The Philadelphia 76ers have been forced to dip deeper into their bench than expected early on the NBA regular season.
Ben Simmons is still sitting out as the two parties work on a solution that either keeps him in Philadelphia, or moves him via trade.
Tobias Harris missed the last two games due to a positive COVID-19 test and Joel Embiid was out for the week's first game. Embiid returned for Wednesday's clash with the Chicago Bulls. Danny Green is dealing with a hamstring issue as well.
Georges Niang, who came to Philadelphia in the offseason, has been the top scoring beneficiary of all the starting lineup shakeups.
With a few players elevated to the starting five, Niang has taken over the role of top bench scorer and he has thrived in it.
Niang's play off the bench should draw the interest of fantasy basketball players in need of some extra shooting help over the next few weeks.
Niang starter November with 39 points against the Portland Trailblazers and Chicago Bulls.
The former Utah Jazz player was second to Seth Curry on Philadelphia's scoring sheet in both contests.
Niang's 18 points on Wednesday were more than the combined total from the other three bench players that appeared for the Sixers.
Niang is putting up high point totals for a bench player thanks to a strong display from three-point range. He is 7-for-17 from three-point range to start November.
The former Iowa State star shot 46.4 percent from three-point range in October before the Sixers were forced to rearrange their rotation.
As long as Harris and Green are out, Niang should be elevated into the top bench scorer role. Matisse Thybulle and Furkan Korkmaz joined the starting five on Wednesday.
Niang is widely available in Yahoo fantasy basketball leagues, so he is worth the pickup if you need help in some of the major shooting categories.
Carmelo Anthony has been thriving in a similar role to Niang with the Los Angeles Lakers.
The only difference between their production is that Anthony's was expected off the bench and Niang's totals are elevated by injury issues.
Anthony reached double figures in each of his last four games thanks to some stellar three-point shooting. He has 15 three-point makes in that span.
Anthony flew on to the fantasy basketball radar with his 24-point performance against Cleveland and 23-point outing versus Houston to close out October.
Unfortunately, the Lakers will not get to play the weaker teams in the league every time they hit the floor, but those two games handed Anthony an extra boost of confidence.
Anthony started November with 15 points in his second clash with the Rockets. He faces the Oklahoma City Thunder in his next game on Thursday.
One of the other reasons to pick up Anthony now is the Lakers' run of early home games. The franchise will leave Staples Center once between now and November 15.
Keeping with the theme of ace three-point shooters, Gary Trent Jr. put up 41 points in two games to start November.
The Toronto Raptors player opened the month with a 26-point outburst in a win over the New York Knicks. He had 15 points on Wednesday versus the Washington Wizards.
Before that two-game stretch, Trent was averaging point totals in the mid teens with a few three-point makes.
Trent faced a bit of a production increase with Scottie Barnes out of the Toronto starting lineup, but Barnes would not have taken away Trent's three-point volume, so it is not a major factor in his waiver-wire status.
Trent attempted at least 10 shots in all but one game and he took 59 three-point shots over Toronto's first nine games.
As long as the shot volume is there, Trent is worth the pickup because he should add a solid point total every night with a few made threes.