HOOPLOG: David Wesley

Please Mr. Postman

Tue, 06 Dec 2005 07:53:45 -0800

As promised, today we’ll open up the mailbag to see what you all are talking about …

Q: Hey guys, got a question today regarding the SG position on my team. I'm down to James Posey, who I was going to get rid of after this week. I have a few guys in the FA pool I hope you guys can rank for me.This is a 12 team, H2H league, 12 catagories, FGM, FTM, 3Pt%, and TOs are all counted. These are the guys I think are worth a shot. Sarunas Jasikevicius, Smush Parker, David Wesley, JR Smith, Desmond Mason, Kareem Rush, Devin HarrisThanksMin

A: Well, you’ve got a pretty healthy list of people there on your waiver wire for a 12-team league. First, let’s trim the fat: Kareem Rush, Devin Harris, and David Wesley are all nice players to be sure, but none of them are going to really be effective from a fantasy standpoint right now. That could change with injuries (particularly for Harris, should Jason Terry get injured), but they are a clear step down from the rest of the class.

Of the rest, it really depends on what you need. Parker, Jasikevicius and Smith (I’m assuming you mean the NOK one) are all very similar players whose value really lies in their three pointers. Should Jamaal Tinsley get hurt for an extended period (which he usually does), Jasikevicius could have the most value of the three, but as it is I like JR Smith the best right now.

That said, Desmond Mason – if he’s still available – should be the guy to target. It’s taken him a while to break into the rotation but now that he’s there, he’ll start to put up similar numbers to last year in Milwaukee, with about 17 points and 4-5 boards. He’ll definitely end up being the most consistent of those guys – don’t let the rough start to the season fool you.

Q: Hey guys,
What to do with Kirilenko? Tons of owners are trying to buy low in him but I've stayed strong. Wait until a breakout game then sell high? What should I expect in return?

Thanks guys,
Charlie

A: Well, DM talked to this yesterday in the comments section, but I’ve got to say I’m a little concerned about AK47. Sure, right now, he’s coming back from injury, but if you look at how he’s performed after his stellar 2003 season, the numbers aren’t very encouraging. Last year, he saw drops in boards, points and steals, and the trends are continuing this year. He’s also shooting from beyond the arc less often and less accurately. Sure the blocks are as strong as ever, but what makes Kirilenko so great from a fantasy standpoint is his statistical versatility. That seems to be on the way down.

Another concern has to be the injuries. Now, all of the injuries he’s suffered have been one-time deals. Ankles and wrists are much less scary than knees and backs. But at some point, one-time deals turn into trends. Maybe he’s just a reckless player – lots of times you’ve gotta sacrifice your body to get the steals and blocks that he does. Right now, if you can sell him at a second-round value, I think you should do it. But if you can buy him for a third- or fourth-round value, I think that’s worth considering as well.

Q: Hey, what’s up with Rasheed Wallace? He’s way over his career averages in “little guy” categories: 3s, assists, steals, and FT%. And he’s well below his averages in typical center cats like rebounds, points, and FG%. All in all, of course, he’s playing much better than last year for roto purposes. Is his performance so far a fluke, or part of the new coaching style in Detroit? Is it time to trade him?

A: What’s up with Sheed? How about, what’s up with the Pistons? A team that’s scored 91.4, 90.1 and 93.3 points in ’02 – ’04 is racking up 98.9 ppg this year under new coach Flip Saunders, good for 7th in the league. They’re also passing the ball much better than in the past, with 23.9 apg, second only to the Suns, and much higher than the 21.8 apg they had last year.

Sheed is the second-biggest benefactor in the new offense behind Chauncey Billups, and while I think his value this year will be higher than it was in the past, you’ve got to assume that those steals will come down to around 1 per game, and that eventually his 3PT% will drop back to his career level and he’ll land around 1.5 3’s per game. If that sounds good to your team – I’d say keep him. You likely won’t get the value you deserve for a player like Sheed who does so many of the “little guy” things, like you said.

Q: Assuming Darius Miles is out with season ending injury (cartilage damage), who is to be picked up? Pryzbilla and Zach are already picked up, but what do you think about the fantasy values of telfair, dixon, and patterson? (or even webster)Thanks, Patrick

A: Great question. Let’s go through the list (and we’ll even add one).

Telfair: He should already be on a roster in your league, but if not, go grab him. This injury means he’ll be scoring more and that means he moves from marginal value to a decent utility player.

Dixon: No one is dearer to our hearts than Dixon (we’re both UMD grads), but as a fantasy player, he needs to consistently play 35 mpg to really have value because he can be so inconsistent with his shot. And he’s not going to get 35 mpg.

Patterson: Here’s my pick for the biggest benefactor. It’s no secret that Patterson and the Blazers don’t get along. With Miles out, now Portland can play Patterson plenty to boost his trade value. Last night was a great example, as he played 28 minutes and put up 19 points. Not a bad performance. He’s worth picking up if you’ve got an extra bench spot.

Webster: If you like JR Smith (The NOK version), you’ll love Martell Webster. It’s just too soon for this guy right now.

Travis Outlaw: Here’s the guy that we’d love to see get the minutes. His combination of steals and blocks are quite a fantasy commodity – only about 10 players average over 1 steal and 1 block per game. Given 25-30 mpg, he could be one of these players. Unfortunately, I just don’t see him getting the time while they’re showcasing Patterson.

And if you want to know what DM thinks, here’s what he has to say: “The clearest benefactor of miles' injury is Ha Seung Jin, who should put up a consistent 12/8 with 2 blocks.” Of course, he’s kidding.

Thanks everyone for the great questions!

Head On

Wed, 23 Nov 2005 10:53:10 -0800

So the popular pickup in leagues across the country last night was surely Luther Head. I must give credit to the guy in my league who snagged him a few hours before last night’s tip off. Good thinking. Head started, played 43 minutes and poured in 28 points, grabbed 7 boards, hit 5 3s, made 9-of-17 from the field, all 5 free throws, and added 3 assists. Quite a game. Still, color me skeptical that Head will be able to keep this up, or even come close. First off, the Rockets just don’t score enough so that anyone but Yao will have consistent value when Tracy McGrady is out. Yao is clearly the team’s first option, and they slow the game down to a crawl to get him involved. Usually there’s one player that manages to have a fantasy-worthy game in addition to Yao (who it should be noted is shooting 36-for-89 – 40% -- with T-Mac out compared to 44-for-76 – 58% with him in there). Maybe it will be David Wesley, maybe Derek Anderson, maybe Head. It’s risky to be counting on any of them. The more intriguing development is that if Head does manage to have a few more games close to this level, Rafer Alston might have a really, really hard time finding those 35 mpg he needs when he comes back. It’s looking worse and worse for Rafer everyday.

Some other recently won starting jobs and thoughts on them…

Jarvis Hayes – It’s well known that we’re Wizards fanatics around here, so it’s quite rare that I’ll miss a minute of any Wizards game. Over the past week this has caused me much frustration. In an effort to shake things up, Eddie Jordan replaced the struggling (putting it quite mildly) Antonio Daniels in the starting lineup with Jarvis Hayes. I’ll say this about Hayes – he is clearly the most improved player on the Wizards this year. He was drafted as a jump shooting specialist, but the thing was, over this first two years he could not shoot. He hit 40% and 39% of his shots in his first two seasons, and also had trouble staying healthy. But something has clicked this year. His jumper has always looked smooth and now it’s actually starting to fall, as Jarvis is connecting on 46% of his shots. His ideal range is out to 20 feet or so, he’s not a great three-point shooter, but he’s taking more than ever this year, and could connect on just over 1 per game if he keeps his starting job. He’s a good rebounder when he wants to, and the Wizards could really use him crashing the boards more, but he’ll never be much of a plus there. And that’s the rub with Jarvis’s fantasy game. He’ll never hit a ton of 3s, get many steals or blocks or score all that much. He got 31 minutes in his first start last night, and if he stays around that number he’ll be a very borderline fantasy play, because he’ll need to shoot a high percentage to have much value. Also, he’s no better than the fourth option on this team. Gilbert Arenas, Antawn Jamison and Caron Butler will all get their production. Butler didn’t play as much last night, but it’s hard to see Eddie Jordan leaving him on the bench in favor of Jared Jeffries for too much longer. Hayes is worth a look if you have a roster spot to play with, but it’s hard to see him helping you out too much.

Jim Jackson – It’s hard to imagine anyone picked up JJ after his 0-for-7 stinker last night. Jackson entered the starting lineup with Leandro Barbosa out of action for a couple of weeks, but didn’t take advantage of the opportunity at all. But take a look at the minutes column – in his first game as a starter, JJ saw 35 minutes of action. Only Steve Nash and Shawn Marion, who played 42 minutes each, saw more time on the court. So if Mike D’Antoni was willing to keep JJ out there for 35 when he couldn’t hit a shot to save his life, it will be interesting to see what happens when the shot does start to fall. But that might be wishful thinking. JJ is shooting an almost impossibly bad 27% on the season, which is why he hadn’t seen more than 18 minute since the season opener before last night. Still, he’s a proven vet, and he did connect on 3 or more 3s in 18 games last season. He’s likely completely off most people’s radar right now, but there’s a slight chance he could erupt for a boat load of 3s in the next game or two. He’s worth keeping an eye on at least.

Josh Smith – So he’s making his way back into the starting lineup tonight, mercifully putting Josh Childress on the bench. Young guys coming off a strong second half, never trust ‘em. Wait, so that means Smith too, right? Eh, maybe. Anyway, Smith will move back into the starting lineup, but will that mean a big boost in his value? He played 27 and 28 minutes as a starter in the first two games of the season. Since he moved to the bench his PT has been very inconsistent, but he’s still managed to at least 30 minutes in four of those games. In those four contests that he’s seen at least 30 minutes his numbers are 11.3/5/1.8 with 1.3 steals and – here it is – 3 blocks. OK, the dude has a worse looking jump shot than your sister, as his 34% FG will attest, and every time I see him launch a jumper I cringe. If there is anyone who ¾ of his FGA should be dunks, layups, follows, alley-oops, it’s Smith. The point is, moving into the starting lineup is always a good thing. Even if he doesn’t see much more than the 30 minutes he was often getting off the bench, there is a much better chance he won’t see those killer 15 minute outings. Everything’s obviously up in the air in Atlanta, but Smith still has the potential to slot as the team’s #3 option on offense, behind Joe Johnson and Al Harrington. Smith’s blocks make him and obvious fantasy dream, but he’s a borderline play until he gets his rebounds and FG% back to where they were last year. If he can manage consistent time as a starter, I’d bet on both of those happening. I might still wait a game or two before plugging him back in there, but soon it will be time.

We’ll try to have something up on Friday, but we make no promises. Happy Thanksgiving.

Clippers/Hawks

Thu, 10 Nov 2005 18:19:00 -0800

Joining the action with 1:34 left in the first and the score tied at 23. Somehow, this is the only NBA game on tonight. Which is, of course, the only reason I'm watching it. Heck, it was either this or the end of "Superman II." And I know what happens in that.

It's just too bad that Shaun Livingtson is out (again), because he is really fun to watch—and he was looking even better this summer. But still, can't complain too much. Instead we've got Sam Cassell, Elton "Perennial All-Star Except He's A Clipper" Brand, Corey Maggette Cat Mobley and Chris Wilcox. Then, on the other side, Marvin Williams, Al Harrington, Josh Smith and Joe Johnson, who should have found a way to wear No. 70,000,000 this year.

Steve Smith is announcing, which is rad. Always liked Smitty, he was gracious to a fault as a player and was always a class act. Still is.

Zeljko Rebraca? Daniel Ewing? Quinton Ross? These are your Los Angeles Clippers. Bummer that Daniel Ewing isn't wearing No. 33. Or Ewings, for that matter. Hell, if he came out in Ewings, he'd be my favorite player in the L, Blue Devil or not.

Is Tyronn Lue on the Hawks because of his championship experience?

The Hawks animated/live action promo spot is good, I guess, but "Rise Up"? What other choice do they have?

There's someone named "Edwards" playing center for the Hawks—No. 54—and I have absolutely no idea who he is. None. He's replaced by Zaza Pachulia, who really should have signed with a playoff team. Or at least an NBA one.

If I played in the NBA, I'd rock everything. Headband, tall socks, wristbands, fingerwraps, calf sleeve, elbow sleeve, ankle braces, compression shorts, knee straps. Everything.

The Hawks announcer who's not Steve Smith goes on an extended riff about Corey Maggette's body, and I don't blame him. He ever goes to Greece, the damn statues are gonna start working out. It's ridiculous. He dives to save a ball, the seats'll move out of the way.

The Clippers are up 10, and I'm not sure how. The stands are half-empty, but that's no mystery.

It's good to see that Josh Childress is letting his afro come back. Wouldn't be right without it.

I know he's been gone for a while now, but it's a shame that Jeff McInnis isn't a Clipper anymore. I don't mean it in a bad way, but he just seemed like a Clipper. Ditto for Q and D Miles.

Four-point game.

Cassell and Cat is a pretty decent backcourt, actually. Sam I Am needs to rehab his rep, Cat needs to show he can thrive without his partner in, uh, crime, Franchise. And with Wilcox, Brand and Maggette, there are plenty of assists to be had. Can't see the Clips cracking the playoffs, but they're gonna ruin a lot of people's nights. The Hawks, of course, are quite capable of ruining their own nights, thank you.

Can't remember whether the Stoudamire on the Hawks is Damon or Salim. I could look it up, but why? I assume he'll score at some point.

Chris Kaman's hair is impressively awful. (And it's Salim—just got a good look at him. I guess I'll have to look up where Damon is.) Al Harrington tries to draw a charge on Maggette, which is basically like trying to draw a charge on an 18-wheeler. Adding insult to injury, he gets whistled for the block.

The Hawks guys seem surprised that Maggette has started quickly after missing a month, but then again they didn't see him balling this summer. I did, and I can safely say he would have been ready had the season started in July. He doesn't take time off.

Someone on the Hawks has some ILL adidas. The team might be bad, but they've got a great arena and good colors. So there's that.

You can't help but admire Mike Dunleavy's commitment to the Rileyesque slicked-back do despite his obvious deficiencies.

Halftime. 50-47, Clips. And ha ha, I totally forgot that there was a doubleheader on TNT. Right now it's Heat/Rockets without Shaq or T-Mac, which honestly may be less compelling than the Hawks/Clips. OK, so maybe not, but I'm committed to this game. I think. Then again, it IS halftime. Guess I could change over for a while.

OK, this is bad. I haven't watched the new-look Heat yet, and the first possession I see has Antoine Walker and Jason Williams dribbling out the shot clock, with J Will losing it on a travel. Dwyane Wade, off in the corner, doesn't touch the ball. This is not good.

Yao Ming gets swatted by Zo, which is just plain embarassing. Not sure what he has to do, but Yao has to get MEAN. He hits layups on the next two possessions, but he needs to be dunking on people.

Can't say I ever thought Jeff Van Gundy would be coaching Rafer Alston. Is there a weirder coach/player combination in the League? Well, except Larry Brown and all of the Knicks, of course.

Antoine Walker, 3; Antoine Walker, airball 3. That's my Toine.

Yao's neck beard is quite disturbing. Two fouls in four minutes though, and who wants to sex Mutombo?

Pretty cool that Juwan Howard and Alonzo Mourning are on the court at the same time—two of the first $100 million men. It's hard to believe that anyone ever thought Juwan Howard was worth $100 million, but hey, these things happen.

Jeez, with those two, Deke and now Gary Payton on the court at the same time—what years is this?

The chances of my watching any of the rest of the Hawks/Clips game are somewhere between slim and none.

You know what would be shocking, Craig Sager? Come out one night in a grey pinstriped suit and a solid tie. Plain white shirt. Wingtips.

Marv Albert, Steve Kerr and Reggie Miller in the booth. Either team would probably take Reggie right now. Actually, there's no probably about it.

Derek Anderson's cornrows look familiar—did AI have that pattern once? Someone did. Guess you can't patent hair designs. Although Anthony Mason should have.

What the hell? The Heineken sports update looks like it's coming FROM hell. What's with the red mist?

Whoops, lost some time there. It doesn't really look like that Zo's lost much. I still think he's a loser for bailing out on New Jersey, but he's definitely still got some game. Going after shots like it was 1993, snuffing Stromile Swift like he was some high school kid.

Yao's hair is...commie. Or something. Also, he's really, really, really tall.

It's still amazingly hard to believe that Jeff and Stan Van Gundy share the same parents.

I'm going to post this at halftime so if Safari crashes I won't have a nervous breakdown. Not that anyone will really care (or notice) one way or the other.

Soooo many new guys on both of these teams, it's actually confusing. Also, David Wesley looks like Marco Pantani.

Mourning goes after EVERY SHOT inside. It would be funny if he wasn't catching a bunch of them. Actually, he's only got three blocks, but it seems like more.

Reggie Miller just murked a Run-DMC lyric. It's "kill my dog, I'ma SLAY your cat." I think.

Yao misses a dunk, which is just plain absurd.

48-44 Miami at the half.

No problem with McGrady's solo act

Tue, 29 Mar 2005 11:03:52 -0800

Houston's Tracy McGrady had a Delta Center performance Monday night that was eerily similar to the one that the Lakers' Kobe Bryant put on last Tuesday. With two notable exceptions one McGrady's team won the game 99-85 over the Utah Jazz and two McGrady's coach and teammates didn't complain a bit. You just sit back and watch said Rockets' guard David Wesley. Get him the ball and watch him do his thing.

Musings

Mon, 03 Jan 2005 18:29:57 -0800

Sura is great. He is averaging a career high in steals, rebounding like mad, and shooting lights out. He is playing excellent defense at the point. He is shooting 46% right now. He is shooting 55% on non 3 pointers, and 60% of those shots are jumpers! This guy rocks! It is my belief that he should be starting, and is a concrete starter fo rthe Rockets. Here is my ideal Rockets rotation, at this point with this team.

PG - David Wesley/Bob Sura/Jon Barry
SG - Bob Sura/Jon Barry/David Wesley
SF - Tmac/Padgett
PF - Juwan/Motay/
C - Yao/Deke

The holes in the lineup have actually been patched up pretty well, for now. Power foward still sucks, but they've been servicable lately. The only real problem now is backup small foward, but that's a heck of a lot easier to patch up than many problems. The Rockets have plenty of backup small fowards, they just mostly suck.

I apologize to David Wesley, he is actually pretty good. I still would rather have Jimmy :(

Jim Jackson, Bostjan Nachbar for David Wesley

Mon, 27 Dec 2004 18:53:08 -0800

This is a retarded trade. Trade away our best team captain and Boki, for a past his prime, aging, undersized 2 guard who can no longer do anything but shoot three pointers. Joy of joys! A starter is lost! The new lineup?

PG - David Wesley or Sura/Charlie Ward
SG - Bob Sura or Wesley/Barry
SF - Tmac/Padgett/Bowen
PF - Juwan Howard/Motay/Spoon
C - Yao/Deke

Actually, Dawson has said that Tmac won't play SF. So... until Ward gets back...

PG - Sura/Barrett/Gaines
SG - Tmac/Wesley/Barry
SF - Padgett or Barry or Bowen
PF - Juwan/Motay/Spoon
C - Yao/Deke

Good lord we now have a gaping hole at small foward! And power foward! AHHHH! PLEASE DON'T BE DONE DEALING!!!

Wait For It...

Mon, 27 Dec 2004 18:52:55 -0800

An interesting trade just went down in the NBA. It wasn t interesting in the sense that there were intriguing, big name players involved. It was intriguing in the sense that it sort of happened for no reason. The 2-24 Hornets get Jim Jackson and Bostjan Nachbar from the underachieving Rockets for David Wesley. Sure, the Hornets get to shed some salary and the Rockets get a guard they need, but this move isn t really going to do much for either team. It seems like a trade that was made just to be made.

Which brings us to today s topic. If you ve found this site then it means you take your fantasy basketball pretty seriously. It is not something you take lightly. You don t check your team once or twice a week you check once or twice per hour. There s nothing wrong with this, no matter what your girlfriend/wife/mom/dad/alternate personality might say. If you are going to compete, you compete to win. You want to gather as much information as possible to help you emerge victorious.

But there is a downside to this. The more information you have, the more you feel it necessary to constantly tweak your team. You always think you can get an advantage. And while this may be true, you have to fight that urge. For the most part, the players you have on your team are there for a reason because you like them. Maybe in the first two rounds of the draft you take the best player available, even if you don t love them, but for the most part after that you are getting players you specifically like. Hopefully you like them because they, y know, good players. And assuming that s the case, force yourself to remember that.

Basically, you don t want to force yourself to make a deal just to make a deal. You spend so much time checking box scores and player notes and stuff like that, you feel like that has to translate into making moves. Sometimes it does, but that s not always the case. If there s an obvious upgrade to be made, do it. But unless it s an obvious upgrade, try to restrain yourself. Because once you start making unnecessary moves, it can start a dangerous chain reaction. You make that first move, but then notice that another part of your team needs help, so you make another move. Soon you are constantly filling one hole and creating another, and your team is a mess. So just take a deep breath, and try to be as objective as possible. Sometimes clich s can be right: The best moves are the ones you don t make.

With that out of the way, let s talk about a fantasy superstar who returned to the hardwood recently: Baron Davis. As someone who has had Baron on my team far too much the past three years, I can only offer this advice wait for him to get back into the starting lineup, and right after he has one of those 36-point, 6-three pointers, 11-assist, 5-steal games, think very hard about him. Yes, Chad Ford is talking about him being on the Clippers radar, and playing for his hometown team could inspire him, but it s Chad Ford s job to spout out crazy rumors so you will pay ESPN $5 per month to read those rumors. But the fact remains that Baron is a very injury-prone player who was unhappy on his team BEFORE they got off to a 2-24 start. He s got top-10 fantasy talent when he s healthy, and if you ve been holding on to him for this long you probably want to see what he can do for you. But whereas before I was preaching patience, the same tactic might not work with Baron. Chances are you ll get less than full value for him, but that s to be expected. What s better getting someone with third round value for your early second rounder, or holding onto your early second rounder and watching him go down for the season, leaving you with a free agent to fill his place?

Hornets trade Wesley to Houston for Jackson, Nachbar

Mon, 27 Dec 2004 18:52:32 -0800

The New Orleans Hornets, off to a 2-24 start, traded shooting guard David Wesley to the Houston Rockets for Jim Jackson and Bostjan Nachbar on Monday.

Hornets return to Charlotte on Tuesday (AP)

Mon, 13 Dec 2004 14:50:07 -0800

Hornets guard David Wesley never really wanted to leave Charlotte, the city he considers home. But when his employer packed up and moved to New Orleans, Wesley had to move as well. Now the Hornets are back in Charlotte, preparing to face the expansion team that replaced them. Wesley and his New Orleans teammates aren't sure how they'll be greeted when they take the court Tuesday night against the...

The Quick Fix? Or the Long Termer?

Mon, 29 Nov 2004 19:29:51 -0800

When looking at the waiver wire, there are usually two ways to go. You can go for the player who just put up great numbers earlier in the night, and hope that he can continue his strong play. Often times this will be a player filling in for an injured teammate (Antonio McDyess and Darrell Armstrong come to mind) and they will certainly give you a nice shot in the arm. In the five games McDyess has started with Ben Wallace out, he has averaged a very hand 12.2 ppg, 10 rpg, 1 bpg on 49% shooting. For teams in need of a warm body, that s quite a welcome sight. But then there are teams that drafted well and haven t been hit by injuries. Those teams can afford to take more chances with the players they pick up. They aren t looking to catch lightning in a bottle, but are looking instead for an underachiever with little value at the time, but has a good chance of having considerable value down the road. So with that in mind, let s take a look at some Quick Fixes and some Long Termers.

Quick Fixes

Lee Nailon

Things just can t get any worse for the Hornets. They lost Jamal Mashburn before the season started, lost Baron Davis just a couple of weeks in, and now they will be without their last remaining legitimate NBA starter, as Jamaal Magloire looks to be out for up to a month after breaking a finger. Who would have thought that the expansion team playing in Charlotte right now would be better than the team that recently left? But where there s injury, there s opportunity in fantasy land. Even the most pitiful of teams will score at least 80 points a night the Nets have proven this in the early going. Darrell Armstrong and David Wesley will continue to do the bulk of the shooting and scoring and P.J. Brown may yet salvage some value. But Lee Nailon will get his chance as well. An afterthought signing, Nailon has always been a capable scorer throughout his career as his 7.5 ppg in just 16.8 mpg proves. This hasn t kept him from being on five teams in the last three years, though, and now he s back to the organization, if not the city, where he started. Before Sunday s horrific 1-for-14 performance, Nailon had an impressive string of four games where he averaged 19.3 points, 6 boards and 1.8 assists. He won t help much in the hustle categories or in 3s, but he is a career 47% shooter from the field and 78% from the line. Until Baron returns, except him to see big minutes and be one of the top scoring options. If you re looking for a warm body, he s pretty warm.

Kelvin Cato

Yes, really, Kelvin Cato. It s for one reason and one reason only, and we all know what that is. After blocking at least three shots in the first four games of the season, Cato missed the next three games, but has returned to the starting lineup since then and is averaging a pretty healthy 28.6 mpg. You know you re not getting any scoring from him, so he needs to be an asset in blocks and rebounds. To his credit, he s averaging 7.4 boards and 2.4 blocks in those five games. As a bonus, he s even snagged 7 steals in the last 3 contests. He s still going to hurt more than he helps, but if you are in a bind for a center which is often the case he s not a bad stop-gap.

Hedo Turkoglu

Let s stick with the Magic. Hedo has never been one of my favorites; I never found a reason to like a guy who was supposedly a scorer but came into the season a career 41% shooter. He has certainly taken a liking to Orlando, though. When Cuttino Mobley went down, it was DeShawn Stevenson that stepped into his starting role, but it s been Turkoglu that has been reaping the benefits. Mobley doesn t appear to be improving and may be heading to the IL, meaning Turkoglu should keep his modest value for the time being. And it is just modest despite his strong play, he still checks in only at #91 on the 15-day player rater. Still, that s the equivalent of an 8th round pick in 12-team leagues, so there s value there, especially for teams in need of 3s. The Magic backcourt remains crowded and Mobley will get his time when he comes back, but you might be able to squeeze another productive week or two out of Hedo.

Long Termers

Mike Dunleavy

The former Duke star and #3 overall pick is finding himself kicked to the curb quite a bit these days. It s hard to blame owners, as he has still yet to fulfill his promise, and he endured a brutal three-game stretch recently where he averaged 3.3 points, 2.3 boards and 1.7 assists on 27% shooting. Still, there s a reason for optimism. It seems like we say it about the Warriors every year, but soon they will realize they have no chance at anything this year and will want to see what Dunleavy can do. He offers that intriguing combination of long-range ability, passing savvy and size. His numbers last year 11.7/5.9/2.9 with 1.3 3pg on 45% shooting were not bad at all for a second year player. If he continues to show the improvement he did this year, he could end up being Keith Van Horn with a few more assists. A dozen games is too early to give up on him. His 20 point, 4 rebound, 3 assist, 2 block performance Sunday was reason enough for encouragement.

Nene Hilario

I ll still use a last name when talking about him. He s been another early-season disappointment, as he played 18 minutes in the season opener then missed the next 8 games and killed owners by not going on the IL. He has since returned, but hasn t done much, as he is clearly still finding his legs. He has shot 4-for-19 in his four games and has averaged a meager 5 points and 2.3 boards. But it should be noted that the Nuggets had been struggling but have won 3 of the 4 games since he s been back. And it should always be noted that if he is indeed healthy, the only thing keeping him from a starting job is Marcus Camby staying healthy. Camby did that last year, but has already missed two games this year, and it s just a matter of time. As a center, Hilario doesn t get as many blocks as you d like, but he gets plenty of steals he averaged 1.5 in just 30 mpg over his career. He s also a career 52% shooter. He was probably being counted on to start for teams that have dumped him. If you ve managed so far at center, he would be a fine person to stash away and reap the rewards later.

Samuel Dalembert

To tell you the truth, it s hard for me to put him on here, as he has really shown less than nothing this year. But he s a favorite, so I ll make an exception. Marc Jackson has exceeded all expectations as the 76ers starter so far, and has done absolutely nothing to deserve to lose his starting spot. Besides AI, he s been their most consistent scoring threat. Still, you have to think that Dalembert will make some noise before too long. One only needs to look at his performance against the Wizards on Friday to see why. In 23 minutes, the Haitian sensation scored 13 points, grabbed 6 boards and had 2 blocks and a steal. Of course, the next night he played only three minutes with an empty box score except for three fouls. He should absolutely not be in any starting lineups right now, which goes without saying. But if you remember his April of last year, where he averaged 12 and 12 with around 4 blocks, you know that the kid can play. Talent at center is always hard to find. If Dalembert is out there, you re a believer and you have the space, take the chance.

The Quick Fix? Or the Long Termer?

Mon, 29 Nov 2004 19:29:51 -0800

Lee Nailon
Things just can t get any worse for the Hornets. They lost Jamal Mashburn before the season started, lost Baron Davis just a couple of weeks in, and now they will be without their last remaining legitimate NBA starter, as Jamaal Magloire looks to be out for up to a month after breaking a finger. Who would have thought that the expansion team playing in Charlotte right now would be better than the team that recently left? But where there s injury, there s opportunity in fantasy land. Even the most pitiful of teams will score at least 80 points a night the Nets have proven this in the early going. Darrell Armstrong and David Wesley will continue to do the bulk of the shooting and scoring and P.J. Brown may yet salvage some value. But Lee Nailon will get his chance as well. An afterthought signing, Nailon has always been a capable scorer throughout his career as his 7.5 ppg in just 16.8 mpg proves. This hasn t kept him from being on five teams in the last three years, though, and now he s back to the organization, if not the city, where he started. Before Sunday s horrific 1-for-14 performance, Nailon had an impressive string of four games where he averaged 19.3 points, 6 boards and 1.8 assists. He won t help much in the hustle categories or in 3s, but he is a career 47% shooter from the field and 78% from the line. Until Baron returns, except him to see big minutes and be one of the top scoring options. If you re looking for a warm body, he s pretty warm.

Kelvin Cato
Yes, really, Kelvin Cato. It s for one reason and one reason only, and we all know what that is. After blocking at least three shots in the first four games of the season, Cato missed the next three games, but has returned to the starting lineup since then and is averaging a pretty healthy 28.6 mpg. You know you re not getting any scoring from him, so he needs to be an asset in blocks and rebounds. To his credit, he s averaging 7.4 boards and 2.4 blocks in those five games. As a bonus, he s even snagged 7 steals in the last 3 contests. He s still going to hurt more than he helps, but if you are in a bind for a center which is often the case he s not a bad stop-gap.

Hedo Turkoglu
Let s stick with the Magic. Hedo has never been one of my favorites; I never found a reason to like a guy who was supposedly a scorer but came into the season a career 41% shooter. He has certainly taken a liking to Orlando, though. When Cuttino Mobley went down, it was DeShawn Stevenson that stepped into his starting role, but it s been Turkoglu that has been reaping the benefits. Mobley doesn t appear to be improving and may be heading to the IL, meaning Turkoglu should keep his modest value for the time being. And it is just modest despite his strong play, he still checks in only at #91 on the 15-day player rater. Still, that s the equivalent of an 8th round pick in 12-team leagues, so there s value there, especially for teams in need of 3s. The Magic backcourt remains crowded and Mobley will get his time when he comes back, but you might be able to squeeze another productive week or two out of Hedo.

Long Termers

Mike Dunleavy
The former Duke star and #3 overall pick is finding himself kicked to the curb quite a bit these days. It s hard to blame owners, as he has still yet to fulfill his promise, and he endured a brutal three-game stretch recently where he averaged 3.3 points, 2.3 boards and 1.7 assists on 27% shooting. Still, there s a reason for optimism. It seems like we say it about the Warriors every year, but soon they will realize they have no chance at anything this year and will want to see what Dunleavy can do. He offers that intriguing combination of long-range ability, passing savvy and size. His numbers last year 11.7/5.9/2.9 with 1.3 3pg on 45% shooting were not bad at all for a second year player. If he continues to show the improvement he did this year, he could end up being Keith Van Horn with a few more assists. A dozen games is too early to give up on him. His 20 point, 4 rebound, 3 assist, 2 block performance Sunday was reason enough for encouragement.

Nene Hilario
I ll still use a last name when talking about him. He s been another early-season disappointment, as he played 18 minutes in the season opener then missed the next 8 games and killed owners by not going on the IL. He has since returned, but hasn t done much, as he is clearly still finding his legs. He has shot 4-for-19 in his four games and has averaged a meager 5 points and 2.3 boards. But it should be noted that the Nuggets had been struggling but have won 3 of the 4 games since he s been back. And it should always be noted that if he is indeed healthy, the only thing keeping him from a starting job is Marcus Camby staying healthy. Camby did that last year, but has already missed two games this year, and it s just a matter of time. As a center, Hilario doesn t get as many blocks as you d like, but he gets plenty of steals he averaged 1.5 in just 30 mpg over his career. He s also a career 52% shooter. He was probably being counted on to start for teams that have dumped him. If you ve managed so far at center, he would be a fine person to stash away and reap the rewards later.

Samuel Dalembert
To tell you the truth, it s hard for me to put him on here, as he has really shown less than nothing this year. But he s a favorite, so I ll make an exception. Marc Jackson has exceeded all expectations as the 76ers starter so far, and has done absolutely nothing to deserve to lose his starting spot. Besides AI, he s been their most consistent scoring threat. Still, you have to think that Dalembert will make some noise before too long. One only needs to look at his performance against the Wizards on Friday to see why. In 23 minutes, the Haitian sensation scored 13 points, grabbed 6 boards and had 2 blocks and a steal. Of course, the next night he played only three minutes with an empty box score except for three fouls. He should absolutely not be in any starting lineups right now, which goes without saying. But if you remember his April of last year, where he averaged 12 and 12 with around 4 blocks, you know that the kid can play. Talent at center is always hard to find. If Dalembert is out there, you re a believer and you have the space, take the chance.

TEST POST

Thu, 11 Nov 2004 17:39:46 -0800

# Teams

* Atlanta Hawks
* Boston Celtics
* Charlotte Bobcats
* Chicago Bulls
* Cleveland Cavaliers
* Dallas Mavericks
* Denver Nuggets
* Detroit Pistons
* Golden State Warriors
* Houston Rockets
* Indiana Pacers
* Los Angeles Clippers
* Los Angeles Lakers
* Memphis Grizzlies
* Miami Heat
* Milwaukee Bucks
* Minnesota T-Wolves
* New Jersey Nets
* New Orleans Hornets
* New York Knicks
* Orlando Magic
* Philadelphia 76ers
* Phoenix Suns
* Portland Trailblazers
* Sacramento Kings
* San Antonio Spurs
* Seattle Sonics
* Toronto Raptors
* Utah Jazz
* Washington Wizards