Amen Thompson, Brandon Ingram and 5 Other Must-Sit Week 18 Fantasy Basketball Players
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Fantasy Basketball is played in many different formats. However, most people tend to play the week-by-week format. That will mean many decisions at the start of each week, most of them Start 'Em, Sit 'Em. You must check schedules, matchups, and more to make the final winning decision. For you, we already did that work and found these seven Sit 'Ems of the week.
Payton Pritchard, Devin White, Nikola Vucevic — Boston Celtcis
This trio has the disadvantage of playing three games this week. The Celtics are one of only two teams playing the reduced schedule in Week 18. To make matters tougher, they go on a West Coast road trip for those final two games of the week. Neither matchup is a high-upside game against very bad defenses.
The only Celtics player to start this week is Jaylen Brown. Given his 36% usage rate and overall No. 1 player upside, he is a must-start every week. This other trio will be seated.
Immanuel Quickley, RJ Barrett, Brandon Ingram — Toronto Raptors
Like the Celtics, the Raptors play just three games this week. Those games are against the Pistons, then the Bulls and Bucks on the road. The situation remains the same: none of these games are high-upside affairs that make a player optimistically viable.
Scottie Barnes will be the sole Raptor that you can keep in the lineup. I may not knock you for even benching Barnes. However, he has No. 1 positional upside on any given night. For that reason, his scoring over replacement makes him a start — bench the rest.
Amen Thompson — Houston Rockets
Looking at Amen Thompson’s shot chart from last season compared to this season is just depressing
— SleeperRockets (@SleeperRockets) February 6, 2026
(H/T @AdamSpolane) pic.twitter.com/g6Vvg3w3lP
The young Rocket has lacked anything truly amazing of late. Despite playing twice for 37 minutes or more, Thompson has only surpassed 30 fantasy points once over his last four games. Many fans have concerns about his true potential, and he is ultimately a Sit 'Em in Week 18.
Expanding on this matter, the Rockets play four games this week. They will begin that with a back-to-back against the LA Clippers. Once that ends, they travel out east to face the Hornets and the Knicks. Though Charlotte offers a nice matchup, Thompson has shown the upside to lack any viability, and then the Knicks' game will be no easy follow-up test.
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Thomas Carelli is a sportswriter based on Northern New Jersey. He is a massive New York Jets and Mets fan, but that is not where is sports fandom stops. He loves to watch and play golf, all things football, baseball, and much more. If he can watch it, he will. Thomas graduated from William Paterson University in 2018 with a Bachelor's Degree in Sport Management. He spent 4 years working at a local golf course, volunteered past PGA events, and spent some part-time experience with the New York Jets events team. His passions for sport runs deep and his articles show for it.