NBA Start/Sit: Trust Howard in Week 4?

Week 4 is on the horizon, and just three teams — the Bucks, Thunder and Suns — are on a two-game week. Keep an eye out for those players on your team, especially in shallow leagues.

Here's the full breakdown:

Teams with four games: ATL, BOS, GS, HOU, LAC, LAL, MEM, MIN, NO, PHI, SA

Teams with three games: BKN, CHA, CHI, CLE, DAL, DEN, DET, IND, MIA, NY, ORL, POR, SAC, TOR, UTA, WAS

Team with two games: MIL, OKC, PHO

Who is worth starting, and who is worth sitting at each position?

Point Guard

Consider Starting: Patrick Beverley, LAC

Opponents: Tor, @Hou, @NO, Atl

Beverley has been solid this season. He's not going to get too many shots up with Kawhi Leonard, Lou Williams and Montrezl Harrell dominating the offense. But Beverley is a notorious stat-sheet stuffer, and he's averaging 7.2 points, 6.2 rebounds, 3.2 assists and a combined 2.3 steals/blocks. While that doesn't seem like much, it's good enough for him to rank 117th in eight-category formats, which is certainly within ownership range for 12-team formats. On a four-game week, he should get you enough counting stats to be worth a start.

Consider Sitting: Dennis Schroder, OKC

Opponents: @Ind, Phi

Schroder has made some improvements this season, acting as one of the few legitimate ball-handing options on the Thunder. Notably, he's taken fewer than 11 shots just once this season. But he's ranked just 128th with averages of 13.3 points, 5.0 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.0 steal. He's a borderline drop in 12-team formats, and is much more suited for 14-team leagues. Even in those deep leagues, it's going to be tough to get value out of Schroder on a two-game week. There are probably better streaming options out there.

Shooting Guard

Consider Starting: Marcus Smart, BOS

Opponents: Dal, Was, @GS, @Sac

It's possible Smart's role will decrease a bit with Jaylen Brown returning from an infection, but Smart will still be a secondary playmaker for the Celtics. He's averaging 4.7 assists per game to go along with 9.6 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.3 steals. Despite shooting only 34.8 FG%, he's still been the 119th-ranked player this season. Once those shots start falling, he should creep up the ranks. Even if he continues to shoot at a sub-par clip, he's doing enough in total to be worth starting on a four-game set, and the Celtics may need more from him with Gordon Hayward (hand) out.

Consider Sitting: Evan Fournier, ORL

Opponents: Phi, SA, Was

Fournier isn't worth dropping, but his workload and shot attempts have decreased since last year, which is a concern. He's seen his minutes dip by 3.5 and his field-goal attempts dip by 1.4. He's also handing out 1.2 fewer assists per contest. You'll probably have to continue starting him in 14-team formats and deeper, but in a 12-team league, it's worth looking at other options.

Small Forward

Consider Starting: P.J. Tucker, HOU

Opponents: @NO, LAC, Ind, @Min

Tucker won't continue to shoot 54.8 percent from the field, but he's proven to be a solid fantasy asset over the past three years due to his 3-and-D upside, plus some rebounding. He's drilling 2.5 3s and swiping 1.3 steals, as well as grabbing 7.1 boards. His rank of 42 will drop, but he should play at a top-100 clip for all of this season. Assuming that's the case, he's essentially a must-start on every four-game week. And the pace that the Rockets are playing at only serves to help his cause.

Consider Sitting: Danilo Gallinari, OKC

Opponents: @Ind, Phi

This move may only be viable in 10-team formats given that Gallinari is ranked 49th at the moment on what seems to be sustainable statistics. But he's on just a two-game week, and the matchups aren't exactly favorable. The Pacers are the sixth-slowest team in the league and have the 13th-best defense, and the 76ers have the fifth-best defense. Gallinari's workload has also fluctuated quite a bit, seeing fewer than 30 minutes in half of his appearances.

Power Forward

Consider Starting: Brandon Clarke, MEM

Opponents: @SA, @Cha, Uta, Den

Clarke has been a nice surprise so far this season, even for those that were high on him. He's ranked 59th on the back of 11.3 points, 6.4 rebounds, a combined 2.6 blocks/steals and 1.0 assist in 22.4 minutes. His defense and efficiency (60.7 FG%) could regress, but it seems like he'll be a top-100 player the rest of the way. It's certainly worth the risk to start him on a four-game week, and he needs to be picked up off the waiver wire in 12-team leagues.

Consider Sitting: Paul Millsap, DEN

Opponents: Atl, Bkn, @Mem

Millsap has seen his role reduced this season, playing only 24.2 minutes per game. He's taking just 8.3 shots, grabbing 5.3 boards, and handing out 1.0 assist. He's ranked 123, suggesting he might be worth hanging on to in deeper leagues. However, you might get more production out of his roster spot if you streamed it every week in 12-team formats. It seems unlikely Millsap's workload will rise significantly given the amount of frontcourt depth available to Nuggets coach Michael Malone.

Center

Consider Starting: Dwight Howard, LAL

Opponents: @Pho, GS, Sac, Atl

Despite seeing just 21.7 minutes per game, Howard has earned a rank of 94, providing nice value as a rebounder (7.9) and defender (2.8 combined steals/blocks). He's also shooting an impressive 78.6 percent from the field, focusing more on dunks and layups under the basket rather than post ups. Howard has been relatively up-and-down, but on a four-game week, everything should average out. He's been considerably better than JaVale McGee so far.

Consider Sitting: Steven Adams, OKC

Opponents: @Ind, Phi

Adams is banged up, and on top of that, he simply has not been good. He's ranked outside of the top-185, averaging just 7.5 points on 44.4 percent shooting, not to mention an absurdly-bad 25.0 percent from the charity stripe. His 10.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists are solid, but it's not making up for the damage his other categories are causing. He's a hold, but just not worth starting right now on a two-game week.