Drops 23 points in loss Branham produced 23 points (10-14 FG, 3-6 3Pt), six rebounds, three assists, one block and one steal in 33 minutes during Wednesday's 120-110 loss to the Hornets. Impact For the second game in a row, the first-round rookie out of Ohio State caught fire from the field to turn in another noteworthy scoring performance. Branham also accented the scoring with useful contributions across the box score, and he's now averaging 17.6 points, 4.3 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 2.3 treys and 0.9 steals in 32.7 minutes while starting each of the past seven games. While those numbers would make Branham an automatic pickup in just about every format, he's been helped by the Spurs being without multiple key contributors during that stretch. He's also shot 49.5 percent from the field and 39 percent from three-point range, well above his season-long rates (44.5 percent, 31.5 percent). San Antonio could get all of Tre Jones (foot), Devin Vassell (knee) and Romeo Langford (thigh) back for their first game out of the All-Star break or soon thereafter, and while Branham has likely earned himself a rotation spot at this point, he'll be a candidate to see his minutes get reduced.
FEBRUARY 16, 2023 • ROTOWIRE
