Sorry about the short hiatus, but we’re back. BV already gave you some excuses, so I won’t get into that. Anyway, here’s the first installment of our weekly Head-to-Head’s Up column, where we take a look at upcoming games and recommend starting a handful of players you may otherwise not have in your fantasy lineups. Matchups, recent trends, and the number of games on the schedule all factor into the equation. Let’s look ahead at the first full week of NBA games in the 07-08 season:
Four games: Atlanta, Charlotte, Cleveland, Denver, Houston, LA Clippers, New Orleans, Orlando, Phoenix, San Antonio, Seattle, Toronto.
Three Games: Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Detroit, Indiana, Memphis, Milwaukee, Miami, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Philadelphia, Portland, Sacramento, Utah, Washington.
Two Games: Golden State, LA Lakers.
Plug ‘em in, Plug ‘em in:
Danny Granger, F – In his second year, Granger emerged as a reliable fantasy contributor last season averaging 14/5/1.5 with solid percentages and 1.3 treys. Many are predicting a true breakout this season, and Danny got started on the right foot Wednesday night against the Wiz, posting 20/13 with 2 steals, 2 blocks, and 5 rainmakers. With three games on tap this week, including two at home (LAC, DEN), Granger is a smart play.
John Salmons, GF – It’s déjà vu all over again for Mike Bibby. Entering the season with a hand injury, except this year he opted for surgery, which will have him sidelined until January. In the meantime, the Kings don’t really have a proven PG to fill-in for Bibby, although they just signed Beno Udrich who was recently released by the lowly T-Wolves. John Salmons, Francisco Garcia, and Orien Greene are all in line for more minutes, but it was the former Sixer who stepped up opening night, dropping 22/2/9 in 45 minutes. The veteran swingman makes a decent play with 3 home games (SEA, CLE, MIN) next week.
Kyle Korver, SF – Three years ago the Creighton alum led the league with 226 3-pointers made. Last season he was relegated to coming off the bench, yet managed to post career highs in points (14.4) and shooting (44%FG). He remains one of the league’s top three-point specialists (4 for 7 opening night), and if he can average 2+ treys and 1+ thefts a night, he’ll certainly deserve a regular spot in your lineup.
Walt Herrmann, F – Having appeared in only 58 games in his first two seasons, Sean May can’t seem to catch a break (out for the season with knee surgery), and Adam Morrison’s flying moustache is also out for the year with his own knee injury. That leaves the Herrmanator to pick up most of the slack. Plus, considering the fragility of Charlotte’s frontcourt (Wallace, Okafor, Brezec), Herrman could be in line for some serious playing time this season. Keep in mind this is a guy who averaged 20/6/1 with 2.3 treys in 12 starts to finish the 06-07 season. The Bobcats have yet to play their first game, so it will be interesting to see how they rotate him in tonight.
DeSagana Diop, C – The 7-footer from Senegal got the start on Halloween as old-timer Erik Dampier was forced to sit with an injury. Diop responded with 8/11/1 and 4 swats in 37 minutes. Those minutes are the key factor in determining Diop’s value. As long as Dampier is out, Double D makes a fine play at center.
Marko Jaric, GF – There was a time when MJ had some fantasy value as a Clipper, and now it appears he may have a chance to be relevant again. Prime breakout candidate, Randy Foye, is sidelined indefinitely with a bum knee, which has his fantasy owners sulking (myself in particular), but that just opens up more playing time for Rashad McCants, Sebastian Telfair, and Jaric. This is a very young team in complete rebuilding mode, so there’s a good chance McCants and Telfair will get the bulk of available minutes, but don’t be surprised to see Jaric handling the rock early on this season. Minnesota is another team that has yet to play, so be sure to see what happens when they tip off tonight against the Nuggets.
