Fantasy playoffs are starting for a lot of you, and while we’ve been preaching it for a couple weeks now, the time has arrived. Cold, hard math will rule the day. The bottom of your bench is now for guys who can help you win the next seven days — unless you’ve assembled such a juggernaut squad that you can still mess around with guys who might break out in silly season. For everyone else, take a good long look at what stats you need, and how many your players are expected to get based on their amount of games over the span of a matchup. Volume is going to win the day more often than not.

That’s critical, because the Brooklyn Nets are offering up the ultra-rare five-game week at a perfect time. Any way you slice it, five games from a random Net is probably going to outdo three games from a player who isn’t a guaranteed start for your team. It might be better than four games of another player, depending on how good they are and what their specialties are.

Dennis Schroder is probably rostered in competitive leagues, but if not he’s the top play. Five games of a starting point guard (with Cam Thomas on the shelf, anyway) is hard to beat and we know Schroder can produce top-100 numbers at his very best.

Dorian Finney-Smith is a no-brainer choice for 3-and-D numbers. He’s starting over Cam Johnson and will probably end up playing around 160 total minutes this week, barring injury. He might not deliver any singular big lines, but by next Sunday night you’ll get good output in triples and steals, with rebounds, assists, blocks and some points for good measure.

If Cam Johnson got dropped after his recent lull, give him a look too. He’s clearly the most capable fantasy player among the non-obvious names in Brooklyn, and five games in a week is five games in a week.

Ben Simmons is always controversial and the fact that he’s missed the last few games and starting the week with a questionable tag will wipe him off a lot of boards, but if he plays, you have to consider him. Given that he’s probably going to get modest minutes after a few absences, you should feel more comfortable looking elsewhere on this roster, but *if* he plays…

Day’Ron Sharpe is typically a sneaky source of rebounds and blocks with a nice little FG% boost as the cherry on top; he’s going to win people some matchups this week. He has a legitimate shot at adding 40 rebounds and 10 blocks to your totals over five games.

Lonnie Walker IV has been alternating useful games with duds over the last couple of weeks. His made field goals over the last seven games: two, four, one, four, one, four, one. That should mean Monday is a good one! Walker has launched seven-plus attempts in all but one of those games, so if his shooting can level out he’ll provide solid points and 3-pointers, and his outlook gets even better if Simmons remains sidelined.

Last but not least is Dennis Smith Jr. Like Walker, Smith’s value will swing a bit based on whether or not Simmons suits up, but he’s running as Brooklyn’s defensive conscience in the backcourt lately. Any managers chasing assists and steals should kick the tires here.

Now, for the rest of the league, from whom you’ll only get three or four games…

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Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, G, Denver Nuggets

Caldwell-Pope is available in nearly half of all Yahoo leagues right now, and although that might be influenced by him sitting out on Saturday night, it’s hard to justify otherwise. KCP falls into that bucket of guys who are a little bit boring and who might end up on the chopping block in desperation situations, but he’s an ideal 3-and-D guard who has a secure role on one of the league’s most effective teams.

Kelly Olynyk, F, Toronto Raptors

Olynyk might’ve been a shutdown candidate, but the Raptors are now dealing with some major injuries that will push him into a bigger role. Scottie Barnes has a broken hand and might well be done for the season, and on Sunday Jakob Poeltl dislocated a finger. Olynyk is going to run the show at center while Poeltl is out and will pick up plenty of minutes as a playmaking forward in Barnes’ absence. The stat set is there and the minutes should be too. Olynyk belongs on rosters.

Norman Powell, G, LA Clippers

Russell Westbrook suffered a hand fracture last week, which means that Powell is the clear top dog among second unit guards for the Clips. Add in Paul George’s recent bout of knee soreness and there’s a path for Powell to go even higher than his current sixth man role; a role that has allowed him to deliver top-100 numbers in the past, mind you. He put up top-95 output last week thanks to a 24-point explosion on Sunday, and averaged 26.4 mpg. Powell is a player who can produce positive points and 3-pointers while also lifting your percentages, so don’t overthink it.

Corey Kispert, G, Washington Wizards

Speaking of guards who can score a lot and lift your percentages, here comes Kispert. He finished less than 10 spots behind Powell last week, dropping two 20-point games and a nine-point outing. All three games featured .533 or better shooting from the field and seven total 3-pointers. The Wizards have been giving him about 25 minutes a night over the last month and he could continue to climb as a younger player on a tanking team. Kispert is a nice option if you miss out on Powell, who has a little more pizzazz and a longer track record.

Royce O’Neale, F, Phoenix Suns

If O’Neale wasn’t traded at the deadline he would’ve made our main section this week, but he’s found a good setup in Phoenix. As predicted, the Suns have quietly fallen in love with their first credible 3-and-D forward of the season — no offense to the carousel of players they traded away at the deadline. O’Neale was a top-30 value last week while shooting an ugly .394 from the field, averaging 13.3 points, 6.3 rebounds, 4.3 assists, 1.3 steals, 1.3 blocks and 3.3 3-pointers per game. We’ve seen him hold must-start value for long stretches as a member of the Jazz and Nets, and the Suns shouldn’t be any different, in theory.

With early Monday news that Devin Booker will be out for at least a week, Grayson Allen and Eric Gordon are also worth your consideration.

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