Jake LaRavia
LaRavia is a bench wing fighting for rotation minutes, and he played 15 minutes in Sunday's win over Utah after missing the Clippers game with an ankle sprain.
Role
He came off the bench in the opener against Golden State and played 18 minutes (ESPN, Rotowire, Oct 22). Silver Screen and Roll's Utah grades have him at 15 minutes, entering in the second period. Fox Sports says he isn't expected to start as often as last season, when he started 43 of 82 games, but should get consistent bench minutes. Silver Screen and Roll's preview (about 39 days old) has Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves as the obvious starters and LaRavia competing with the newcomers, Adou Thiero and rookie Cameron Carr. A Rotowire note (Jul 28) names Matisse Thybulle, Ziaire Williams and Sandro Mamukelashvili as added competition. I found no reporting on a minutes cap, and I did not read any lineup page.
He had a strong preseason: 12.7 points, 2.0 steals and 1.3 blocks per game on 63.6% shooting and 54.5% from three over three games (SI). He credits a mental fix for last year's shooting slump, and Redick has praised him repeatedly. His multi-position defense and floor spacing should keep him in the rotation, and he had a team-high plus-minus against Utah despite going scoreless.
His minutes shrank late last season and in the playoffs, where he averaged 14.3 minutes and shot 33.3% (SI). He shot 43% in March, and Silver Screen and Roll warns that on a deeper roster his minutes could disappear if he struggles. The wing group is crowded, and he just missed a game with a sprained right ankle.
Where analysts split
The question is whether his preseason shooting carries into games that count, and so whether he holds a steady rotation spot or loses minutes to Thybulle, Williams, Thiero and Carr. Rotowire's July note sees an expanded role after LeBron James left. Silver Screen and Roll expects a fight for minutes, and Fox expects a bench role with fewer starts.
Research confidence: reported. Outlooks are grounded in web search over current reporting and refreshed through the season.
Others at SF
Fantasy Memo reads your league and answers that every Monday, and checks your lineup on the days you play.
Connect your league: 14 days free