March 16, 2008, 5:38 PM

Daily Notes for Monday: Knicks have a way of helping shooters

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Landman By Seth Landman
Special to ESPN.com
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Matchups for Monday, March 17

Time Visitors Opp. PPG Opp. FGP RPG Diff. Home Opp. PPG Opp. FGP RPG Diff.
7 p.m. Atlanta Hawks 98.8 .457 +.8
@
Washington Wizards 98.6 .457 +.6
7 p.m. Cleveland Cavaliers 97.7 .459 +3.4
@
Orlando Magic 100.2 .450 +1.1
7 p.m. New York Knicks 101.7 .472 -.3
@
Indiana Pacers 105.8 .457 -2.0
8 p.m. Charlotte Bobcats 101.0 .469 -2.8
@
Memphis Grizzlies 106.3 .482 -3.1
8 p.m. Chicago Bulls 99.1 .448 +1.0
@
New Orleans Hornets 95.0 .456 +1.9
8 p.m. Los Angeles Clippers 100.3 .465 -3.5
@
Minnesota Timberwolves 101.4 .468 -0.0
8:30 p.m. Boston Celtics 90.4 .417 +2.0
@
San Antonio Spurs 91.3 .449 +.9
9 p.m. Toronto Raptors 97.6 .459 -1.4
@
Utah Jazz 100.4 .460 +2.2

All times are ET.
Key: Opp. PPG = Points per game allowed to opponents. Opp. FGP = Field goal percentage allowed to opponents. RPG Diff. = The difference between team's rebounds per game and its opponents' rebounds per game.

Injury Report

Out
Sebastian Telfair, PG, Timberwolves (ankle)

Day-to-day
Ray Allen, SG, Celtics (heel)
Rudy Gay, SF, Grizzlies (hamstring)
Zydrunas Ilgauskas, C, Cavaliers (back)
Chris Kaman, C, Clippers (back)
Brevin Knight, PG, Clippers (ankle)
Darko Milicic, PF/C, Grizzlies (foot)
Chris Paul, PG, Hornets (ankle)
David West, PF, Hornets (ankle)

Start 'em, sit 'em

Hakim Warrick
Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty ImagesSimply put, pick up Hakim Warrick if he's available in your league.
In the Cavs' previous matchups with the Magic this year, Jameer Nelson posed a major problem for the Cavs' point guard, whether it was Daniel Gibson or Larry Hughes. I see things going a bit differently this time. Look for Cleveland to let Ben Wallace try to play Dwight Howard one-on-one, which should mean Delonte West can stay at home on Nelson, his college teammate at Saint Joseph's. This time around, you can sit Nelson if you have better options at point guard. … In two games against the Knicks this season, the Pacers' Troy Murphy is averaging 16.0 points and 8.0 rebounds per game. More importantly, he has made seven 3-pointers in the two games combined. Even without Eddy Curry playing, the Knicks' big men are not well-suited to guarding a perimeter-oriented big man such as Murphy, and Pacers coach Jim O'Brien will continue to take advantage. … Fellow Pacer Mike Dunleavy also has been especially great against the Knicks this year, averaging 26.5 points, 7.0 rebounds and 6.5 assists, and those numbers would be even higher were it not for an uncharacteristic 5-for-18 performance (1-for-8 on 3s) at the beginning of February. Expect a big, big night for Dunleavy this time around. … Perhaps the most obvious play for Monday is the Wolves' Al Jefferson against the banged-up Clippers. Without Chris Kaman in the lineup, Jefferson should be able to get whatever shot he wants all night. Not bad when you consider that Al is already averaging 26.0 points and 12.7 boards against the Wolves in three games this season. …

Waiver-wire pickups

Since putting up four consecutive 20-point games in the middle of February, the Grizzlies' Hakim Warrick has hit a bit of a rough patch and is averaging only 13.4 points and 5.8 rebounds over his past five games. Still, it seems as though people have been a little too eager to drop him, and he's available in almost half of ESPN.com leagues. He has a great matchup Monday against the Bobcats, who play enough small, quick guys that Warrick should be able stay on the floor in all situations. Plus, with Rudy Gay and Darko Milicic a little banged up, Warrick likely will have to play big minutes anyway. Pick him up now because after he blows up against the Bobcats, he might not be available anymore. … Speaking of injuries, with Chris Paul day-to-day, you might want to pick up Jannero Pargo for the Hornets' matchup with the Bulls. Chicago allows teams to shoot 37 percent on 3s, and Pargo should be able to take advantage with or without Paul in the lineup. … Ryan Gomes has been putting up some sneaky-good numbers lately for the Timberwolves, and it's time fantasy owners paid attention. He's averaging 15.0 points, 6.4 rebounds and 1.4 steals over his past five games. He's also one of the rare waiver-wire options who can get you both rebounds and steals, plus somewhere in the range of one 3-pointer per game. He's owned in only 20 percent of leagues, and it's time that number went up, especially as he's going up against the Clippers on Monday and the Clips tend to mail it in on the defensive end.

Seth Landman is a fantasy basketball analyst for ESPN.com.