Posted by Brian McKitish, Special to ESPN.com
It's still too early to tell if
T.J. Ford is in danger of getting "Wally Pipp-ed" in Toronto. Ford logged just 13 minutes in his second game back from a sprained thumb, while his competition at point guard,
Jose Calderon, posted a solid 11 points and 11 assists in 34 minutes. While Ford has rested, Calderon has averaged a sweet 12.2 points and 11.6 assists over his last five games. It's entirely possible that Ford simply isn't 100 percent yet, but the way Calderon is playing, it's going to be very hard for Sam Mitchell to keep him off the court. That's not to say Ford will continue to log 20 minutes or less, because he won't. But we should certainly expect to see more of Calderon than we did last year. I figure 25 minutes or so for the both of them. That would not be ideal for either player's fantasy value, but it wouldn't be completely detrimental either, as both can put up nice numbers in limited minutes. What I'm trying to say is, as far as timeshares go, this one isn't nearly as bad as some of the other ones we've seen out there.
Coming off his terrific 26-point, 6-rebound effort on Friday night, many thought Andrea Bargnani was going to turn things up a notch with Chris Bosh out Saturday. Looks like we jumped the gun; he went for just 4 points and 2 rebounds on 2-of-13 shooting Saturday night. If Bargnani is going to be inconsistent with Bosh out, we may have to wait a while before he turns into the player we all thought he'd be prior to the season.
Since when did Caron Butler become a long-distance bomber? Well, since Gilbert Arenas went down, that's when. After knocking down four treys last night, Caron now has 19 3-pointers on the year. That's one more than he hit all of last year! Caron has never been a big 3-point threat, but then again, he never has tried to be. It's not that Butler has been a bad 3-point shooter he's a career 31.9 percent shooter from downtown he simply hasn't attempted many 3-point shots. Now that Gilbert is gone, Caron is extending his game, and while he won't continue to hit on 52.8 percent of his attempts, he will continue to surprise us from behind the arc.
Another disappointing game for Andray Blatche, with just five points and two rebounds in 16 minutes. Hey, at least he chipped in with a steal and two blocks, right? Still, he needs more time on the court if he's going to have value.
After missing seven games because of a thumb injury, Darko Milicic returned to the lineup Saturday and failed to score in 33 minutes of action. Darko did register five blocks, so not all is lost. Give him a few games to get back into the flow offensively.
Darko's return might prove to be bittersweet for some, namely Juan Carlos Navarro owners. Navarro was relegated to the bench for Saturday night's contest and saw just 18 minutes on the night. Don't give up on him yet, though, because he still dropped 14 points, with three 3-pointers, and a steal. It looks like Navarro will be used as a sparkplug off the bench now that Darko's back. He'll have a hard time having as much value in just 18 minutes a night, but given the way he's stroking it, I don't think he'll have a hard time earning 25-plus minutes even coming off the bench.
Seeing increased minutes with both Randy Foye and Marko Jaric sidelined, Sebastian Telfair turned in another fine effort on Saturday. In 42 minutes, the kid poured in 16 points with 7 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals and a 3-pointer. Not bad at all. Unfortunately, I wouldn't recommend getting used to lines like that out of Telfair. Sure, games like this will make some remember why the kid was so highly touted, but he's still a long way from consistency. He makes for a decent short-term pickup but likely will see himself back on the pine once Jaric and/or Foye return to the lineup.
The Timberwolves finally gave Craig Smith (26 minutes) and Corey Brewer (31 minutes) some nice time, but the plan backfired, as the Wolves turned in a sluggish performance and were blown out by the Grizzlies, 109-80. Head coach Randy Wittman was not happy with the team's effort after the game, which is not a good sign for either of the two youngsters. Of course, it didn't help matters that the team's best player, Al Jefferson, had an off night, with just 9 points and 7 rebounds. Normally I'd be worried about Big Al's sore left knee, but his 4 blocks tell me that it's not bothering him too much. Just consider this a rare off night for the 22-year-old.
Lawrence Frank had been toying with the idea of bringing Vince Carter off the bench for quite some time. Last night he put his plan into action, and it seemed to work as the Nets edged the Sixers 94-92 in overtime. It doesn't make a difference to me if Carter starts or comes off the bench; he'll have the same value regardless. It's the minutes that matter, not the title.
While all of New Jersey is talking about VC coming off the bench, the biggest fantasy news coming out of the Garden State was Sean Williams' 32 minutes on Saturday night. Maybe Lawrence Frank is starting to come to his senses. Williams scored just 4 points, but he did grab 5 rebounds and block 4 shots. He will continue to be an inconsistent scorer on the offensive end (his post moves are still way too raw), but that's not why we picked him up, right? We picked him up for his blocks, and we have to be encouraged by the minutes he received last night.
It's going to be tough for Louis Williams to have consistent value as long as both Kyle Korver and Willie Green are healthy. Any of the three could go off for a big night depending on who's hot, but their values will fluctuate until one can separate himself from the pack (or until Andre Miller is traded). Williams, my favorite of the group, went for 13 points, with two 3-pointers and a steal in 26 minutes last night, and the more I see of him, the more I'm convinced that patient owners will be rewarded in the long run.
Peja Stojakovic might have hit the game-tying 3-pointer to send the game into overtime, but it was Chris Paul and Tyson Chandler who led the Hornets to a 112-108 victory over the Mavericks on Saturday night. Paul was simply brilliant, posting 33 points, 9 rebounds, 12 assists, 3 steals and a 3-pointer while hitting 11-of-25 from the floor and a perfect 10-of-10 from the line. Talk about a huge fantasy night. Is there any doubt that Paul is a sure-fire first-rounder next season? Chandler, on the other hand, dominated the paint with 21 points, 13 boards and 3 blocks. Chandler had struggled with a few minor injuries as of late, but he appears to be fully healthy now, wouldn't you say?
I've been saying this for a while, but people are finally starting to realize why I was down on Dirk Nowitzki to start the season. Sorry, but 19 points and 6 rebounds, with no steals, blocks or 3-pointers, just isn't going to cut it for a first-round pick. Some might think it was just an off night, but Dirk's ability to produce in multiple categories has been declining for a few years now. Just go take a look at his steal, block and 3-point numbers over the last few years, and you'll see the decline.
Don't look now, but the Chicago Bulls have strung together two straight victories. Fantasy owners have to hope that this is the start of something good, as the Bulls have been a fantasy wasteland thus far. Ben Wallace finally seems to be coming around, and he came through big-time last night with 10 points, 19 boards, 5 steals and 4 blocks. Now that's the Big Ben we were all waiting for! Wallace has turned it up a notch of late, averaging 6.0 points, 12.0 rebounds, 2.4 steals and 2.0 blocks per game over his past five games. After a rough start to the season, his owners look to be in the clear, but it still wouldn't hurt to see what his market value is right now. Remember, Wallace is getting up there in age, and we've already seen that he's not nearly as productive when he's dealing with a few injuries.
Just when it looked like Steve Francis was going to make a mini-comeback in Houston, his name is nowhere to be found in last night's box score. Not to worry. The artist formerly known as the Franchise sat this one out with a sore back. Francis had been earning more playing time for Rick Adelman of late, and he's definitely one to keep a close eye on over the next few games.
Brian McKitish is a fantasy baseball and basketball analyst for ESPN.com. He can be reached at Littlemac@TalentedMrRoto.com.
