Hello again. Hopefully you made it through Monday's Dose. It was a big one and I'm curious if you all prefer a quick-hit version, or a longer column with more "stuff" and analysis. The thought is that you might not want to read the super long posts, and with the attention span/time crunch of the average user, quick hits are more effective than in-depth breakdowns. Let me know your thoughts, although I'm not ready to post a poll on that one just yet. Here's the breakdown from Monday's news and games.
Stephon Marbury met with Donnie Walsh for just 15 minutes, while his lawyer lasted for 35 minutes. As I suggested in one of yesterday's blurbs before the decision came down, Walsh simply sent Marbury home, with pay, to stay away from the team. No practice, no games, no nothing. I don't think he even has a parking pass anymore. This is not surprising to me, althoug! h the New York Post's Marc Berman is not happy about it. Walsh didn't want to buy him out and by not letting Marbury go play for someone else, it does serve as some form of punishment - albeit an expensive one. I have advised against holding Marbury all along. Not to say I told you so, but.
Tracy McGrady's meeting with the real Dr. A went about as I expected and he's going to be shut down for "at least a week." And when he comes back, it sounds like his minutes will be monitored closely. Hopefully you moved T-Mac before he was shut down, as it will be very tough to do so now. But maybe a month from today he'll be back in full effect. We'll see. Meanwhile, Luther Head sure looks like a nice pickup right now, as he should take up a bulk of his minutes. Shane Battie r is also a decent option while T-Mac is out.
Injury Updates
Nate Robinson is doubtful for tonight vs. Portland, while Chris Duhon is probable. Both guys spent Monday's practice on stationary bikes and it would be surprising to see Nate go tonight.
Martell Webster is getting close to a return, but he's going to be out of shape and has almost no shot at joining the starting lineup any time soon. Portland's pretty deep, so Webster will struggle to offer much value in the near future. Let's just say I'm not rushing out to pick him up. However, his return will likely hurt Rud! y Fernandez at some point. Speaking of Rudy, I think he'll be a good play this week vs. the Knicks tonight and Washington on Wednesday. They finish up at Utah and at Boston, so bench him in those if you can.
Andrei Kirilenko (ankle) and Carlos Boozer (quad) both traveled with the team to Sacramento, but both players are listed as doubtful for tonight. It would be surprising to see them play. Deron Williams, on the other hand, says he wants to play in all four games this week, despite a pair of back-to-backs. Hopefully you played him.
Josh Howard (ankle) practiced on Monday and it sound! s like he'll play tonight against the Clippers, but it all depends on how the ankle responds this morning.
Carmelo Anthony says he'll try to play through his elbow injury against Toronto tonight, so feel free to throw him in your lineup if you're feeling lucky. He took Monday off, which probably helped.
Josh Smith is set to return to action Wednesday at home vs. Memphis. I will be there, and am pretty fired up about his return.
John Salmons (thigh) and Kevin Martin (ankle) are game-time decisions tonight vs. the Jazz. Even if they play, they're both going to come off the bench. More on that later.
Brent Barry will miss a couple weeks with a tear in his calf. Hopefully this has no impact in your league.
Marcus Camby (ankle) and Eric Gordon (hamstring) both skipped most of Monday's practice and are game-time decisions for Tuesday @ Dallas. My guess is they play, but I didn't start Gordon this week. He's going to be inconsistent even when he's fully healthy. Camby should have been started in most leagues, but now we just have to hope he plays tonight.
Steve Nash and Shaquille O'Neal sat out Monday's practice for rest, but should be fine to play on Wednesday vs. New Orleans.
Don Nelson spoke at length about Monta Ellis on Monday, and here's what he said, courtesy of the Contra Costa Times.
"Monta, he's the wild card," Nelson said. "I really don't know. I don't know when he's coming back. I don't know how long he's going to take. ... But once he gets on the court, that doesn't mean he's going to be Monta of a year ago. It's still probably going to be a month or more before he can get up to speed. So that's another setback, really, for the team. Not necessarily a positive as he comes along. It's another adjustment for our team."
Take that for what it's worth, but I'm not rushing out to pick up Ellis any time soon.
Sticky Situations
Tayshaun Prince was benched on Sunday, while Allen Iverson isn't exactly clicking with new coach Michael Curry. Neither guy is too happy with his role right now, but Curry doesn't seem to care. Rodney Stuckey could be the big beneficiary here, so consider picking him up (again).
Amare Stoudemire is already talking about becoming the big dog in 2010 as the Suns appear to be very unhappy working for Terry Porter. Amare and Steve Nash are underperforming and things might get worse before they get better. Amare's technical-fueled ejection likely cost the Suns a win on Sunday, which doesn't help matters. Nash an! d Amare remain interesting buy-low guys, but there's no guarantee they ever get it going under Porter.
The Sixers are an absolute mess. Samuel Dalembert is having his minutes yanked around by Mo Cheeks. Cheeks says it's a matter of foul trouble, but Sammy's not buying it. I still think he'll come around, but he should be on benches until he figures it out. Elton Brand's shooting isn't great, but at least he's producing, while Andre Iguodala simply hasn't figured out how to co-exist with Elton Brand. Maybe he will, or maybe he won't.
The Kings will be using a starting five of Beno Udrih, Bobby Jackson, Francisco Garcia, Spencer Hawes and Brad Miller on ! Tuesday. That means that Salmons and Martin (if they play), Mikki Moore and Jason Thompson will all come off the bench. This is fantastic news for Hawes, who has a real chance of sticking in the starting five the rest of the way, while I can't imagine Martin and Salmons not starting when healthy. Keep an eye on this situation tonight and act accordingly. I would not do anything drastic with Martin or Salmons based on this info, but keep your fingers crossed that they return to the starting unit when healthy. And if Hawes is available in your league, grab him right now. Moore didn't have much value to begin with, and may not start another game this season.
Monday's Action
Wolves lose to Bobcats
With Corey Brewer lost for the season with a torn ACL, look for Ryan Gomes to see a big boost. He was awesome on Mon day, going for 16 points, six boards, two blocks and four threes, and should be added in most leagues. Rashad McCants didn't do much last night, but he will also see a boost in value with the loss of Brewer. Gomes and McCants are the Pickups of the Day in the Season Pass on Tuesday.
Utah's C.J. Miles was Monday's Pickups of the Day, and I'm excited to see what he does tonight and in his four-game week.
Al Jefferson had a career-high six blocks, but managed just eight points and nine boards! while being dominated by Emeka Okafor. Randy Foye and Mike Miller (19 points, 10 boards, five assists, five treys) also played very well in another loss, this time @ Charlotte.
The Cats were led by Jason Richardson's 25 points and three 3-pointers, but also got 14 points and 14 assists from Raymond Felton, and 24 points, 10 boards and five blocks from Okafor in his best line of the season. Okafor is heating up an! d even hit all six free throws last night.
Despite having Michael Jordan in the house, there couldn't have been more than 5,000 people at the Bobcats game last night. My wife asked me why I was watching a college game when she saw all the empty seats. Ouch.
Celtics Romp Over Magic
The Celtics rolled to another easy win on Monday, waxing the Magic. Rajon Rondo had 16 points and 12 assists, which is nice. The "should I drop Rondo" emails have thankfully stopped now. Kendrick Perkins had 13 boards and a block, and looks like a decent play in deep leagues right now. Tony Allen sprained an ankle, but played through it after leaving briefly. Kevin Garnett had just 15 points, nine boards, one assist, zero steals and zero blocks. He's very frustrating to own right now. 15 & 8 is fine if he goes 5-2-2 to go along with it. But 2-1-1 is just unacceptable. Owners better get used to it as long as the Celtics continue to go unchallenged.
Rashard Lewis hit two threes and 11-of-23 shots for a season-high 30 points in the loss.
Heat Beat Warriors in OT
Dwyane Wade, Shawn Marion, Udonis Haslem, Mario Chalmers and Michael Beasley were all solid in Monday's win, but take it with a grain of salt. I could pick up four of you and we could score points against the Warriors. Wade is playing better than anyone in the league and you're probably winning your league if you own him. Right?
Anthony Morrow was benched on Monday (cut him right now), while Kelenna Azubuike sat out with a foot injury. There was no mention of that injury until game time, so hopefully you didn't get stuck with him in your lineup. Stephen Jackson surprisingly played a ton of minutes despite his hand injury. He didn't shoot well (2-of-11) ! or score (8 points), but did hand out 11 dimes. I benched him, but don't feel too bad given the lack of stats outside of assists. Corey Maggette scored 29 and hit 17-of-18 free throws, but didn't do much else. He tweaked an ankle in overtime, but did return to finish the game. I suspect he'll be fine, but it could swell up on him in the morning.
Brandan Wright started in place of Azubuike and had 15 points, four boards and two blocks, but will be very inconsistent for Nellie. Jamal Crawford had 40 points and four threes, hitting 11-of-22 shots and 14-of-16 free throws in his home debut. Obviously, he's going to be fine under Nellie, as he's apparently "one of his dudes."
Andris! Biedrins had most of his 17 points, 15 boards, two steals and a b lock in the second half, but he appears to be headed for some inconsistency as well. I'm advising to sell high after this line, but only if you have other options at center. He's going to have some huge games going forward, but there will also be nights when Nellie goes away from him. C.J. Watson also played well, but got most of his minutes off the bench in the second half, finishing with eight points, four boards, three assists and four steals. He's probably worth owning, but good luck in figuring out when to play him.
