6.4 PPG. Expect regression when the game is closer.
Rob Dillingham put up 15 points and 4 assists in 24 minutes for +10.2 on his season average. Again, this is a blowout tax. When you're up by 30 and the backup point guard is running the offense, he's gonna look nice. Don't get sucked into thinking this is his new ceiling.
The Guys Who Underperformed
Immanuel Quickley was a disappointment at 28.9 Yahoo FP. He had just 10 points on 4-11 shooting with 7 assists. That's -7.1 on his season average. You want more from your backup guards when the team is up 30, honestly. He had playmaking opportunities but didn't capitalize on his looks. Not alarming given the blowout nature, but worth monitoring.
Brandon Ingram (26.0 Yahoo FP, -3.9 vs avg) was the Raptors' third-best performer but still undershot his 21.9 PPG average. He was 6-7 with 5 free throws, which is efficient, but in a game where everyone else was eating, Ingram got fewer touches. That happens in blowouts. Next game matters more.
Scottie Barnes basically met his season average despite a 30-point lead. 18 points and 7 boards on 6-10 shooting is fine, but you'd hope for more volume in a game this lopsided. He was -0.7 vs average, which tells you Toronto was probably leaning on other guys earlier and easing off late.
The Chicago Disaster
The Bulls got cooked and honestly there aren't many fantasy takeaways beyond "maybe don't start your Bulls" for a while. Matas Buzelis was the only bright spot with 35.9 Yahoo FP. The second-year guy put up 19/7/1 and went 6-15 from the field. He met his season average with a +2.9 boost, which is solid, but even he couldn't drag Chicago out of the mud.
Collin Sexton had 26.9 Yahoo FP which met his average (basically a -0.6 miss), but 14 points on 4-7 shooting isn't carrying anyone. Tre Jones was straight trash at 18.9 Yahoo FP (-6.9 vs avg) with just 6 points and 5 assists on 3-8 shooting.
What's Next
Toronto's looking dangerous right now and they showed you tonight why spread out scoring is a cheat code in fantasy. You don't need one guy to go off for 50, you need five guys all hitting 25-30 Yahoo points. That's playoff-level stuff.
Chicago needs to figure something out, but as a fantasy owner you're probably already looking to move Bulls players unless they're studs. The role players aren't safe here, and even your starters are getting in bad spot matchups.