fBasketballBlog

Being a sell-high guy must be contagious. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

Buy Low:
Wesley Matthews

Dirk Nowitzki

Josh Smith

Kyle Lowry

Channing Frye

Brook Lopez, Manu Ginobili, Luol Deng and any other productive fantasy players who are injured should be considered buy-low candidates. (continue reading…)

Yep, this will be fun. (Noah Graham/NBAE/Getty Images)

The 2011-12 NBA season is finally within reach, ready to be ripped open by the childishly eager fingers of ravenous fans. For fantasy basketball owners, the joy comes with a bit of business. Once they cut through the excitement of seeing the first tip-off of the season, they’ll immediately wonder how their draft picks will pay off, what clues they can pick up in the early going and which players sitting in the free-agent pool might be worth a pickup.

While making heavy-handed conclusions after just the first day of games isn’t recommended, it doesn’t hurt to have a list of things to watch and hope for during the first official day of this unique NBA season. Below is a Christmas Day wish list for fantasy basketball owners who have players participating in the first day’s games. (continue reading…)

The quickly approaching Dec. 25 start to the somewhat unexpected 2011-12 NBA season means fantasy owners are like students cramming for a big exam. Here are a few tidbits to help you ace your drafts:

• 

  Love will have to lift less weight off the ground when grabbing 'bounds this season. (Flickr/Keith Allison)

  Kevin Love is reportedly “25 pounds lighter than when he left following last season.” This bodes well for his ability to maintain, if not exceed, his stellar fantasy value from last season. I can’t see any reason why Love would fall out of the top five spots in any fantasy basketball draft this season.

• Vince Carter is expected to be waived by the Phoenix Suns, which opens up the door (as expected) for Jared Dudley to step in and start. In 15 starts last season, Dudley averaged 51.8% FG, 77% FT, 1.7 3PTM, 16.3 Pts, 5.9 Reb, 2.2 Ast, 2.1 Stl, 0.5 Blk, 1.2 TO. In the 65 games he played (15 of which he started, 50 of which he came off the bench) from Dec. 2, 2010, through the end of last season, Dudley put up top 80 value. Call him a sleeper if you want, but Dudley should’ve already been on your radars. He’ll be a bargain if he falls into the last quarter of your draft. Carter, meanwhile, could land on a team in need of a SG, but don’t be fooled — his days of being a reliably productive fantasy asset are over. (continue reading…)

That pose should say it all. (Flickr/Keith Allison)

[Read the full post at DimeMag.com]

Buy Low:
Joakim Noah

Luol Deng

Roy Hibbert

Raymond Felton

David West (continue reading…)

Yeah, we would've liked to have seen what you could've done with more than 30 minutes, too. (AP Photo/Matt York)

[Read the full post at DimeMag.com]

Beast of the Night: Marcin Gortat posted 14 points, 18 rebounds, four assists, three steals and two blocks in just 29:29 of run last night. He shot 50 percent (5-10) from the field, 100 percent (4-4) from the free-throw line and had one turnover. The Polish Hammer has been mostly solid since around mid-January, despite coming off the bench, and could see a small boost in production with Channing Frye sidelined for a while.

Lines for Discussion:
Andrew Bynum: 4-5 FG (80%), 5-6 FT (83%), 13 Pts, 12 Reb, 2 Ast, 2 Stl, 1 Blk, 2 TO

Shawn Marion: 10-18 FG (67%), 2-2 FT (100%), 22 Pts, 8 Reb, 2 Ast, 2 Stl (continue reading…)