Week 2 recap

The NBA’s first full week of games meant the first normal week of roster management for Industry Pickup. Every team could comfortably fill their 40 starts with already rostered players. In Week 2 – and most weeks going forward – there will be no streaming. Some category specialists will be added mid-week for each particular matchup, but most waiver moves are now focused more on the quality of the payers added. As expected, most of the pickups were either short-term producers in expanded roles due to teammates’ injuries (e.g. Dorian Finney-Smith) or longer-term potential breakouts (e.g. Jordan Hawkins).

The first normal week also gives us a better glimpse into what rosters’ strengths and weaknesses will be. For example, in Week 1 I masqueraded as a decent rebounding team. This was in part because I was starting Kevon Looney every game, even though he would normally be an as-needed reserve for me. In Week 2, when we didn’t need to start our bench guys every night, Looney was banished. I went from tied for fifth in the category in Week 1 to ninth in Week 2.

The evened playing field contributed to a lot of close outcomes – no manager won more than five categories in Week 2.

Pickups of the week

Only four waiver adds received bids of more than 1% of the $1,000 FAAB budget:

• Robert Covington, $35, Tuesday (first waiver run after the Harden trade) to Mitch Casey

• De’Andre Hunter, $15, Tuesday, to Mitch Casey

• Mo Wagner, $87, Friday, to Mitch Casey

• Dario Saric, $14, Sunday, to bdub

Matchup recaps

Alex Rikleen over bdub, 5-3-1

This was even closer than the final score implies. Some of the winning margins were just two blocks, 10 assists, and 25 points. Three categories flipped on Sunday. And both managers leave with some regret. As bdub pointed out on twitter (https://x.com/HiddenUpside/status/1721408370849325086?s=20), simply choosing a different Sunday streamer would have swung two categories to him. Rikleen, on the other hand, was travelling when it was announced that Devin Booker was available to play Thursday, so therefore missed the opportunity to switch Booker into the starting lineup – Booker’s 13 assists would have flipped that category, too.

Mike Barner over Alex Barutha, 5-4

After a managerial error cost Barner in Week 1, he turned the tables and won due to strategic management in Week 2. Barner entered Sunday with comfortable leads in four categories and no realistic path to catching Barutha in four more. That left turnovers, where Barner trailed by one. He elected to sit his entire lineup, guaranteeing zeros for the day. Barutha kept his starters in, either because he didn’t notice Barner’s benching or because he was hoping to pick off points (where he trailed by 99). In any case, the gambit worked for Barner – Barutha’s team racked up four TOs, flipping the category, while failing to close the gap in points. Barner paced the league in FG% in Week 2, while Barutha led the way in threes and assists.

Mitch Casey over Dan Titus, 5-4

Though Casey was highly active on the waiver wire this week (see above), all of that was with an eye towards the future – he didn’t start any of his three “expensive” pickups. There’s not a ton to say about this matchup, as none of the final margins were all that close. The closest categories were steals (8) and blocks (6), both won by Casey. Casey led the league in rebounds in Week 2.

Josh Lloyd over Noah Rubin, 5-4

It’s fair to say Lloyd escaped here, as four of the week’s five closest categories went to him – he won by five threes, four blocks, 14 points, and 16 assists. Only steals, which Noah won by three, broke against Lloyd. Regardless, both managers will need to get more out of their teams ASAP – these two would have finished 11th and 12th in the league in Week 2 roto scoring. Rubin’s 48 turnovers set the mark for the best in the league in Week 2.

Adam King over Mike Catron, 5-4

Despite the loss, there’s a lot for Catron to be happy about here. He led the league in points and steals and placed first in weekly roto scoring. King continues to trounce the league in blocks, and he snuck ahead of Rikleen for the top spot in FT% in Week 2 (what a weird pair of strengths).

Drew Dinkmeyer over Rhett Bauer, 5-4

This one also came down to the last day. Entering Sunday, TOs were tied and Bauer led by a mere five points. Both ended up tilting Dinkmeyer’s way by nightfall. Notably, Malcom Brogdon had four TOs for Bauer that day – bad timing for Bauer, as Brogdon has notched two or fewer in every other game this season. Though neither team won a category during the week, Dinkmeyer’s squad would have placed second in weekly roto scoring.