Daily Notes for Sunday: Varajeo a great option
| Time | Visitors | Opp. PPG | Opp. FGP | RPG Diff. | Home | Opp. PPG | Opp. FGP | RPG Diff. | |||
| 12:30 p.m. |  | Orlando Magic | 93.6 | .424 | -1.5 | @ |  | Toronto Raptors | 100.5 | .458 | -4.4 |
| 1:00 p.m. |  | Cleveland Cavaliers | 89.6 | .419 | +4.3 | @ |  | Washington Wizards | 101.3 | .474 | -2.3 |
| 3:30 p.m. |  | Detroit Pistons | 94.1 | .446 | -1.5 | @ |  | Los Angeles Clippers | 99.9 | .446 | -3.0 |
| 4:00 p.m. |  | Dallas Mavericks | 97.0 | .436 | +2.6 | @ |  | Memphis Grizzlies | 100.2 | .475 | -2.3 |
| 6:00 p.m. |  | Boston Celtics | 90.8 | .419 | +5.5 | @ |  | New York Knicks | 107.9 | .483 | -4.7 |
| 9:30 p.m. |  | Portland Trail Blazers | 95.0 | .459 | +4.9 | @ |  | Los Angeles Lakers | 97.6 | .440 | +3.7 |
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.
Out
Eddy Curry, C, Knicks (knee)
Ricky Davis SG/SF. Clippers (knee)
Jordan Farmar, PG, Lakers (knee)
Zydrunas Ilgauskas, C, Cavaliers (foot)
Darko Milicic, C, Grizzlies (hand)
Mickael Pietrus, SG/SF, Magic (wrist)
Zach Randolph, PF/C, Clippers (knee)
Jerry Stackhouse, SG/SF, Mavericks (foot)
Day-to-day
Andray Blatche, PF/C, Wizards (ankle)
Jose Calderon, PG, Raptors (hamstring)
Baron Davis, PG, Clippers (tailbone)
Richard Hamilton, SG, Pistons (groin)
Jason Hart, PG, Clippers (elbow)
Antonio McDyess, PF, Pistons (ribs)
Jermaine O'Neal, PF/C, Raptors (knee)
Brandon Roy, SG, Blazers (hamstring)
Tim Thomas, SF/PF, Knicks (toe)
Rasheed Wallace, PF/C, Pistons (foot)
With a lengthy injury report Sunday, make sure to rotate in bench players for your injured starters, and keep an eye on who's benefiting from a player's missed time most, as those players make good short-term additions. … There are two statistically lopsided matchups Sunday, first between the Cavs and Wizards, then between the Celtics and Knicks. The Cavs are coming off a decisive 117-92 victory over the Bulls on Friday night, a contest in which Anderson Varejao started at center in place of Zydrunas Ilgauskas and scored a career-high 26 points with eight rebounds and three steals. Varejao's value gets a boost with the news that Z will be out for a month, and he should be a steady source of rebounds, steals and blocks. Expect below-average production from Wizards players, who face the Cavs' rugged defense that is the only unit in the league holding opponents to less than 90 points per game. … Trevor Ariza is averaging 11.5 points, nine rebounds, a steal, a block and a 3 in his past two games, and is logging enough minutes off the bench to be relevant in deeper formats. … Jose Calderon left Friday's game against the Rockets after just 12 minutes on the floor with a strained right hamstring. He missed two games in November with the same injury, and Will Solomon, who had eight points and seven assists Friday night, will be the primary beneficiary if Calderon misses any time. … Caron Butler averaged more points, rebounds, steals and 3s in November than in December, and scored just eight points in his first game of 2009 on Friday. Granted, it was his first game back after missing three due to an ankle injury, but the fact that he has scored only 14 points in the past 70-plus minutes of play means there might be a buy-low window on one of my favorite fantasy players. … Al Harrington scored 27 points off the Knicks' bench Friday night, with six boards and four 3s. It looks like his minutes will now be in the low 30s rather than the upper 30s as they were when he was starting, although he still has value especially in 3s. … David Lee continued his streak of double-doubles, notching his 17th in the past 19 contests with 26 points on 12-for-15 shooting, 11 boards and five steals. He'll be put to the test against the Celtics on Sunday, who outrebound their opponents by a significant margin.
With Richard Hamilton out with a slight tear in his left groin, Pistons coach Michael Curry has been forced to shuffle his starting lineup, giving Amir Johnson the start in the past four contests. Johnson is averaging seven points, 9.3 rebounds, 0.5 steals and 2.5 blocks in that span, and is a serious threat in the blocks department, especially while in the starting lineup. … An update on the Jared Jeffries experiment: As far as Friday night's contest went, there was good news (four blocks), but much more bad news (one point, five rebounds, 0-for-5 shooting from the floor). With the minutes he's getting, he'll contribute some blocks and steals, but not in multitudes, and he won't provide much elsewhere, making him pretty much insignificant in the fantasy realm. … Hakim Warrick is rapidly becoming worth adding in all formats, averaging 18 points, 5.8 rebounds, one steal and 1.8 blocks in his past five games. He's seeing more minutes with Darko Milicic sidelined, and is a good bet for scoring with modest steals and blocks. … Dominic McGuire has started the past six games, averaging just 3.7 points but with 7.8 rebounds, 1.5 blocks and 0.7 steals. At 6-foot-9, McGuire has the size and length to put up solid defensive stats while given minutes, although he is only worth a look in the deepest of leagues. … With both Baron Davis and Jason Hart banged up, Fred Jones should see the biggest uptick in minutes, and is a short-term option after scoring 16 points with four assists, three steals and a 3 in extended action Friday night.
Josh Whitling is a fantasy basketball analyst for ESPN.com.
