Fantasy NBA Daily Notes: Gary Trent Jr. among shining streamers

A somewhat sleepy Thursday slate in the NBA saw four games unfold, with a strong performance from Portland's Gary Trent Jr. as one of the key fantasy narratives of the night. With Damian Lillard seemingly indefinitely sidelined with a groin injury suffered just before the All-Star break, fringe contributors from the Trail Blazers will need to step up, as Trent Jr. did last night with 20 points and five rebounds while playing a team-high 41 minutes in a loss to the Pacers.

Not every fantasy pickup is meant to be an enduring move, as we are also tasked with patching together interim stretches of production. Trent Jr. qualifies as one of these plug-and-play acquisitions who can provide a short burst of production. If minutes are the coin of the realm when seeking support in deeper and more competitive fantasy leagues, it helps that Trent Jr. -- rostered in just 3.1% of ESPN leagues -- has averaged 35.3 minutes this past week and scored at least 15 points in two of his past four outings.

Thursday recap

Highlights

Tobias Harris, Philadelphia 76ers: 34 points (14-21 FG), 7 rebounds, 7 assists, 1 TO

Julius Randle, New York Knicks: 30 points (11-18 FG), 10 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 TO

Lowlights

Draymond Green, Golden State Warriors: 2 points (1-1 FG), 1 rebound, 3 assists, 4 TO

Bobby Portis, New York Knicks: 7 points (3-8 FG), 1 rebound, 1 TO

Thursday takeaways

• In addition to Randle's big line, New York netted big numbers from productive point guard Elfrid Payton, who tallied 18 points and 18 combined assists and rebounds in the loss to Philly. Randle is universally rostered, but Payton is still a free agent in more than 40% of ESPN leagues.

• Philly's Shake Milton has compiled two strong games in a row, including last night's 19 points and three combined steals and blocks against the Knicks. With both Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid sidelined, Milton appears to have secured an important offensive role in the games ahead.

• Golden State's Eric Paschall thrived in the second half last night once Green was ejected. Whenever Green has missed time, Paschall has made his case as a premier plug-and-play option.

• Charlotte's Malik Monk has been suspended indefinitely for violating the league's anti-drug policy. Monk was thriving before the suspension but can safely be dropped in all fantasy formats. Cody Martin could now see more time and shots off the bench as the team's new scoring microwave.

Injuries of note  

• Minnesota's Karl-Anthony Towns will miss another game tonight with a wrist injury, making Juan Hernangomez and James Johnson solid streaming options in this matchup against Orlando.

• Atlanta's Dewayne Dedmon has been ruled out for tonight's tilt with the Nets due to a right elbow injury. With Clint Capela also sidelined, rookie center Bruno Fernando is in a nice spot to produce on Friday after nearly delivering a double-double this past Wednesday against Orlando.

• Cleveland's Andre Drummond will miss tonight's game against the Pelicans, which helps Tristan Thompson and Larry Nance Jr. emerge as key plays on Friday.

Analytics advantage for Friday

Friday's NBA doubleheader begins with the Thunder -- winners of nine straight road games -- visiting the Bucks, who are 26-3 at home this season. This game features two of the top three five-man lineups in the NBA.

The Thunder's lineup of Paul, Schroder, Gilgeous-Alexander, Gallinari and Adams has outscored opponents by 30.2 points per 100 possessions, the best of any five-man lineup to play at least 150 minutes together this season.

Milwaukee's lineup of Bledsoe, Matthews, Middleton, Giannis and Lopez ranks third (19.3). Oklahoma City's group also leads the league in offensive efficiency (129.2 points per 100 possessions) while the Bucks' quintet leads in defensive efficiency (90.0). Stacking with these key lineups in DFS could prove rewarding.

Top players to watch on Friday

The Clippers host the Nuggets on ESPN in a game with important implications for the second seed in the West. At the moment, ESPN's Basketball Power Index sees the Clippers as the slight favorites to finish second in the West and earn homecourt advantage in a potential second-round series.

While superstar wings Kawhi Leonard and Paul George merit attention, I'll be watching Nikola Jokic tonight in this marquee matchup. "The Joker" leads the Nuggets in total points, rebounds and assists, something he's done each of the past two seasons. Per Elias, Jokic can join LeBron James and Wilt Chamberlain as the only players to lead their teams in all three categories for three straight seasons.