Happy New Year everyone! Except for you Saddam… I’m sorry you didn’t make it. Here’s a look at 1/1-1/7:

Four games: Boston, Cleveland, Dallas, Golden State, LA Clippers, Minnesota, Phoenix, Portland, San Antonio, Seattle.

Three Games: Chicago, Denver, Houston, LA Lakers, Memphis, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Orlando, Philadelphia, Sacramento, Toronto, Utah, Washington.

Two Games: Atlanta, Charlotte, Detroit, Indiana, Milwaukee, New Jersey.

First of all, let me just say how much I’m loving my first round pick Gilbert Arenas right now.  The mofo is putting up 39/6/7 with 4 treys and 1.6 steals per game over the last two weeks.  Now that’s one wicked Wizard.

Plug ‘em in, Plug ‘em in:

Gerald Green, F: The Celtics have lost every game since their stud Paul Pierce went down with a foot injury.  Pierce’s foot is apparently not improving (potentially sidelining him longer than expected) and 20-year-old Gerald Green has been lighting it up starting in his place.  DM took a good look at him yesterday.  Green has 10 treys in three starts and should be in fantasy lineups in all leagues right now.  “Ain’t nuthin’ but a Double G Thang Baaaaby…” The C’s hit the hardwood four times next week, and there’s no reason G Money can’t keep it up.

Chris Kaman, C: After averaging 8 pts and 7 boards per game in November, the blonde ogre has bumped those numbers up to 12 and 8 this month.  His blocks are starting to come around as well (8 in his last three games).  Look for Kaman to continue improving in the New Year and make sure you plug him for four road games next week.

Reggie Evans, PF: Speaking of Kaman, this dude yanked on his testicles in a playoff game last year.  Anyways, Reggie has pulled down double digit rebounds in four straight games (averaging 10/13/2 over that span). Evans will maintain value as long as Cotton Camby is sidelined.  Nene is also currently out with a bum knee, leaving the Nuggets depleted upfront.  Jamal Sampson has started the last two games at center, but it’s really more of a formality since he hasn’t seen more than 17 minutes in a game.  If there was ever a time to start the tenacious rebounder/crotch-grabber, the first week of 2007 appears to be it.  Also, you don’t need me to tell you to keep Earl Boykins (26 ppg last 5 games) in your lineups.

Mickael Pietrus, GF: Pietrus broke his nose, missed a game, was fitted with a protective mask and was back in action the next night.  The Warriors are still missing quite a few guys with injuries, Pietrus has scored double digits in 12 straight games, and has drained 2 threes a night over that span.  Golden State has a full schedule next week, so get the guard from Guadeloupe in your lineups.

Brandon Roy, G:  The #6 overall pick from this year’s draft has missed all but 10 games so far this season.  He’s back in Portland’s starting lineup and it’s still early enough for him to contend for rookie of the year.  The minutes will be there… now Roy just needs to get comfortable and hit his stride.  Brandon and the Blazers look forward to four nice matchups next week (BOS, NY, @SAC, MIA).

Sit ‘em down:
You should probably start the aforementioned ballers over borderline guys like Zaza Pachulia, Josh Childress, Nazr Mohammad, Stephen Jackson, Jamaal Tinsley, and Adam Morrison… all of whom only play twice next week.

Finally… in the New Year I resolve to shed 20 pounds, spend more time with my family, and climb higher than freakin’ 8th place in our fantasy league!

Injuries have led to plenty of very hot pickups in the past week. Let’s take a look at some of those players and see what we can expect from them in the short term and long term.

Josh Childress
Childress finally returned last night after missing just over a month with a broken left foot. It didn’t take him long to make an impact. First off, let’s ignore all the numbers but one – 35. As in, the number of minutes Childress played in his first game back. That’s the most important number of the night, as it shows that he can handle the PT and that Mike Woodson trusts him out there, which can’t necessarily be said about one of the guys he’s competing with, Marvin Williams. Will Mike Woodson be around much longer? That’s debatable. But with Josh Smith out for a month, Childress will have his opportunity to make an impact. I don’t like bench players, but at least in Childress’s case he’s been proven effective while coming off the bench. Childress didn’t start any of the season’s first seven games but still averaged 37 minutes per contest, so he will get his minutes. Even if he doesn’t get quite that many, he does what a bench player needs to do to have fantasy value – contribute strong percentages. Because bench players don’t get as many minutes to help with the counting stats, it’s important for them to help out wherever they can, and as a career 51/80 shooter, Childress does just that. His line tonight was about what you expect from him – 13 and 6 with a couple steals and blocks on 6-of-13 shooting. One more shot goes in and that’s 54% instead of 46%, and at least he attempted a couple of 3s even if he didn’t hit any. If you’ve seen me talk about players who help good fantasy teams more than they help bad ones, Childress is a good example of a player like that. He won’t help you make a big push in the standings, for but a team that’s near the top and needs someone solid to hold down a utility or bench slot, he’s a perfect choice.

Jannero Pargo
I was all ready to write about what a disappointment Pargo was in his first start of the season last night, since he was scoreless well into the second half. Then he caught fire during a Hornets come back attempt and finished with a very respectable 16/6/5 line, even though he didn’t add anything to it. Pargo came into last night’s game as one of the league’s most notorious gunners, averaging nearly 10 attempts per game in just 23 mpg, attempting shots at roughly the same rate as Kobe Bryant. So his 11 attempts in 35 minutes was far less than I was expecting, but I expect Pargo to be up his usual gunning ways when the Hornets host the Nuggets on Friday. And I think you’ll want to find room for him in your lineup for that one. It might take him 20 shots to get his 20 points, but he should be in store for a big game. Estimates have Paul out for two to four games, but it would be downright shocking if he’s back after missing just two contests and not at all surprising if he misses more than four. So Pargo might get an extended chance to prove himself. I consider him a much better option than Desmond Mason, who might score a couple more points, but really has very little else to add, save a few boards. Pargo is sort of a Chucky Atkins-type, but less of a playmaker, as he’ll go for stretches where nobody else will touch the ball and it’ll just be him alternating between driving for layups and launching 3s. The kind of guy fantasy players don’t mind having around.

Matt Barnes
What in the wide world of sports is going on by the bay? Matt Barnes pours in 25 points on 9 attempts? That’s something Gilbert Arenas should be doing. I picked up Barnes a few days ago and threw him in the lineup for that great game, figuring he’d see plenty of time on the court with Golden State’s roster in the condition its in, and sure enough he played 45 minutes. But what will that next game be like? Back on Nov. 27 Barnes played 45 minutes and had a very solid game of 13/7/6 with 2 3s, a steal and 3 blocks in a win over the Spurs. But two nights later he scored just 3 points in 19 minutes in a loss to the Pacers. He was out of the starting lineup the next game and was  DNP-CD just five games after that 24 point outing. Then three games later he was back in the starting lineup, going for 32/11/3 with 6 3s, 3 steals and a block in 44 minutes. Since then he’s managed to stick in the starting lineup, starting 9 of the Warriors past ten games. His minutes have gone 26-32-40-45 in the last four as the team fights the injury bug, and he’s scored double digits in 5 of his last 6. So this is all very good. But it should be obvious that Barnes simply cannot be counted on long term. Mickael Pietrus is back, and while that didn’t cut in Barnes time last night, he won’t be shooting lights out like that every game. And he certainly won’t keep up that 48% from the three-point range much longer. That’s truly one of the most outrageous statistics of the year. It’s really simple what to do with Barnes – leave him in the lineup and ride out this hot streak and hope it lasts for a while. Park him on the bench when he goes cold and see if another hot streak follows soon. And if it doesn’t, say goodbye.

Gerald Green
So my Ryan Gomes pickup in the wake of Paul Pierce’s injury sure doesn’t look so good. Gerald Green was certainly the high-upside pickup in Pierce’s absence, but I had my doubts. But he’s certainly proven me wrong so far. Three starts is not the biggest sample size, but it’s hard to argue with 18.3/8/1.3 with 3.3 3s, 1.7 steals and 1.3 blocks. OK, so the 43/53 shooting is very bad, and that was one of the reasons I was staying away from him. I always seem to start off very strong in the percentage categories and keep dropping as the season goes on, and I wanted to make sure that didn’t happen this year. Still, as long as he gets things straight at the line – and he should be able to settle in at at least 70% – his 43% from the field is very manageable if he keeps putting up insane numbers like he has the past few games. People always used Tracy McGrady as the comparison point for Green and it’s looking pretty apt. He has a beautiful stroke from long range and can leap out of the gym. Wally Szczerbiak’s return might cut into Green’s scoring opportunities a bit, but I wouldn’t count on it. In last night’s blowout Green had five fouls and still played 34 minutes, second to only Sebastian Telfair’s 35, and he had to put in extra time because Delonte West was out. That’s a very good sign for Green, although he has amassed five fouls in two straight games, so that might catch up to him soon. The big question is whether Green has earned himself enough PT when Pierce gets back to remain fantasy relevant. We can’t be sure yet. Tony Allen seems to be sticking in the starting lineup – how about scoring 13 points on one field goal attempt last night! You can’t have a TS% much better than that! And Pierce is obviously going to have his spot. So it would seem like Green would be the odd man out unless Doc Rivers did something weird and played Pierce at PF, which I can’t see him doing, especially right after he comes back from injury. But Green has flashed enough skills to merit holding onto for a while as a bench player, and if you play in a keeper league, he’s obviously a very valuable commodity.

Rookies are always the big wild card for fantasy teams, and they are also the most likely players to see their values change incrementally as the season goes on.  So I like to check in about once a month and see how they’ve been doing.  With about 2 months in the books, let’s do a little November vs. December action and see if we can spot any trends. Without further ado, let’s pick out a couple of “rookies of note” and see if there’s anything to learn from their splits…

Adam Morrison, F, CHA
Nov: 15.3/2.9/2.1, 1.6 3’s, 0.5 stl, 0.2 blk, 39%/66% in 36 mpg.
Dec: 10.2/2.9/1.8, 0.9 3’s, 0.3 stl, 0.0 blk, 33%/86% in 28 mpg.
Despite being the leading scorer among NBA rookies, it’s been undeniably tough going for the ‘Stache here in his first few months.  He’s hardly ever getting to the line (1.3 fta in December) and obviously is struggling desperately to find his shot.  He’s lost his starting gig as well and is probably not startable in most leagues right now.  Still, you’ve gotta be patient here.  He’s still getting a ton of shots and the Bobcats are clearly letting him go through his growing pains right now.  If you can “stash the stache” on your bench then by all means do it, but if you’ve got no room on the bench then I think you’ve just gotta keep starting him until he breaks out of his funk.  His potential is just too good to drop him just yet.

Andrea Bargnani, F, TOR
Nov: 7.4/2.5/0.4, 0.5 3’s, 0.3 stl, 0.6 blk, 43%/82% in 16 mpg.
Dec: 12.2/4.6/0.5, 1.2 3’s, 0.2 stl, 1.2 blk, 40%/79% in 27 mpg.
Bargnani definitely turned some heads a few weeks back with an amazing 18 points, 10 boards, 6 blocks, a steal and 2 threes against Golden State in just 24 minutes of play.  He’ll surely see a small cut in production when Chris Bosh comes back but he’d been seeing a bump in minutes even before Bosh went down with an injury.  He’s getting more comfortable from the arc, even if he’s missing more of those shots than he’s making.  Bargnani is ownable and possibly startable right now if you’re looking to fill some games with an injured starter, which all of us probably have.

Jorge Garbajosa, F/C, TOR
Nov: 7.7/5.1/1.4, 0.5 3’s, 1.1 stl, 0.3 blk, 43%/62% in 25 mpg.
Dec: 11.1/6.3/2.5, 0.6 3’s, 1.1 stl, 0.3 blk, 44%/93% in 35 mpg.
Obviously a major benefactor of Bosh’s injury, Garbajosa may have some staying power in fantasy leagues.  First of all, he’s got some extra value because of his center eligibility, means fools like me who are counting on Troy Murphy to return to action this century are going to be willing to take a chance on the Garbage Man.  Secondly, he’s got some nice aspects to his game, including his knack for steals and willingness to shoot from the arc, that are tough to find from a center.  Things may change once Bosh returns but I’d guess that Garbajosa will continue to see minutes while Rasho Nesterovic returns to fantasy irrelevence.  Garbajosa is worth starting right now if you’ve got a hole at center and could be valuable in that role throughout the season, though that’s still up in the air.

Rudy Gay, F, MEM
Nov: 8.7/4.7/0.5, 0.5 3’s, 0.9 stl, 1.1 blk, 36%/63% in 25 mpg.
Dec: 9.4/3.1/0.9, 0.2 3’s, 1.1 stl, 0.6 blk, 43%/67% in 22 mpg.
Rudy was my preseason pick for a good late-round rookie to take a flyer on, and he’s shown potential, but not enough of it to own him right now.  All of the signs are there for value – he’s got nice defensive numbers, is a decent rebounder, and he’ll shoot the three, but the minutes just aren’t there and with Pau Gasol slowly returning, they may not be there for a good while.  Despite the higher-ups in the Grizzlies organization insisting that Gay gets more time on the court, his minutes and shots have been slipping and until that trend reverses itself, he’s safe to leave on the waiver wires.

Alexander Johnson, F, MEM
As Starting F: 7.6/5.6/0.6, 1.4 stl, 1 blk, 60%/62% in 25 mpg.
Johnson is the new starting PF in Memphis and has been playing his heart out, but you’ll have to pardon me if I’m not scrambling to my waiver wire to pick him up.  First of all, he’s a foul machine, as evidenced by his fouling out in just 13  minutes last week against the Spurs.  Secondly, as Gasol’s minutes go up, Johsnon’s will inevitably go down.  Finally, after a certainly sweet three-game stretch his last three have been pedestrian at best.  Johnson won’t have much value this year and is safe to leave on waiver wires, but it’s nice to know that he’s got some ability and we’ll keep an eye on him in the future.

Finally, I know a lot of you are wondering what’s up with Brandon Roy not being on this list, and of course he’s ownable and startabloe, it’s just that with only a couple games back from injury so far, he hasn’t had enough time to trend one way or the other.

With two days essentially off from NBA action, I thought it might be a good idea to take a step back and remember one of the more big-picture fantasy numbers, maximum games played.  Most rotisserie leagues (and possibly H2H leagues) have a maximum amount of games that you can play at each position.  Obviously the idea here is to play 82 games at each position, but this ends up being much tougher than you’d think.  Inevitably you’ll end up running out of games at a position while chasing to fill unused games at another, during the last week of the season.  With injuries abounding right now in the NBA, let’s go over some “do’s” and “don’ts” for handling your maximum games played:

DON’T save up unused games for the last few weeks of the season, hoping for a late surge in the standings.  Here’s a friendly reminder of what happens over the last few weeks of the season: everyone stops playing basketball.  Here’s a random sampling of games from April 19 of last year:

LA Clippers 85, Dallas 71 – Among the missing players were Elton Brand, Sam Cassell, Vladamir Radmanovic, Dirk Nowitzki, Marquis Daniels, and Devin Harris.

Memphis 102, Minnesota 92 – A double-OT thriller that didn’t feature Pau Gasol, Eddie Jones, Kevin Garnett, Ricky Davis or Marko Jaric.

San Antonio 89, Houston 87 – Not to be outdone by Houston, who was missing Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady (sound familiar?), San Antonio decided to sit Tim Duncan and Tony Parker so they could rest for the playoffs.

The point is, it’s impossible to make up games over the last week or two because every time you turn around, someone else is sitting out for no real reason (or, in some cases, a legitimate reason).  While it might feel good to look at the standings and know that you’ve got an extra few games to play than the other guys, the reality is the longer you wait to use those games, the less likely it is that they’ll be used at all – much less used well.

DO try to keep your unused games at your Utility spots.  This one is pretty obvious – if you’re going to miss a game here or there (and it’s inevitable that you will), try and fiddle with your roster so that the unused games end up in the utility spots.  This way you’ll have more flexibility to use them with category-stuffers that you need at the end of the season.

DON’T play guys with no value just to fill those games.  I talked about how to go about manning your bench a few weeks ago and one of the things that I said you needed was a guy who could fill in for an injured player if necessary.  But you don’t always have that guy, and just because you have Yao Ming or Nenad Krstic go down doesn’t mean that you should just play a guy like Johan Petro just because he’s all you can get your hands on.  Don’t panic – have a little patience.

Now, I know what you’re saying:  On the one hand, I’m telling you not to stash away unused games, but on the other I’m saying not to panic and play sub-standard guys just to fill space.  Don’t worry – I’ve got just the rule of thumb for ya:

DO keep your games below maximum lower than the number of months left in the season.  This is a nice rule of thumb to make sure you’re not falling so far back that you won’t be able to catch up at the end of the year, but you also won’t be struggling to play someone, anyone, just because you have a short-term injury like Joe Johnson or Ron Artest.  So right now, there are about 4 months left in the year.  So keep your maximum games played no more than 4 games behind pace.  That’s my theory, at least, after having being burned one way or the other over the past few years.  If any of you have better ideas, though, I’d be happy to hear them.

So I had this grand plan to sit at home on Christmas and do a running diary of the Lakers/Heat game. This plan didn’t work out too well. I actually had to go into work and then got stuck in traffic and my DVR was full because I was taping the first season of Arrested Development today, so I ended up not seeing any of the game at all. Oh well. But since I don’t really feel like talking about all the injuries – there have been lots, have you noticed? – I’ll stick with the Heat and Lakers and take a quick look at both teams, while blasting some James Brown. Go find “Get Up, Get Into It, Get Involved” and listen to it repeatedly. Thank me later.

Kobe Bryant checks in with a 4-for-17 performance; he must not have been taking too many quality shots. I have always given Kobe the benefit of the doubt. His feud with Shaq, his off the court problems, his quitting in Game 7 against the Suns last year – I tried to see it his way. But once you go acting like a little bitch after getting lit up by Gilbert, well, that’s it. You’re done. But he’s obviously not done in fantasy land, where after a predictably shaky November he hit his stride in December, today’s stinker notwithstanding. He’s hitting 3s like he did last year and he’s managing to keep his rebound and assist numbers at nice rates. He’s #5 on the 30 Day Rater and he should be right around there from here on out.

When Lamar Odom went down, it wasn’t the silliest idea to think that Luke Walton would pick up some of the scoring slack. But that hasn’t happened at all. After hitting double digits in 18 of 21 games with Odom in the lineup, Walton has pulled the feat in only 3 of 7, and that includes today’s unimpressive 10 point output. It’s not all that surprising; some players just aren’t meant to be big scorers and Walton’s one of those. The more worrisome number is that Walton hasn’t topped 30 minutes in each of his last three games, this after a stretch of four straight games of 40+. Perhaps Phil Jackson’s just resting him up a bit, perhaps it’s just a mini-slump, but Walton’s not looking like the sure thing he did in November. His little-bit-of-everything game only works when he gets the minutes. His 3s obviously aren’t falling at the ridiculous rate they were earlier in the season. It’s hard to see Walton losing his starting spot, but Phil Jackson’s good at playing guys just enough to have a bit of fantasy value but not that much. Let’s hope Walton doesn’t join that club.

Brian Cook replaced Vladimir Radmanovic in the starting lineup a few games ago and is one of those guys who just doesn’t get enough PT to justify owning. He’s played 28-18-19 minutes in his three starts and even though he’s made 4 3s in that span, he just doesn’t play enough and never has. As for Radmanovic, he did his annual tease thing, getting a starting nod and putting in 27 with 5 3s in his third game, then found himself back on the bench two games later. It’s time to give up on this guy forever, OK?

In the middle, Kwame Brown continues to be pretty solid. He still has problems finishing around the basket, but since he’s so active on defense, it helps give him some value. He got his first steal in three games today, but before that had tallied 10 in six games, which is obviously impressive for a center. His free throw woes are downright hilarious – 40% on the season – and even though he never takes more than 5 or 6 per game, it takes an 8-for-8 to make up for a 1-for-4, and that 75% will still probably find you at the bottom of your standings in that category. Andrew Bynum is pretty much an afterthought now, but he’ll be heard from again this season. He’s still learning the game – his improvisatory skills are still lacking, and head fake throw him off – but he’s clearly got plenty of offensive talent. Anybody who puts up 20 and 14 in 29 minutes as a 19 year old is almost certainly going to be good.

I thought Smush Parker would be able to maintain some of his value from last year, but he’s dropped off in every single category across the board. His 1.5 3s, 1.7 steals and 3.7 assists last year on 45% shooting are now 1.1 3s, 1.3 steals and 2.5 assists on 43% shooting. With Jordan Farmar around it’s hard to see it getting any better. As for Farmar, he’s a player, for sure. I’m still not too high on him just because it’s hard for me to envision Phil Jackson giving a rookie PG the steady 30+ mpg that he needs to have value, but Farmar is reminding me a bit of Jason Williams. He can hit 3s, he likes to shoot 3s (too many, perhaps) and likes to make flashy passes.

Maurice Evans is another 20-25 mpg guy that looks like he could put up numbers if given more minutes, but nobody ever gives him the minutes, and there’s probably a reason for that. That said, he should get every minute that goes to Sasha Vujacic. Is there a more worthless player in the league? What does he bring to the table, except for being that annoying foreign guy who sometimes gets under the skin of opposing players?

It was another ho-hum game for Dwyane Wade – 40/4/11, 12-of-20, 15-of-16, a 3, 4 steals, 4 blocks. OK, that’s not quite ho-hum, but it’s not like it’s all that surprising. Being able to watch wade from a few feet away was just incredible, you really can appreciate him more in person, especially that close. His eyes are always surveying the entire court, he knows exactly where everyone is at all times and knows the strengths and weaknesses of his teammates and opponents. Maybe he’s not hitting that 3 per game we hoped he would, but we can’t complain, can we? The only thing he has to do now is show that he can play 80 games in a season.

Hopefully you snatched up Alonzo Mourning and have had him in there since Shaq went down. Another three blocks today, averaging nearly 4 per game in December. He’s not grabbing too many boards, but the blocks and FG% are dominant. He’s #62 on the 30DR, right ahead of Andrew Bogut and Mehmet Okur, for comparison’s sake. The Heat will want to take it easy on him once Shaq gets back in a few weeks so ‘Zo will be ready to go in the postseason, so he’ll probably be OK to drop once Shaq proves he is indeed back. And on a side note, ‘Zo really does get away with more fouls than anyone in the league. If the refs wanted to call something on him, they could do it every possession on defense and every other one on offense.

Jason Kapono is a popular pickup these days, and normally I don’t like one-category specialists all that much, but with the rash of injuries sweeping the league, there are worse guys you can have. He has 14 3s in his last five games, so if you need help in that category, there it is. Sometimes with guys like this they cool off right when you pick them up and put them in the lineup. He’s also topped 25 minutes in just one of those five games, too. Everything needs to go right for him to help you out and even then it’s marginal.

I might just cut bait on Jason Williams at this point. If you can stash him on the bench that’s better, but even while it seems like he can handle playing most games now, his PT is still very inconsistent. In his last five it’s been 26-39-20-37-24. Wade is the assist man in Miami now, so don’t expect anything close to his 8 apg glory days from Memphis. At least he’s starting to gun 3s again, even if he rarely connects. I just don’t see him being a realistic option for contending teams this year.

Dorrell Wright was an exciting player to watch in person. He can leap, that’s for sure – dunks, blocks, whatever. If he could learn to shoot he might be able to have some value in a season or two, since he’s active and could help in steals and blocks. It’s hard to project too much for him, though, until he shows more offensive ability.

Merry Christmas Christian Nation! The NBA’s gift to you this Holiday season: All teams will be playing at least three or four games this week.  Here’s a look at 12/25-12/31:

Four games: Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Houston, LA Clippers, LA Lakers, Memphis, Miami, Milwaukee, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Orleans, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Portland, Seattle, Washington.

Three Games: Atlanta, Cleveland, Golden State, Indiana, New York, Orlando, Sacramento, San Antonio, Toronto, Utah.

Last week we discussed the emergence of the Celtics’ new starting center Al Jefferson.  Yesterday we learned that Boston’s main man Paul Pierce will miss 2-3 weeks with an injury.  Rarely, does an injury to just one player affect (benefit) as many players as this one.  We know that Jefferson and Tony Allen have been stepping it up in the absence of starters Wally and Perkins, but now the C’s leader in minutes (38.4), points (26.6), assists (4.3), and threes (2.5) is out and all his numbers are there for the taking.  Now the question is who wants them?  DM recommended picking up Ryan Gomes yesterday (not a bad idea), but I think last year’s surprise Delonte West will be the one to benefit most during Pierce’s absence.  The Washington DC native has been sporadic so far this season with inconsistent minutes backing up a disappointing Sebastian Telfair, but he has seen a recent uptick in playing time even before Pierce got hurt.  West should now be in line for 30-35 minutes a night.  Keep in mind he’s got sneaky value as an across-the-board contributor from the guard position.
The thing that’s nice about Pierce missing time (except for his owners of course) is that it increases the value of just about everyone on the team.  Jefferson and Allen should continue to surge, Gomes and West are sure to pick it up, and even youngster Gerald Green has an opportunity to shine (especially from long range) if he gets hot and earns some playing time.  All of the aforementioned players should be worth starting as the Celtics look forward to four games next week.  I must admit I own and plan on using most of them (Jefferson, Allen, West, Telfair) over the next couple weeks.

Plug ‘em in, Plug ‘em in:

Brendan Haywood, C: I’m not very comfortable recommending Haywood, not ever.  But, you could do worse this week if you’re looking for a second center.  The Wizards’ big man is averaging 8/11/2 with 2 blocks and 65%FG over his last five games.  He’s definitely inconsistent, but he’s getting minutes and has a full schedule on tap, so why not.
Other centers for your consideration:
Mark Blount: His minutes are up this month (31.8) and he’s averaging 16/9/1 over the last 10 days.  He may not be quite as ugly as Calvin Booth, but the T-Wolves have four matchups this week.
Erick Dampier: Big game the other night (22 and 16). He should chip in a bit more with Dirk missing a couple games.  Decent option with four games coming up.

Speedy Claxton, PG: Over the first six weeks of the season, the Hawks’ prized offseason acquisition failed to top 9 points or 5 assists in any single game.  I subsequently dropped him.  Tyronn Lue goes down, Mr. Claxton sees 40 minutes per game this past week and averages 14/3/10 with 3.7 spg.  Damn.  I shoulda dropped Bassy instead.  Marvin Williams is back in action and Childress is due back any day now, so Claxton should have plenty of options going forward.  If he can stay healthy and maintain 30+ mpg, Speedy will remain in fantasy lineups for the foreseeable future.

Keep on Truckin’:
Luther Head, G: The dude averages 17/5/4 with 2.8 threes and 1.4 steals per game as a starter.  He’s even hitting a solid 45% of his shots when in the starting lineup.  Yes, he’s great when McGrady is out, but if he keeps it up, Head may be able to earn enough playing time to remain a decent utility player for the rest of the season.

Damien Wilkins, G/F: Just when Ray Allen is due back, the Sonics’ #2 scoring threat Rashard Lewis goes and hurts his shooting hand.  Wilkins is averaging 13/4/3 and a nifty 2 steals in 34 mpg filling-in for Allen and should continue to see plenty of time on the court with Lewis now sidelined.  Keep him in your lineups at least through New Year’s.

About a month into the season it was panic time for a couple of fantasy owners.  Some of those high-round picks were not just struggling – they were downright disappointing.  After a few more weeks, though, some of them are starting to pull themselves out from the abyss and are performing closer to where their owners expected when they drafted them.  Let’s take a look at some of the early-season strugglers and see what a few more weeks have done for them:

Gerald Wallace
Who woulda thought that all this time it was Sean May, of all people, who was keeping Wallace down?  May went down with an ankle sprain on Saturday night, and Wallace Has responded with his two best games of the season by a wide margin.  He’s even blocked four shots filling in for May, matching his total from the previous FIFTEEN GAMES.  Still, before this 2-game resurgence, all had not been well in Gerald-land.  The blocks obviously haven’t been there, steals have been down, and the FG% has been a major downer as well.  The question, of course, is if this resurgence will be a long-lasting lone, or just a ‘comma’ on Wallace’s season.  We’ll find out soon enough, as May is due back shortly (he was hoping to play last night but obviously that didn’t happen).  if Wallace keeps up his strong play after May returns, then I’ll be willing to reconsider his “bust” status.  But until that happens, I’m just not going to be convinced.  About a month ago I suggested trading FOR Crash if you’re in last place because of his potential to break out, and I’ll stand by that.

Boris Diaw
There was a great deal of concern about Diaw and his slow start.  There were a ton of red flags that suggested he might not pull himself out of it.  Number one, of course, was the return of Amare Stoudamire, pushing Diaw out of the middle and out of the comfort zone he had found last year.  The other major concern was Diaw’s conditioning, as he apprently showed up to camp out of shape and overweight – which is particularly bad if you’re on a team that flourishes in the open court and runs like crazy for 48 minutes.  DM suggested a week into the season that Diaw owners should be patient, and I agreed a few weeks later, but by the time Thanksgiving rolled around I was wondering if maybe fatigue from the World Championships was also a factor.

Well here we are in the middle of December and here’s a familiar looking stat line: 13/6.1/6.2 with 1.2 blocks, .8 steals and over 50% from the field.  Yep, that’s what Boris has been up to so far this month, almost identical to his numbers last year.  Even more encouraging is the fact that he’s been doing this with a healthy Stoudamire playing beside him.  Diaw owners may be looking to sell high here but honestly, if you want to take a risk I think this is a great one to go after.  If you can swing a deal for Diaw by giving up 5th or 6th round value I say go for it.  He looks to be recovered and should be valuable from here on out.

Ben Wallace
November was not exactly a good month for the new Bull.  Big Ben was unhappy, out of sorts, clashing with his coach, and – perhaps worst of all – playing some horrible ball.  Wallace owners like our own PR really needed to see a fast start after he played so poorly at the end of last year, but instead Wallace continued to struggle and owners started looking to sell.  Of course, PR was the first to mention Wallace’s big coming out party the other night, and I’m obviously impressed by the 47 rebounds in two nights.  But I’m also concerned that we may be hopping back on the bandwagon a little too quickly. 

Take away those two games and Wallace is still under double-digit rebounds for the month – and the year, for that matter.  To me, the good signs about Wallace aren’t the blow-up games, because those only come around once in a great while.  I’m more interested to see what Wallace does on an “average” night.  And there’s good news here, too.  Wallace’s blocks have climed back over the 2.0 mark, and he’s even been scoring a not-disastrous 8 ppg in December.  So those are the real encouraging signs here.  Let’s be patient with Wallace and get a bigger sample size here before passing judgement.

Speedy Claxton
Remember when you guys all gave me shit for drafting Jarrett Jack in the 7th round, and yet PR took Claxton with the next pick and nobody said a word?  Well, here’s a word: DAMN STRAIGHT.  OK, so that’s two words, but Jack is clocking in at 42 on the player rater while Claxton is clocking in at KFC.

Really, though, Claxton has started to show some signs of life now that Tyronne Lue has gone down with an injury. Sure the points are nice but even better has been the assists and steals.  He’s picked up at least 3 steals in six of his nine games this month and is averaging 2.7 of them to go along with 6.1 assists in December.  Claxton may be available in your league and is a great candidate to stash on your bench to see what happens after Lue returns.  Claxton is still a pretty big wild card as he struggles to find a role on the Hawks, but they’ve locked him up to a long-term deal so they’re going to give him every opportunity to put it together.

Well, that was quite the letdown, wasn’t it? All the speculation, all the hours BV spent on RealGM figuring out elaborate four-team deals, and Allen Iverson ends up getting shipped to Denver for Andre Miller, Joe Smith and a couple of draft picks. Bo-ring. A lot of people seem to think it works out well for both teams, but I’m not one of those people. The 76ers got a solid player but certainly not a difference-maker in Miller, decent salary relief in Smith, and what will likely be a couple of draft picks in the 20s. That for one of the franchise’s defining players, still in his prime. Even in the new world of the salary cap NBA, that’s still not a good deal. Maybe AI and ‘Melo won’t be a perfect match in Denver, but that’s such a ridiculous talent upgrade that of course it’s a deal that makes the Nuggets better, regardless of the fact that they don’t really have any distributors. Anyway, let’s take a look at the fantasy ramifications.

Allen Iverson – AI owners have to be thrilled with this development. When he didn’t get traded right away, as was first rumored, the worrying started and it intensified when it was reported that he might not be moved until the all-star break. But assuming he misses tonight’s game, that still leaves 58 for him to play in. If the time off helps keep him stronger for the end of the year, and he misses a few games here or there, that’ll still put him around 70, which is what you expect from AI. He’s going to the highest scoring team in the league and for the first month or so he will be the unquestioned main man. It would be shocking if he doesn’t come out of the gate flying with a flurry of 40 point games; I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s a top 5 player over the next month. Of course, it will get more interesting with ‘Melo gets back. It’s hard to envision Iverson not getting his. In fact, it’s impossible. Iverson will get his. Maybe it’ll be closer to 28 instead of 31, but don’t expect a drop off, and expect a healthy helping of assists. Iverson has always put up numbers and that won’t change. He’s going to be thrilled to get back onto the floor and as long as he stays healthy, he’ll be the AI of old, just in baby blue. (On a side note, I bet those baby blue Iverson jerseys become hot sellers soon, don’t you think?)

Carmelo Anthony – Is AI’s arrival another blow to ‘Melo owners who will be without their stud for the next month or so? Well, let’s put it this way – it’s hard to envision things getting any better for ‘Melo now that Iverson’s around. Anthony got plenty of easy baskets on lobs from Andre Miller, and that’s unlikely to happen, at least right away, with AI. The good news is that he won’t have to change his game too much since he and Iverson score in different ways, and that Denver scores enough for the both of them. Anthony was playing so well before the fight that you wouldn’t be too surprised if he averaged 35, 37 ppg over a long stretch of time. It’s harder to see that now, although 30 still seems very reasonable.

Earl Boykins – Here’s the guy whose value has fluctuated the most over the past few days. He went from someone who had his uses in deep leagues, to a definite starter in most leagues, to a guy likely experiencing his last moments of fantasy relevance right now. Boykins should still have some value while ‘Melo and J.R. Smith are out, but once the Nuggets are at full strength, it’s hard to see Boykins having much of a role. Iverson will play his 40+ minutes and it’s going to be very tough for the Nuggets to have both AI and Boykins out there at the same time. His name has been involved in trade rumors for a while, and while he could get moved, the Nugs will probably hold onto him for insurance purposes. Yahkouba Diawara might even have as much of a role as Boykins since he’s a defensive presence with a solid foot in height.

J.R. Smith – There simply won’t be as many points to go around, so that will be a problem for Smith. That said, he’s still Denver’s only long-distance threat and he’ll still chuck up his share of 3s. He’s a guy who could go for 26 one night and 8 the next night, and I think inconsistency will be more pronounced with AI around. He was a solid contributor who was dominant in 3s; now he looks to be more of just a 3s specialist.

Denver Big Men – Pretty much what I said yesterday. The Nuggets might have less of a need for Nene to assert himself on offense since they’ll be getting so many points from AI, so that might mean more minutes for Reggie Evans, but that’s just a guess. Marcus Camby is still the only one with value, and that’s just until he gets hurt. But that’s an entirely different story.

Andre Miller – I said yesterday that as a Miller owner, I’m not at all thrilled with the deal. Why would I be? Miller goes from the highest scoring team in the league where he was racking up the assists and was looking at a stretch of games where he’d be one of the top scoring options, to the worst team in the league. Is it possible that he’ll step right in and be a solid 35 mpg PG in Philly? Yeah, it’s possible. But Miller can’t be too happy about stepping into this situation. And I’m just getting visions of a repeat of his disastrous season with the Clippers. The previous year in Cleveland he put up 16.5 and 10.9 (on an admittedly terrible Cavs team), but was then shipped to the Clippers for Darius Miles and put up 13.6 and 6.7 on 41% shooting in a miserable season. Maybe it’s the pessimist in me, but I can see something like that happening on this team. Also, his main sources of assists won’t be there, and it’s possible the Sixers will run the offense through Chris Webber at the high post now that AI’s not around. A best case scenario is that he sees an uptick in scoring, but he’s averaged 16+ ppg in just one of his eight seasons so far, I’m just not sure he has it in him. Miller owners have him for his assists, and those will go down. Like the ‘Melo situation, it won’t necessarily be a disaster, but it’s hard to see things getting appreciably better, and you can certainly see things getting worse.

Andre Igoudala – Now it’s time for this AI to prove himself. Perhaps Igoudala doesn’t have it in him to be a #1 guy in the NBA, but the Sixers may as well find out over the course of the rest of the season. Miller is actually a good fit for Iggy, since he has a knack for finding people far down the court and around the rim. He might find himself getting one or two easier baskets a game. He’s already at #31 on the APR – that’s mid-third round value – so it’s hard to see him getting that much beter. But getting that FG% back to around 50% and tacking on a few points could make him a top 25 guy and solidify him as a third round pick next year. I’m not totally sold that it will happen, but as always, it’s as much the opportunity as the ability. Igoudala should be out there 40 minutes every night from here on out and will have the chance to prove himself. He’s going to have tons of value.

Rest of the 76ers – Kyle Korver, Chris Webber and Willie Greene should all benefit from the fact that no real scorer is coming to replaced Iverson. Korver should find himself back in the starting lineup eventually, but even if he doesn’t he’ll be getting at least 30-32 mpg and should make a fine 3-point specialist. He still doesn’t have any other skills, so his upside is limited. It’s possible Webber will find himself the focal point of the team’s offense, like he was back in Sacramento. It’s also possible he just doesn’t have it in him anymore, and as the Sixers continue to lose he’ll shut it down. Webber’s shooting an impossibly bad 38% so far, and he may very well be washed up. Don’t expect miracles. Willie Greene is a horrid shooter who may get scoring opportunities, but will take advantage about half the time while doing nothing else.

So, I’ve been out of town since Friday night, anything interesting go on in the NBA since then?

I have indeed been out of town but I’ve obviously been staying on top of what’s been going on. And that includes sitting literally three feet away from the action at the Miami/Memphis game on Saturday night. Close enough that had something happened like what happened in MSG on that same evening, I would be shaking in some combination of jubilation/fear. OK, mostly fear. In fact, I’d probably run crying up the stands. (Us fantasy basketball bloggers aren’t the toughest or bravest folks, after all.) And I was able to watch Gilbert Arenas fire up the hibachi and dump 60 on that jerk Kobe Bryant and the Lakers. The Wizards did what they often do against good teams – run out to a big lead and passively try to hold on for dear life – but it worked out in the end. But I’m tired and need to finish this so let’s get to the brawl.

By now everything has been said, and the most logical people have the most logical responses, and none of those people work for the NBA. Yes, it’s basically all Isiah and the Knicks fault. Yes, Nate Robinson is King Jackass of the NBA. No, Isiah shouldn’t even be allowed into the NBA store after he gets canned by Dolan next week. (Mr. Where’s the Sportsmanship? is the same guy that walked off the court with time remaining when the Pistons lost to the Bulls back in the day, right?) Yes, George Karl was right in everything he said, and honestly I think he was holding a lot back. Yes, I’m ashamed that Isiah Thomas was my favorite player when I was a kid. No, the brawl wasn’t at all offensive to the casual viewer like the Pacers/Pistons brawl was. But enough already – how does this affect fantasy land.

Well both teams played a game already, so we’ve got something to work with. So keeping with the theme of the previous paragraph and my desires to actually get some sleep – one of those days in South Florida was spent on a boat, where I had to do, like, physical boat tasks, and my body still is in a mild state of shock – let’s use last night’s game as a barometer. Starting with the Nuggets…

Yes, Andre Miller is going to score many more points, not 27 like last night, but certainly at least around 20 most nights. No, he’s not going to keep getting 10 assists every game, because most of those assists came on lobs to ‘Melo or simple passes turned in 3s by J.R. Smith. Yes, Earl Boykins will likely be their high scorer over the next 10 games, since he’s their only real scorer active now. Yes, he’s absolutely worth starting, this coming from someone who never, ever endorses bench players. No, Marcus Camby won’t put up 25/17/5 with 7 blocks every night. Yes, he’s always capable of those lines, even when everyone’s out there. Yes, situations like this make him more likely to put them up. Yes, playing all those tough minutes could take its toll on the notoriously fragile player. No, nobody else will have real value for the Nuggets even with the absence of nearly 50 of their points per game. Yes, that includes Nene; let him play 23 mintues first. No, I can’t see Yakhouba Diawara continuing to get 40 minutes. Yes, I can continue to see him be as worthless has he was in those 40 minutes (8/3/2, nothing else – that’s stupendously bad for 40 minutes). Yes, Reggie Evans will be more effective than last night. No, he’s not going to suddenly start scoring, so look at him in the same way. Yes, someone might have a random nice game from night to night, but don’t expect consistency. Yes, I’m glad I was on a plane and missed the entire game. Now, the Knicks…

Yes, David Lee will be a monster as long as Quentin Richardson and Jared Jeffries are out. No, I don’t feel bad for telling that person to drop him for Al Jefferson just a few days ago – it’s not like Jefferson’s been a chump. Yes, Lee is capable of regularly grabbing 20 boards if he gets 45 minutes. No, I don’t think he’ll get that more than a one or two games. Yes, those are serious signs of life from Stephon Marbury – 30/4/8, 2.5 3s, 10.5 FTA in two games, only one of those with a depleted roster. No, I don’t expect this to last all year. Yes, I expect this type of play to occur more regularly, but expecting those numbers regularly is a bit silly. No, this doesn’t mean I think you hold on to him unconditionally – if the right offer for that 4^th/5^th round value comes along, you take it. Yes, I’ve noticed that Eddy Curry is back to his old self over the last three. Yes, I think he’ll pick it up back up again. Yes, Jamal Crawford is capable of putting up 6-for-26 every night. Yes, he’s just as capable of putting up 36 points. Yes, Channing Frye’s worth a pickup, although I think he’s quite clearly far lower on the pecking order right now than he was during his best stretches last year. No, Ronaldo Balkman isn’t the greatest choice, despite his 15 boards and 2 blocks last night. Yes, the Steve Francis and Quentin Richardson injuries are just as important in all of this as the Nate Robinson/Jared Jeffries suspension. Yes, I laughed a lot at Jared acting like a maniac and falling down and Eduardo Najera basically going, “What are you doing, dude?” when Jared grabbed his jersey.

So that’s about that. Hopefully we let the brawl fade away into the minor story that it really is, and people might stop to realize that Gilbert dropped 60 on Kobe, but that’s unlikely. Just another reason for Gilbert to have a chip on his shoulder and make people notice the next time he does it.

The problem with writing a column the night before you post it is that the two things that will be most talked about on Monday – the coming Knicks/Denver suspensions (complete with headline, “Melo: Stop Snitching, Start Sucker-Punching”) and the continued Allen Iverson trade talks are off limits because anything could happen between now and when I post, so what I have to say now could be completely unimportant by the morning.  So instead, we’ll do a little BSH action with the New Orleans Hornets. 

Supposedly an up-and-coming team, the Hornets have been struggling so far and the easy goat has been all the injuries that they’ve had to deal with.  Big-time offseason acquisition Peja Stojakovic just had surgery, David West is up next, and Bobby Jackson has missed a big chunk of time, too.  Meanwhile, first round picks Hilton Armstrong (6-11 center with 4 blocks on the season) and Cedric Simmons (6-9 PF shooting 39%) have stunk it up, completing a stink-tastic front court alongside perennial dissapointment Tyson Chandler ( 5.5 ppg).  Sounds like a few role players might be worth picking up here, huh?  Let’s see what’s out there:

Chris Paul, PG – I had to put him on this list because he’s the team’s preeminent player, but there’s nothing to worry about with Paul.  He’s lived up to the hype so far, and while the threes are down and TO’s are up, everything else is even better than advertised.  VERDICT: HOLD.

Peja Stojakovic, SF – OK, we say this all the time, but it’s important to remember that we aren’t doctors nor do we play them on the internet.  But let’s look at the factors here, because there are a couple of red flags, including: He signed a big fat new contract in the offseason, he has “no timetable” for return, and perhaps worst of all, the injury is in his back, which is never a good sign.  The surgery he had was to “speed up” the recovery process, which is a lot different from “fixing the problem.”  If you can get something of value for Stojakovic, say a 7th – 9th round value, I think you have to take it.  VERDICT: SELL.

David West, F – West is a tough one as well.  He’s getting set to have surgery as well, but there are a couple of differences from Peja.  First of all, it’s his elbow not his back, and elbows generally aren’t chronic problems.  Secondly, you’re not going to get any value for West right now.  He’s a mid-level guy who may not be back in action for months – he’s more of a hindrance to a team right now than a benefit.  The question you have to ask yourself at this point is if you have room on your bench for him, because no one is going to want to take him in a trade.  If you can stash him away then by all means do it – but at some point this guy might be waiver-wire bound.  VERDICT: HOLD.

Tyson Chandler, C – There’s some good news and some bad news for Chandler.  The good news is, he continues to be among the league’s best rebounders.  The bad news is everything else about him.  Chandler is apparently unable to shoot from beyond 2 feet from the basket, resulting in both a terrific FG% (68%) because all he does is dunk, and a downright horrific FT% (31%).  He blocks a pretty shockingly low amount of shots as well for a guy his size ( 1.3).  Still, he’s been getting over 30 mpg for the first time in his career and I think he’s a decent buy-low guy.  He showed with the Bulls that he’s capable of shooting 60% from the stripe, and he shoots so few FT’s that he can still recover.  His owners have to be sick of him at this point, but he still at 105 on the APR and could end up in the mid-70’s if he picks him game up to a level we’ve seen him attain in the past.  IT’s not like either of the rookies will be pushing Chandler for PT anytime soon, anyways.  He could be a smart buy low right now.  VERDICT: BUY.

Rasual Butler, SF – If you liked JR Smith, then you’ll LOVE “Casual” Rasual Butler.  In eight games as a starter, Butler’s been putting up 16.8 ppg with 2.1 threes and 1.4 steals.  I picked up Butler at the beginning of December and I’ve been having a tough time keeping him out of my lineup ever since.  Butler should absolutely be owned in all leagues right now until West and Peja come back, but he’ll be tough to trade because once either of those two return, Butler will go back to having no value.  VERDICT: HOLD.

Desmond Mason, GF – While you might think that Mason’s recent hot streak is due to the injuries around him, the reality is that it has much more to do with Mason simply playing better.  His FG% in December is 10 points higher (49%) than it was in November (and all of last year).  Still, Mason has been nothing short of a let-down in New Orleans and this hot streak should not be confused with a re-emergence.  Mason should still have some name-value left over from his days as a viable fantasy player in Milwaukee, and if you can get a nostalgic owner to trade for him, by all means do it.  VERDICT: SELL.

Bobby Jackson, G – Even with perfect health, Jackson is a borderline fantasy guy at best.  He’s out indefinitely and shouldn’t be owned in any leagues at this point.  VERDICT: SELL.

Jannero Pargo, PG – Guess who’s been playing over 32 mpg in December?  That’s right, Jannero Pargo!  Pargo is not afraid to shoot, especially from long range, but he hits so few of those shots that it’s kind of a mixed blessing.  Until he can do things a little more efficiently, I think I’d be willing to leave him on the waiver wires.  VERDICT: HOLD.