Category: Fantasy Basketball (Page 124 of 274)

      Where do the Spurs go from here?

      May 10, 2010 /

      San Antonio played pretty well down the stretch this season, winning 17 of its last 25 games in March and April. (That’s a 56-win pace, by the way.) The Spurs looked sharp in their first round series against the Mavs, but looked old and slow as they were swept by the Suns.

      It’s going to be interesting to see how the Spurs approach this offseason. They just signed Manu Ginobili to an extension, and Tim Duncan is signed for two more seasons, so Tony Parker may be the player most likely to be moved. He has one more year on his contract at the tune of $13.7 million and at just 27, he’s in the prime of his career. George Hill could take over the full-time point guard duties, if necessary.

      Trading Parker would be a big shift in direction from a personnel standpoint. San Antonio’s Big Three — Ginobili, Parker and Duncan — have been together for eight seasons and three titles, but they haven’t reached the Finals in the last three tries and haven’t made it out of the semis in the last two years. This begs the question — how big of a change are the Spurs willing to make?

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      External Sports, Fantasy Basketball, NBA, Rumors & Gossip

      LeBron wants to guard Rondo

      May 10, 2010 /

      On the heels of Rajon Rondo’s 29-point, 18-rebound, 13-assist effort in Game 4, LeBron James has made it clear that he wants to cover Rondo in Game 5.

      In fact, according to one courtside observer, James and Cleveland coach Mike Brown got into a heated discussion about whether James should cover Rondo at the critical moments of the fourth quarter. Brown ultimately decided against it, but that could change moving forward.

      “I would love to,” James said after Rondo had eviscerated the Cavs with 29 points, 18 rebounds and 13 assists. “It’s something we maybe should explore because Rondo is definitely dominating this series at the point guard position. For me, I don’t have a problem taking Rondo or guarding Rondo throughout the course of the game. If the coaching staff or the guys want me to do it, I will.”

      The issue here is Mo Williams. He is not a good defender, and he can’t hang with Rondo. So the Cavs have Anthony Parker on the Celtics’ point guard and Williams on Ray Allen. If Mike Brown elects to put LeBron on Rondo, then he’ll have to put Parker on Paul Pierce, who has been very quiet in this series. Pierce is averaging just 12-3-3 on 32% shooting, likely due to the fact that LeBron has been up to the task defensively.

      Pierce (6-7) has about an inch on Parker (6-6), but he probably has 20 lbs on him as well, which means he could get his game going in the post. The C’s need to be ready to use Pierce on the block if the Cavs elect to put LeBron on Rondo.

      What’s amazing about Rondo is how productive he is despite his inaccuracy from 16+ feet. Of the 40 point guards who averaged 25+ minutes, Rondo has the fourth-lowest FG% from 16-23 feet. (By the way, the third-lowest clip belongs to Tyreke Evans, so it’s not unheard of to dominate play with a poor jumper.) Only Andre Miller and T.J. Ford are worse from 3PT range than Rondo.


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      External Sports, Fantasy Basketball, NBA

      What to do with Jeff Green?

      May 10, 2010 /

      Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman says that while Kevin Durant is a no-brainer max-contract player, Jeff Green is another matter.

      By holding off on an extension this summer and allowing Green to become a restricted free agent next summer, the Thunder would set into motion two significant elements that could ultimately make the move a smart play. OKC would retain the right to match any offer sheet Green receives from another team next summer. And the Thunder would allow the market to establish Green’s value, rather than potentially overpaying or even low-balling one of its core players.

      It’s become the NBA’s latest trend, triggered by the combination of fewer top-flight, first-round talents in recent years and a downtrodden economy.

      It’s safe to say Green’s deal should fall somewhere between $45 million and $55 million. What remains unknown is whether it’ll be the Thunder that opens the bidding this summer or another franchise that sets the bar next summer.

      Green averaged 15.1 points and 6.0 rebounds this season. Using Basketball Reference’s nifty player season finder, in the last 15 years, only five forwards averaged between 14.5 and 15.5 ppg and between 5.5 and 6.5 rpg at the age of 23: Rasheed Wallace, Andrei Kirilenko, Luol Deng, Andray Blatche and Green.

      Blatche and Green did it this season. Wallace, Kirilenko and Deng are nice players, but they didn’t develop into superstars, so the Thunder should be careful when signing Green to a new deal. Wallace appeared in four All-Star Games and Kirilenko appeared in one. Deng has yet to make the All-Star Game.

      Widen the net a little bit (5.0 to 7.0 rpg) and Shane Battier, Ron Artest, Lamar Odom, Andrea Bargnani. Again, these are nice players, but there aren’t any bona fide stars on that list.

      I assume Mayberry is talking about a five-year deal, so he pegs Green’s value at $9 million to $11 million per season. I’d put Green’s value at the bottom of that range. Green is a good starter, and teams that can sign good starters for under $10 million a season are ahead of the curve.


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      External Sports, Fantasy Basketball, NBA

      Suns finish sweep of Spurs

      May 9, 2010 /

      Well, I’ll be honest — I didn’t see this one coming. I thought the Spurs would win this series in six or seven games. I knew the Suns were good, but I had no idea that they were this good.

      Amare Stoudemire had 29-5, Steve Nash posted 20-5-9 and Jared Dudley added 16-6-4 off the bench to lead the Suns over the Spurs in Game 4, 107-101. It was tight down the stretch, but Stoudemire hit a couple of long jumpers off of Phoenix’s screen-and-roll to keep the Spurs at bay. The Suns almost let the Spurs climb back into it with a Dudley turnover (leading to a bucket) and a Stoudemire foul on a George Hill three-pointer, but Phoenix played a clean final minute and closed out the series in style.

      I figured after winning Game 3, the Suns would relax (not unlike the Cavs in Game 4) and the Spurs’ pride would be enough to avoid the sweep at home, but this win in San Antonio shows what these Suns are made of. They have great chemistry, two stars (Nash and Stoudemire) and a number of talented role players (Jason Richardson, Grant Hill, Channing Frye, Goran Dragic, Jared Dudley and Leandro Barbosa), who all made news at one point or another in this series. They should also be getting Robin Lopez back for the Conference Finals, which should help the Suns match up with the Lakers’ long and lean front line.

      Who would have thought a few months ago, with Stoudemire very much on the trade block, that the Suns would be the first team to clinch a spot in the Conference Finals?


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      External Sports, Fantasy Basketball, NBA

      Rondo triple-doubles as Celtics win Game 4

      May 9, 2010 /

      Rajon Rondo posted 29-18-13 (the fourth triple-double of his career) and Tony Allen added 15 points (on 6-of-7 shooting) to lead the Celtics past the Cavs in Game 4, 97-87. Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen had 18 points apiece, but it was Rondo and Tony Allen who put Boston over the top. These playoffs have featured some great performances by reserves. Goran Dragic almost single-handedly beat the Spurs in Game 3, Kyle Korver shot the lights out in Game 3, and now Allen posts this crucial performance to keep the Celtics in the series.

      While the Lakers, Suns and Magic look like they’re going to cruise to the conference finals, this Cavs/Celtics series is shaping up to be a dogfight. Boston outrebounded Cleveland 47-33 and held the Cavs to 40% shooting from the field.


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      External Sports, Fantasy Basketball, NBA

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