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Kyrie Irving is about to shake up the list of truly elite fantasy basketball players.

Depth chart:

Relevant fantasy players and their projected draft round (PDR) and per-game stats:

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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…)

Love strikes again. (Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)

Beast of the Night: Kevin Love posted 28 points, 11 rebounds, two assists, one steal, four blocks and four three-pointers in a losing effort against the Grizzlies. He shot 46 percent (10-22) from the floor and 100 percent (4-4) from the free-throw line, and had two turnovers. Love has racked up eight blocks in his last three games, which is completely out of character. If he can somehow lift his blocks per game next season, he’ll make a run for top three status.

Lines for Discussion:
Kyrie Irving: 4-13 FG (31%), 1-2 FT (50%), 3 threes, 12 Pts, 4 Reb, 7 Ast, 2 Stl, 1 Blk, 5 TO; in his last three games, Irving is shooting 39 percent from the floor, well below his season average of 47 percent

Jeff Teague: 6-8 FG (75%), 2-2 FT (100%), 1 three, 15 Pts, 1 Reb, 7 Ast, 1 Stl, 7 TO; Teague has been a top 70 fantasy asset this season, which is in line with expectations, though it’s clear his value has a ceiling

Monta Ellis: 15-24 FG (63%), 3-4 FT (75%), 33 Pts, 4 Reb, 8 Ast, 1 Stl, 3 TO; this could be the start of Ellis finding his comfort zone on that Bucks squad (continue reading…)

KD being KD. (AP Photo/Barry Gutierrez)

Beast of the Night: Kevin Durant posted 32 points, nine rebounds, five assists, two steals, a block and a three-pointer last night. He shot 56 percent (10-18) from the field and 100 percent (11-11) from the free-throw line, and turned the ball over four times. This was a nice bounce-back game after notching a mediocre 18/6/2 (along with six turnovers) the night before.

Lines for Discussion:
Kyrie Irving: 10-19 FG (53%) 6-7 FT (86%), 3 threes, 29 Pts, 9 Reb, 9 Ast, 3 Stl, 7 TO; he’s averaging top 30 numbers so far this season

Jordan Crawford: 7-13 FG (54%), 8-10 FT (80%), 1 three, 23 Pts, 4 Reb, 1 Ast, 3 Stl, 2 TO; he’ll be a solid source of points, threes and steals going forward, but his field-goal percentage will remain poor

Jarrett Jack: 6-9 FG (67%), 4-4 FT (100%), 1 three, 17 Pts, 10 Reb, 11 Ast; this was a pretty flawless line from Jack, who’s finally rounded back into form (continue reading…)

You didn't forget about D-Wade, did you? (Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

Beast of the Night: Dwyane Wade scored 30 points, grabbed four rebounds, dished out 10 assists, stole three balls and blocked two shots last night. He shot 69 percent (11-16) from the field, 80 percent (8-10) from the free-throw line and had two turnovers. Wade has quietly maintained top five value so far this season, despite dips in his scoring, rebounding and three-point making. He has cut down on his turnovers and had increased his steals and blocks to make up for those declines.

Lines for Discussion:
Trevor Ariza: 8-15 FG (53%), 2-2 FT (100%), 3 threes, 21 Pts, 6 Reb, 5 Ast, 1 Stl, 1 Blk, 2 TO; despite his inconsistency, Ariza has been a top 60 player so far this season

Jarrett Jack: 8-17 FG (47%), 1-2 FT (50%), 2 threes, 19 Pts, 5 Reb, 10 Ast, 2 TO; barring any setbacks with that knee, Jack should be back on track after the All-Star break

Roy Hibbert: 11-17 FG (65%), 8-12 FG (67%), 30 Pts, 13 Reb, 3 Blk, 2 TO; Hibbert is in the midst of a three-game streak of double-doubles (continue reading…)