MUNTRADAMUS: PLAYER UPDATE Prt.1 (Week 5)

FANTASY PLAYER UPDATE Prt.1 (Week 5)

BY: Muntradamus

(Read Part 2 Here)
(Daily Fantasy Basketball Recaps)
(Players to Sell, or Buy.  Check out the Fantasy Basketball Trade Market)
(Sleeper of the Week)

Every fantasy player that has any implications on any lineup will be listed in this article.  This is my perspective of what is currently going with every player.  If you have a question about a player, and a player only I will share my opinion on him.

For those that are new to the site, I spend hours upon hours of research and I man handle multiple high stakes fantasy basketball leagues at once.  I am here to help you win your league.

Daily Show is coming soon…

Fantasy Trade Market is going to be updated multiple times a week as well.

Coming on the first day of February is the new TIER RANKINGS for each position.

ATLANTA HAWKS

Josh Smith had a bad weekend shooting 7/24, but he still got it done everywhere else.  Smith is a top tier Forward without a doubt, and nothing should make that change.  Joe Johnson has been stepping up his game the most, with Al Horford out.  Joe is playing like the days where he was a 2^nd round fantasy pick.  The only other Hawk worth starting/having in your lineup in general is Jeff Teague.  Teague continues to rack up the assists and steals, but his minutes are going to take a minor hit when Kirck Hinrich returns.  This could be any game now.

BOSTON CELTICS

Rajon Rondo has suffered a wrist injury, and the Celtics ended up losing a game to Phoenix, and then barley edged out a game against Washington.  That speaks volumes of how important Rondo is to this team, and your fantasy roster.  Paul Pierce had an impressive showing Sunday with 34 Points, 10 Assists, 8 Rebounds.  This reminds us why we draft him so high year after year, and whoever lets him slip misses out on nights like this.  Kevin Garnett has been solid lately, but is still just a shade of the player he once was.  He actually does have trade value and is not as worthless as many other “experts” projected.  Ray Allen was a good sell high candidate suggested by Sir Fantasy Drake.  He is not nearly as consistent as he was to start the season.  Brandon Bass is not the safe fantasy start you thought he once was.

CHARLOTTE BOBCATS

This week it was Kemba Walker who was the new hot Bobcat that was on top of everyone’s fantasy radar.  He finally got the starting gig locked down, and despite only having one bad game out of four, Kemba filled up the stat sheet in a hurry.  I have always been a fan of this guy’s upside.  D.J. Augustin suffered a toe injury that will sideline him for a few days, he has lost value going into the game, but still a good fantasy player when he comes back.  Gerald Henderson continues to be maybe the most consistent offensive threat for the Bobcats, it does not hurt that he qualifies at G/F and gets the occasional block or two.  Byron Mullens now has some serious competition as Bismack Biyombo who put up (4 Blocks) twice in one week, once against Dwight Howard.  Biyombo should be added in all deep leagues as this guy is the next coming of, I’ll give you a clue…Dikembe.  Biyombo’s value will be higher a month from now than what it is today.  Mullens owners can hope he gets moved to PF.  While Tyrus Thomas and DJ White owners are starting to think that they’re minutes are going to get slashed.  Boris Diaw, are you still worth talking about?

CHICAGO BULLS

A week without Derrick Rose showed the Bulls colors.  Luol Deng was trying to carry the team and scored around 20 Points consistently, I personally would have liked to see him be more dominant to prove his value.  Carlos Boozer played a lot better this week than he has in the past and is now putting up high-end double-doubles pretty consistently.  Joakim Noah found his first injury, left ankle sprain.  CJ Watson was on his way to being a great free agent pickup before Mike James came out of nowhere to add 10 Assists, he also has to deal with John Lucas coming back from his injury as well, and did I mention its Derrick Rose’s job.  Rip Hamilton does nothing but score, and it will be interesting to see the Bulls lineup now that they know they have all these capable PGs.  Rip has a bad situation looking straight into his face mask.

CLEVELAND CAVALIERS

Kyrie Irving definitely had a down week compared to last.  It was more of the Cavs looking like last year’s Cavs and not playing competitively in games.  Kyrie still has tremendous upside and is a good fantasy start.  Antwan Jamison had a down week for the most part, as did all Cavs except for Tristan Thompson.  Jamison owners do have a little to worry about, but it seems more than likely that Omri Casspi will be the one who really suffers.  Ramon Sessions has lost his value, and is not a bad Free Agent snag if you want to see what direction the Cavs go.  He could definitely see more time at the 2 spot for Anthony Parker. Anderson Varejao is struggling to score, but he will find his way to around 10 rebounds a game.

DALLAS MAVERICKS

Dirk Nowitzki has officially been shut down until next Sunday.  That opens up the door for the already hot Shawn Marion who had a resurgent week seeing 30+ minutes a game, every game.  It also opens up the door for Mr. Khloe Kardashain, Lamar Odom.  Odom had a strong showing in his first start of the season, and those starts will continue all week as Dirk figures out how to get in game shape again.  Jason Kidd grabbed some of his old fantasy value back with a couple games of 10 Assists or more, he should not be on any waiver wire.  Jason Terry continues to get a couple 3PTM per game, but really has to battle Delonte West who is doing just well enough to eat up a big chunk JT’s minutes.

DENVER NUGGETS

Ty Lawson’s value took a hit this week when Andre Miller started to outperform Lawson consistently this week.  Andre Miller had a 28 Point, 10 Rebound, 8 Assist game where the Nuggets beat the 76ers in Philly in OT.  Then this weekend, Miller started alongside Lawson and had more assists, more shot attempts, and more points.  Lawson owners do not sell for something too small, but be aware that his value is in danger.  Danilo Gallinari has huge fantasy potential any night, and when he starts to be more consistent he will enter the top tier of Forwards.  37 Points, 11 Rebounds against the Knicks Saturday is no fluke for Danilo.  Al Harrington is starting to be a lot more consistent than he already was this season.  Harrington is a solid fantasy start especially when he is seeing 30+ minutes a night.  Nene Hilario is a solid big man who should range anywhere from 20+ Points-10+ rebounds to 12+ Points-8+ Rebounds.  A very high upside double-double type player.  Don’t look now but Timofey Mozgov is not a terrible option for the most desperate of owners who need a center.  Who am I kidding, Saturday was a fluke and although he starts, he’s lucky to see 20+ minutes a game.

DETROIT PISTONS

Brandon Knight has stuck as the consistent fantasy guard to own of the trio that also consists of Ben Gordon and Rodney Stuckey.  Knight is the one that is guaranteed 30+ minutes a night, while Stuckey is the probably the best performer of the three, usually comes off the bench but that may change after his 28 Point spot start for Ben Gordon.  Gordon is the best for 3’s, and the occasional high scoring game, but you can’t expect much more than that.  Greg Monroe is not as dominant as he once was this season, but the double-doubles are coming frequently and with ease for the 2^nd year center out of Georgetown who only has upside.  Tayshaun Prince is still playing well, but Austin Daye is patiently waiting to take over his gig when this hot streak ends.  Jonas Jerebko lost his value/starting gig, to Ben Wallace.  Both players have no reason to be on your roster.

GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS

Stephen Curry returned from the ankle injury, and everything seemed like it was a year ago for the Warriors.  Dorrell Wright knocked down 4 3PTM.  Monta Ellis scored 25 Points, and handed out 6 dimes.  While David Lee got a nice double-double.  The reality is this team is a lot more stacked than they thought.  Nate Robinson will continue to be a punch off the bench, which will allow Stephen Curry to ease back into 35+ minutes a game.  Brandon Rush and Klay Thompson remain threats to Dorrell Wright’s minutes, and if Wright starts to slump again, his value will drop quickly.  Good time to sell high, again.  David Lee will not see the 20+ point games as frequently, but the double-doubles will continue.

HOUSTON ROCKETS

The Rockets have 4 fantasy guys you can count on, starting with Jason Kidd 2.0 aka Kyle Lowry.  Lowry has really taken his game to the next level and every night will get you some 3’s, a steal, and high-end rebound/assist numbers.  He will be a vital part of many fantasy championship teams this year.  Kevin Martin is finally starting to score 20+ points a game, we all saw this coming eventually and the time has finally come.  He gets you steals, 3PTMs, and shoots one of the best fantasy %’s with all the times he goes to the line.  Samuel Dalembert is controlling the paint for Houston and is by far their most important player.  The blocks and rebounds are coming with ease, and surprisingly his offensive game is very relevant as he has scored less than 12 Points only once in the past 6 games (two games of 20+).  Luis Scola still has upside to score around 20 Points a game, but his rebounds have really been a problem all season.  Eventually he will get it all together.

INDIANA PACERS

Roy Hibbert has been a great consistent fantasy center, and it was encouraging to see him do so well against Andrew Bynum, (19 Points, 8 rebounds) while playing with a broken nose.  Danny Granger has been hot and cold all season, some owners may grow tired of it and you can get him for a marginal player that is worse.  Maybe even David Lee.  Darren Collison has a stranglehold of the starting PG job fending off George Hill.  David West has also pulled far away from Tyler Hansbrough who is now lucky to get 20+ minutes a game.  West is starting to look more comfortable out there, and it would not be shocking to see his numbers go up soon.  Paul George continues to be a mediocre guard who will hover around 10+ points a game.

LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS

Chauncey Billups reminded us of his vintage Pistons days.  Billups value should stay high when CP3 returns from a bad hamstring.  DeAndre Jordan had his breakout game this week, (19 Point, 9 Rebound, 5 Blocks) and should only be more consistent as a fantasy player as the season continues.  Blake Griffin continues to put up high end double-doubles, and hold his 1^st round fantasy value.  It would be nice if he could shoot better from the free throw line at 51%.  Caron Butler had an up and down week, but ended it nicely with 15 Points in 24 Minutes returning from a minor injury. Caron should be heading in the right direction as we go into week 5.  Mo Williams had a nice week, but he will have trouble fighting CP3, and Billups for minutes once the Clippers are healthy.