Fantasy NBA: Players of the Week 7

I'm slipping out of playoff contention in 1 league, so I had to shift from playing big to relying on 3's and steals. Let's wait and see...

The Director
Raymond Felton (CHA) - 1.3 3FGM, 14.0 PPG, 5.3 APG, 3.7 SPG [1]

Felton's 6 steal game is the primary cause of his jump up this week. We see that his numbers are not really that impressive, but he's pretty efficient. It also helped that Nash had no defense this week and Rondo was throwing up bricks.

The Skywalker
Kevin Durant (OKC) - 29.7 PPG, 8.0 RPG, 2.3 SPG, 1.3 BPG [3]

With Kobe dealing with a broken finger, Granger out 4 weeks and Wade missing lots of court time due to blowouts, we could see Durant here for a while. His numbers are stabilizing now and balancing with his defense.

The Triggerman
LeBron James (CLE) - 3.0 3FGM, 36.8 PPG, 8.3 RPG, 6.5 APG [4]

LeBron stays ahead of Durant for the most appearances in this list. He posted these averages over a span of 4 games, clearly establishing himself as the #1 fantasy pick this season so far.

Captain Lionheart
Dirk Nowitzki (DAL) - 31.3 PPG, 6.3 RPG, 1.0 SPG, 1.0 BPG [2]

It's been a slow week for the often-considered carries of fantasy basketball - the power forwards. Dirk bests them all with these numbers, but they aren't reall that impressive overall.


Tower of Power
Pau Gasol (LAL) - 17.3 PPG, 17.3 RPG, 5.3 APG, 1.0 BPG [1]

Finally, Pau gets to crack this list. He's actually been posting pretty monster numbers the past few weeks, but Camby's defense got in the way. Gasol gave you 52 rebounds this week in head-to-head leagues. We can expect these numbers to be pretty consistent though as Kobe will have less touches due to that finger.

Other notes:
Yahoo actually posted Maurice Evans and Troy Murphy pretty high this week due to their percentages. Now, I'm not really a fan of those stats since it's a weighted average that is used in the head-to-head mode.

Fantasy NBA: Players of the Week 3

Still no big wins or losses for me. 5-4. 4-5, 6-3. The way this is going, I might be limping into the playoffs for the whole year and just win that way. Possibly an underdog story in the making?

It's time for week 3. Fantasy-wise, the biggest news would have to be that Chris Paul (consensus top 2 pick) is out for the next 2 or 3 weeks with an ankle sprain. It's been a bad week for Paul, losing his coach and getting injured. Now, for owners, we have to see how long these events will cause his fantasy output to decrease. The new coach/GM might use him differently and Collison might take away some minutes... In spite of this, CP3 still posted great numbers... But he isn't this week's Director...

The Director
Brandon Jennings (MIL) - 4.5 3FGM, 43.5 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 7.0 APG
> This probably establishes that he will be the bar rookies measure up to this year. That one yearin Europe did him mighty well and he seems seasoned already. But, no steals???

The Skywalker
Dwyane Wade (MIA) - 33.0 PPG, 5.7 RPG, 5.3 APG, 3.0 SPG, 1.7 BPG
> Possibly a better 5-cat man than LeBron this year because of the clear dedication to the D that generate steals and blocks. Anderson Varejao has felt how much Wade can sky-walk. Boom!

The Triggerman
LeBron James (CLE) - 30.3 PPG, 6.0 RPG, 6.7 APG, 1.7 SPG
> These are the numbers LeBron should be putting up. Ok, maybe a couple more rebounds and assists and he should be at that level, but a cut down on TOs boosts his stock.

Captain Lionheart
Tim Duncan (SAS) - 1.00 FT%, 22.0 PPG, 11.0 RPG, 2.0 BPG
> Great numbers after coming back from an injury. Pretty strange that Duncan perfected the stripe this week too.

Tower of Power
Andrew Bynum (LAL) - 0.67 FG%, 22.0 PPG, 13.7 RPG, 3.0 BPG
> Making a strong case for the C spot in the west ballot, he's making the most of Pau being out. Could we see an adjustment with the Lakers going more to Bynum while Pau is still warming up to the season?

Dwyaaaaaannnnneeee Waaaaaaade!

Wade is my personal favorite of the vaunted 2003 NBA Draft Class. He is also the man with the most success among all of them. He has a championship and Finals MVP Award, aside from the Gold Medal he shares with Carmelo Anthony and LeBron James. Now, we could go on and on about it, but I think the most admirable thing about him is that he doesn't hold back... The video clip speaks for itself.

After this season, Wade will join the free agent fiesta, but he has a particular bargaining chip that none of the other free agents have. The Miami Heat will have enough cap space to sign 2 Maximum contract guys - a luxury no other team in the NBA will have. Yes, people, even the crazy spenders in New York can't get 2 guys anymore because of the decreasing salary cap. Although there have been no final arrangements, Wade has been stressing on how great a city Miami is to live in, and it sort of points to him staying.

So, question is, who will he convince to come over? My predictions...

1. LeBron James
LeBron is basically dictating how the Cavs spend their money. He asked for and got Shaq, but unfortunately, their slow or short mix of players will not push them over the hill. Perhaps, the only thing that would hold him back is perhaps that same fact. Whoever LeBron asks for, he will get. Unfortunately, the Cavs can't get him Wade.

Jordan's 23 is retired in Miami and Mario Chalmers better think of another number because he's going to have to give up that 6.

2. Chris Bosh
The cast in Toronto is weird, and it doesn't seem to be powerful and funded enough to really challenge for a title even with Turkoglu, Calderon and Bargnani all improving and making significant contributions.

3. Joe Johnson
In same type of situation as Bosh, Atlanta is a playoff team, but not elite. The cast around him is good, but he isn't a superstar. He could be Ray Allen to Wade's Pierce if he would come over, and I think having him as a #2 option would be a killer combination.

I think Jermaine O'Neal wouldn't be foolish enough to ask for the same type of money next year. I would bet that he'd be willing to step back on the cash if it meant a ring. Whoever he may get though, Wade has more than shown that he is worthy of being the Air-apparent.