Give Me The Rock » Author: Nels

Day 45 of 124: The Return of the Golden Ticket Question Mark

Nels — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 14:00:18 +0000

Line of the Night: There were 6 games last night, but 5 of the top 10 lines came from only 1 game. 50% versus 16% seems like it has to have some sort of statistical significance. The game that produced those 5 lines was the Golden State Warriors versus the Oklahoma City Thunder. Is the Golden Ticket back? Monta Ellis (3.15) seems to think so. He scored 48 points (3 threes, 18-29 from the field, 9-10 from the line), with 7 rebounds, and 2 steals to win the night. If you’re willing to put money on it, NBA Betting is the best place to find odds.

Honorable Mentions: James Harden (2.27) had the next best line with 19 of OKC’s 116 points (3 threes, 4-4 from the line). Harden also had 7 assists, and 4 steals. Kevin Durant (2.26) took advantage with 33 points, 10 rebounds, and 7 assists. Back on Monta’s side of the ball, David Lee (1.66) has a triple double for the dubs with 25 points (7-7 from the line), 11 rebounds, and 10 assists while Stephen Curry (1.51) scored 16 points (7-9 from the field), with 7 rebounds, 10 assists, and 2 steals. Seems like a lot of good passing from both teams. I suppose it helps that they all seemed to shooting the lights out.

Dwyane Wade (1.76) led the Heat over Cleveland with 26 points (8-8 from the line), 6 assists, and 3 steals.

The Pacers won a close one over Utah thanks to Roy Hibbert‘s (1.68) 17 points, 10 rebounds, and 4 blocks, and Darren Collison‘s (1.66) 25 points (10-14 from the field, 4-4 from the line), and 5 assists.

And finally, Jared Dudley (1.47) tried to make up for lost stat lines with 19 points on 3 threes, and 7-9 from the field.

***

Waiver Wire Line of the Night: Nikola Pekovic (1.92) has been talked about a lot on GMTR, but he had yet to actually win the Waiver Wire Line of the Night. Well, last night’s 23 points (9-12 from the field, 5-5 from the line), 10 rebounds, 3 steals, and 2 blocks (32% owned) was more than enough to do it. In fact, it was the 4th best line overall (right after Kevin Durant, and before Dwyane Wade. Not bad company to keep). Still only owned in a third of leagues, but I’m sure he’s been picked up in all the competitive leagues out there.

Pick Up Lines: Ersan Ilyasova (1.59) came off the bench for the Bucks to play a season-high 33 minutes. He was part of a furious comeback that fell just short as the Bucks ralled from down 17 at half time to lost by only 3. Coincidentally, Ilyasova had 17 points (8-8 from the line) to go with 12 rebounds, and 2 blocks (22% owned). He’s been a pretty consistent source of Rebounds and Blocks since Bogut got injured, but his minutes have not been as consistent and his shooting has been horrible. He should probably be on a roster in 12-team and larger leagues, but his inconsistency will probably burn owners in daily leagues.

Mike Dunleavy (1.28) had 17 points with 4 threes going 5-7 from the field, but he’s only a consideration in deep leagues right now (8% owned). If you need a three-point specialist, though, put him on your watch list and see if his minutes stabilize around 25 and his threes at 2 per game. If that happens, then he’s probably worth owning in standard leagues.

Daequan Cook (1.23) has started the last 5 games for the Thunder, and with the aid of The New Golden Ticket, he scored 17 points (5 threes, 6-8 from the field) (3% owned). If you need Threes, Cook is worth a look (rhyming!) – he’s averaging almost 3 a game in the last 6 games. Thabo Sefolosha is supposed to be back “any day now” but I’ve heard that too much this season for it to mean a whole lot. If you have a daily changes league, I’d add Cook and ride him for the threes until Sefolosha is back.

C.J. Miles (0.80) had another pretty good game (12 points, 2 threes, 1 steal, 1 block) and is only owned in 43% of leagues. I’m not sure yet if that’s the cutoff for the percentage of leagues that are large enough and competitive enough to have someone like C.J. Miles on a team, but it’s starting to seem like it’s right around there.

J.J. Hickson (0.80) has 8 points and 11 rebounds with 1 steal and 1 block. Jason Thompson started at PF for the Kings, but Hickson played a minute and a half more since it looked like Sacramento’s Forwards were struggling a bit. DeMarcus Cousins was not struggling though. He only hit 3-13 from the field, but that’s about par for him. Boom, Roasted.

Biggest Loser: Luke Ridnour (-0.75) has fallen on hard times these past few games, and despite 8 points, 6 rebounds, and 1 assist he tops the list because he’s owned in 48% of leagues and only hit 4-12 shots from the field.

Tyrus Thomas (-0.64) continued to reward the 52% of owners who manage to somehow put up with his maddening inconsistency with 2 points, 3 rebounds, 0 assists, and 1-6 shooting from the field. That comes after 8 points and 13 rebounds in the Bobcats last game (though he did shoot 3-14 in that one, so it wasn’t all roses and sunshine).

And last, but probably the true Biggest Loser because of his 92% ownership, the aforementioned DeMarcus Cousins (-0.64). Cousins had a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds, but did it the hard way, going 3-13 (23%) from the field and 4-6 from the line. He also had 1 steal and 2 turnovers.

***

Daily rankings and stats come from the GMTR H2H Player Rater (beta version). They are based on the stat Wins Above Replacement Player (WARP) an estimate of the number of wins a player produces per week in H2H leagues over a replacement (waiver wire) player.

Do not miss a day of the Fantasy NBA. Subscribe to Give Me The Rock right now. You can also get bonus (and easily digestible) content by following GMTR on Twitter, or become a fan of GMTR on Facebook! We are so social!

If you like what you read here, come back every day for new content! And if you come back every day, please consider donating…

Want to see your ad in the GMTR RSS feed? Contact: givemetherock@gmail.com

Other Stuff Like This:

Day 41 of 124: Anthony Morose

Nels — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 16:11:24 +0000

Or: Where is John Ringo?

We had a little bit of a conversation going last night on Twitter about which three-point bomber would get the Line of the Night:. Well, despite Anthony Morrow‘s (2.97) 8 threes on 13-20 from the field and 8-8 from the line to end up with 42 points, his lack of peripheral stats means that Erik was right in calling Paul George (4.29) as the winner of the three-point fantasy basketball player rater shootout. George ended up with 30 points (7 threes, 11-19 from the field, 1-1 free throws), 9 rebounds, 5 assists, and the stat that gave him the highest WARP score we’ve seen so far this year: 5 steals. George is the only player to go over 4 on the WARP scale.

Honorable Mentions: Kevin Durant (2.91) probably would have been first on any other night with his 36 points, 10 rebounds, 2 steals, and 3 blocks, but that just looks downright ordinary compared to the two guys above… Joining Durant was teammate James Harden (2.15) who scored 24 points (4 threes, 8-13 from the field, 4-4 from the line), with 2 steals to help OKC beat Memphis in spite of Marc Gasol (1.94)’s best efforts. Gasol’s best efforts look something like: 24 points (9-12 from the field, 6-6 from the line), 8 rebounds, and 2 blocks.

Despite shooting 3-8 from the floor, Ricky Rubio (2.15) made the Player Rater blush with 10 points (2 threes), 10 assists, and beating out Paul George with his 6 steals.

Paul Pierce (1.85) continues to deliver for fantasy owners, putting up another 30 points (4 threes), 7 rebounds, and 5 assists. Behind Kevin Durant, he might be the best Small Ball SF out there.

Anderson Varejao (1.57) continued a run of strong games with 12 points, 15 rebounds, and 3 steals.

And Good On You to the 60% of people who held on to Brandon Knight (1.55) (despite our best efforts to convince everyone to drop him). Knight scored a season-high 26 points (3 threes), along with 7 assists and 3 rebounds. Apparently Yahoo had already thought he would be out of the league already and replaced him with a Piston logo…

Finally, Kevin Love (1.51) may not be able to get a double-double in every game this season (he’s had 2 games of single digit rebounds) but that doesn’t mean he’s going to stop putting them up: 20 points (10-10 from the line!), 10 rebounds, and 5 assists.

***

Waiver Wire Line of the Night: I’m going to have to keep driving this Apology Train until it runs off a cliff. We’ve been telling people for a while that Amir Johnson (2.02) was dunzo… so of course he comes back with 18 points (8-13 from the field), 13 rebounds, and 3 blocks (42% owned). Because that 42% ownership shows that a bunch of people already let him go, you now have the choice of whether or not to pick him back up. After the previous 9 games, I’m going to give him another chance to soar or flop. If you’re in a deeper or more competitive league, you probably don’t have that luxury, so I’m going to stick with what I said and say that it’s better to leave him be.

Pick Up Lines: Someone you should not agonize over is Nikola Pekovic (1.41). Somehow he’s only owned in 6% of leagues, but he’s already been picked up in all of mine… I knew it would happen if he showed any sign of repeating what he’d done the game before… but he did even better, going for 27 points (11-14 from the field), and 11 rebounds, so even though he violates the 70% shooting rule, he is a MUST ADD at this point, so stop reading and go get him already (or at least see if he’s still available – and you’re still reading this, what are you doing?)

Vince Carter (1.35) score 14 points on 6-10 from the field, with 5 assists, and 2 steals. He is 49% owned, and after his four most recent games, that number will probably edge over 50%… I have to admit, he’s starting to look a like a poor man’s vintage Vince Carter.

From once and former to current Raptors: Leandro Barbosa (1.19) might be back….? After missing a game, it seems like maybe he just needed to work his way back into thing before getting back to scoring 19 points, and adding the little bonus defense numbers with 3 steals, and 2 blocks (29% owned).

And speaking of Raptors who missed a game: Linas Kleiza (0.98) came back after missing one to score 15 points (3 threes, 6-8 from the field) (7% owned).
Patrick Patterson (0.80) 12 points, 7 rebounds, 2 blocks (2% owned)
Alonzo Gee (0.80) 20 points (3 threes), 5 rebounds (5% owned)

Biggest Loser: O.J. Mayo (-0.74) didn’t have all that bad of night with 13 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 assists if you’re in a points league where missed shots don’t count. His efficiency was terrible with 5-16 from the field and 3-7 from the line. Rajon Rondo (-0.64) didn’t fare much better, again, putting up a decent line for points league teams: 7 points, 5 rebounds, 7 assists, but he also turned it over 5 times while going 3-8 from the field and 1-4 from the line.

In The Bonus: FakeTeams does a midseason fantasy basketball mock draft.

***

Want to see your ad in the GMTR RSS feed? Contact: givemetherock@gmail.com

Other Stuff Like This:

Day 40 of 124: Sleeping Giants

Nels — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 14:37:19 +0000

and not just the players

Line of the Night: It took a little while for Stephen Curry (2.90) to get past the whole Fragile Ankle Syndrome (which could of course reoccur at any time), but he’s finally playing like a second round pick (or first round last night) with 29 points (10-14 from the field, 2 threes), 5 rebounds, 12 assists, and 3 steals. Curry’s teammate Monta Ellis (1.99) had 33 points (3 threes, 13-21 from the field), and 3 steals.

Honorable Mentions: Sleeping Giant #2: The Denver Nuggets. With Danilo Gallinari (1.99) leading the way, the whole season, but also last night with 21 points (5 threes, 7-10 from the field), 6 rebounds, and 4 assists, the Nuggets have the second best record in the West.

Tim Duncan (1.85) is definitely a giant, and from his play earlier this season, it sure seemed like he was sleeping, but last night her woke up to score 19 points (6-8 from the field, 7-7 from the line(!)), to go with 9 rebounds, and 2 steals.

Amare Stoudemire (1.68) scored 34 points, and grabbed 11 rebounds, but fell prey to Derrick Rose (1.66) who was just pretending to sleep against Philadelphia in order to give more false hope to the 76ers. Rose scored 32 points (2 threes) against the Knicks to go with 13 assists (2 turnovers).

Since he’s been called out a couple times in The Biggest Loser, I felt it only right to mention that Raymond Felton (1.41) had 15 points, 10 assists, and 3 steals last night (pun intended).

***

Waiver Wire Line of the Night: Randy Foye (1.83) got some extra time because Chauncey Billups was struggling with his shot. Foye scored 17 points (7-11 from the field), with 3 steals (3% owned). He passes the 70% rule, but 63% shooting is still pretty hard to keep for any period of time. And so is 27 minutes a game when you’re on a team with Chris Paul, Billups, and Mo Williams.

Pick Up Lines: Having just picked him up before writing this sentence, I am going to declare Gordon Hayward (1.75) an official Good Pick Up. Hayward scored 21 points (8-8 from the line), with 4 assists, and 2 steals (22% owned) for his 4th good-for-a-free-agent game in a row. With all the injuries going around, you might need someone who can play SG or SF (perhaps to replace Gerald Henderson who strained his hamstring and will be out at least 2 weeks).

I have to admit, I did not know which team Jamaal Tinsley (1.22) was playing for. Turns out, it’s Gordon Hayward’s Utah Jazz (yes, that was intended to be some mix of ironic and sarcastic). Tinsley got the start as the Jazz finally decided that Devin Harris had injured his brain (though they claim it’s his hamstring). JT played 34 minutes even in a lopsided loss to Stephen Curry and Monta Ellis (I don’t think anyone else on the Warriors really needs to play when those two are healthy) and he ended up with 9 points, 6 rebounds, 13 assists, and 2 steals (1% owned). If you’re in a deep league or a competitive league (or heaven forbid, both) then you probably want to snap him up on the off-chance that he continues getting those kind of minutes even when Harris returns.

(Image: Dustin Curtis)

Swimming upstream once again is John Salmons (1.21) with 19 points (3 threes), and 8 rebounds (31% owned) (pun intended). I would err on the side of “he’s already owned in every league where he should be” (and probably more than that) on this one.

Kyle Korver (1.20) did that thing he does wherein he makes threes and then you think about picking him up. To get to 16 points (3 threes) he added 5-5 from the line (13% owned), and it probably doesn’t bear repeating, but Results Not Typical.

Besides Hayward and the riskier Tinsley, I’d say a couple guys worth taking a look at are: Dante Cunningham (1.03), who had 8 points, and 12 rebounds (1% owned), and Josh Howard (0.92), who I even picked up and dropped at one point so far this year. Howard had 19 points (7-10 from the field), and 4 assists (7% owned), so while he doesn’t actually qualify as a legit pick up due to the 70% rule, I still say take a look just because when he gets the time, he can put up numbers. If anything, at least click the little flag button (or whatever you do in your league to add someone to your watch list) and keep him on your radar. Cunningham is more inconsistent with a much lower upside, but for deep league managers who need some blocks and boards, he might still have value for another month or more until Zach Randolph returns.

Biggest Loser: Of course… I/We have been telling people to keep C.J. Miles, so it would stand to reason that he go and shit a brick on the court. C.J. Miles (-1.62) had 3 points, 2 rebounds, 0 assists, and was 1-6 from the field last night.

I think it’s time to call it quits on the DeJuan Blair Experiment (-0.89). Blair managed just 3 points, 6 rebounds, and 1 assist, going 1-6 from the field. He’s already a pretty bad FT shooter, so when he shoots like that from the field, you have to worry.

For anyone (because there was at least one person) thinking about picking up Trevor Ariza (-0.62), you have been warned: 5 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 4 turnovers, and 2-10 from the field. It better be a deep league.

***

Want to see your ad in the GMTR RSS feed? Contact: givemetherock@gmail.com

Other Stuff Like This:

Day 38 of 124: Efficiency Wins The Night

Nels — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 13:52:06 +0000

Line of the Night:/Waiver Wire Line of the Night: Carmelo Anythony returned for the Knicks after missing two games, but it was Landry Fields (3.04) continuing his recent string of strong performances who took both the overall LotN and by virtue of his 43% ownership, the WWLotN. Fields had 18 points (4 threes, 7-10 from the field, 0-0 from the line), 5 rebounds, 5 steals, and 0 turnovers. The Give Me The Rock fantasy basketball player rater always loves it when a guy can make a few threes, get a huge defensive number like 5 steals, and not turn the ball over. That said, the only other really guady (ie: non-efficiency type line) last night came from Anderson Varejao (1.27) and his 20 points and 20 rebounds. But when Ryan Anderson can get 20 rebounds in a game… well, it almost makes Kevin Love look like just an average guy.

Honorable Mentions:
Paul George (2.53) led Indiana over New Jersey with a very efficient 24 points (4 threes, 8-11 from the field, 4-4 from the line), and 2 steals. And since fantasy owners don’t care that the Nets lost, let’s mention Anthony Morrow (1.86) with 28 points (5 threes), and Deron Williams (1.63) (who of course I’m playing against this week) with 34 points (4 threes) and 7 assists. I’m sure those people with “Team Wins” as a category are frustrated by the loss, but you kind of have to take it with performances like those. You also have to tell your Commissioner that if they’re going to include a “bonus” or “fun” or just “extra” category, Team Wins is, in my opinion, the dumbest one you could add. The whole point is that it’s fantasy basketball, where you try to get a team of the best players from around the league and it doesn’t matter who they play for as long as they put up huge numbers.

Speaking of teams that lost, Al Harrington (1.85) put up 23 points (3 threes, 4-4 from the line), 10 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 steals in the loss to Memphis. Across the court Rudy Gay (1.75) rebounded (pun intended) from No Field Goal game with 20 points (4-4 from the line), 13 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks while Marc Gasol (1.57) had another strong game putting up 20 points, 13 rebounds, 2 steals, and 3 blocks.

I’m not sure why coaches play their starters when they’re up by 24 at half time… I mean, I guess you have to play somebody, but to give the notoriously unhealthy Andrew Bynum (1.82) 32 minutes of playing time in a season like this one, I have to question if Mike Brown is actually capable of coaching an NBA team. I’m sure fantasy owners won’t complain about the 20 points (8-11 from the field, 4-4 from the line), 11 rebounds, and 2 blocks (at least if Bynum isn’t injured at the end of the week). I mean, the Knicks were only up by 14 at half time, so I can understand the starters there playing 30+ minutes because they pushed the lead in the 3rd quarter and won by 27… but when you’re already up 24? At least Brown managed to keep Bryant and Gasol in for only 27 and 29 minutes respectively (much to the disappointment of fantasy owners – don’t worry guys, it’s a long season – you’ll need those two to be rested when the Lakers are fighting for playoff position during the fantasy basketball playoffs).

Joe Johnson (1.78) continued to his renaissance of racking up stats with Al Horford out: 30 points (3 threes, 13-18 from the field), and 4 assists. Nothing to it.

Tyreke Evans (1.62) had a near triple-double with 22 points, 10 rebounds, and 9 assists, adding 3 steals just for good measure.

***

Pick Up Lines: Stephen Curry (0.27) had 8 assists but went 1-7 from the field and played a few less minutes due to that struggle with shooting, which allowed Brandon Rush (1.46) to put up 20 points (4 threes, 6-10 from the field, 4-4 from the line), and 6 rebounds (22% owned). Rush has been pretty decent all season, and sits at #96 on the Player Rater. Even with his minutes capped at about 27 max, I would think he’d be owned in more leagues than 22% simply due to the fact that there are a lot of leagues with more than 12 teams (though, at 96, he should be owned in 12 teams leagues, too).

Troy Murphy (1.40) played nearly a season-high 27 minutes for the Lakers (because of the blowout) and ended up with 12 points (4 threes), 6 rebounds, and 4 assists (6% owned). His minutes are still very inconsistent and he’s only averaging 18 on the year, so leave him for deep leagues.

Alonzo Gee (1.09) was part of a furious 4th quarter comeback for the Cavs that just fell short. He put up 11 points, but it was the 4 steals that really drew the Player Rater in (4% owned). Gee is up to 25 minutes per game and averaging 1.6 steals in that time. He’s not a great fantasy asset, but it seems like he should be owned in more than 4% of leagues. (Especially when teammate Ramon Sessions is owned in 31% of leagues and only ranked 200 compared to Gee sitting at 164)

Jermaine O’Neal (1.05) returned from a bruised left knee to score 12 points (5-7 from the field), with 2 blocks (5% owned). Give him a couple games to see if he can keep getting 25+ minutes and if he does, then don’t hesitate. He can put up big boards and blocks for you when he starts for the Celtics.

If you’re looking for a short (or possibly long) term fill-in at Center and don’t trust Jermain O’Neal, then perhaps Ed Davis will be more to your liking. Davis had 11 and 11, making all 3 of his free throws and blocking a shot. Even though Amir Johnson is starting in place of Andrea Bargnani, it looks like the Raptors still don’t trust him to really get the job done. Davis has played more minutes of the bench the last two games, and while he’s not going to win anything by himself, his contributions in rebounds, steals, and blocks are better than nothing.

Biggest Loser: Still owned in 62% of leagues, that might not last long if Brandon Knight (-1.04) keeps this up. After coming in second (to last) last night, Knight managed just 9 points on 38% shooting with 1 rebound, 1 assist, and 3 turnovers.

It wasn’t a great night from DeMar DeRozan (-0.70), but that seems to be about how his lines go these days. After scoring 27 in the Raptors last game, DeMar had only 9 points (3-9 from the floor, 3-4 free throws) with 4 rebounds, 2 assists, and 4 turnovers.

***

Want to see your ad in the GMTR RSS feed? Contact: givemetherock@gmail.com

Other Stuff Like This:

Day 34 of 124: Friday Night Basketball is like Monday Night Football

Nels — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 15:01:29 +0000

Because everyone played like they were on national TV last night. (Okay, not everyone, but look at the numbers below)

Line of the Night: I tried to tell people (probably a bit too gently) to hang on to Dorell Wright (3.18). Wright lit it up with 23 points (6 threes), 9 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, and 1 block. It certainly doesn’t hurt that the Warriors have a back loaded schedule. Anyone who hung on to Wright will have 4 game weeks one after the other right when they count the most.

Honorable Mentions: Dwyane Wade (2.96) returned to help the Heat beat New York, scoring 28 points (6-6 from the line), with 4 assists, 5 steals, and 2 blocks in his first game back. Save it for the playoffs DWyane!

Paul Pierce (2.92) continued to carry the Celtics like it was 2005 (or 2006). Pierce scored 28 points (4 threes, 4-4 from the line), along with a near triple-double of 10 rebounds and 8 assists, adding 3 steals, and 2 blocks. Anything else you want from a stat line?

Joakim Noah (2.46) seems to have finally gotten his head screwed on straight, scoring 15 points (6-10 from the field), with 16 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals, and 3 blocks. Granted, that came against a Bucks team who is now starting Drew Gooden (see below for Gooden’s monster offensive, but not defensive, line).

Russell Westbrook (2.39) probably won you the steals category last night with 7 of them, and also put up 28 points, 6 rebounds, and 11 assists (and somehow the Player Rater was okay with his 7 turnovers).

I know someone who is counting on Deron Williams (2.24) to carry his team now that Andrew Bogut is out at least 8 weeks with his fractured ankle. Deron didn’t disappoint with 27 points (5 threes), 10 assists, and 2 steals. Not going to make up for the blocks, but it’ll help with #winning the other cats.

Josh Smith (2.22) continued to take advantage of Al Horford’s absence with a near triple-double: 19 points, 11 rebounds, 8 assists, and 3 blocks.

I dropped Kyrie Irving (2.09) for Drew Gooden yesterday and Irving felt so disrespected that he put up 32 points (12-20 from the field), 6 rebounds, and 2 steals just to show me what I’ll be missing. I know, Kyrie. But I had to. I’m sorry. I’ll make it up by drafting you in every league I’m in next year.

***

Waiver Wire Line of the Night: I know you want it to be Drew Gooden, but you’ll have to wait because Rodrigue Beaubois (3.06) score 22 points (3 threes, 9-15 from the field), with 6 rebounds, 7 assists, and 4 blocks (11% owned). I’m not sure what’s more confusing: That the Give Me The Rock Fantasy Basketball Player Rater gave him the second highest score of the night despite the 2 turnovers and only 1-1 from the line, or that Rodrigue Beaubois got 4 blocks… Come on, how tall is that guy? He’s listed at 6′ 2″ which probably means he’s like 5′ 11″. The only guys on the Jazz with Blocked Attempts were Earl Watson (1), Devin Harris (2), and Al Jefferson (2), which means that at least one of Beaubois’s blocks was on Big Al. Ouch.

Pick Up Lines: Rudy Fernandez (2.35) returned from a strained achilles tendon to play 33 minutes and score 23 points (5 threes, 9-11 from the field), getting 3 steals as well (18% owned). If he gets back to averaging his 28 minutes game like earlier in the season, then he’ll be worth owning.

And now, the moment everyone who picked up Drew Gooden (2.04) has been waiting for: 23 points (10-10 from the line), 15 rebounds, and 6 assists (36% owned). If that ownership number doesn’t shoot up in the next couple of days, then we’ll have a very good idea of how many dead leagues there are out there. Probably more than 20,000 of them under the sea. Anyway… consider yourself lucky if you managed to snag Gooden, because while no one wants to start him and playing him for 33 minutes a game, he has shown that when he starts and plays 33 minutes a game, he can put up double-doubles like that consistently. He averaged 14 and 9 for Chicago in 2007-08, but I think he just missed out on Scott Skiles… Well, now Scotty gets to beam him up to fantasy superstardom! (Sorry, that was just stupid)

Bill Walker (1.76) came off the bench to light it up for he Knicks with his 21 points coming off of 7-10 three-pointers. He also had 7 rebounds (1% owned). Carmelo Anthony sat that one out, so I wouldn’t count on that kind of thing happening too often.

Someone you might want to consider picking up, though, is Klay Thompson (1.70), who had 14 points (6-8 from the field, 2 threes), and 3 blocks (3% owned). He’s getting 17 minutes per game and has shown flashes of some three-point shooting ability. He’s a GF in Yahoo leagues, so that might be worth something… Deep league owners should take a look, and he could have value in some smaller leagues (but probably still bigger than 12 teams) if he starts getting 20+ minutes per game. Also, he’s on Golden State, which as I mentioned has a very nice back end schedule.

Speaking of backend schedule…

Josh Smith hasn’t been the only one stepping up since Al Horford’s injury. Marvin Williams (1.55) has played 20+ minutes in the last 7 games and last night he connected on 5 threes for 22 points (6-9 from the field), to go with 8 rebounds (24% owned). He’s not really consistent in any categories, but he can contribute across several and if his playing time keeps going up, he’ll probably continue to get picked up in leagues of increasingly smaller size.

Biggest Loser: Dwight Howard (1.24) had 28 points and 16 rebounds, and his 10-17 free throw shooting was actually pretty decent for him, so obviously he was not the Biggest Loser. But when you know that he scored 42% of his teams points, then you might start thinking that one or more of his teammates is going to be gain the dubious distinction. You can see where this is going: Hedo Turkoglu (-1.10) had 3 points (1-7 from the field), 3 rebounds, 1 assist, and 6 turnovers while Jameer Nelson (-0.88) scored only 2 points (1-4 from the field) with 0 rebounds, and 0 assists. The Hornets (4-15) beat the Magic by 26 points. Dwight Howard may not be asking for a trade anymore, but you know he’s not going to stick around with teammates like that.

In The Bonus: Erik debates Is Kyle Lowry better than Derrick Rose over at Pippen Ain’t Easy. I think he did that just to rile up Bulls fans over on a Bulls-centric blog. And he got in a bunch of links back to GMTR, so Bravo!

***

Want to see your ad in the GMTR RSS feed? Contact: givemetherock@gmail.com

Other Stuff Like This:

Day 33 of 124: Only Two Games

Nels — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 12:05:08 +0000

First time I can recall this season where that’s happened (the two game thing, not the thing down there with Gasol and Griffin, though maybe that too)

The nice thing about only 2 games is that I can actually get this post done before I have to go work so I don’t have to work on it on the crowded El Train. The bad thing about only 2 games is that it’s very common for one team to dominate the charts and the Pick Up Lines are pretty thin. I mean, only 41 guys played last night in the NBA, and Ray Allen and Rajon Rondo were not two of them… Slim pickins [sic].

Line of the Night: Marc Gasol (2.03) made up for his fairly appalling performance in the Grizzlies last game with 18 points (8-8 from the line), 11 rebounds, 6 assists, and 2 steals. Which Gasol will go in drafts first next year? There’s probably sports betting online going on already for that one.

Honorable Mentions: Kevin Garnett (1.77) provided some support for the Celtics with 12 points, 10 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals, and 4 blocks. Yahoo’s NBA home page claims it was all Paul Pierce (0.90) and his 44 minutes, 24 points, 6 rebounds, and 10 assists, but Garnett actually had the higher +/- score, indicating he was a big part of the Celtics come back. Funny how three days before the C’s destroy the Magic and then they almost get blown out themselves… Is Boston tougher than we think? Am I talking too much about normal basketball instead of fantasy basketball?

With Chris Paul back, Mo Williams (1.75) only managed 18 points (with 4 steals), while Chris Paul (1.68) also had 18 points (10-11 from the line), with 7 rebounds, 7 assists, and 2 steals. So, who’s the big loser with Paul back? Anyone who’s read GMTR for more than a day should be able to figure that one out (even if you don’t actually know who, you should be able to figure out where to look based on the words I used in the question. The answer is in the question).

Caron Butler (1.14) also had a nice game for the Clippers with 17 points (3 threes), and 2 steals. Since there were only two games, it makes sense that the next guy is also a Clipper: Blake Griffin (0.92) had 20 points (only 4-8 from the line), with 9 rebounds, 8 assists, 2 blocks, and 3 turnovers. I mention the turnovers because that’s Paul, Butler, and Williams combined for only 3 turnovers, so that plus the FT shooting was was kept Blake’s otherwise monster line from scoring higher.

The other Grizz played hard, but to no avail… Mike Conley (0.59) had 4 points, 5 rebounds, 7 assists, and 4 steals (the 4 steals, obviously the key there), while Rudy Gay (0.55) scored 24 points (3 threes), and grabbed 7 rebounds

***

Waiver Wire Line of the Night: E’Twaun Moore (1.65) (I’m just going to play it off like I’ve heard of him, since he is from East Chicago) got 17 minutes of run for Boston with Ray Allen and Rajon Rondo out with injuries. When you’re starting Mickael Pietrus and Avery Bradley (which the Celtics did), there’s bound to be a rookie breakout game. Moore did that with 16 points on 4 threes, 3 rebounds, and a block (0% owned). I wouldn’t count on him making 4 threes on 5-6 shots every 17 minutes (especially since he only had 6 points in a career-high 19 minutes the game before), but he’s worth keeping an eye on while Ray Allen and Rajon Rondo are out. I suppose if you’re in a 20+ team league, he’s worth an add until those two get back.

Pick Up Lines: Speaking of guys getting time with Allen and Rondo out: Mickael Pietrus (0.64) had 12 points on 3 threes (out of 8 he took) with 4 rebounds and 2 assists (4% owned). He had 14 points in his previous 30+ minute game, but then he missed a game right after that, so I’m not going to recommend him except, again, in those 20+ team leagues.

Randy Foye (0.32) is actually ranked #68 over the past week. Last night he only managed 7 points on 2-2 from the field and 2-2 from the line and I was going to mock the Player Rater for ranking him so well because of performances like that, but he started a bunch of games for the Clips there for a second (5% owned). If Chris Paul gets injured again (which, honestly, could definitely happen) or if Billups or Mo Williams miss some time, Foye has shown that he can do some fantasy damage. This is certainly more useful information for owners with daily changes, but if the injuries are significant, he would be a must add.

Biggest Loser: Sorry, Chauncey Billups (-0.50), but Chris Paul is back. With Mo Williams playing crazy good right now, Billups minutes dropped to only 22 in Paul’s second game back, allowing Billups to only get to 9 points, 2 rebounds, and 3 assists with 4 turnovers.

The funny thing about having only 2 games is that Dwight Howard (0.12) ended up with 16 points (50% from both the field and the line 16 rebounds 0 assists

***

Want to see your ad in the GMTR RSS feed? Contact: givemetherock@gmail.com

Other Stuff Like This:

Day 31 of 124: Bargnani is Back

Nels — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 14:11:11 +0000

or: Timing is Everything and My Timing Sucks
or: Attack of the Big Men

Line of the Night: Andrea Bargnani (3.17) played 42 minutes in his first game back and proved why he is one of the greatest Small Ball Centers ever to have played the game of fantasy basketball (because you know that’s what the players are all really thinking about when they’re out there). Bargnani had 36 points on 4 threes, and 12-12 from the line, to go with 6 rebounds, 2 steals, and 1 block. The subtitle of the post refers to the fact that I left Derrick Rose and Andrea Bargnani on my bench this week in favor of Nate Robinson and Channing Frye. Do remember that Nels is the Conservative One (at least when it comes to fantasy basketball). I’m tying to be more aggressive this year with swapping free agents, but when it came to starting guys, I had to go with the sure thing over guys who hadn’t played in a week (I had Rose in my lineup all last week). Of course, the most painful part is that I left Luol Deng and MarShon Brooks in my lineup because I didn’t think their injuries were going to be that bad. Hopefully I’m right on one of those.

Honorable Mentions: I’m not sure why Chris Bosh (2.55) was so far behind Bargnani in WARP because their lines are very similar except for the threes and steals. Bosh had 35 points (10-16 from the field, 14-14 from the line), 7 rebounds, and 1 block. Ryan Anderson (2.23) bounced back from one of the worst games of any player ever to give his owners 24 points, 5 threes, and 8 rebounds. Classic Ryan Anderson. (Yes, I intended that to be ironic) Next up are a bunch of your more traditional big men: Tyson Chandler (1.88) had 20 points (9-10 from the field), and 17 rebounds; Marcin Gortat (1.41) is setting leagues that count double-doubles on fire with another 21 points, 12 rebounds, and 2 blocks; and Amare Stoudemire (1.41) had his best game in a while with 18 points (7-12 from the floor, 4-4 from the line), and 8 rebounds.

***

Waiver Wire Line of the Night: Landry Fields (2.14) has been playing 36 minutes per game in the last 4 for the Knicks. Only 29 last night, but he scored 18 points to go with 5 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks (39% owned). Classic Landry Fields. Of course, Baron Davis is expected to start playing this week, so I’m going to have have to where B-Diddy’s minutes come from before I can recommend picking Fields back up (at least in the 61% of leagues where he was dropped). Fields has been playing well, but so has Iman Shumpert (Shumpert is 65 on the Player Rater over the last 4 games versus Fields at 71). It does give New York the chance to ease Baron into the rotation, but it makes it hard for fantasy owners to know who to hang onto…

Pick Up Lines: Marcus Camby (1.82) returned to form (and more) with 3 points, 22 rebounds, 2 steals, and 5 blocks (40% owned). I’m not sure how he turned the ball over 4 times, considering he only took 2 shots, but he played almost 32 minutes, which is his most in a while. Since he’s probably already owned in all the snatch-n-grab leagues, you can probably give him one more game before making a decision.

Leandro Barbosa (1.34) is definitely the best guy on the Raptors bench, and last night he was their second best player (9th overall on the night) with 19 points (7-14 from the field, 3 threes) with a steal and a block (26% owned).

The Magic were smart and actually rested their starters in a blowout win (Tom Thibodeau, are you paying attention?) so Chris Duhon (1.17) go some extra run and ended up with 8 points, 4 assists, and 3 steals (1% owned).

Derrick Brown (1.05) started at PF for the Bobcats and played 33 minutes against the Knicks. Brown had 15 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 steals (1% owned). I’ve picked him up in a 14-team league (dropped Courtney Lee), so hopefully that gives you some sort of guide about how I feel about Brown. With the fading Boris Diaw and the still up-and-coming Bismack Biyombo behind him, Brown seems like he could be in for some significant minutes if he can play well consistently.

James Johnson (0.99) is another nominee for an award I just made up called The Streaker. The statue will feature a nude man running. No one wants to win that award, but Johnson certainly appears to be trying with his 18 points (4-4 from the line), 10 rebounds, and maddening inconsistency. Two games ago, he had 23 points (10-17 FG shooting) with 6 rebounds and 2 steals, but then followed that up with 7 points on 3-8 with 2 rebounds. There is a reason he is only 20% owned. That reason is Inconsistency.

Go ahead and post your NBA Betting Predictions in the comments with other nominations for this prestigious award.

Here’s a name you haven’t heard in a while: Quentin Richardson (0.76) (8 points, 2 steals, 1% owned). That’s all.

Biggest Loser: Raymond Felton (-0.94) managed 10 points and no one expects big rebounds or good shooting from him (0 rebounds, 2-6 from the field), but 2 assists and 6 turnovers in combination with no rebounds and bad shooting is just not going to get it done.

If you hadn’t already figured this one out, it’s officially time to give up on Amir Johnson (-0.73) who only had 5 points and 3 rebounds, as well as Boris Diaw (-0.57), who turned in another 4 points, 6 rebounds, 1 assist and 1-6 from the field. How you like Diaw niow? (Edit: Just got a tweet that someone’s not giving up on Amir yet in their deep league. So, if we’re talking 18+ teams, then fine, you can hang on see if he comes back from his current #291 rank in the last 7 days. If we got to 16 teams (x13 players) that gets iffy… Anything less than that, and it’s time to cut him loose. Coincidentally, Diaw is #292 in the last 7 days.)

Finally, a tough night for the (to this point) surging Marc Gasol (-0.51). Gasol only came up with 7 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists while going 2-7 from the field.

***

Want to see your ad in the GMTR RSS feed? Contact: givemetherock@gmail.com

Other Stuff Like This:

Day 27 of 124: Continent Incontinence

Nels — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 15:04:51 +0000

or: Consistent Inconsistency

Line of the Night: Brandon Jennings (2.42) had a pretty huge game last night with 36 points (6 threes and 57% from the field), 5 assists, and 2 steals. That was his second awesome game in a row, which means that owners can expect some 27% shooting and single digit points in the game on Sunday. It’s like he’s Link and once his Magic Bar is empty he has to fill it up again before he can do anything good. If you think I’m being a bit facetious, take a look at his game log and tell me you don’t see it as plain as the floppy green hat on his head.

Honorable Mentions: Nick Young (2.13) scored a lot of points 25 points and likes the number 4: 4 threes, 4 assists, 4 steals. Young rival in the game (where the Wizards lost) was Al Harrington (1.83) who outscored him with 29 points, mad more threes (with 5), shot better from the field (10-16), and had more rebounds (7), but only got 1 steal, and so learns the wrath of the Player Rater.

Ryan Anderson (1.67) only had 13 points but continued to bomb away with 3 threes, while grabbing 8 rebounds, and even adding 4 steals. With Derrick Rose still out, Carlos Boozer (1.67) took over for the Bulls with 19 points (9-15 from the field), 14 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks. I’m not sure why he was in the game for 31 minutes when the Bulls were up by 19 at half time and then 24 after 3 quarters (and ended up winning by 39 points – sorry Kyrie Irving), but everyone in the Bulls starting lineup played at least 25 minutes in that game… If you don’t like Boozer and have been waiting for a good time to trade him, now would be that time. Also, C.J. Watson will be mentioned again in Pick Up Lines since he continues to play well while Rose rests his toe.

Speaking of Rose’s injury… Good News For Me: Stephen Curry is back! He was only the 129th best player last night (out of 231), but I will eat a cobra, pass out, wake up, and keep eating it because I don’t give a shit! (You might ask yourself how Derrick Rose and Stephen Curry are associated besides that they’re both injured Point Guards… Well, they were my first two picks in my league at work, and since I was looking at 4 injured players and only 3 bench spots going in to next week, this is HUGEMOGENOUS!)

News That No One Cares About: Eddy Curry (no relation) is also back! (This was actually on Thursday night and I missed it the first time around) Eddy only played 6 minutes for the Heat, but he scored 6 points on 2-3 FGs and 2-2 FTs while grabbing 3 rebounds. That makes his Per 30 minute numbers: 30 points and 15 rebounds. Meanwhile, in 30 minutes, Joel Anthony only had 7 points and 7 rebounds. I say pick up Eddy Curry as a speculative add if you need Points and Rebounds (no I don’t). WARNING for those of you who started playing fantasy basketball after 2008: Even if Curry does start getting more PT, he is only good for Points and Rebounds. He doesn’t pass, he doesn’t go for steals, and he can’t jump high enough to block all but the easiest shots. And despite his 2-2 performance with the Heat, he’s a terrible free throw shooter. If you want to read more about Curry’s comeback you can do that here. It’s supposed to be one of those inspiring courageous stories, but I just can’t generate that kind of emotion when it comes to Eddy Curry. Especially when his playing weight is evidently 295 pounds.

Back to our regularly scheduled post…

In case you hadn’t figured it out: Jose Calderon (1.48) is for real. He only scored 7 points, but he handed out 13 assists, and took back 3 steals. (Is “take back” a good verb for steals? I’m just experimenting, trying to come up with something a little more creative)

Elton Brand (1.46) had a nice Big Ball game with 10 points, 16 rebounds, 2 steals, and 3 blocks.

LaMarcus Aldridge (1.44) had 6 turnovers, which was the only ugly part of his line which otherwise consisted of 33 points, 23 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 steals.

Kevin Love (1.42) had 17 points, and 14 rebounds and a game winning 3 from way beyond the arc that slightly less well defended than that one that Kevin Durant made early in the season.

Ty Lawson (1.41) sneaks into the Top 30 on the Player Rater with 21 points (3 threes, 4-4 from the line), 9 rebounds, and 6 assists. Nice rebounding from a Point Guard.

***

Waiver Wire Line of the Night: I can’t link to it, since it was in an email exchange, but I advised someone yesterday to take a look at James Johnson (2.21) as a Free Agent pick up. Well, look who scored 23 points with 6 rebounds, 2 steals, and 4 blocks (11% owned). If anyone is contintently incontinent, it’s James Johnson. That said, he has started the last two games for the Raptors and since there’s no update on Andrea Bargnani’s condition, I say grab JJ and run with him at least until Bargs is back.

Pick Up Lines: George Hill (1.35) played 30 minutes off the bench for the Pacers to end with 14 points (3 threes), 2 steals, and 2 blocks (43% owned). He’s got that high ownership because he’s starting to look like he might take over for Paul Geroge.

Mo Williams (1.33) continued his run in Chris Paul’s absemce. With 25 points (3 threes, 10-15 from the field), and 5 assists (42% owned) he’s a MUST ADD in all leagues until Chris Paul gets back.

Another guy with the last name Hill had his second good game in a row… Grant Hill (1.15) scored 9 points to go with 8 rebounds, 4 steals, and 2 blocks (20% owned). He’s been starting for the Suns all season, but I guess it took the demotion of Channing Frye and Jared Dudley for him to finally start coming around. I kind of have to wonder what Steve Nash is thinking about his Suns right now… They’ve got Ronnie Price, Grant Hill, Markief Morris, and Marcin Gortat as their starting lineup… and Gortat is their best player right now. And yet, this still have a better record than the Celtics thanks to their win over Boston last night.

C.J. Watson (0.97) did another admirable job of filling in for Derrick Rose with 15 points, 7 assists, and 2 steals (7% owned). Much like Mo Williams, I’d say he’s a lowercase must add until Rose gets back.

Biggest Loser: I’d like to say my heart goes out to anyone who owns Jamal Crawford (-0.57), but come on, you knew what you were getting into when you drafted him or picked him up. Crawford had 10 points with 1 rebounds and 0 assists on 3-10 from the field. He’s only shooting 34% from the field this season, but he’s only a career 41% shooter, so it’s not like there’s a lot of upside. He is shooting really well on free throws though and making 1.1 threes per game and getting 1.1 steals per game. That’s enough to keep him at #113 on the Player Rater.

Meanwhile, just when we thought Blatche was Back… Andray Blatche (-0.54) goes 0-7 for 2 points with 6 rebounds and 3 turnovers. I guess his Magic Bar needs to be refilled too.

***

Want to see your ad in the GMTR RSS feed? Contact: givemetherock@gmail.com

Other Stuff Like This:

Day 26 of 124: Durant + Westbrook 4Evar!!!!1

Nels — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 11:59:47 +0000

Line of the Night: LeBron James (2.98) led the Heat past Kobe Bryant and the Lakers with 31 points, 8 rebounds, 8 assists, 4 steals, and 3 blocks. Talk about multi-category contribution. That is why LeBron sits alone atop the Player Rater. And why is the only player to have won LotN more than once so far in only 26 short days (he’s had the best line 3 times). And while he’s there and Kevin Durant is not a slightly more distant second and Russell Westbrook is a disappointing 40th… Westbrook has signed a 5-year, $80 million contract extension to form something like the anti-Heat… two superstars in a town with about 25% of the metro population of Miami, no beaches, and tornadoes.

KD in his tornado shelter

Honorable Mentions: Kevin Martin (2.22) only made 3-3 free throws, but he ended up with 32 points because of 5 threes, and also grabbed 8 rebounds. On a night when there were only 3 games (still more than the “usual” two that are played on Thursday nights), that was enough to put him in second place.

If Kobe Bryant (2.15) had scored another 40 points, the Lakers would have won by 5, but he only managed 24 (3 threes, 5-5 from the line), with 5 rebounds, 7 assists, and 3 steals. Pretty good night for fantasy owners even if the Lakers lost. And speaking of Lakers, Pau Gasol (1.75) had 26 points, and 8 rebounds in the effort, while Andrew Bynum (1.11) contributed 15 points, 12 rebounds, and 2 blocks.

Here’s to Samuel Dalembert (1.27) who finds himself owned in 78% of leagues now that he’s starting for Rockets. Good that people realize that you can’t just get 15 points, 17 rebounds, and 2 blocks from some white guy you picked up off waivers just because he also happens to be starting for the Rockets.

Finally, Al Jefferson (1.14) put together another squarely solid game with 22 points, 9 rebounds, and 2 steals.

***

Waiver Wire Line of the Night: There’s quite a few Jasons in the NBA, but this is actually the first time we’ve ever tagged Jason Smith (1.32) in a post at GMTR. He had his third (non-consecutive) good fantasy game for the Hornets with 17 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 blocks (4% owned). He’s not starting at PF ahead of Carl Landry and whoever else they tried to start at PF before Smith. If it’s good enough for Chandler Parsons, it should be good enough for Smith.

Pick Up Lines: Rodrigue Beaubois (1.28) was a very efficient 6-9 from the field to end with 17 points and 2 blocks (7% owned). I wouldn’t count on that from him, since he did it in only 18 minutes, and it was his best game in a week.

In his second game back from a calf-strain, Courtney Lee (1.23) put up 17 points with 2 threes and 3 steals (4% owned). The Rockets are pretty thin, so Lee should probably be picked up in deep leagues right away and definitely flagged for review in 12 and 14 team leagues. He’s already averaging 9 points with a three and a steal, so if you need that and can afford to skip a big contribution in rebounds and assists, consider courting Courtney. (Yes!)

C.J. Miles (1.20) appears in this space again with 17 points (6-6 from the line), and 2 steals (43% owned). I’m too lazy to look up his ownership rate last time, but I’m pretty sure it’s higher now.

Shane Battier (0.94) started his first game for the Heat, and played his best game for them with 11 points (3 threes), and 6 rebounds (18% owned). Hold on a moment, though, because let’s remember that Dwyane Wade is injured and Battier was starting at SG. He might have a short run, but as soon as Wade returns, Battier is back to non-contributor… probably the 3rd or 4th (or 5th) guy off the bench.

I wish I had more to report, but with only 3 games yesterday, there’s just those two 4-star rec’s up there (Jason Smith and C.J. Miles, in case you missed it). That does give me time to go back and try to pick up any unanswered comments, though. Sorry if we don’t get back to you – with just the 3 of us, it’s hard to keep up with 20-some odd questions a day… They’re all good questions though, so keep it up!

Biggest Loser: All right folks, it might be time to give up on Devin Harris (-0.75). After 1 points on 0-7 from the field with 2 rebounds, and 2 assists… I think anyone still waiting to see if he’ll come back has waited long enough. There are a lot of free agent options out there this season and you’re missing out on them if you’re still hoping Harris makes something of the season.

Meanwhile, someone you should hang on to, despite his terrible 10 points 1 rebounds 1 assists 3-14 from the field is Jason Terry (-0.56). Some of his numbers are down, but that includes his turnovers while his steals and threes are actually up. Then there’s Jason Kidd (-0.15) who crafted a line like only Kidd can… 2 points on 1-4 with 5 rebounds, 11 assists, and 6 turnovers. If you have Kidd, your team is probably constructed such that you don’t care about the FG% or the Turnovers, so that’s a pretty nice line in spite of what the player rater says.

***

Want to see your ad in the GMTR RSS feed? Contact: givemetherock@gmail.com

Other Stuff Like This:

Day 24 of 124: A Quick Point (Guard) About The Bulls

Nels — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 14:00:18 +0000

or: Two Guys Named C.J. walk into a bar

First Things First: If you are a US resident, please go to Wikipedia or Google and read the message there about the legislation that the US Senate and Congress are considering. Then please write to your Congressman/woman and Senator regarding SOPA and PIPA. As someone who works in the world of web development, this issue directly affects me, and obviously, it directly affects the people who run Google and Wikipedia, and anyone else who runs a web site. If this legislation had been in place 10 years ago, it’s possible that sites like YouTube, Reddit, Wikipedia, and even Facebook and Give Me The Rock would have been blocked, preventing anyone in the US from ever seeing them.

Line of the Night/Waiver Wire Line of the Night: C.J. Watson (2.47) filled in for the injured Derrick Rose with 23 points (3 threes, 8-12 from the field, 4-4 from the line), 5 assists, and 2 steals. You may recall someone else filling in for Derrick Rose not too long ago. Well, that’s because C.J. Watson was also injured. Now that Watson is back, John Lucas played only 14 minutes, and that’s in a game where the Bulls led by 20 points at the half. So while Lucas may be shoved back in the rotation, Watson actually looks like a pretty decent play as long as Rose is out.

Honorable Mentions:
Brandon Jennings owners are in luck! Jennings (2.34) played a bad game on the 16th, so of course you knew he was going to do something like 30 points (3 threes), 6 assists, and 3 steals. Expect another 1-2 games like that before he takes the night off again.

Chris Bosh (2.01) is kind of playing this year like everyone expected him to last year. After scoring 30 points (14-22 from the field), with 8 rebounds, 5 assists, and 4 steals, Bosh is dialed in at #26 for the year.

In addition to C.J. Watson, Carlos Boozer (1.86) also stepped up for the Bulls. Boozer had a season-high 31 points (14-21 from the field), to go with 6 rebounds, and 2 steals.

Dwight Howard (1.71) makes the list partly because he only shot 8 free throws while scoring 25 points (he was 11-18 from the field), grabbing 17 rebounds, dishing 4 assists, blocking 4 shots. At this point, I though I would be bored talking about Howard’s free throw shooting (he made 3 of 8), but I did find myself quite enthusiastic when explaining to a co-worker that it didn’t matter if all his other players made 100% of their free throws because combined they attempted barely more free throws per game than Howard, so the best he could hope to do was mediocre in FT%. I didn’t tell him what to do, though, because I’m playing him next week and I’ve got Derrick Rose, Stephen Curry, and Andrea Bargnani on my team there, so I need every advantage I can get.

Paul Millsap (1.53) has himself up to #16 on the Player Rater (take that Chris Bosh!) with another 20 points (7-11 from the field, 6-6 from the line), 6 rebounds, and 2 steals. He’s got a very nice season going, but I would consider selling high on him if I had him in any of my leagues.

I would not, however, sell LeBron James (1.53) for pretty much anything. Maybe, like, a lifetime supply of Cool Ranch Doritos. So, even though LeBron’s teammate (see below, it’s not Dwyane Wade) is now #1 on the Player Rater, James threw up another 33 points (and finally made some [some = 4] threes), with 5 rebounds, and 10 assists.

***

Pick Up Lines: Anyone who can make threes can impress the Player Rater. And Mike Miller (1.84) is one of those people. He had 18 points on 6 threes, which if you do the math, means he did not make another shot. Of course, it also means he is 100% from the field. And since he didn’t attempt a free throw, and didn’t turn the ball over, he is now #1 on the Player Rater, head of Lebron, Kyle Lowry, Kevin Durant, and Chris Paul. And the Heat don’t play again until Thursday, so he might actually be there for more than a day. Miller is only 6% owned, so you could get this fantasy beast on your team for the cost of maybe a James Johnson. Really, though… My guess is that he’ll make a few threes a game while playing back into the rotation, and definitely he’s worth and add if you need some three-point help.

There’s only two guys in the NBA named C.J. and they both had nice games last night. Besides the aforementioned Watson, C.J. Miles (1.82) had 19 points (4-4 from the line), 5 rebounds, and 4 steals. He is 42% owned, so not great odds that he’s still available in your league, though.

There’s only one guy in the NBA named Bismack, and evidently, the Bobcats need for big men is so strong that they decided to give Bismack Biyombo (1.50) 21 minutes last night. And in those 21 minutes, Biyombo had 11 points, 10 rebounds, and 4 blocks (2% owned). Now, he’s not going to shoot 100% from the floor every night, but his 50% shooting from the line certainly seems like a possibility (actually, he’s shooting exactly the same percentage – 47.1 – right now from both the field and the stripe; I wonder how often that has ever happened). But anyway, who cares about then when there’s 10 rebounds and 4 blocks at stake. I really want to say hold off on adding him until he plays at least one more game over 20 minutes, but he had 5 blocks in only 12 minutes against the Pistons, so I’m debating with myself about making him a speculative add for all my Big Ball teams.

Corey Brewer (1.45) came off the bench for a season-high 34 minutes against Milwaukee last night and used it to his advantage for 22 points (3 threes), and 2 steals (2% owned). I am definitely going to wait for at least 2 more games like that before I add Brewer. Just imagine your friend bringing over some skanky looking girl that he just had a one night stand with and announcing they’re engaged.

Robin Lopez (1.14) had his first big game of the year, but his 16 points (6-7 from the field, 4-4 from the line), and 6 rebounds (4% owned) came in only 17 minutes, so I doubt those sums will be repeated unless he starts stealing more of Channing Frye’s minutes (which, with the way Frye is playing is not all that unlikely).

Nate Robinson (1.12) continues to thrive (as much as Nate Robinson can really thrive) in Stephen Curry’s absence. Last night he went for 17 points (3 threes), with 10 assists, and 2 steals and he’s now up to 30% owned. I’m starting him this week in place of the injured Curry in one league, and just because in another. And I love that I can say that with no recrimination here, because anywhere else, anyone would say “But Nate Robinson sucks” and I’d have to say “Not right now he doesn’t” and they still wouldn’t get it. But you, dear reader, you get me.

Biggest Loser: Stephen Jackson (-1.16) is still owned in 85% of leagues, which means there’s probably 35% of people who aren’t paying attention and another 50% who are hoping he can get back to those double-digit scoring games he had just a week ago. But seriously, 2 points on 2-2 from the line while going 0-6 from the field with a single assist. Ouch.

***

Want to see your ad in the GMTR RSS feed? Contact: givemetherock@gmail.com