Posted by Brian McKitish, Special to ESPN.com
Don't look now, but it appears as though
Nazr Mohammed has value again in Charlotte. Nazr posted 19 points, 13 rebounds and 3 blocks against his old mates from Detroit and is now averaging 16.8 points, 10.8 rebounds and a block per game over his past five contests. By now you should know the drill with Mohammed's Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde routine; he can provide value in spurts but is prone to serious inconsistency and is a long shot to maintain production over an extended period of time. I've been pretty outspoken on Nazr since he came over to the Bobcats, and it was looking like I was spot on when he struggled mightily last week. But it is entirely possible that Charlotte's lack of frontcourt depth (combined with
Jeff McInnis' inability to prove himself as a starter) could lead to more stretches like this for Mohammed. Mohammed should be active in most fantasy formats at the moment, but the chances of him maintaining long-last value is anything but a sure bet.
With starters Raymond Felton and Jeff McInnis sidelined because of minor injuries, Matt Carroll and Jared Dudley earned starts. But neither did much with the opportunity. Carroll finished with just 10 points despite logging 43 minutes on the night while Dudley tallied only 6 points in 29 minutes of action. Both can be ignored in fantasy leagues, as their value will be minimal regardless of how much time Felton and McInnis will miss.
Gerald Wallace had a huge fantasy night, posting 26 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals, 3 blocks and a 3-pointer. The blocks were a pleasant surprise, as Wallace has been quite the disappointment in that area for the second straight season. Some folks still think of Wallace as an elite shot-blocker, but fact of the matter is, Wallace hasn't been a dominant shot-blocker in almost two years. He has blocked an average of just one shot over his past 107 games since finishing the 2005-06 season with 2.1 blocks per game.
Both Ray Allen and Paul Pierce struggled as the Celtics, now 30-5, fell to the 19-15 Washington Wizards. Pierce will be fine, but fantasy owners should think about benching Allen until he finds his shot again. Allen, who is playing despite a pinched nerve in his neck, has averaged just 8.8 points, 3.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 0.5 steals and 1.5 3-pointers in the month of January and is shooting just 29.5 percent from the floor during that span.
Caron Butler didn't have a great fantasy night, but he did post 16 points and 10 rebounds to go along with 4 steals. Though he shot just 5-of-17 from the floor Saturday, the most impressive part of Caron's season has been his ability to shoot nearly 50 percent from the floor despite the fact that he's taking more 3-point shots than ever before in his career. It helps that he's shooting 40 percent from downtown (a trend that might not continue), but Caron's efficiency from the floor and the line is simply dominant right now, and that makes him even more attractive to fantasy owners than he already was if this was even possible.
After struggling against Houston's tough defense Friday night, Rashad McCants bounced back against an equally tough Spurs defense for 17 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals and 3 3-pointers Saturday night in San Antonio. McCants has been hard to ignore over the last week, and it is nights like these that make me think he's really coming into his own as a scorer. He won't contribute many rebounds, assists and steals like he did last night, but McCants looks like a solid bet moving forward for points and 3-pointers.
It was a rare off night for Mo Williams, who couldn't get anything going in a 122-114 loss to the Phoenix Suns. Mo finished with just 7 points, 3 assists and a 3-pointer, marking the first time he failed to reach double-digits in scoring since early December. Given the way he has played this season, I think he's allowed one off night every now and then. It's funny, really. I own Williams in almost every league I'm in (he was a staple as my fifth-round selection), but even I didn't realize how dominant he has been this year until I looked up his stats. In the month of December, he averaged 17.1 points, 4.1 rebounds, 6.8 assists, 1.6 steals and 1.7 3-pointers, and he hasn't slowed much in January, averaging 20.9 points, 2.4 rebounds, 5.6 assists, 2.1 steals and 1.1 3-pointers in 7 games thus far.
The Bucks said they wanted to get Andrew Bogut more involved in the offense, and get him involved they did Saturday night. Bogut went off for 29 points and 11 rebounds in the loss to the Suns and is now averaging 17.3 points, 9.9 rebounds and 0.9 blocks since the New Year's Day. One must wonder if he'll be able to continue scoring like this now that Michael Redd is back, but there is no denying that Milwaukee is dedicated to making Bogut one of the focal points of their offense going forward.
There has been a lot of talk about Boris Diaw stepping it up in Grant Hill's absence, and Diaw came through Saturday with a 21-point, 11-rebound, 1-steal, 1-block performance in the victory over the Bucks. Diaw had not played well in his previous two games despite getting the opportunity to do so; , this is a nice sign for anyone who picked him up. Still, I'm much more inclined to think that Leandro Barbosa will benefit more from Hill's absence, even though he wasn't able to get much going last night (12 points in 23 mintues).
Maurice Evans scored 11 points with 2 3-pointers and a steal while making his third straight start for the Orlando Magic. Evans could be on the verge of earning a permanent starting gig, although it hurts his case that the Magic have gone 1-2 in his three starts. Still, Evans can be an effective scorer, 3-point artist and thief for fantasy squads if he can keep himself in the starting lineup. Over his past three games, he has averaged a healthy 13.0 points with 1.3 3-pointers and 1.3 steals in 32.0 minutes per game.
All of those patient Mehmet Okur owners were rewarded for the second consecutive game with another big offensive outburst in a 119-115 victory over the Magic. Okur, who was coming off a 22-point, 17-rebound effort in against Phoenix, went off for 29 points, 8 rebounds and 4 3-pointers Saturday. It appears as though his slow start could finally be over, and he was actually dropped in a few shallow leagues, so it's worth checking your waiver wire to see if you can scoop him up now that he has it going again.
Andrei Kirilenko (16 points, 7 rebounds, 8 assists, 2 steals and a block) returned to the court for the Jazz and showed no ill effects of the lower back injury that kept him out the previous three games. Interestingly, C.J. Miles, who started in AK47's absence, didn't log a single minute Saturday. I'm just speculating here, but perhaps coach Jerry Sloan isn't too happy with Miles' defense of late. Remember Martell Webster's 24-point third quarter last week? Well, if you check out the YouTube clips, you'll see Miles getting schooled left and right for most of the quarter.
By far the biggest news of the night was Kevin Martin's return to the court after missing 17 games because of a groin injury. Despite the long layoff, Martin didn't miss a beat, posting 25 points, while adding 2 steals and a 3-pointer on the night. Get him back in your lineups, folks!
I was expecting Francisco Garcia to struggle with Martin back, but it didn't happen, as Garcia scored 22 points, with 12 rebounds, 2 steals and 3 3-pointers in 45 minutes. Clearly Garcia is still going to have value until Ron Artest and Mike Bibby return, but don't be surprised if Martin cuts into his value a bit.
Some interesting developments coming out of Indiana, as Kareem Rush started his second straight game for the Pacers. Rush scored 10 points while adding 3 steals and a 3-pointer and is looking like a solid value add for those in need of points, 3s and steals in deeper formats. He is averaging 12.0 points, 1.2 steals and 1.6 3-pointers over his past five contests. Meanwhile Travis Diener came off the bench to tally 19 points, with a steal and 5 3-pointers, in the victory over the Kings. Diener's minutes and production came at the expense of Jamaal Tinsley, and while I can't see this being a long-term trend, Diener is worth keeping an eye on thanks to long-distance marksmanship.
Brian McKitish is a fantasy baseball and basketball analyst for ESPN.com. He can be reached at Littlemac@TalentedMrRoto.com.
