Posted by Brian McKitish, Special to ESPN.com
The Pacers couldn't secure a victory on their home court against the Bobcats and missed out on a great opportunity to gain a game on the Atlanta Hawks in the process. Technically Indiana hasn't been eliminated from the playoffs yet, but they are toast unless they win out and the Hawks lose their remaining two games. Danny Granger did everything he could to keep the Pacers from faltering, but his 37 points, five boards, two steals, six 3-pointers and a block weren't enough to stop the 'Cats. Granger has now scored 30-plus points in two straight games and is averaging a cool 24.6 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.6 steals, 1.4 blocks and 2.6 3-pointers over his past five games. That's the kind of multi-categorical goodness that's going to make him an early third-round pick in fantasy drafts next season.
Emeka Okafor dominated the Pacers unimposing frontcourt to the tune of 14 points, 18 rebounds and a block while Nazr Mohammed also went to town on Jeff Foster, Jermaine O'Neal and Co. with 16 points, 13 rebounds and two blocks of his own. Okafor has stayed healthy this season, but his owners haven't been all that impressed with his averages of 13.8 points, 10.6 rebounds, 0.8 steals and 1.6 blocks. Sure, those are still great numbers, but they are down from his averages a season ago. I think his stats this season are a more realistic projection as to what we should expect from him in future seasons.
Al Horford's Rookie of the Year campaign isn't just some fancy internet commercial; he's getting it done on the court as well. Horford went for 17 points and 11 rebounds (his 25th double-double on the season) in a losing effort against the Boston Celtics. I'd love to see Horford block a few more shots, but that will come with time, and I'm predicting big things out of the youngster in his second season as a pro.
So much for Marvin Williams having that breakout year, huh? I'm sure this has been said many times before, but Williams just doesn't produce in enough categories for my liking. Why do I get the feeling, though, that people will still have him on their "breakout" lists next season? Marvin has averaged a solid 14.9 points and 5.7 rebounds per game in his third professional season, but he hasn't shown the ability to produce anywhere else besides at the free throw line. Granted, he's still just 21 years of age, but it's starting to look like his fantasy upside is fairly limited despite his age.
The Celtics again rested their starters in the second half, and it was Sam Cassell who stepped up with 20 points and five assists in the victory over the Hawks. Kevin Garnett was still able to put up 24 points, six rebounds and a block in just 29 minutes of action. Surprisingly, KG's point totals haven't suffered much despite the fact that he's seeing just 25 minutes per game over his past five. His rebounding, assists and blocks have taken the biggest hit and owners are going to have to remember this when they get ready for drafts next season. The Celtics will probably be just as dominant next season, which means KG may suffer the same fate in 2008-09. Just something to think about before using a top-5 pick on Garnett next year.
Gilbert Arenas had his first real big game since returning to the court with 20 points, seven rebounds, five assists, two steals and four 3-pointers in 24 minutes off the bench for the Wizards. Provided good health, Washington could sneak up and surprise a few teams in the Eastern Conference come playoff time. Of course, as I say that, Caron Butler missed last night's game with a right knee injury. Back to Gilbert, does anyone else think he's going to be a huge steal in fantasy drafts next year? We'll get a good look at him in the playoffs and over the summer, and if he demonstrates perfect health, I wouldn't hesitate taking him in the bottom half of the first round. And I'm sure folks will be scared enough that he'll slip into the second round in way too many leagues.
It was Mike Conley's turn to put up big numbers at the point for the Grizzlies. Conley finished with 25 points, five assists, two steals and two 3-pointers in a 114-105 loss to the Timberwolves on Saturday night. He has played well in recent action, averaging 12.8 points, 4.6 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 1.6 3-pointers and a steal in five games this month. It's nice to see him connecting from downtown, but I'm not going to get too excited about his future prospects until Memphis makes some decisions about their future point guard situation. In fact, as long as Marc Iavaroni is still at the helm, I'll only feel comfortable drafting Rudy Gay and Mike Miller off this roster.
Kudos to you if you managed to grab Ramon Sessions a week or two ago. Sessions had yet another huge assist night with 12 points, six rebounds, 13 assists and two steals on Saturday. He's now averaging 9.4 points, 4.8 rebounds, 10.8 assists and 1.6 steals over his past five games. Sessions' success isn't all that surprising (the Bucks have some decent scorers to dish to), but it makes me wonder why Mo Williams was only able to manage 6.3 dimes per game on the season. I know Mo is a different breed of point guard, but I'd like to see him dish some more next season.
Denver got blown out of the building on Saturday knight, losing 124-97 to the red hot Utah Jazz. Adding insult to injury, the Warriors won their contest against the Clippers to gain a game on the Nuggets. Outside of Carmelo Anthony (22 points, five rebounds, two steals, two blocks, two 3-pointers) and Allen Iverson (28 points, two steals), Denver couldn't get anything else going on Saturday. The Nuggets better start playing some defense, or they aren't going to last long in the playoffs, that is, if they make the playoffs.
Dallas couldn't get it done without Josh Howard against Portland on Saturday night, but it won't hurt too bad since Dallas clinched a playoff spot on Thursday. Howard missed the contest with a bruised knee, but should suit up on Sunday when the Mavs travel to Seattle.
As mentioned before, the Warriors took full advantage of Denver's loss, beating the Clippers 122-116 on Saturday night. Elton Brand did his best to play spoiler with 21 points, 14 rebounds and three blocks in the loss. Since returning, Brand has been much better than expected averaging 19.0 points, 8.0 rebounds and 1.8 blocks in 6 games. It is becoming clear that his Achilles injury will not have any long-term effects on his value, and it's looking like we can draft him in confidence next season.
Brian McKitish is a fantasy baseball and basketball analyst for ESPN.com.
