fBasketballBlog

Il Mago ("the magician" in Italian) will have to pull out all his tricks this season as the unquestioned man-of-the-hour in Toronto. (bargnani.com)

Depth chart:
PG: Jose Calderon, Jarrett Jack, Marcus Banks
SG: DeMar DeRozan, Leandro Barbosa
SF: Linas Kleiza, Sonny Weems, Julian Wright
PF: Amir Johnson, Ed Davis, Reggie Evans, Joey Dorsey
C: Andrea Bargnani, David Andersen, Solomon Alabi

Relevant fantasy players and projected draft positions/per-game stats:
Andrea Bargnani – F/C (Rd. 3-4): 20 Pts, 1.5 threes, 7 Reb, 1.5 Blk
Jose Calderon – PG (Rd. 9-11): 11 Pts, 1 three,  6 Ast
Jarrett Jack – G (Rd. 9-11): 13 Pts, 1 three, 5 Ast
Leandro Barbosa – G (Rd. 10-12): 14 Pts, 1.5 threes, 1 Stl
Linas Kleiza – G/F (Rd. 10-12): 12 Pts, 1.5 threes, 4.5 Reb
DeMar DeRozan – G/F (Rd. 10-12): 10 Pts, 1 Stl
Amir Johnson – PF (Rd. 12+): 14 Pts, 5 Reb, 1 Blk
Ed Davis – PF (Rd. 13+): 5 Pts, 5 Reb, 1 Blk (continue reading…)

KD vs. Natalie P: Who ya got? (Marc Lecureuil/Getty Images for Nike, OLYCOM/bauergriffinonline.com)

Hurricane Earl be damned — it’s Friday and we’re on the cusp of Labor Day weekend, which means it’s time to bust out the big guns for this week’s edition of Fantasy Friday.

The ladies continued their winning streak last week as Jennifer Aniston edged out Danny Granger. This adds to the heap of victories for the gals, which includes Jessica Alba beating Dwyane Wade, Jessica Biel defeating Dwight Howard and Kristen Stewart vanquishing Dirk Nowitzki.

The men will have to do their best to notch their first win, so who better to take on that task than the projected king of fantasy basketball this season? It’s with great pride and hope — along with a fluttering heart — that I present to you this week’s matchup: Kevin Durant vs. Natalie Portman. (continue reading…)

What's wrong with Granger and Aniston? (Matt Dial/The Indianapolis Star; Flame80/Flickr)

Happy Friday, readers.

It’s time for another edition of Fantasy Friday. If you’re new ’round here, click on over to the inaugural matchup to read a quick description.

Alas, the girls have been kicking the boys’ butts, with Jessica Alba besting Dwyane Wade, Jessica Biel beasting Dwight Howard and, most recently, Kristen Stewart outdoing Dirk Nowitzki. Ouch.

Let’s see if the men can get their first win in this battle of damaged goods: Danny Granger vs. Jennifer Aniston.

The parallels between the two are simple: nobody seems to want them despite their obvious gifts. (continue reading…)

Stop yawning -- we haven't even started yet. (Keith Allison, katewilliams94/Flickr)

The week is finally over, which means it’s time for another edition of Fantasy Friday.

So far the ladies are kicking some serious arse: Jessica Alba edged out Dwyane Wade in our inaugural matchup, and Jessica Biel completely outmuscled  Dwight Howard last week.

Maybe it’s time to tone things down a bit, and what better way to do that than to stick two lively firecrackers into the ring: Dirk Nowitzki vs. Kristen Stewart.

The parallels between these two go beyond their luscious locks — they delve into the deep recesses of their colorless, unflinching, unsmiling souls.

So what is their common ground? Let’s find out by discussing Ms. Stewart, with parallels to Nowitzki [in brackets]. (continue reading…)

What does Yaouch Ming have to do with Dolph Lundgren? Probably nothing, but whatever. (Keith Allison/Flickr)

With every new season there’s a fresh list of fantasy basketball players that are on the verge of being given up on. Some of these players are walking DNPs that have one more shot to prove that they can play a full season, or something close to it; others are players who have coyly toed the line between fantasy goodness and fantasy greatness for a few seasons and are testing our collective patience; others have failed to fulfill past “sleeper” labels; still others are former studs who have regressed into duds in recent seasons and have one last shot at a redemptive comeback season before they’re permanently locked in the cellar.

Here’s a list of nine such players teetering on the edge of utter hopelessness this season (from a nine-category perspective), along with a rating of how close they are to being lost causes. We’ll use an uber-macho scale of Dolph Lundgrens (1 = not that close from final doom, 5 = direly close). Why nine, and why Dolphs? Look no further than here for a visual explanation.

It’s go time. (continue reading…)