Posts tagged Bballbfast at FanHouse - AOL Sports Blog

B-Ball, B-Fast is a weekdaily look at last night's NBA action from a fantasy perspective. Bookmark it and visit often.

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Rasho Nesterovic had a brilliant run in March, averaging nearly 14 points, seven boards and a block per game for the month. However, Chris Bosh is now back. And that means a) the end of Rasho's monster (relatively) fantasy run and b) the Raptors should stop being so awful. Not that it matters to you as much. However, Rasho should only be used as a number two center at best while owners in daily leagues should only start him for favorable matchups (see his 10 points, three boards and one turnover in 25 minutes off the bench against Denver last night).

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Jamario Moon is also benefiting from Bosh's return. He has three straight games with double digit rebounds and posted 15 points, 15 boards, three blocks and a steal last night. It's entirely possible that he's unowned if your league is shallow enough, so notice the resurgence.

Dirk Nowitzki will miss the next two weeks. If you own him, I'm sorry, but you may have just been booted from the playoffs. Brandon Bass is the best bench guy the Mavs have available, but it will probably end up being Malik Allen that fills in because of his size. Expect Jason Terry and Jason Kidd's scoring to go up while field goal percentages go down. Josh Howard will have to step up his game too, if the Mavericks want to think about making the playoffs.

Gilbert Arenas thought he was returning last night, but it wasn't to be. He could be back as early as Tuesday at Portland. In fact, he was so confident he was playing last night, that he showed up without a blazer to the game against the Pistons. It's risky to play him in his first game back, but if you're desperate, I'd take the gamble.

Brandon Wright scored six points and had three blocks last night ... in 11 minutes. That's ridiculous per 40 production, but it's also a decent lower end forward total. Wright's still not posting every day big numbers, so he can be had, and he's a nice source of blocks.

It would probably be worth giving a shout out to Lamar Odom for last night's line: 19 points, 22 rebounds, four assists, four blocks and two steals. Disgusting. Playing the Warriors is good for fantasy production.

B-Ball, B-Fast is a weekdaily look at last night's NBA action from a fantasy perspective. Bookmark it and visit often.

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Ronald Murray got the starting nod for the Pacers last night. This is not shocking because he's been getting minutes. It is odd though, that a team in Indiana's position would rather give Flip run than let Travis Diener develop further; presumably this could also be a move to let Diener get more comfortable in the role he was used to. Or something. Regardless, Flip certainly has value as someone who will score points and pick up threes while hurting your percentages and not really giving you many assists from the PG position. If that's something you're interested in.

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Z-Bo represent! Zach Randolph scored 21 points and pulled down 14 boards while starting at center against the Pacers on St. Patty's Day, showing us what he should have been doing all along in the Eastern Conference. Were it not for that stupid Eddy Curry and those meddling kids. Randolph's shooting percentage was looked about as appeasing as a Guinness at 6 a.m., but that should improve some as he takes more shots in the post. Still, he's going to have a nice run to close out the season for fantasy owners.

Josh Powell put up a double-double last night against the defenseless Al Jefferson, going for 10 points, 12 boards and two blocks. Powell is a low end center, obviously, but you could do worse around playoff time. Of course, beware the insanely high rate with which he picks up personal fouls as those aren't always "great" for court time. He should see plenty of run until Chris Kaman returns.

B-Ball, B-Fast is a weekdaily look at last night's NBA action from a fantasy perspective. Bookmark it and visit often.

Cup of Coffee
I never wish injury on anyone. But just like Old Yeller, at least the Knicks had the sense to put Eddy Curry out to pasture for this season. But you know what that means? Well, not much in terms of real basketball, since the Knicks stink. But in fantasy terms it means a lot, especially since Isiah Thomas wasn't smart enough to stock a second center on his roster. Zach Randolph should be center eligible soon and that's a huge boon to fantasy owners looking for late season positional mobility. It also means that David Lee will be starting. Which is you-uge. Also, you can expect to see Randolph's field goal percentage bump up and his rebounds to increase as well without Curry clogging the lane.

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Ronny Turiaf might be able to backdoor some center eligibility as well, depending on Pau Gasol's injury length. He scored 13 points with eight boards, two dimes and three blocks on Sunday against the Rockets. Look to grab him immediately in smaller leagues with lower eligibility requirements.

Gerald Wallace continues to come off the bench after his return from a concussion. The Bobcats want to make sure he's good and healthy, plus they have an interest in making sure he doesn't disrupt their recent run of chemistry. (Not shockingly coinciding with the release of Jeff McInnis.) Expect "Crash" to ease back into the rotation, but you should be starting him.

B-Ball, B-Fast is a weekdaily look at last night's NBA action from a fantasy perspective. Bookmark it and visit often.

Cup of Coffee
If you don't get the Bad Boys reference, I'm sorry. It appears my time has passed me by. Anywho, Kyle Lowry got the most run of the trio of young Memphis point guards last night, seeing 32 minutes and scoring 24 points with four assists and two steals. Javaris Crittenton had 30 minutes and scored 17 points with four assists and a steal, while Mike Conley, Jr., scored zero points (0 for six shooting) with one assist and a steal in 16 minutes. All of this is important, because for the rest of the season, the Grizzlies are essentially having a tryout for point guard. Whoever is playing well will keep getting the run. I love Conley, and he's legit, but I think people undervalue Lowry. Since it appears he's not going to have a tremendous leash, well, adjust accordingly.

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Drew Gooden and Larry Hughes are both starters now (do these guys have dirt on a slew of NBA coaches?). Hughes put up eight points with five assists and two steals in 25 minutes while Gooden went nuts, albeit against Memphis, for 21 points and 14 rebounds. It's classic sell high on either guy, although they're certainly doing their best to spite LeBron James at this point.

Mike Miller has been out almost the equivalent of a week in NBA games for the Grizzlies, but is expected to return tonight. Consider holding him out one more game because back injuries = bad field goal percentage.

B-Ball, B-Fast is a weekdaily look at last night's NBA action from a fantasy perspective. Bookmark it and visit often.

Cup of Coffee
There's just something wrong to me, that even with Zach Randolph nursing a sore foot and not playing, David Lee still doesn't get to start. What does the guy have to do? Grab 16 rebounds in 30 minutes? Oh right. He did that. He did shoot two of nine, but if my coach didn't let me on the floor, I'd be hoisting shots every time I got on the hardwood too. Usually Lee, is the king of the plus/minus, but there wasn't a single Knick in the plus last night, so solace is at least found in him being their leading rebounder.

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Andrei Kirilenko took a nasty little hit from Dirk Nowitzki last night and had to leave the game with only four minutes under his belt. The primary beneficiaries in terms of playing time would be a mix of Kyle Korver (who I think the Jazz actually like off the bench) and Matt Harpring. Harpring's worth an add and Korver is probably owned, although the latter would be must start material if he ended up in the starting lineup.

Tiny little tip of the cap to Deron Williams who decided to let Jason Kidd know who the elite in the L are, with a 17 point, 20 assist night that included five boards and two blocks. We'd like him to shoot a little bit better, but it's tough to be picky. Very nice.

Brevin Knight appears to be back at regular PG duties for the Clipjoint now that Sam Cassell is gone -- he's certainly always a nice add if you're looking for steals and assists. The guy that's worth keeping an eye on (because Knight tends to get hurt) is *shudder* Dan Dickau. He played 16 minutes last night and recorded four dimes in that span. A starter is a starter, folks.

B-Ball, B-Fast is a weekdaily look at last night's NBA action from a fantasy perspective. Bookmark it and visit often.

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The whole Yao Ming out-for-the-season thing sure came on suddenly didn't it. The bad news? You're not going to replace his production. Yeah, I know, you needed that. The not-really-but-kinda good news? There's more fantasy love to go around. Witness Luther Head, Carl Landry, Rafer Alston, Luis Scola and, of course, Tracy McGrady all scoring in double figures last night. Expect point totals -- across the board for the most part -- to go up while percentages drop. Dikembe Mutumbo is *shudder* a very real and possible fantasy option at center. He won't wow you with scoring ... in fact, he won't wow you with anything, but he did block four shots last night. And blocks are rare, so he's got that going for him.

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Was that a Spencer Hawes sighting last night? The Kings rook had 16 points, two boards and two assists in 25 minutes. Hawes could be a surprise option going forward in terms of low-end fantasy production -- the Kings are out of the playoffs and need to see what they've got in the young guys, so consider him in deeper leagues. (And yeah, the fact that the Kings shot 42% as a team might have something to do with his bump in PT).

B-Ball, B-Fast is a weekdaily look at last night's NBA action from a fantasy perspective. Bookmark it and visit often.

Cup of Coffee
I recently added Robert Swift for $25 in a really, really deep league. Woo, me. No, seriously, what a nightmare. The Supersonics promised to give him some run because he was going to be a restricted FA and they wanted to know what they had. Instead, Swift is likely out for the season. Taking his place? Johan Petro (who I dropped for him, of course). Petro scored seven points, grabbed 10 boards and blocked two shots last night and in he's gonna be available in most leagues. He's not a total gamer, but hey, it's late in the season and if you're in a deep league and need a center, you could do worse. (Rasho NEST-er-o-VIC, anyone?) The other guy to watch? Mickael Gelabale. He's a youngster out of France and he scored 12 points two games ago and 21 with eight boards, an assist and a steal against the Lakers last night. Look, the Sonics are punting on this season. That doesn't mean you can't take advantage. If Gelabale continues to get run, scoop him.

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Tyrus Thomas went for 18 points, six boards, five dimes, two blocks and a steal last night. Maybe we can stop calling him an "enigma" or some-such-honkey, and just admit that Scott Skiles didn't know how to use him. Everyone else fine with that? If your trade deadline hasn't passed, trade for him -- could be a monster second half.

B-Ball, B-Fast is a weekdaily look at last night's NBA action from a fantasy perspective. Bookmark it and visit often.

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We know that Devin Harris will start (we do know that, right?) for New Jersey once he returns from injury. But you best believe that in the meantime, and probably after, the Nets are going to give Marcus Williams plenty of run. He got it in overtime last night, scoring 25 points with four boards and four assists. And yeah, his team won and he awkwardly outplayed Jason Kidd as well. If Williams is floating around or is on your bench, grab him/get him active; he should be a great source of points and light assists over the next week or so.

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The word out of Milwaukee is that Charlie Villanueva will start for the rest of the season. He's been beasty when motivated before, so make him a priority add this morning if he's available. (Yes, I am aware that he only got eight points and three boards last night ... doesn't matter.)

Robert Swift will also be seeing a big bump in playing time, as the Sonics see what they've got in the soon-to-be restricted free agent. Kurt Thomas is now out of town, so Swift should be a great source for blocks and boards the rest of the way home -- pre-injury he had shown some serious fantasy potential and was always a pre-season sleeper fave.

B-Ball, B-Fast is a weekdaily look at last night's NBA action from a fantasy perspective. Bookmark it and visit often.

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Missed in all of this Jermaine O'Neal going somewhere else stuff floating around the NBA is that Danny Granger's having a pretty darn good season. His field goal percentage is down a little bit, but his averages across the board are all up (he's pulling in a block and a steal per game along with 18 points, six boards and two assists, roughly) yet he recorded only his third double double of the season, with 18 points and 10 rebounds. But here's the thing -- he's improving in the new year, averaging over 20 points per game with slightly increased numbers elsewhere. And he's still young too, folks, which means a big second half bump could be coming up soon. Trade for him now.

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Al Horford went for another big dub-dub against the Pistons last night with 12 points and 16 boards, plus a block, and is in line for a largo second half. Rookies can hit the wall, etc., but generally it's nicer to own young guys in the second half of the season. I think Horford ends up with a 10/10 average on the season, personally.

Mark Blount will absolutely not quit. He went for 22 in the last game and now 18 and 13 against Marcus Camby. W.T.F. He doesn't have a contract coming up, but he suddenly has a legit starting job, and odds are pretty good he wants to keep it. Continue starting him, but if you get a good offer, no reason not to sell.

B-Ball, B-Fast is a weekdaily look at last night's NBA action from a fantasy perspective. Bookmark it and visit often.

Cup of Coffee
Everywhere I looked in the box scores this morning, it was a point guard doing heavy damage, or some spicy situation involving the point guard unraveling. Hence the name. The biggest shocker might have been the Cavs' decision to start Larry Hughes at point and go big with LeBron James at the two. Hughes responded decently by scoring 40 points with six boards, three dimes and two steals. Makes you wonder what Mike Brown's next move is...

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Seems as if Jameer Nelson, despite Stan Van Gundy's seeming distaste for he and his extension, is back to starting (with 22 points, four boards, four assists last night). Carlos Arroyo initially was going to be handed the gig but Nelson is now back in play. Personally, if he started to go off, I would sell high. Buy low on Arroyo.

Jeff McInnis is starting again. After the Bobcats signed Earl Boykins. The point? Well, besides the fact that you should ignore McInnis for fantasy purposes (10 points and six dimes against Derek Fisher is not offensively spectacular, I'm sorry), you should also probably not take any bets that involve "Sam Vincent as a head coach next year" unless you're laying money against it happening.