Fantasy related but good info......
Are You There, CP3?
Tuesday night was a bit strange, as there were several more injuries, a few strong performances by superstars, and a bunch of duds everywhere else. The thing to keep in mind is that it was just one night, but telling the owners of Chris Paul to remain calm is probably easier said than done. And while you can follow me on Twitter by clicking here, perhaps more importantly, as of yesterday, Charlie Sheen is now on Twitter. #Winning! And don't forget about the Rotoworld Hoops Feed.
I'll be Season Pass Live Chatting today at 4, so come join the fun.
Chris Paul, Are You Out There?
Paul's been playing more like vintage Haywood Workman lately. Yes, the referee used to share his talents with the Indiana Pacers, and it wasn't always pretty. Paul has scored eight or less points in three of his last five games (seven last night) and hasn't hit 50 percent of his shots in 10 straight. And while my esteemed colleague @aaronbruski will point to Paul's knee as the problem, I'm not so sure. The once hot Hornets are now the No. 6 seed in the West, just a game ahead of Memphis and Portland, with Phoenix and Utah trailing close behind. While I'm certainly not suggesting that Paul is intentionally tanking so that he can blame management for not giving him help after missing the playoffs, it sure would be a convenient way to help him force his way to the big apple to play with his version of the Super Friends. Whether it's his knee, his attitude or simply an innocent slump, this has not been a fun three weeks for his owners. And while I'm not brave enough to tell anyone to bench CP3, it would be very tempting if you have some real nice back ups sitting in the garage. Maybe he'll get it turned around in time for tonight's game at, conveniently enough, New York.
Spurs – Wha' Happened?
Speaking of vintage Pacers, the Spurs last night looked a lot like the Pacers did before Reggie Miller got there in the late eighties, as none of the five starters, including Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and hot pickup George Hill, scored in double figures. In fact, the only player on the team who did is Gary Neal, who was just returning from a concussion. If you own any of the aforementioned players, do not panic. Especially on Hill and Manu, who are about to go off in the absence of Tony Parker. DeJuan Blair's minutes were trashed again last night by Gregg Popovich, but that doesn't mean he won't go off in his next game. And if you want to pick up Neal, it's a good idea – especially once the Spurs get hot again, wrap up the West and then start taking it easy on Duncan and Manu.
Motown Madness
So Richard Hamilton is back and Rodney Stuckey looked like a beast last night for the troubled Pistons, who are starting from scratch with their rotation. Rip came off the bench and picked up right where he left off last time we saw him – hitting just 4-of-17 shots in another loss. Pick him up if you want, as he's out of the doghouse and back in the rotation, but I'm going to avoid him, as I just don't trust him. Stuckey is must-own again, as is Greg Monroe, while Austin Daye and Ben Gordon were in the starting lineup, but relatively quiet. Charlie Villanueva was decent off the bench, but you're better off going with one of the aforementioned players instead. Will Bynum appears to be a big loser now that the Pistons and John Kuester are making a fresh start, playing just 16 minutes, and while Tracy McGrady didn't play last night, I'm hearing rumblings that he could tonight against Minnesota. Tayshaun Prince was out again with his back injury, and while it's tough to tell if he's really injured or not, I think he is, and that he'll play when healthy again (probably off the bench).
Benched
Christian Eyenga has been benched for Alonzo Gee in Cleveland, while Kirk Hinrich will return to action tonight, putting Jeff Teague on the Hawks bench. Get Hinrich back in your lineup, and take a look at Gee's line tonight. And keep a close eye on Samardo Samuels, who will start in place of Antawn Jamison, whose season is over due to a broken finger.
Tuesday's Roundup
Jose Calderon, Jason Kidd and Jason Terry went bananas last night, Marc Gasol and Hedo Turkoglu were ejected early with technicals, while Dorell Wright, Jason Richardson, Willie Green, Emeka Okafor, Kevin Love (2-of-10) and Brandon Roy all stunk up the gym. We did see surprisingly nice performances from Ryan Anderson, Reggie Williams, Tony Allen, Darrell Arthur, Carlos Delfino, Wesley Johnson, Kyle Lowry, Luis Scola and Nicolas Batum. I'd recommend ignoring Williams, Allen and Arthur from this last list of guys, but Anderson, Delfino and Batum might be worth grabbing. And Wes Johnson suddenly looks like a must-own in Minnesota.
Keep reading for the Injury Breakdown.
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Injury Fest 2011
And now that that's out of the way, let's get to the meat and potatoes and take a look at the injury landscape, which is not pretty right now.
Josh Smith has been ruled out for tonight's game with his sprained knee, and will be day-to-day. This news pretty much ruins my week against Rick Kamla in League Freak, as I'm going up against Dwight Howard and Amare Stoudemire, while Kevin Love's line wasn't much help last night, either. As far as who is going to fill in for Smith? Marvin Williams should see a boost, Al Horford should have a big night, and Zaza Pachulia could have 10 boards. But when Smith's back up is listed as Josh Powell on the depth chart, you can pretty much count on a bunch of guys chipping in, instead of one pure beneficiary. Get well soon, Smoove.
Chauncey Billups suffered a bruised left thigh late in last night's game and It would be surprising if he plays tonight against Chris Paul and the Hornets. Of course, that is a marquee matchup, but he is clearly hurting. That means more cowbell – I mean Toney Douglas – as well as Anthony Carter. I'm not sure either is worth a pick-and-play, but if I had to pick one, I'd go with T.D.
Tyson Chandler went down with a sprained ankle last night and already sounds doubtful for Friday. This could be a severe injury, meaning Brendan Haywood could be worth grabbing. But I need to see a new report out of Dallas before telling you to do so.
Baron Davis is expected to make his Cavs' debut on Friday night, meaning we won't see him tonight. As for what to expect when it happens? All I really know is that if he's playing, it's going to limit what Ramon Sessions can do. But the chances of Baron staying healthy the rest of the way are almost zero, in my opinion.
Dorell Wright suffered a sprained ankle last night but played through it. His line wasn't a good one for GSW, but at least he didn't shut it down for the night. They've got a quick turnaround at Washington tonight, making Wright a little shaky. Hopefully he's in the starting lineup.
Eric Gordon is expected back for the Clippers tonight, while Mo Williams is also expected to play despite a sprained ankle. This is not the news Randy Foye owners were looking for, but I still wouldn't cut him given the seriousness of Gordon's injury and the mental state of Williams this season.
Darko Milicic will miss tonight's game at Detroit due to personal reasons. I'm sure there will be a lot of jokes made at Darko!'s expense since he was drafted by the Pistons, but I just hope nothing serious is going on. Consider him day-to-day and look for Nikola Pekovic to get the start tonight.
Luc Richard Mbah a Moute was a late scratch last night with the flu, which was pretty bad news for many owners. Andrew Bogut is out for a week and Ersan Ilyasova isn't playing either, making Mbah a Moute a popular pick-and-play. And if you made that move (sorry, Brian), it blew up in your face. The Bucks are off until Friday, which is probably for the best for everyone involved.
Deron Williams is now iffy for Friday's game with a sore left hand to go along with his balky right wrist. They're in London, but he'll hopefully have enough time to recover before the game. Keep an eye out for updates.
Gilbert Arenas, who finally showed signs of life in his previous game, missed last night and is now day-to-day. He's been pretty useless this season and it's anyone's guess if he'll ever return to form.
Brandon Roy played last night, finishing with four points in 21 minutes. He'll sit out tonight, as he's still not cleared to play in back-to-backs, and I hope you have a supply of Tylenol if you still own him.
Rudy Fernandez was out with the flu last night and remains questionable for tonight. It's probably best to leave him benched until you see him play again.
