Fantasy Related but good info....
Monta's Raw Deal
While the Steelers and Bengals were battling it out last night in Monday's lone football game,
Monta Ellis went down and four out of six NBA games came down to the wire. Catch up on what you missed in Tuesday's Dose.
Warriors Handle Raptors, Lose Monta
The Warriors beat the Raptors 109-102, but the game wasn't nearly that close. The Warriors were all set to win and hit the road when
Monta Ellis went down with an awkward and strange back injury. He was on the floor for several minutes, but was eventually able to walk off, very gingerly, under his own power. He stayed in Toronto for X-rays leaving the rest of his week in doubt. I'm hoping he just scared himself and will be fine, but this could be a tough week for the league's leading scorer and his fantasy owners.
Update: X-rays came back clean and Ellis simply has a back strain. Whether that means he'll play the rest of the week remains to be seen.
[URL="http://fantasyfootball.usatoday.com/content/playerpages/player_main.asp?sport=NBA&id=1693"]Reggie Williams[/URL] played just eight minutes and scored two points last night, but would see a significant boost if Ellis is out for a while.
Dorell Wright has finally come back to earth and cooled off, hitting just 1-of-5 shots for seven points, two rebounds, three assists, a steal and a block. He won't be this bad on most nights, but he also isn't as good as his early numbers suggest. If you sold high on him already, congratulations are probably in order. But he's another guy who will be big if Monta is out.
Stephen Curry came through last night after a slow start, finishing with a season-high 34 points to go along with five boards, four assists, three steals and two 3-pointers. He appeared to hurt his ankle again, but he simply needed to have it re-taped. In other words, he is starting to look healthy, as long as he can avoid stepping on other people's feet going forward.
For the Raptors the strange rotations continued.
Jarrett Jack caught fire and had his best game of the season with 24 points, eight assists and three steals, while
Jose Calderon didn't even score in 10 minutes. I have been a Jack fan all year, and while these two will continue to share the job, Jack is the starter and the one with true fantasy value.
Andrea Bargnani has officially cooled off after scoring 20 or more points in their first four games, but has scored just 14, 12 and 11 in his last three. He was on the bench down the stretch last night and in some foul trouble, and while all clearly isn't well in Toronto, I'm not ready to panic on Bargnani yet. While he was sitting,
Linas Kleiza and
Amir Johnson were getting big minutes. Kleiza hit 8-of-16 shots and two 3-pointers on his way to 20 points, seven boards and four assists, while Amir had 12 points, five boards, a steal and a block in 29 minutes. I get a lot of "what do I do with Kleiza?" emails, but it's clear that you just have to hang onto him. And Amir is a guy worth picking up right now, as his minutes have skyrocketed to an average of 25 per game over his last three. And lastly,
Leandro Barbosa left last night's game with a left shoulder injury, leaving him day-to-day.
Kidd Struggles, But Mavs Win
Jason Kidd failed to score on Monday night and has scored a total of 11 points over his last three. While his other numbers are still pretty nice, it's tough to think of a guy who simply can't (or won't) score as a No. 1 fantasy point guard. Kidd will erase these bad memories with a huge line in the near future, but less than four ppg over the last week is a tough pill to swallow.
Jason Terry came off the bench and
DeShawn Stevenson started, but their numbers didn't change much. Keep starting Jet (17 points) and keep ignoring DS (six points).
Tyson Chandler had 12 points, 13 boards and two blocks, effectively sticking a fork in
Brendan Haywood – at least until Chandler goes down with an injury. Speaking of which,
Caron Butler left after scoring 11 points due to back spasms, leaving him iffy for his next game.
For the Celtics, who lost this game 89-87,
Rajon Rondo hit just 5-of-15 shots but finished with 11 points, six boards, 15 more dimes and five steals. It's pretty easy to forgive his inability to shoot with so much else going on. And while Rondo's feet are a concern, it looks like he's not having much trouble playing through it.
Kevin Garnett's resurgence continued with 18 points and 15 boards, while Jermaine O'Neal sat out the second half with his bum knee. He recently had an MRI on the knee and it would not be shocking if he has to go under the knife at some point this season. His knee, as usual, is a mess. Shaquille O'Neal is still out with his own knee injury, but would like to play Thursday. If the Celtics had a serviceable center, they would have won this game.
www.miamiheat.ws
Bulls Beat Nuggets By Two
Joakim Noah had 13 points, 19 rebounds and four blocks as the Bulls held off the Nuggets. You're sick of hearing it, but it's almost impossible to ignore the fact that
Carlos Boozer has averaged between 10.4 and 11.7 rebounds in each of the last four seasons. Something's got to give when Boozer is back.
Carmelo Anthony had a big night with 32 points, eight rebounds, four steals, two blocks and a three.
Shelden Williams hit just 1-of-5 shots for two points and five rebounds, and while things were looking up for him at the start of the year, the clock struck 12 and he's turned back into a pumpkin.
Arron Afflalo got off to a terrible start last night but finished up strong with 15 points on 7-of-13 shooting. Nene returned from his groin injury for eight points and seven rebounds, but sat out the fourth quarter after aggravating the injury. Not great news if you own him, but at least he played a little last night.
Memphis Shocks Suns
Zach Randolph had 23 points, 20 boards and three steals, meaning he's clearly over his tailbone injury (even though he says he's not yet 100 percent).
Darrell Arthur returned from a knee injury but had just two points and two rebounds, as his flame has finally run out.
Xavier Henry played 25 minutes and scored 14 points for the Grizz last night, so just keep an eye on him going forward.
For the losing Suns,
Steve Nash was nice again with 16 points, 11 dimes and 'just' four turnovers. The four TOs are an improvement over the massive TO numbers he was posting earlier this season. If you've been looking to move Nash, now is the time to do it.
Robin Lopez was awful again with just two points, two boards, two blocks. I have no idea what he is doing, but he's been terrible in all but one game. Centers are tough to come by, but he's clearly not helping.
Hedo Turkoglu was not great either, finishing with just eight points and almost nothing else, but it sounds like he'll continue to start for the Suns. Which is bad news for
Hakim Warrick, who had 16 points and five boards, and looks like a much better nightly play than Turk or Lopez.
Grant Hill bounced back from some struggles with 19 points and 12 rebounds, and is a guy who should be given a look in most leagues, despite the fact he's a pretty boring player to own.
Keep reading for more Recaps and News and Notes.
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Magic Take Down Hawks
Vince Carter played through a hip injury and had 19 points,
Dwight Howard added 27 & 11 and the Magic didn't even need
Jameer Nelson (ankle) to beat the Hawks by four.
Chris Duhon started at point guard for Nelson, but had just two points and four assists in the win.
Ryan Anderson started at PF again, but had just four points in 15 minutes, while
Rashard Lewis' struggles continued with four points on 2-of-7 shooting. Really? I mean, can you just drop a guy like Lewis? I don't think so, but his max contract is looking worse by the day. Nelson isn't like to play on Wednesday, so look for him on Friday against the Raptors.
www.miamiheat.ws
Josh Smith had 13 points, 13 rebounds, six assists, a steal, a block and another 3-pointer in the loss.
Spurs Hold Off Bobcats
Manu Ginobili had 26 points, five boards, three assists, two steals and five 3-pointers as the Spurs beat the Bobcats. He looks like one of the bigger fantasy steals from draft night this year and is finally healthy.
George Hill returned from a neck injury but failed to hit any of his four shots in 21 minutes, while little known
Gary Neal hit five 3-pointers for 15 points. Hill will get it going again and be a decent fantasy player as the Spurs' sixth man, but I am not expecting much from Neal.
Richard Jefferson, who has been a very popular pick up lately, struggled to hit just 3-of-6 shots for six points, but should be a solid guy to own going forward.
For Charlotte,
Gerald Wallace's quiet season continues as he hit just 2-of-11 shots for seven points, three boards, two steals and two blocks. This is a good time for a savvy owner to move in for the kill and steal him.
Boris Diaw and
Tyrus Thomas were both nice for the Bobcats, although it's impossible to figure out when Thomas is going to play well and when he's going to stink.
Stephen Jackson (4-of-13, 15 points) and
D.J. Augustin (3-of-15, 37 minutes, seven points, six boards, six assists) also struggled, so it's hard to even figure out how the Bobcats lost by just four points. I get a lot of questions about Augustin, but I'm sticking with him as long as the minutes are there. He's got to get hot eventually, right?
News and Notes
Luke Ridnour missed Monday's Wolves practice with a hamstring injury and could miss several games. With
Jonny Flynn still out and no target date set,
Sebastian Telfair looks like a sneaky add right now.
Eric Gordon has a left shoulder injury, but is expected to play tonight.
Terrence Williams will not receive further punishment for
this hit on
LeBron James Saturday – and I couldn't be happier about it. He's iffy tonight with an ab strain and should be benched until he gets hot. It will eventually happen.
Deron Williams will play tonight, but is bothered by a sore hip and back.
Jeff Green still doesn't know if he's playing Wednesday on his bum ankle, so continue to keep your fingers crossed if you own him.
Andre Iguodala doesn't sound sure about Wednesday with his Achilles injury, but Doug Collins thinks he'll play.
Carlos Delfino is expected to play tonight through a neck injury.
Antawn Jamison is also expected to be a go tonight for the Cavs, despite his bulky knee.
Brandon Rush will make his first appearance of the season off the bench for the Pacers after a five-game suspension. He could replace
Mike Dunleavy as the starter, but he's let us down too many times for me to get excited about it.
Mehmet Okur (ruptured Achilles) still doesn't have a target date and I think he's still a ways away. And as was well documented over the summer, I'm not expecting too much upon his return with
Al Jefferson and
Paul Millsap around. Oh, and I benched
Andrei Kirilenko this week, so you're welcome if you played him – I'm sure he'll go off.
Deron Williams - G - Jazz </TD></TR><TR><TD>
</TD></TR><TR><TD class=bodyCopy>The Jazz confirmed that Deron Williams (back, hip) is fully expected to play against the Heat Tuesday night.</TD></TR><TR><TD>
