It’s not always easy to make the transition from the college game to the NBA game, or from the international game to the NBA game for that matter. Some rookies are special and they just have what it takes, for others it takes time.

In this kind of a season it is even more difficult to be a rookie. These guys had a three week training camp and then were thrown right into the thick of the action. Typically rookies have summer camps, summer leagues, full training camps and a full schedule of exhibition games to help make the transition before they saw real meaningful NBA action.

Now we’re about halfway through the season and guys should be starting to make the adjust. Some guys, like Kyrie Irving and Ricky Rubio seemed to have it from day one. Others though needed more time and are just now coming into their own. Some of those guys who are starting to blossom now are available on your waiver wire and are worth picking up as they continue to get better.

Here are some of the rookies I think are worth considering off the wire right now: Read the rest of this entry »

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News and Notes

• The New York Knicks had a couple of big names back in their lineup last night, Carmelo Anthony returning from injury and Baron Davis making his debut as a Knick after being hobbled all season. It remains to be seen what Davis will do, but in standard leagues I wouldn’t rush out and grab him just yet. As for Carmelo, it was one game and he looked a little rusty, but I wouldn’t worry too much. I think Carmelo will be fine and he and Jeremy Lin will learn to co-exist. The fact that Anthony was able to play as much as he did is a positive sign and he’ll start getting his shots, don’t worry about that. If you can buy low on Carmelo with a panicking owner in your league, I’d do it.
• Another note about the return of Baron Davis is that if nothing else it’s going to limit the value of Iman Shumpert even further. There are now five guards in the rotation in New York and that is counting Bill Walker as a small forward and not counting Toney Douglas at all. Shump missed last night’s game with a knee injury and is day-to-day. At this point though I don’t think he is worth holding onto in standard leagues even if he is healthy.
• Early reports yesterday were that Manu Ginobili would be out for two weeks with his oblique strain. Later Gregg Poppovich came out and said it would be several weeks before we’d see him again. So while it is unclear just how long he’ll be sidelined, it is clear that he won’t be back too soon. Make other plans. Read the rest of this entry »

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Players Coming and Players Going

• On Saturday J.R. Smith got off the plan in New York from China. On Sunday, Bill Walker was a late scratch and Smith was forced into action, making his New York Knick debut. Smith provided something the Knicks desperately needed and that was a guy who could spread the floor with his shooting. Smith knocked down three triples in his debut and scored 15 points in 30 minutes. If you need three’s Smith is a nice pickup to make. If you’re an Iman Shumpert owner be aware that his value probably just took a hit. Shumpert should still see time, but it’ll be closer to 20 minutes per game now than 30.
• Also making his season debut yesterday was Brook Lopez who came right in and started and played 22 minutes. Lopez ended up with nine points and two rebounds, but unlike Smith he hasn’t been playing ball somewhere else, he’s been hurt all season. Give Lopez a week or so to get legs back under him and find the flow of the game again and he’ll be just fine. The real question is whether or not we’ll see him in a Nets jersey for the rest of the season or a different team. Read the rest of this entry »

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by Spencer Carrucciu

Players to Buy Low:

Monta Ellis – The warriors have a great schedule from here on out and after being jerked around by Marc Jackson you may be able to find an owner who is frustrated with the inconsistent Ellis.

Jrue Holiday – Holiday is the victim of being on a team with a ton of offensive options and a system that looks to distribute the load. However the past few games have been especially brutal for Holiday. I don’t think Holiday will break out as long as the 76’rs have such a crowded backcourt but I expect his numbers to improve from the recent horrible games.

Marc Gasol – Marc Gasol started out the year on fire but has slowed down in the past few games. Gasol was playing averaging a ton of minutes in all of the games and without any help teams have been really been able to key in on him. Once Randolph gets back Marc should be able to operate in a bit more space and get a bit more rest. His stats may take a slight hit with Randolph but with an excellent fantasy playoff schedule I think Marc is an excellent trade target. Read the rest of this entry »

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Three Up

Tony Parker: So far this season Tony Parker has had to take on the role of being the best player on the floor for the San Antonio Spurs. He’s taken on the job and flourished in it. Parker had 34 points and 14 assists last night. The Spurs made 41 field goals, Parker was involved in 25 of them, that’s amazing. Parker has always been underrated, but he is crushing it so far this season and no one is noticing. Parker is averaging 25.2 points and 7.7 assists. Part of me wonders if his owners even realize how good he has been.

Marreese Speights: It’s been an up and down journey for Speights since being traded to Memphis, but it’s a lot better than never seeing the court in Philadelphia. Speights was losing his playing time, but he’s picked things back up the last five games. Last night Speights had his best game of the season with 20 points, 18 rebounds and 2 blocked shots. Speights is averaging 12 points and 11.5 rebounds over the last five games and appears to have regained the team’s trust. Look for him to continue averaging close to a double-double as long as he’s getting playing time like this. Read the rest of this entry »

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Pure Linsanity!

Jeremy Lin went toe to toe last night with Jose Calderon, and Calderon may have been the guy with the better stat line, but it was Lin who hit the final shot. That final shot was a three at the buzzer to give the Knicks a 90 – 87 win.

Linsanity has taken the basketball world by storm these last ten days. It’s an amazing story, its stories like this that make me love sports the way I do. But the question we as fantasy players have to ask is; What does it mean for fantasy basketball?

Let’s look at what Lin has done in his last six games, other than help the Knicks win all six of them. He is averaging 26.8 points, 8.5 assists, 1.8 steals and 0.8 threes. Those are incredible numbers for a guy coming out of nowhere. But what do we do with him? Should you trade him if you have him? Should you try and trade for him if you don’t have him? I think the answer right now is no to both. Read the rest of this entry »

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Three Up

Carlos Delfino: The Bucks swingman has been all kinds of streaky so far this season, but right now it looks like he might be on one of his good streaks. Last night Delfino scored 24 points while cashing in on five three-pointers. Delfino now has nine three’s in his last two games and 16 in his last four. When Delfino gets hot there are few guys in the NBA who can hit three’s in bunches like him. Delfino also added two steals last night and has seven of those in his last four games. I don’t know that you’ll want to own Delfino for the remainder of the season, but you should consider adding him for as long as he stays hot.

Chris Kaman: The Hornets frontcourt log jam is temporarily disabled. Emeka Okafor sat out last night with a knee injury, Jason Smith has a concussion and Carl Landry has an MCL sprain. What does all that mean? Last night it meant a heavy workload for Chris Kaman and the big caveman delivered. Kaman played 42 minutes and had 27 points, 13 rebounds, 2 steals and a block. Over the last three games Kaman has averaged 18 points, 11.3 rebounds and two blocks. Hopefully this elevated playing time continues even when these other guys return. Kaman can be very valuable to fantasy teams still, he just needs to be playing more than 23 minutes per game. Read the rest of this entry »

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Injury Opportunists to Add

• There were a couple of injury notes worth mentioning this past weekend. One of them is that Anderson Varejao has fractured his wrist and is going to miss significant time. There is no official timetable, but it looks at least a few weeks in a best scenario. This is going to open the door for rookie Tristan Thompson to get more playing time. Thompson had 21 rebounds and five blocked shots in two games this weekend. His offensive game is a work in progress, but Thompson is a nice addition if you need boards and blocks.
• Another troubling injury is Derrick Rose who missed yesterday’s game, his second straight after being hobbled and limited in playing time for two straight. It is back spasms that are hampering the reigning MVP. According to Rose it’s become too painful to play with. Rose will see a specialist today and hopefully learn more. Meanwhile, C.J. Watson is doing a pretty good job filling in for the meantime and should be considered as a nice pickup until Rose is back on the court at 100%. Watson had 22 points, 6 assists and 3 three-pointers yesterday. The backup point guard isn’t afraid to shoulder a heavy load on the offensive end and could put up some nice totals for the time that Rose is out. Read the rest of this entry »

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by Spencer Carrucciu

Injuries have hit the league hard and some players have benefited form becoming increased roles on their teams. Some of these players will not be able to sustain their production once every player on their respective teams returns. Bellow I will highlight some players I think are a good buy low and a good sell high.

Players to Buy Low:

Sam Dalembert – While I expect his playing time to be somewhat matchup based his production when he plays in great. A phenominal ft% for a center, if you can steal him from a frustrated owner for a scrub make the move the upside is just too high.

Javale McGee – Much like Dalembert you may be able to steal him from and owner who is frustrated by his recent lack of production. I expect Mcgee to turn this around and on a Wizards team that has nothing to play for he will get playing time. Read the rest of this entry »

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Three Up

Steve Novak: The Knicks offense was once again run by Jeremy Lin who once again cleared 20 points. But Steve Novak was the unsung hero of the night picking up extra minutes with Carmelo Anthony out. Yesterday I said I expected Bill Walker to get extra time and be a fantasy pickup, but Novak was the better of the two last night. Novak had 19 points, 5 rebounds, a block and a steal as well as 5 three-pointers. This is Novak’s second consecutive 19 point game with 5 three-pointers in each. While Anthony is out he may be worth grabbing for some threes.

Josh Smith: Lately Josh Smith has been struggling offensively, but he broke out last night for a game high 28 points. Smith also had 12 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 three-pointers, 3 blocks and 5 steals for what has to be the best line of the night and probably Smith’s best line of the season. Luckily even when Smith’s offense is lacking he brings plenty of other things to the table and remains one of the most productive guys in fantasy basketball. Read the rest of this entry »

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