Dyson Daniels has been making a strong case for DPOY candidacy thus far this season. 

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We have a big Week 14 ahead, beginning with the annual all-day MLK Day slate on Monday and featuring four nights with at least eight games, including a 14-gamer Saturday. However, we do have fewer four-game teams than usual, but there are still some solid under-started/rostered options at each position to consider.

Each week, we’ll aim to highlight a pair of Start candidates for your fantasy rosters who may shape up as some of the tougher calls of the week to make, focusing on players with a start or roster rate of 50% or less in Yahoo leagues. 

Likewise, we’ll spotlight one Sit candidate at each position who would normally not be a consideration for a spot on your bench, often focusing on players with fewer game opportunities during the coming week.

TEAMS WITH FOUR GAMES: Atlanta Hawks, Boston Celtics, Charlotte Hornets, Cleveland Cavaliers, Dallas Mavericks, Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Clippers, Memphis Grizzlies, New Orleans Pelicans, Portland Trail Blazers

TEAMS WITH THREE GAMES: Brooklyn Nets, Chicago Bulls, Denver Nuggets, Detroit Pistons, Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat, Milwaukee Bucks, Minnesota Timberwolves, New York Knicks, Oklahoma City Thunder, Orlando Magic, Philadelphia 76ers, Phoenix Suns, Sacramento Kings, Toronto Raptors, Utah Jazz, Washington Wizards

TEAMS WITH TWO GAMES: Indiana Pacers, San Antonio Spurs 

Without further ado, let’s examine some of the tougher start/sit decisions for Week 14:

Guards     

Start: Spencer Dinwiddie, Mavericks               

23% roster rate

Luka Dončić is projected to remain out for the entirety of the Mavericks’ four-game Week 14 schedule due to his calf strain, teeing up Dinwiddie for a continued run with the first team since Kyrie Irving has shifted over to point guard and Dinwiddie is filling in at the two. Dinwiddie has averaged a solid 16.0 points, 5.5 assists, 4.2 rebounds, and 1.5 steals per contest across 32.8 minutes over the last six games, and he’s capable of making up for his occasional shooting inefficiency with solid contributions elsewhere. 

Start: Scoot Henderson, Trail Blazers 

40% start rate

Henderson caught the eye of the fantasy community with a career-best 39-point showing four games ago, and in a turn with the first unit Sunday against the Bulls, he put up an impressive 25 points, eight assists, seven rebounds, and two steals across 38 minutes. Anfernee Simons’ elbow injury, which prompted Henderson’s entry into the starting five versus Chicago, could linger into at least part of Portland’s four-game schedule, and Simons has also already proven highly capable of providing viable fantasy production off the bench by averaging 11.5 points, 4.9 assists, 3.0 rebounds and 1.1 steals in 29 games on the second unit this season. 

ALSO CONSIDER: Payton Pritchard, Celtics (30% start rate)

Sit: Devin Vassell, Spurs

78% start rate

Vassell is having a solid season overall, but going into Sunday’s game versus the Heat, he’s seen a drop of 3.5 points per game compared to last season in conjunction with a corresponding 3.2% drop in shooting percentage. The veteran guard did author his fourth straight 20-point-plus effort against Miami, but he also has only two games to work with this coming week. Additionally, Vassell’s non-offensive contributions include a modest 3.8 rebounds and 3.2 assists per contest, and although he is averaging a career-best 1.2 steals as well, a similarly talented three- or four-game option can likely surpass whatever Vassell can offer.

Forwards        

Start: Deni Avdija, Trail Blazers              

41% start rate 

Avdija was in this space in Week 13 but missed the first three games of Portland’s schedule with an ankle issue. However, he was able to return Sunday against Chicago and started at small forward, posting a 20-point, 12-rebound double-double that included three assists and three steals over 35 minutes. Avdija had also averaged 18.6 points (on 51.6% shooting), 8.0 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.0 steals across the 10 games prior to his injury, and he can essentially check off every box on the stat sheet. Then, the fact he could remain in the starting five moving forward naturally only serves to make Avdija even more appealing. 

Start: Dyson Daniels, Hawks

51% start rate 

Daniels just misses our usual 50% start rate threshold, but given his talent, he’s definitely worth an exception and inclusion with Atlanta set to play four games this week. The third-year pro has been making a strong case for DPOY candidacy thus far this season with 3.1 steals per contest, and he’s also averaging career highs in points (13.2), rebounds (5.0), and assists (3.5). Additionally, Daniels is shooting a career-high 46% from the field, and he’ll enter Week 14 with averages of 14.7 points (on 51.7% shooting), 4.6 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 2.9 steals over his last seven games. 

ALSO CONSIDER: Jaylen Wells, Grizzlies (7% roster rate); Naji Marshall, Mavericks (12% roster rate)

Sit: Lauri Markkanen, Jazz

54% start rate

Markkanen has missed three straight games with back spasms, and he’ll start Utah’s three-game Week 14 ledger with another absence Monday versus the Pelicans. That leaves the talented big man with very sparse opportunity this coming week, and even though he was averaging an impressive 22.9 points per game in the 11 contests prior to his injury, he’s likely not worth the risk in what could turn into a one-game week, at best.

CENTERS    

Start: Trayce Jackson-Davis, Warriors          

31% start rate 

Jackson-Davis continues to struggle with consistency on the offensive end, but the second-year big is capable of offering highly useful contributions in rebounds and blocks. Jackson-Davis checks into Week 14 with double-digit boards in four of his last five games, and he’s averaging 7.2 points, 11.2 rebounds and 2.0 assists over 26.8 minutes in the entirety of that span. Additionally, it’s not as if Jackson-Davis is a non-factor scoring-wise, as he does have double-digit points in 15 of 40 games this season. 

Start: Onyeka Okongwu, Hawks

39% start rate 

Okongwu has been offering solid contributions off the Hawks’ bench behind Clint Capela for multiple seasons, but he’s coming into Week 14 riding what might be the best three-game stretch of his career. The fifth-year pro has put up 18.3 points, 15.7 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 1.7 blocks across 29 minutes per contest in the sample despite coming off the bench on each occasion. The surge isn’t a complete outlier either – Okongwu had eight straight double-digit scoring tallies from Nov. 27 -Dec. 11, for example – and his minutes are typically locked in the mid-20s at minimum.

ALSO CONSIDER: Andre Drummond, 76ers *three games* (14% roster rate)

Sit: Joel Embiid, 76ers

53% start rate

Embiid is slated to have his troublesome knee evaluated no sooner than the end of this coming week, making it very likely he will miss the entirety of Philadelphia’s three-game schedule. It’s increasingly looking like a mostly lost season for the big man, and by extension, the 76ers, which now carry a 15-26 mark at the halfway point of the campaign following Sunday’s loss to Milwaukee. Given the fact he’s unlikely to suit up, benching Embiid after eight straight absences and three likely forthcoming ones is an easy decision.