Week 3 in the NBA brings our first day off in the entire league as no games will be played on Tuesday due to Election Day. This makes for an interesting schedule: four days full of games and three days with lighter pages. Most teams will play four games in Week 3, and many will be dealing with injuries to key players. Let’s look at the Week 3 schedule and some of its highlights.

Games Played in Week 3

4 Games: ATL, BOS, CHA, CHI, CLE, DAL, DEN, DET, GSW, HOU, IND, LAC, LAL, MEM, MIA, MIL, MIN, NYK, OKC, ORL, PHI, PHO, POR, SAC, SAS , Tor

3 Games: BKN, NOR, UTA, WAS

Week 3 Stories

– All 30 teams will play on Monday

Since no games were played on Tuesday, all 30 teams will enter the pool on Monday. The six (Atlanta, Brooklyn, Dallas, Detroit, New Orleans and Orlando) will play their second consecutive game. Depending on who sits on these rosters, fantasy managers could start Week 3 without the services of Ben Simmons (Brooklyn). Atlanta, New Orleans and Orlando have been hit particularly hard by injuries lately, so getting through two games in as many days will be no small feat.

Among the players listed on the injury report for Sunday’s games are Jordan Hawkins (New Orleans), Wendell Carter Jr. (Orlando) and Dyson Daniels (Atlanta), and that doesn’t even concern the players who have been sidelined for long periods of time. Simmons is a lock to miss one of Brooklyn’s next two games, so there won’t be much need to think about it. As for other life-threatening injuries, fantasy managers have a lot to rule out before Week 3 tips Monday night.

– Wednesday, Friday and Sunday 3. Other busy days of the week

Thanks to the Tuesday night holiday, Wednesday’s schedule consists of 12 games, Friday’s 13 and Sunday’s 11 games. Also included in the equation is the Emirates NBA Cup, which will kick off with group matches during Week 4. Teams that will be active on all four busy days of the 3rd week include Boston, Charlotte, Dallas, Denver, Golden State and Houston. , Lakers and Miami to name a few. Houston has a back-to-back heading in place, as it visits Detroit on Sunday and hosts Washington on the first night of Week 4. Oklahoma City is in a similar situation, playing all four busy nights in Week 3 and will culminate with back-to-back games against the Warriors and Clippers (both at home) on Sunday/Monday.

-New Orleans and Washington have the worst schedules of the four teams playing three games through Week 3.

Brooklyn, New Orleans, Utah and Washington play three games during Week 3. While Brooklyn (Saturday) and Utah (Thursday and Saturday) were scheduled to play at least one of the lighter game nights, the Pelicans and Wizards had no such luck. New Orleans plays on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, while Washington’s games are scheduled for Monday, Friday and Sunday. These are the busiest game nights of Week 3, which makes the search for streaming value a bit difficult.

But the Pelicans and Wizards are dealing with injuries to key players, so options like Hawkins, Jose Alvarado, Yves Missi and Bilal Coulibaly are worth the risk if they’re available on your league’s waiver wire. While all four are now starters, Coulibaly started the season in that role and Missi averaged more minutes than Daniel Theis before getting the shutout in Friday’s win over the Pacers. The fantasy value of these two should have a longer shelf life than either Hawkins or Alvarado.

– Shorthanded Hawks will need to make two moves in a row

Atlanta’s first back-to-back begins with their final game of Week 2, when they visit the Pelicans on Sunday. The next night they will host the defending champion Celtics. And the Week 3 schedule ends with back-to-back away/home games against the Pistons (Friday) and Bulls (Saturday). The matchup with Chicago presents a tempting target with only four games on that day’s schedule. Dyson Daniels’ potential return from a strained hip flexor will undoubtedly help the Hawks, and he was providing solid value at the time of his injury. Zaccharie Risacher has been in the starting lineup since De’Andre Hunter (knee) was sidelined, and Garrison Mathews could be worth a look in extremely deep leagues for his 3-point production. Considering how limited Quin Snyder’s team is, an “unknown” name or two could emerge as a viable fantasy option during Week 3.

– How long will the Warriors be without Stephen Curry?

While the Warriors have been without Curry (ankle) and De’Anthony Melton (spine) since last weekend, the former appears closer to a return to play. Curry will be re-evaluated Sunday, one day after the Warriors’ road trip begins in Houston. During Week 3, Golden State will play non-back-to-back road games against Washington, Boston, Cleveland and Oklahoma City. The good news for the Warriors is that Andrew Wiggins returned on Saturday, but they are still missing in the backcourt. Brandin Podziemski and Buddy Hield are already available in most standard leagues, but they could still be on the waiver wire in shallow formats. Even though Lindy Waters III has moved into the rotation, more consistency is needed before he can be considered as a broadcast option in any league.

– Is the return of Joel Embiid and Paul George imminent?

The 76ers are without two of their three stars this season, but that could change soon. Embiid and George have been competing with their teammates, most recently engaging in a 5-on-5 session on Friday. Looking at week 3, the 76ers are playing four games and the first three are away. Monday night in Phoenix, then games against the Clippers (Wednesday) and Lakers (Friday) before returning home to face Charlotte on Sunday, November 10th.

The addition of Embiid and George to the squad will help the entire team, especially Tyrese Maxey. Although he puts up good counting stats, the percentages are not at the level fantasy managers are used to. Andre Drummond, Kelly Oubre Jr. or managers who have Caleb Martin on the roster need to stay on the roster since it is not known for sure when Embiid and George will return. However, if you must return during Week 3, be aware of potential alternatives.

Light Play Days

Tuesday: 0 Games

Election Day

Thursday: 3 Games

MIN and CHI

UTA and MIL

POR and SAS

Saturday: 4 Games

UTA and SAS

CHI and ATL

BKN and CLE

TOR and LAC

Week 3 Back-to-back matches

Sunday (Week 2)-Monday: ATL, DET, NOR

Monday-Tuesday: None

Tuesday-Wednesday: None

Wednesday-Thursday: CHI, SAS

Thursday-Friday: MIL, MIN, POR

Friday-Saturday: ATL, BKN, CLE, LAC

Saturday-Sunday: TOR

Sunday-Monday (Week 4): HOU, OKC, SAC, WAS