Category: NBA

Rajon Rondo is Not Playing Up to His Potential

Rajon Rondo started the year off hot, putting up ridiculous assist numbers, but he’s struggled a lot recently and kills you in a lot of fantasy categories.

Analysis: Rondo was so terrific early in the season that any of his misgivings were completely offset by how good he was at everything else. Now with Rondo playing poorly, and not even putting up the assist or steal numbers we’ve grown accustomed to, his weaknesses are just that much more glaring. On the season Rondo is shooting 49% from the field, which is great for a point guard, but in his last 10 games Rondo has only shot 36% from the field. When you combine that with his notoriously bad FT% you have a player that is absolutely killing your percentage categories. Rondo is averaging a little over 8 assists a game, which is a respectable number for most guards, but not Rondo. I believe that given his talent, and the talent on his roster their is no reason for him not to average over 12 assists a game. He’s averaging close to that with 11.5 assists per game on the season. Rondo’s small points totals are also down in this recent stretch, going from 13 a game on the season to 7 a game in his last 10.

Projection: Rondo is not helping your fantasy team right now. Consider benching him until he gets back in the groove. It seems like losing Perkins had more of an effect on Rondo than anyone could have anticipated. If Rondo isn’t dishing out crazy assist numbers and stealing balls left, right, and center, than he is a lousy fantasy option.

Jimmer Mania! But Will it Translate to the NBA?

If you’re like much of North America then March Madness has completely taken over your household and you can’t help but get excited about BYU’s own Jimmer Fredette. The big question is whether or not Jimmer can translate any of this collegiate success into NBA fantasy production.

Analysis: As far as college players go, WOW, is Jimmer ever exciting to watch. I just finished watching the BYU versus Gonzaga game and Jimmer played superb. Urban Dictionary has even put up a definition for a Jimmer: “one who is in range as soon as he steps off the bus.” This couldn’t be more true as he regularly knocks down shots from almost the half court range. If anybody else was jacking up those kinds of shots they would immediately find themselves riding the pine, but not Jimmer. Jimmer is averaged 29 points per game this season, and has scored over 30 in both of his NCAA tournament games. Before we get too excited we have to check our expectations with a dose of reality. Great college numbers do not necessarily translate into NBA success, see Adam Morrison. Morrison averaged only a point less than Jimmer in his best season, and he did it in his third year (as opposed to Jimmer doing it in his fourth year). Morrison also put up far better percentages from both 3 point range and Field goal range. However I want to end any possible Morrison comparisons now, because their college games are quite different. Morrison had a significant height advantage in college, at his position, and was able to easily get his shots off. In the NBA this was not the case and he was never able to find his stroke. Jimmer has no such height advantage and thus relies more on craftiness to hit his shots. Jimmer will not be the next Adam Morrison.

Projection: At the end of the day Jimmer is a relatively unathletic white kid, and we should temper our NBA expectations of him accordingly. He’s not going to average 20 a game in the NBA, but he’s got the know how to be a respectable player right away. Another plus for Jimmer in the NBA is that he’s a Mormon and will have a tougher time getting into trouble.

Patrick Patterson- Deep League Help

Houston power forward Patrick Patterson may only be owned in 1% of fantasy leagues nationwide but his fantasy lines recently suggest otherwise.

Analysis: Patrick Patterson has averaged 15 points with 11 boards in his last two games as well as averaging 30 minutes per game over his last five contests. To put it simply, Patterson is evolving into a double-double big man since his minutes have essentially doubled with the injury to Luis Scola. He is shooting fifty-five percent from the floor on the year and is averaging over a block and a steal per game over his last seven games. He doesn’t get to the stripe enough to be a factor there and he only hurts you in assists and threes but from a power forward, who cares? Yes, Luis Scola will return soon, however, Patterson is playing so well the Rockets cannot afford not to play the hot hand. Houston stands two games back of Memphis in the loss column for the eight seed in the west and giving Patterson at least twenty minutes a game down the stretch seems to be in order.

Projection: Even with 22-24 minutes a game Patterson is good for 7 boards, a block, a steal and a great field goal percentage- exactly what a lot of fantasy squads in deeper leagues need.

Ben Gordon Isn’t Getting It Done

Ben Gordon has been relegated to coming off of the bench for the Pistons the last few games and his performance has been the same as when he was starting- completely disappointing.

Analysis: Fantasy owners love Ben Gordon for three reasons- threes, points and free throw percentage. At this moment he’s only a one category player with his threes. Gordon is averaging just 8 PPG with just two free throw attemtps in his last five contests. He’s also only averaging 19 minutes on the floor per game in that span and with the lack of talent in Detroit it has become impossible for him to get off like he used to with the Bulls a few years ago. The only thing he’s fantasy relevant with is the three ball. He’s buried double digit threes in three of his last four games and it appears his long range shooting is the only thing he has left to offer fantasy owners. You just cannot have shooting guards on your fantasy squad that cannot crack 10 PPG or cannot get to the stripe with frequency.

Projection: It’s time to dump Gordon as he shows no signs of multi category success the rest of the season. Consider Denver’s J.R. Smith if you are looking for a shooting guard getting some minutes who can contribute in threes and points.

All Aboard the Hansbrough Bus

Tyler Hansbrough has put up a solid few games recently and is definitely worthy of fantasy discussion.

Analysis: Tyler Hansbrough’s regular season statistics have been pretty underwhelming, that is, until recently. Hanbrough is averaging a mediocre, 10 points, 5 boards, and a 1/2 steal a game this season. Plus he’s only shooting 46% from the floor, which is quite poor for a power forward. However in his last week of games Hansbrough is averaging 24 points 8 boards, and 2 steals a game. While shooting an astonishing 59% from the field. The points and FG% are fantastic, but it is the steals that can really help you. 2 steals from the power forward position is a really nice feature of owning Hansbrough. In his last 5 games Hansbrough has not dipped below 20 points, and tonight he went off for 30.In the previous month of February Hansbrough only hit the 20 point plateau once.

Projection: Hansbrough is on fire right now and in the vast majority of leagues you are not going to find a better waiver wire option than him. The question remains as to whether or not he can keep this streak alive. One worrisome note is that 4 out of his recent games have come against sub-par defensive teams (New York twice, Toronto, and Minnesota) and his next two games are against Boston and Chicago. If he can continue to put up great numbers against 2 of the best teams in the East then we’ll know his streak is not a fluke.