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NBA Fantasy – Salary Cap Edition: Week 12 Preview

Justin Champagnie has emerged as a name to watch and has scored 20 or more fantasy points in six of his last seven outings

A new year means a fresh start for many, and even if your fantasy team is struggling during the league season, hope is not lost.

Plenty of moves can be made to ensure NBA Fantasy Salary Game players are in great shape before the 2025 NBA All-Star Break arrives in February. As teams continue to trend in opposite directions, there's always more to learn in fantasy circles.

Here's what you need to know for Week 12:

Games to Watch

Boston Celtics (26-10) vs. Denver Nuggets (20-14), Tuesday at 10 p.M. ET

The two previous NBA champions will square off for the first time this campaign, and with both clamoring for on-court consistency, this could prove to be a crucial litmus test. The Celtics are a rocky 5-5 in their last 10 games but regained some ground with four wins in five before losing to the Thunder. Over in the Western Conference, the Nuggets are only marginally better at 6-4 in the same span, having claimed four of their previous five matchups.

Jayson Tatum still spearheads the fight for Boston with 1654.0 total fantasy points (TFP) and 42.5 fantasy points per game (FPPG) – good for sixth and seventh in the league, respectively. Derrick White and Jaylen Brown have been neck-and-neck behind him, pitching in over 1100 TFP apiece, but the latter is typically a better bet with a comparatively higher 40.4 FPPG. 

The 2000 TFP ceiling was smashed by Nikola Jokić last week as he looks comfortably in contention for a fourth Kia NBA MVP award since 2020-2021. Russell Westbrook and Jamal Murray have stepped up in creating scoring opportunities for the 10th-year center, and that's helped push Jokić toward three games of 80-plus fantasy points in his previous four outings after totaling three all season beforehand.

Oklahoma City Thunder (30-5) vs. Cleveland Cavaliers (31-4), Wednesday at 7 p.M. ET

It's arrived at last. The best of the best going head-to-head for ultimate midseason bragging rights. And the timing is poetic, as Oklahoma City's remarkable winning streak has hit 15 – the very number at which Cleveland's undefeated start ended. 

The Cavaliers have rather quietly strung together 10 victories in a row despite the Thunder commanding recent headlines. Extremely well-balanced scoring has been at the heart of what's become a 5.5-game lead over the Celtics for first place in the Eastern Conference, with Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley, Darius Garland, and Jarrett Allen all averaging more than 30 FPPG. Better yet, they rank 22nd, 27th, 29th and 35th in the league for TFP, respectively.

Nothing has changed for the Thunder moving into 2025. The squad remains as dominant as they were in December, most recently securing a 105-92 triumph over the Celtics on Sunday. Whether production has come from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams or Isaiah Hartenstein, Oklahoma City just finds a way to win, and it has come this far without Chet Holmgren's 37.7 FPPG – injured since Nov. 10 and projected to return in early February.

Transaction Tips

There have been few positive things to say about the Washington Wizards (6-27) as proprietors of the NBA's worst record, but Justin Champagnie has emerged as a name to watch. The fourth-year guard/forward has scored 20 or more fantasy points in six of his last seven outings and has averaged 27.2 FPPG since Week 8. That qualifies as solid value for the $5.5M investment he requires.

Elsewhere, Yves Missi continues to make the most of a difficult situation. He's a regular on the list of GameDay top value scorers – featuring a $5.7M price tag – and boasts four performances of 30-plus fantasy points in his last seven games. With the star-strapped New Orleans Pelicans (7-29) continuing to grant greater minutes to their bench, Missi has taken the team lead with 941.5 TFP over CJ McCollum, and it doesn't look like he'll relinquish it anytime soon.

Keon Johnson poses a great deal in the wake of Dorian Finney-Smith and Shake Milton's departures from the Brooklyn Nets (13-22). He's turned in eight consecutive showings of 20 or more fantasy points, featuring three with 30-plus along the way. Inconsistency plagued his early-season efforts, but he appears to have found his footing, and that bodes well for just $4.7M.

Weekly Advice

The time is now to acquire players from the Phoenix Suns (15-18). They're the only team in the league with five games during Week 12, and on top of that, four of those pending opponents possess losing records.

A pair of back-to-backs on Monday and Tuesday, as well as Saturday and Sunday, underline the stretch, consisting of the Philadelphia 76ers (14-19), Charlotte Hornets (7-27) twice, Atlanta Hawks (18-18) and Utah Jazz (9-25). All four carry bottom-half defensive ratings in the NBA.

Kevin Durant is the obvious top choice to bring into the fold – seventh in the league with 44.2 FPPG and five games of 45-plus fantasy points in his last eight – as he's been able to stay on the court with 10 consecutive games played. Though they haven't been injury-free either, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal are available at the moment and are both useful fantasy pieces for a week like this.

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Lakers News: LeBron James Reacts To Passing Michael Jordan In Another NBA Record

With how long LeBron James has been playing NBA basketball, it seems like he sets some sort of NBA history every single game. He's one of the best players to ever play the game and is on a quest to beat every single record he can on his way to winning another title.

James already has many prestigious records. He already has the most minutes ever played, as well as the all-time scoring record. There are many other records the greatest player in this generation owns, but he set more history in a game against the Atlanta Hawks.

In a 119-102 victory over the Hawks on Friday, James poured in 30 points. That allowed him to pass Michael Jordan for the most 30-point games in the history of the NBA. Any time you pass MJ in any sort of record, it warrants admiration and celebration. James reacted to breaking the record after the game.

As one of the biggest students of the game, James knows the history of the league. He has studied all of the all-time greats and knows all of their moves. He uses Jordan's fadeaway jumper as part of his own arsenal, so he mentioned that move specifically in his postgame comments.

This certainly won't be the final 30-point game in James' career. He is going to score more of them this year, and that's what the Lakers are hoping for. The Lakers are banking on him still being one of the best players in the NBA. If he is able to sustain that level of play, the Lakers feel they can win a title.

Getting James and Anthony Davis some help is of the utmost importance for LA heading toward the trade deadline. They have already made one trade to improve the defense off the bench. Dorian Finney-Smith is clearly more important to them than Shake Milton in that trade.

Getting some more offensive help off the bench is going to be a priority for the Lakers heading into the month of February. They have been linked to a few centers on the trade block, so it wouldn't be surprising to see them add a center to give Davis some insurance against injury.

As far as James is concerned, he will continue to set records every time he steps on the court. He is one of the best players to ever play the game, and he has proven that he can still be one of the two best players on a championship team.

More Lakers news: Austin Reaves Unpacks How Lakers Find Success Without LeBron James in the Lineup

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