Thursday 1/3/2008

Only 3 games on the slate on Thursday night, 2 of which on TNT, including a double OT thriller in Chicago.

Ben Gordon and Brandon Roy showed crazy clutch performances down the stretch as the game was within 4 points for the entire 4th quarter and overtimes until the blazers finally won 115-109. Brandon Roy put up 25 pts, 6 rebs, 11 asts, 2 steals and a block with a 3 and 10-11 free throws. Needless to say, a sick fantasy performance. The blazer bench helped put it away with strong performances from Jarrett Jack (17 pts, 4 rebs, 5 asts) and Travis Outlaw (21 pts, 5 rebs). If either of these bench players are on the waiver wire in your leagues and you need some scoring, these guys can help from time to time. Outlaw on his potential down the line is a good option, while Jack will be a backup PG the rest of the way it seems. Jack has been better off the bench, however. On the bulls side, Gordon did all he could to try and get a W, but his 32 pts weren't enough. Joe Smith had a monster night also with 31 pts and 11 rebs. Smith might not be available in leagues anymore, but if he is, he makes a great pickup as he's been hot for the last few games. Hinrich is still struggling from the field, but I'd still keep him since the bulls are turning it around and I believe Kirk will as well. If you can get value for him, then obviously deal him, but with his struggles there's no reason to make a bad deal.

Spurs 77, Nuggets 80
This game was a Camby fest, as he put up 18 rebs and 4 blocks. He's staying healthy and producing like crazy. I didn't think he could put up another healthy season, but he's putting up numbers like the reigning DPOY - Keep riding him. Kenyon Martin put up a solid 7 blocks as well, but not much else, while the backup Nene had a relatively quiet night. If you can still get Nene off waivers, I would take a flyer since I don't believe in K-Mart's ability to remain healthy either. On the spurs side, Manu and Brent Barry remain sidelined while Michael Finley continues to put up great numbers (18 pts, 8 rebs with 3 threes tonight) in their absence. If you don't already have Finley, don't bother looking him up unless you need a spot start for the rest of the week, as Manu and/or Brent are quickly getting better, maybe as soon as next week. Tony Parker got blocked 7 times in this game, but still managed 20 pts, 9 asts on 8-19 shooting. Duncan struggled in this game, which is a big reason for the spurs' struggles, but his bad games are scarce so keep him in there.

I made a pickup in private league #1 during the PHX/SEA game, in which I picked up Jeff Green for Delonte West. West is a bench player on a crowded backcourt team, while Green has found himself a starting SF position on Seattle. Green has been good in his first couple of starts as well so go grab him if still available. He's a guy who can put up numbers in every category with no big weakness that will hurt you. As for the SEA guards, I personally wouldn't touch any of them. They've all been inconsistent during their careers. West is the best all-around player out of all of them, but he's coming off the bench with inconsistent minutes. Watching this game, Wilcox was injured in the first half (his finger I believe) and does not appear to be returning. He had been going through some injury issues before this incident anyways. I'm not quite sure what I'm going to do with him yet, at least until something comes out about his injury.

Phoenix looks to be struggling pretty bad with their shot in the early going, but being Phoenix, they always have an opportunity to make a comeback. At halftime, Watson has 11 pts, 5 asts, West is 0-2 and Ridnour hasn't gotten onto the floor...What do I know? Phoenix is only down 45-40. The Sonics are shooting 32.7% and the Suns 37.5%, but Sonics are far out-rebounding the Suns. It looks as though Wally Szczerbiak and Damien Wilkins will hurt most by Jeff Green's move to the starting lineup. Time to try and trade away or just plain drop these guys if you've got them. Wally only contributes scoring on a good night and Wilkins has been awful as of late. The Sonics have been very inconsistent, mostly due to their youth so with both teams struggling shooting, the Suns will probably pull this one out. It's what the great teams do.