• By now you’ve heard about Allen Iverson‘s difficulties adjusting to his role as a reserve – he’s averaged 19 minutes in three games since returning from an inactive streak (back) that lasted just over a month (16 G). Iverson said “I can play 18 minutes with my eyes closed, with a 100-pound truck on my back,” after the Pistons’ 79-73 loss to the Cavs on Tuesday. Fantasy owners need to skip the psychological examination of all parties involved and cut to the chase – it’s getting ugly in Detroit and isn’t going to improve in the final seven games. It’s takes a rare set of variables for AI to warrant a roster spot at this point.
And now there’s talk of Kwame Brown remaining the starting five, with Rasheed Wallace joining AI on the second unit. If it comes to fruition, Sheed suddenly takes a sizeable hit and becomes a questionable play during the championship week. The Pistons have a five-game schedule with a few favorable matchups (@NYK, NJN, @IND, CHI, @MIN), but Kwame (4.6 pts, 6 reb, o.5 blk in 28 starts) wouldn’t gain enough value to matter in many leagues.
• Josh Howard‘s aggravated left wrist is “sore”, but there’s been no official indication as to the extent of the injury. It doesn’t appear to be serious, but stay tuned for further updates. Dallas’ remaining two games this week are solid fantasy matchups (@MEM, PHO).
• Leandro Barbosa is hoping to return on Friday but, as of Wednesday, his leg was painful every time he jumped and sore every time he stood up. Consider him questionable at this point. If Barbosa can’t go, think about activating Jared Dudley – he had 17 points, 11 boards, and three steals in 27 minutes at Sacramento this past Sunday.
• Thaddus Young‘s right ankle sprain has ended his regular season, and Reggie Evans got the start at PF tonight. He had 10 points and five boards in 15 minutes as of halftime, while Marresse Speights hadsix points and three boards in 11 minutes. Keep an eye on the box score, as the Sixers have the distinction of playing five times over the season’s final seven days. I picked up Speights in a deep league yesterday, but he needs to be in the starting five to warrant much consideration. Young’s injury is an unfortanate end to a fine season – he had averaged 17.5 points on 51 percent shooting, 0.8 threes, 5.3 boards, 1.5 steals, and 0.4 blocks in 37 games prior to the injury.
• Both Gilbert Arenas and Brendan Haywood were in the starting five for the Wizards tonight. Neither player is ready for more than 25 minutes and the 17-59 Wizards have zero reason to risk long-term prospects, so it’s not a good idea to put much stock in either player for their remaining games (MIA, @CLE, @TOR, TOR, @BOS). Arenas may end up as a one-game option for that final home tilt against the Raptors.
• Kevin Garnett‘s fantasy season is essentially over, as well. He’s not expected to return before the team plays on April 12, leaving three games at less than 100 percent as a best-case scenario, and the playoffs are understandably what everyone’s focus is now on. Glen Davis has averaged 11.8 points on 49 percent shooting and 6 boards in his 12 starts, but keep in mind that the Celtics play just once over the next five days (Fri vs ATL).
haywood’s actually showing some good hustle tonight
http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/boxscore?gid=2009040227
Yeah, I just noticed he has 12pts and 10 boards through three quarters and has played about 23 minutes. Do you think he’s worth picking up for someone like Sefolosha?
I was referring to Haywood, sorry for not replying directly to your post.
no worries man. yeah thabo really has been marginalized on offense for that team – the d-stats are still decent, but he’s the clear 5th option. with that said, the thunder have 7 games remaining after tonight and the wiz have 5 and play just twice in the next six days. short-term i might look somewhere other than haywood, and you really shouldn’t look at him as a lock for steady minutes in the final 5 games
Randy Foye’s ankle injury kept him out of Wednesday nights contest. Any word about his return for Friday night?
foye is questionable and mchale said it ‘doesn’t look good’ for tonight
http://www.startribune.com/sports/wolves/42367287.html
Are there any updates on Biedrins? Just wondering if he’s actually coming back this season. Really never know with Don Nelson.
unfortunately no. its safe to think he’s out through the weekend anyway – all we know for sure is that they aren’t taking any chances
http://www.ibabuzz.com/warriors/2009/03/30/notes-from-shootaround/
Is there any chance that Salmons will come back for H2H championship week, or is it time to drop him for Beno Udrih or Dom McGwire?
he’s going to try to play saturday
“I like my chances,” said Salmons, who did not play Tuesday in the loss at Indiana. “The only real way to heal groin injuries is rest. We don’t really have the luxury of that. These games are so important, I have to try to fight through it the best I can.”
http://www.suntimes.com/sports/basketball/bulls/1509022,CST-SPT-bull03.article
with that said, the kings have a pretty nice schedule the rest of the way, so udrih could make sense for your roster otherwise
http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/teams/sac/schedule
looks like all parties involved decided that shutting down AI was the best course of action
http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=ap-pistons-iversonout&prov=ap&type=lgns
keep an eye on will bynum for the middle of next week (wed-sat), as the pistons play three games in four days against some softies (@NYK, NJN, @IND)
Is Rodney Carney for real? I’ve pretty much secured a spot in the finals next week, is he a viable option next week?
well what you really need to wonder about is if his 30 minutes per game are ‘for real’. as long as foye is out, carney will get minutes, but mchale has been all over the place with his starting 5′s lately, so nothing is guaranteed. the wolves have some nice matchups the rest of the way, so he’s worth looking at, but it depends who you’d be dropping and who else is out there
Keyon Dooling is also available, take him over Carney? Dropping Sefolosha.
thats a close one. dooling is looking like more of a ‘lock’ to start the rest of the way, but minnesota has a fantastic schedule. i’m going to say go with dooling, as carney really is only a two-cat contributor (3pt, pts) anyway
Thanks for the advice man, you’ve helped guide me all the way to the finals next week so I’ll pick up Dooling.
Any word on Kenyon Martins injury? It didnt look good when he left the game, and Im not expecting him to play Sat. night but the question still remains whether to keep him for championship week.
the nuggets have only four games in the championship week, so he was a marginal option anyway, and i’ve already dropped him anywhere i had him. as for the injury itself, they are calling him a game-time decision tonight
http://www.denverpost.com/nuggets/ci_12069103
Two games, two solid stat lines for Brendan Haywood. Coincidence? Or pick him up before my opponent for the championship does? Drop Al Thornton for him?
the problem with haywood is that the wiz only have 4 games left and two of them are against tough def (@CLE, @TOR, TOR, @BOS). there’s a decent chance thornton is back tomorrow. anybody else left on the wire?
Barbosa is also on the wire, as well as Larry Hughes (whom I dropped when he got hurt but could add again once he returns) But if Thornton comes back relatively soon, should I just stick with him?