fBasketballBlog

The Olympics are over, which means we won’t be seeing stuff like this again anytime soon (maybe ever):

Yep, that’s NBA champion LeBron James with a wicked bounce pass to Kevin Durant. Not only is that a sick play — it’s also a smooth transition into the point of this post, because that GIF shows the top two players in the land of fantasy basketball.

The NBA offseason is in a lull, but fantasy basketball owners should never be. But if you’ve allowed yourself to kick back and hop out of the stream of NBA news and moves for a bit, who can blame you? So for those who have to reacquaint themselves with the league, and for those who are already up to speed, I present to you an early iteration of the top 150 fantasy basketball players for the upcoming 2012-13 NBA season. (The rankings assume nine categories and a head-to-head format.)

Here’s a quick peek at the top 25 players: (continue reading…)

Illyasova. (See what I did there?) (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Pawel Dwulit)

Weekend Wonder: Ersan Ilyasova makes his debut here after averaging 28.5 points, 7.5 rebounds, 0.5 assists, 1.5 steals and 2.5 threes in two games over the weekend. In that stretch, he shot 69 percent from the field, 92 percent from the free-throw line and averaged turned the ball over just once. In his last 13 games, Ilyasova has averaged top five numbers, making him a serious contender for pickup of the year.

Lines for Discussion:
Nikola Pekovic (3/9): 8-14 FG (57%), 9-10 FT (90%), 25 Pts, 13 Reb, 2 Ast, 1 Stl; Pekovic followed this up with a 21/11 line the next night, indicating a return to form

Andrea Bargnani (3/10): 2-8 FG (25%), 4-4 FT (100%), 8 Pts, 3 Reb, 3 Ast, 1 Stl, 1 TO; he put up 11/8/2 on Sunday, and will require some time to work some rust off

Jared Dudley (3/10): 9-16 FG (56%), 1 three, 19 Pts, 7 Reb, 2 Ast, 1 Blk, 4 TO; so far in March, Dudley is averaging 17.0 points, 7.7 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 0.5 steals, 1.0 block and 1.3 threes per game, while shooting 53 percent from the field and 63 percent from the free-throw line (continue reading…)

Both of these guys were great last night, but Bynum was the beast. (Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)

Beast of the Night: Andrew Bynum finished with 30 points, 14 rebounds, two assists and three blocks last night. He shot 72 percent (13-18) from the field, 80 percent (4-5) from the free-throw line and had three turnovers. Bynum is currently on a 10-game streak of double-doubles and has produced top 20 averages this season, making him one of the bigger exceeder of fantasy expectations in the 2011-12 NBA season.

Lines for Discussion:
David West: 10-13 FG (77%), 4-5 FT (80%), 24 Pts, 3 Reb, 1 Ast, 2 Stl, 2 TO; the points were a season high for West, who has rounded into form after a slow start to the 2011-12 NBA season

Corey Maggette: 9-17 FG (53%), 10-11 FT (91%), 1 three, 29 Pts, 7 Reb, 1 Stl, 2 TO; Maggette remains a one-dimensional player who’s only somewhat valuable in points leagues

Rodney Stuckey: 13-20 FG (65%), 7-7 FT (100%), 1 three, 34 Pts, 1 Reb, 1 Ast, 2 TO; Stuckey scores and shoots from the free-throw line well, but doesn’t do much elsewhere (continue reading…)

CP3 is No. 3, in more ways than one. (Harry How/Getty Images)

Beast of the Night: Chris Paul finished last night with 36 points, one rebound, nine assists, two steals and three three-pointers made. He shot 69 percent (11-16) from the field, 92 percent (11-12) from the charity stripe and had three turnovers. For the season, CP3 has been the third best fantasy basketball player, which is right in line with expectations.

Lines for Discussion:
Kevin Garnett: 8-11 FG (73%), 7-8 FT (88%), 23 Pts, 13 Reb, 1 Ast, 1 Stl, 2 Blk, 4 TO; Garnett is averaging his best numbers of the season this month, and has been putting up top 35 numbers for the season

Chris Kaman: 10-25 FG (40%), 1-1 FT (100%), 21 Pts, 13 Reb, 3 Ast, 1 Stl, 2 Blk, 4 TO; Kaman has averaged 17.8 points, 9.0 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 0.5 steals and a block in his last six games (sell high)

MarShon Brooks: 10-15 FG (67%), 4 threes, 24 Pts, 5 Reb, 2 Ast, 2 Stl, 1 TO; in his last six games, Brooks is averaging 16.5 points, 4.3 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.8 threes made (continue reading…)

Young went nuts from beyond the arc last night. (AP Photo/Don Ryan)

Beast of the Night: Nick Young makes an unexpected appearance here thanks to his 35 points, three rebounds, two steals and seven three-pointers last night. He shot 71 percent (12-17) from the field, 100 percent (4-4) from the free-throw line and had one turnover. After starting the season on the bench, Young has managed to give his owners reliable value as a scorer and three-point maker. So far in February, he’s averaging top 25 numbers.

Lines for Discussion:
Jeremy Lin: 9-20 FG (45%), 7-11 FT (64%), 2 threes, 27 Pts, 2 Reb, 11 Ast, 1 Stl, 8 TO; he’s officially the pickup of the year, partly for fantasy reasons, mostly for non-fantasy reasons

Amar’e Stoudemire: 8-22 FG (36%), 5-5 FT (100%), 21 Pts, 9 Reb, 1 Ast; fantasy owners can expect his fantasy value to see a bit of a resurrection thanks to Lin’s command of the point guard spot

Jose Calderon: 11-17 FG (65%), 3 threes, 25 Pts, 7 Reb, 9 Ast, 3 Stl, 1 Blk, 4 TO; he’s on a nice roll right now but will probably hit another rough patch soon enough (continue reading…)