We’ll start today’s Dish by wishing our Canadian readers a Happy Thanksgiving! Most of you may be recovering from a night of celebrating a Blue Jays win and there is nothing wrong with that. But the Blue Jays were not the only exciting action from a sports filled Sunday. To catch you up on what you may have missed, here’s Monday’s Daily Dish.

ROCKETS 123, PELICANS 117

Sunday’s action started early as the Houston Rockets took on the New Orleans Pelicans in preseason action from Shanghai, China.

The Good

Once again, James Harden put on a show helping the Rockets improve to 3-0 this preseason. Harden was a one man show scoring a game-high 26 points on 6-of-18 shooting (including 3-of-9 from beyond the arc). He also dished out a game-high 15 assists while collecting seven rebounds and two steals. The Beard was on the court for 36 minutes and while the shooting numbers were not great, the assists definitely caught our attention. Harden is making a strong push for the top selection in upcoming fantasy drafts, but the eight turnovers today may hinder the top spot in 9 cat leagues.

Eric Gordon started at SG and played a healthy 30 minutes. Gordon chipped in with 24 points on 8-of-16 shooting (including 5-of-10 from the land beyond). He added one rebound, one assist and one steal to round out his line. His shooting was on today and Gordon is making a strong case for consideration as more than just a three-point specialist. Keep an eye on him.

Ryan Anderson also played a strong game for the Rockets scoring 21 points on 7-of-14 shooting (including 4-of-7 from three-point land). Anderson played a game-high 39 minutes and added five rebounds and two blocks to his line. The 39 minutes are nice to see and if he can continue to knock down the three, he could emerge as a sleeper to challenge Chef Curry for the three-point crown. Anderson should be drafted in the middle rounds in fantasy drafts.

For the Pelicans, E’Twaun Moore started at SG and contributed a team-high 25 points on 10-of-15 shooting (including a perfect 4-of-4 from behind the arc). He added two rebounds, three assists and three steals to round out his line. Now some may argue that this line was done against a backcourt duo of Harden and Gordon, but despite the defensive shortcomings from the Rockets this is still a solid line from Moore. Expect him to get some decent run with Jrue Holiday and Tyreke Evans out for the Pelicans.

Anthony Davis scored 23 points in 23 minutes of action. The Brow added five rebounds, two assists and two steals to complete his line. Davis is a dominant force who seems to be slipping a little bit in some mock drafts. Yes his injury history is something to keep in mind, but Davis is an elite talent who will contribute when on the court. If he falls to you towards the middle of the first round, make sure you scoop him up.

Lastly, Omer Asik put up a double-double in 28 minutes of action. Asik scored 14 points to go along with 14 rebounds and a game-high five blocks. The blocks are definitely a nice surprise and if these numbers were to continue, he would form a strong frontcourt duo with Anthony Davis.

The Bad

Trevor Ariza was quiet in 34 minutes of action for the Rockets. Ariza scored six points on 2-of-5 shooting (including 2-of-4 from three-point land). Ariza added three rebounds and three assists but was limited by foul trouble in this one.

The Takeaway

Almost all of the starters and bench players for both teams provided some very useful lines. The backcourt for New Orleans could provide some sneaky value for owners who choose to roll the dice on them.

Meanwhile, the Rockets will be a very fun team to watch this upcoming season and James Harden seems poised for a monster fantasy year as the new point guard for the Rockets. Don’t sleep on him.

LAKERS 124, NUGGETS 115

The night game on Sunday featured a high scoring battle between two young teams in Ontario, California.

The Good

Lakers point guard D’Angelo Russell scored a game-high 33 points in the Lakers 124-115 victory over the Nuggets on Sunday evening. Russell added one rebound, three assists and three steals in 32 minutes of action. The sophomore has really been playing well this preseason and will continue to turn heads with lines like this. Earlier in the day Lakers coach Luke Walton was quoted as saying that Russell had the ability to “average 20 points a game this season.” This is an encouraging sign coming from the coach and Russell should be targeted in the middle rounds in upcoming drafts.

Lou Williams played well in 29 minutes as a starter on Sunday. Williams scored 25 points on 8-of-15 shooting. He added three rebounds, two assists and four treys to round out his night. Although Williams started tonight, we are unsure if he will start during the regular season. He holds some value in the late rounds of drafts.

For the Nuggets, starting center Jusuf Nurkic put together an all around strong game with 21 points and 16 rebounds in 31 minutes of action. Nurkic shot 6-of-10 from the field and 9-of 12 from the charity stripe and proved that while he may be the backup center to Nikola Jokic, he will have value when he is on the court. Target him in the late rounds of your draft.

Small forward Danilo Gallinari also had a strong game scoring 19 points on 3-of-5 shooting (including 2-of-3 from downtown). Gallinari did most of his damage from the charity stripe where he shot 11-of-12 on the night. Gallo added three rebounds and three assists to round out his 28 minutes of action. He is the clear definition of a risk/reward type of player as his upside is intriguing, but his injury history is too great to ignore. He should be drafted in the middle rounds.

The Bad

Center Timofey Mozgov started for the Lakers but only played 14 minutes on Sunday. He scored two points on 1-of-3 shooting with two rebounds and one steal.

Rookie Brandon Ingram also put up a quiet line in 19 minutes of action for the Lakers. Ingram scored four points with two rebounds, one steal and three blocks. While the blocks were nice, he is still pretty raw and won’t hold much value to start the season.

The Takeaway

D’Angelo Russell is someone to keep an eye on as the preseason continues. If he continues to put up great scoring numbers his stock could definitely continue to rise. The post Mamba era begins in LaLa land, but all is not bleak as there are some exciting players that could keep the Lakers competitive throughout the season.

Sunday Whispers

With news that Reggie Jackson will undergo a PRP treatment on his left knee, backup point guard Ish Smith is someone who will be expected to step in and play heavier minutes than anticipated. The Pistons seem confident with Smith as their court general and he is more than capable to step in after starting 50 games for the Sixers last season.

The Celtics entered the J.R. Smith sweepstakes on Sunday with a report indicating that there was interest in signing the unrestricted free agent. While the report raised some eyebrows due to the current stalemate between Smith and the Cavs, it seems like this might just be smoke and mirrors. The Celtics cannot afford the $15 million in annual salary that Smith is requesting and it would be a complete surprise if the Cavs did not re-sign him.

Monday evening will bring another busy day of preseason action with six games on the slate. The Cavs vs. the Hawks and the Wizards vs. the Knicks highlight some of the more intriguing Eastern Conference matchups.

I’m @radiomunoz and that does it for another tasty dish. The draft is up so make sure to check it out if you haven’t yet. Be sure to keep it locked on hoop-ball.com and follow us @hoopballtweets for the best in NBA coverage. Happy Thanksgiving again to those north of the border and while ball is life, I wouldn’t blame you if you had one eye on the Blue Jays. Check you next week.