According to Yahoo! Rankings, guess who was the most valuable player during week 5? Old unreliable Marcus Camby. Hard to argue though considering he averaged (over a 4 game span) 12.5 points, 15.5 rebounds, 3 assists, 2.5 steals and 3.0 blocks. You want efficiency too? How about a 58 FG% and only 1.3 TO’s? Lesson here is to start thinking about selling high (if you haven’t already). He’s injury prone, 35 years old and a Blake Griffin return is on the horizon.
Week Six Schedules
Four Games: CHI, DAL, GSW, IND, MIA, MIL, NYK, PHO, TOR, WAS
Three Games: ATL, BOS, CHA, CLE, DEN, DET, HOU, LAL, MEM, MIN, NJN, PHI, SAC, UTA
Two Games: LAC, NOH, OKC, ORL, POR, SAS
ADD LIST (players owned in 40% or less in standard yahoo leagues)
Ersan Ilyasova – We’ve been touting this guy for 3 weeks now but he’s still only owned in 40% of all yahoo leagues. This past week, he averaged 14.5 points (on 42.6 FG% and 77.8 FT%), 1.3 3ptm, 8.8 rebounds, 1.5 stls with only .5 TO’s. With Michael Redd and Andrew Bogut still disabled and the Bucks enjoying a 4 game week, he could be a serious monster.
Luke Ridnour – As previously stated, Redd is still looking at missed games due to a sore knee. In his stead, Luke has been hot when given solid run. He’s averaged 15 points (on 54.5 FG% and 100 FT%), .8 3ptm, 3.5 rebounds, 5.5 assists and .8 steals. He has the makings of a very good short term pickup so go ahead and take advantage.
Jamaal Tinsley – Never would have imagined I’d be touting the Tinman, but he has emerged as the best PG in Memphis. Although he hasn’t officially been named the starter, it appears it’s only a matter of time. His minutes are on a nice upward trend as Mike Conley is still mired in a season long funk. Jamaal will give a boost in points, assists and steals with occasional 3’s.
Martell Webster – He’s probably been tossed between the waiver wire and a roster more than once, but he’s worth owning again. Brandon Roy has spoken so no more 3 guard starting lineups. Over the past five games, he has also shown he’s over his shooting funk with a 50 FG%. In that span, he’s put up 14 points, 2.8 3’s, 5.8 rebounds and .8 blocks.
Nick Young – With Mike Miller’s recent injury, his DNP’s are long gone. This time, he seems to be taking advantage of it as in 3 games he’s averaged 17.3 points and 1.3 3ptm. Moreover, in watching the Wizards play the Heat, he impressed me. His game has expanded beyond just scoring as I saw him compete defensively, make the right play and look for teammates. It should translate into quite a few more boards, assists and defensive numbers than seasons past.
CUT LIST
Mike Conley – If Tinsley is on the add list, Conley definitely deserves to be on the cut list. He hasn’t been able to snap out of a season long funk as he’s shooting 37.5% from the field (27.8% from 3) while posting a career worst 2.4 TO’s. There is a good chance Mike will have a chance to regain significant time at the point down the line as Jamaal has been susceptible to injury or bad slumps himself. However, no reason to wait for this to happen with him on your roster.
Randy Foye – At this point, it seems he can’t even beat out Earl Boykins/Nick Young. If you picked him up when M&M went down, time to go back to the drawing board (unless 16 minutes of playing time is your cup of tea).
Brad Miller – Still owned in 50% of the leagues, uh why? Barring some extreme matchups or foul trouble by teammates, his minutes are clearly going towards Taj Gibson and company. Also, don’t forget that Tyrus Thomas will be in the mix in the not too distant future.
WATCH LIST
Omri Casspi/Donte Greene/Beno Udrih – Paul Westphal is still experimenting with lineups (until Kevin Martin returns) so the playing time and production of these 3 guys continues to waver. I expect Donte Greene to be the short term loser (even though he’s started the last 3 games). If he’s not hot, he’ll be sitting most 4th quarters to at least 1 if not both of the other guys. Wouldn’t be surprised to see Beno also recapture a starting gig next to Tyreke Evans.
Allen Iverson – AI’s been beating on owners going back to last year but that may be changing in the near future. His recent hasty retirement sparked some controversy in NBA circles as many (Larry Brown, John Thompson, countless of teammates) felt he acted too abruptly. In my opinion, he is going to land on another roster (maybe Philly?) and could quite possibly turn out to be VERY relevant. AI was ready to take on the world at the start of this year, but it didn’t work out. Now with his supporters getting vocally behind him, I think it could give him the incentive to succeed this time round.
Jonas Jerebko – This Swede partially owes thanks to one of our loyal readers, John-O. I was going to include him in the Deep League Specials area, but with others noticing his production, he deserves to be on everyone’s watch list. Sunday, John Kuester changed his starting lineup to snap the Pistons out of their funk. Lo and behold, it wasn’t the rookie getting the short end of the stick but rather Charlie Villaneuva. To make matters even more appealing Charlie apparently broke his nose. Jonas won’t overwhelm as the guards rule the team but he’ll continue to see 30+ minutes a game in the short term while giving solid boards and chipping in points, 3’s and defensive numbers on occasion.
STAY THE COURSE
Jared Dudley – Jared has cooled considerably since his strong start, but I advise owners who still haven’t punted him to stick with him. First, Leandro Barbosa just hurt his ankle against the Raptors and appears he’ll be out anywhere from 2 games to 2 weeks. Second, the Suns have a 4 game schedule this week. Owners should prepare to be rewarded with solid 3’s and steals with decent points and boards.
Marcus Thornton – I know “buckets” hasn’t exactly set the world on fire the last 2 games but I don’t think his run is over. First, he’s still the Hornets most explosive wingman. Second, Peja has suddenly left the team for personal reasons. If you can withstand another 2 game week, I think he’ll satisfy owners down the road as Chris Paul will soon be in control of his destiny.
DEEP LEAGUE SPECIALS
Robin Lopez – The other twin is back from injury and in his first game back, he had an immediate impact for the Suns (8 points, 7 boards, 1 steal, 2 blocks). Considering the need for a legitimate backup to Amare Stoudemire and Channing Frye, Robin should fill the role immediately. Announcers noticed in that first game, he was quite winded early so once his conditioning gets in order, he has a good chance to increase productivity and consistency.
Damien Wilkins – Kurt Rambis promised to shake up the lineup and in Sunday’s game Wilkins started for the first time since the start of the season. Considering the Wolves upset the Nuggets at their place while he contributed 15 points, 12 rebounds and 6 assists, I’d say he’s earned at least a few more starts.
