Now that the NBA trade deadline is done and gone, let’s take a look at some players that you might want to target on the waiver wire.  We all know that when a player is traded from one team to another that there is a good chance that his fantasy value will change, whether it be for better or worse.


But, on the flip side, there are new opportunities available sometimes when a starting player is shipped out and the shipping team is left with a vacancy at a starting position. Here is a list of some players that might be available on your waiver wire that you should take a look at.


Beno Udrih- Now that Kevin Martin and Sergio Rodriguez have been shipped out of town, Udrih will have every chance to redeem himself and revert back to the form he had when he got that lucrative extension from the Kings a few years ago. He could get you 15 pts. 4 assists, a steal and good free throw % each night.


Andray Blatche- With Brendan Haywood and Antawn Jamison gone, Blatche should be rostered in all formats. He will see plenty of minutes and has shown in the past that he can be a fantasy starter. Expect double digit scoring, 8+ rebounds, around 1 block and a good field goal % each game.


Drew Gooden- After being traded to the Clippers, he should see an increase in minutes which you can expect his standard line of 7 rpg, 1 block and half a steal. He should compliment Chris Kaman nicely and be able to flaunt his decent mid-range jumper from the PF position.


Sergio Rodriguez- If D’Antoni decides to start Rodriguez for the long run, he could flourish in that system. D’Antoni has had his problems with his PG this year and he’s probably going to look for some stability from Rodriguez. I personally don’t see how anybody wouldn’t benefit from that system.

Andre Miller is a player that fits the high risk/high reward category pretty well. Pick him up now if you need help in assists, free throws or fg%. Now is the time before he gets too expensive to trade for. He most likely will be traded in real life, which would most likely solidify playing time so get him now.


Tyrus Thomas is also a candidate for high risk/high reward. He absolutely blew up last year and should be able to once he regains his minutes. He can instantly boost your steals and blocks which are very hard to get both categories out of one player.


Corey Maggette will be getting his playing time. The Warriors are always banged up and Maggette can carry a team in points, free throws and fg%. He is always an injury risk but he could be a difference maker for your team.

What the hell is going on here? Are the Washington Wizards thinking of changing their name back to the Washington Bullets?  Everybody knows what has happened (or what has been speculated).  Did Gilbert Arenas and Javaris Crittenton pull guns out on each other during a locker room argument or were they really just arguing over who has the “bigger gun”?


There are a few things about this idiotic situation that really stand out to me:


First of all, how dumb is Arenas to actually pull a gun out on a teammate, let alone while he is being investigated for having those guns in his locker in the first place?


Secondly, how stupid are the Wizards for allowing  Arenas to keep the guns in his locker after the NBA and authorities decided to investigate him?


Third, How dumb is Crittenton for his role in this whole mess (brandishing a firearm, brandishing a firearm against a teammate, brandishing a firearm against a teammate when it is painfully obvious that he is not allowed to have guns in his locker)?


And lastly, how will the real Wizard, David Stern make this problem disappear?


There are a lot of problems with what is going on here but what I want to know is what level of punishment will these to clowns face?  The NBA has been known to suspend players for fighting, for coming off of the bench to aid in a fight and in some cases coming off of the bench onto the court without even coming near the two fighters. And don’t forget about that special night with Ron Artest when he jumped into the stands to fight that fan that threw a beverage at him. Under normal circumstances this would be an in house fix like any other time two players get in a fight during or after practice.  But this is the first time I can think of where weapons are involved.


Personally, I think that both men deserve jail time and indefinite suspensions from the League. This is absolutely ridiculous and these two need to be made an example of.

The New York Knicks are looking to trade benched Nate Robinson. At this point they will probably take whatever they can get for him. Mike D’Antoni is not going to play him anytime soon so if he is on your roster he needs to stay on the bench for now. That’s not to say that he doesn’t have value. It all depends on what system he goes to. Who knows? Maybe the Warriors will make a trade for him. We all know how they like playing small players. For now, keep him benched but if it starts to look like a Stephon Marbury deal cut him loose.

With the loss of Kevin Martin the Kings were in need of a pick me up. Beno Udrih stepped right in and is filling in nicely. If you are looking for a player that can get you respectable numbers, Udrih is your man. As long as Martin is out that is. Udrih could work his way into a regular fantasy gig if he can get his game going consistently and keep it going once Martin returns.


Either way he is worth picking up for the near future as he will be looked to for scoring as well as running the floor. He has showed in the past that he is capable of being a starter worthy PG in spurts and right now is one of those spurts with the upside of him proving that he can sustain the play needed to be a fantasy starter week in and week out.

Here is the first set of rankings for the upcoming Fantasy Basketball season. These are just preliminary rankings and they will change as we near the beginning of the season.

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Now Gilbert Arenas is saying that it is the Wizards’ fault that he hasn’t been able to return from his injuries successfully. You have got to be kidding me!!! The nerve of this guy to come out and say what he has said about the Washington Wizards. If you don’t already know, Arenas is blaming the Wizards for letting him do what he wanted to do.

He actually believes that since he couldn’t restrain himself from trying to return to the court, the franchise player who wines about everything on his blog, the Wizards are the one to blame for his troubles returning to full time duties. Not himself, the diva who has to have everything his way or else. He pisses and moans until he gets things his way and now that somebody has been able to get it through his thick stubborn skull that rest is what he needed the entire time, he feels that he needs to blame his employer for what he did to himself.

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Yes, you read that correctly. Luis Scola will blow up this year and he will be the best fantasy option on the Houston Rockets. Better than Tracy McGrady, better than Trevor Ariza and better than Yao Ming. Well, the Yao Ming prediction shouldn’t be a surprise since he is out for the season after having another surgery.


The fact that Ming will be out for the season is precisely why Scola will blow up this year. He will be the only inside scoring presence the Rockets will have this year and that means he will have to carry the offense. McGrady has seen his better years pass by and now will be a nice accent to Scola for this season. McGrady can score with the best of them but he can’t be counted on to stay healthy.


Aaron Brooks will be the main outside scoring threat and the Rockets will call upon Scola to make his own scoring opportunities which in turn will open up the outside game. McGrady is no longer a dominant playmaker so Scola will have to pick up the pieces. This will be a huge season for him now that he will have the scoring responsibility. He has already shown he can play defense and rebound. Look for him to be a very solid if not almost great source of fantasy points this yearM

Stephen Jackson has made it clear that he wants out of Golden State and would prefer being traded to a perennial contender.  Who doesn’t want to play for a perennial contender.  I’ve always hated the term “If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em” and for good reason.  Gone are the days where athletes take pride in being part of a team that does it on their own.  There are no more Magic Johnsons or Larry Birds.  Nobody cares about integrity anymore.  It’s all about winning a championship no matter what it takes.


I know, Jackson didn’t start with the Warriors but he did help them make their first playoff run in 12 years. Now he wants to up and leave because he feels that “At this point, I’m 31 years old. I have four or five years left, I want to be in a situation where I can continually be in the playoffs and get another ring. So that’s where my mind is at now.” That is what he had to say to Dime Magazine.


So, in terms of fantasy relevance Jackson will most likely take a big hit in value unless he is traded to New York (which will not happen). Golden State is the perfect place for S-Jax and he knows it. I guess now all he wants is another ring and he is willing to abandon a franchise that took him in when he was considered a major risk and turned his career around. Good riddance Mr. Jackson, and don’t let the door hit you on the way out.


Meanwhile, scoring opportunities should skyrocket for Monta Ellis and Stephen Curry. Not to mention Anthony Randolph and Corey Maggette should see a bump in offensive production. The move could allow Randolph to move over to the SF position occasionally also. It will be interesting to see how the Warriors and their fans handle this situation.

Here is a list of the top 100 NBA players in terms of fantasy basketball.  I’ve asked two colleagues of mine to rank them along with me.  Hopefully this can be of some help to you.  Now, as the season nears, the rankings will most likely change so keep checking back for more updates.  BC= Brandon Craver, SH= Steve Hampton and TJ= Terrance Jackson.

Player                                       Pos.     BC SH TJ  AVG.