Dose: Brook Lopez Shutdown - 03/06/2012
BY Steve Alexander Monday was filled with plenty of surprises and the injury list is growing again. Here’s a look at the big injury news, along with the game news that could impact your fantasy leagues. Injury Report Brook Lopez, the Nets and his fantasy owners got bad news on Monday when it was announced he’ll be out for three weeks with a severely sprained ankle, and that ankle is connected to the same foot that shut him down for most of the season. As I posted on Twitter on Monday, he’ll miss four games per week in Weeks 11, 12 and 13, and could return for the season’s final four full weeks. And unfortunately, the Nets go 4-4-3-3 down the stretch. Lopez is not guaranteed to return at all, as the Nets’ season is basically over, and if we don’t see him again, he’ll finish the season with a grand total of 18 rebounds in five games. Ouch. As for this affecting a trade for Dwight Howard, as long as he truly just ! has a sprained ankle, I doubt it would be enough to stop a trade from going down if both teams were motivated to make it happen. And yes, the absence of Lopez should mean good things for Kris Humphries and MarShon Brooks. Anderson Varejao (wrist) will be evaluated again later this week and it sounds like he could return at some point next week. If you want to drop Lopez for Varejao, it might make sense. Cleveland’s season ends with a healthy 4-4-4-5-4 weekly schedule. Andrea Bargnani is getting closer to returning from a calf injury, but there’s still no target date available. Maybe he’ll play for the Raptors this weekend, but I wouldn’t count on it. Amir Johnson got a DNP on Monday due to a sore knee. He’s day-to-day, but should also take a hit once Bargnani is back. Joe Johnson could be out for the Hawks until Sunday as he deals with knee tendinitis. I benched him in my weekly leagues, and am glad I did so. Kirk Hinrich is the guy with the best chance to see a boost in his absence. Zach Randolph (knee) went through a full-contact Grizzlies practice on Monday, so it makes sense that he plays at some point this week. Stay tuned. Tyson Chandler says he will play through his wrist injury the rest of the way for the Knicks, as long as he can handle the pain. Keep him in your lineup. Nikola Pekovic was a surprise scratch for the Wolves on Monday due to a sore foot, and the news hit late enough that most of us (me included) had him locked into lineups. He’s day-to-day and we can only hope he shows up on Wednesday against Portland. Darko Milicic started in his place and actually played pretty well, but Pekovic’s injury would have to take a wild downturn for me to consider grabbing Darko. Brendan Haywood, who was in a couple lineups of mine with five games this week, left on the first play of Monday’s game and didn’t return due to a sprained left ankle. He could miss a couple games and Ian Mahinmi now becomes the man in the middle, as he had 13 points, five boards, two steals and a block or the Mavericks. Vince Carter failed to score in just 10 minutes, while Roddy Beaubois had nine points and a solid stat line in 21 minutes. So far, the five-game week for the Mavs has been more curse than blessing. Devin Harris left Monday’s game with a sprained right knee and will be re-evaluated by the Jazz on Tuesday. Earl Watson replaced him, but finished with just five points and one assist in 23 minutes. Harris has been playing well, but tonight’s injury could end up being quite a setback. Richard Hamilton left early with a shoulder injury and simply can’t stay healthy for Chicago. He’s now questionable, at best, for Wednesday. Game Headlines - Good News Kevin Love blew up again for the Wolves with 39 points, 17 rebounds and five 3-pointers, and became the first NBA player in history to go for at least 35 points, 10 rebounds and five 3-pointers in back-to-back games. In case you missed it, he had 42 points, 10 boards and five 3-pointers on Saturday. If there was one guy I was wrong about this year, it was Love. Sure, I thought he’d have a nice season, but didn’t think he’d completely blow up and make last year’s monster season an afterthought. Derrick Williams was also nice on Monday with 15 points, nine boards and three 3-pointers, but is just too inconsistent to buy-in on fully right now. Stephen Curry returned from a foot injury that caused him to miss four games, but played just nine minutes off the bench. He hit 5-of-7 shots and two 3-pointers for 12 points, and while this game wasn’t great, I imagine he’ll be back in the starting lineup Wednesday against Memphis. I’m putting him back into lineups. Danilo Gallinari quietly returned from his sprained ankle for the Nuggets, who dominated Monday’s news with injury returns and monster lines. Gallinari had just four points and a 3-pointer in 18 minutes, but the story is that he played. He should be back to form by next week. Nene also returned from his calf injury and had six points, four boards, a steal and two blocks in 16 minutes. Like Gallinari, it might take him a few games to get back in a groove, but at least he’s playing again. Arron Afflalo blew up for a career-high 32 points with two steals and four 3-pointers on 9-of-20 shooting. It only took a couple months, but Afflalo finally delivered on all the hype he got in the offseason. Ty Lawson’s strong run continued, as he hit the game-winner in overtime to finish with 16 points, 13 assists, two steals, a block and two 3-pointers. He’s averaging 19.5 points, 7.0 rebounds, 12.0 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.8 3-pointers over his last five games. As someone said on Twitter on Monday, they should just call him Ty Awesome. And finally, Kenneth Faried stayed hot, going for 20 points, 12 rebounds, a steal and two blocks in the win for Denver. He’s averaging! nearly 13 points, nine boards, a steal and block over his last five. He’ll have to take a hit once Nene and Gallinari are at full speed, but deserves to be in lineups until he cools off. Ekpe Udoh, who was on my bench for Haywood last night, had 17 points, six rebounds and a block for the Warriors. Mark Jackson is ready to turn him loose and give him all the minutes he can handle, and Udoh should be picked up in all 12-team leagues. Gordon Hayward was demoted to a bench role on Monday and responded by hitting 8-of-11 shots and two 3-pointers on his way to 23 points, four rebounds, five assists and a steal. I doubt he plays this well every night, but playing with the second unit should make him the focal point of the offense with that group. Alonzo Gee had 15 points, three 3-pointers, four rebounds, three assists and a block, and is averaging 9.2 points, 3.6 boards, 1.8 assists, 1.0 steal and 0.8 3-pointers over his last five. I’m not sure why the Cavs just don’t make him the permanent starter at shooting guard, but he’s been fairly effective off the bench, especially over his last two games. Keep an eye on him. Nick Young returned from his knee injury and blew up for 25 points and four 3-pointers on 9-of-14 shooting, while sitting on nearly every fantasy bench in existence, and coming off the Wizards' bench. Jordan Crawford was terrible, hitting just 2-of-13 shots for five points, and it appears that Young’s presence is messing with Crawford's mind. I’m not ready to give up on Crawford by any means, but if Young takes over for JC at shooting guard, it’s going to be tough for Crawford to be consistent. The timing couldn’t have been worse, as Crawford had scored 21, 12, 21, 20, 32, 19, 18 and 31 points in his last eight games. Stay tuned. James Johnson had 13 points, seven rebounds, seven assists, two steals, a block and a 3-pointer for Toronto on Monday and I’ve been riding him in several leagues all season. He is a key member of my playoff-bound 30-team league and I’m hoping he can carry me to a title. He’s averaging 12.2 points, 7.2 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 1.6 steals and 0.8 blocks over his last five games, and while he could take a hit once Bargnani is back, his confidence level is growing and he should be locked into a starting job the rest of the way. I’m keeping him. Aaron Gray is another guy I picked up in my 30-team league a couple weeks ago, and while he’s not for everyone, he did have 11 points and 11 boards on Monday. Just keep an eye on him if you’re in a deep league and ! always looking for a serviceable center. Staying in Toronto, Jerryd Bayless had 15 points, six rebounds, five assists and two 3-pointers last night. Jose Calderon would need to get hurt or be traded for Bayless to fully blow up, but he’s a guy worth keeping a close eye on now that he’s healthy again. Bayless is averaging nine points and four assists over his last five, but those numbers could be on the rise as he is starting to get heavy minutes from Dwane Casey. Leandro Barbosa played just 18 minutes on Monday, and that could become a trend if Bayless can stay healthy. Marco Belinelli scored 18 points with five boards and a 3-pointer on 8-of-14 shooting for the Hornets on Monday. Eric Gordon isn’t coming back anytime soon and Belinelli could be a great play in Week 14, when the Hornets play five games. Jarrett Jack started for the third straight time on Monday, but was awful, while Greivis Vasquez wasn’t great off the bench, either. As long as Jack is starting, he’s the guy to own, despite last night’s three-point effort. He had 18 points in his previous game, and last night looks more fluke than trend. Trevor Ariza returned from a two-game absence due to illness, but had just four points, five boards, three steals and a block on 1-of-4 shooting in 32 minutes. The good news is that he’s back, so get him back in your lineups. Thaddeus Young is another guy on my 30-team squad and has been very nice for the Sixers. He started the second half on Monday, although I don’t expect that to happen often, and finished with 14 points, 13 rebounds, two steals and a block. He’s having a solid season and is one of the most underrated fantasy players in my book. Evan Turner actually started for the Sixers tonight, sending Jodie Meeks to the bench, and had two points, 12 rebounds, four assists, a steal and a block, hitting just 1-of-12 shots. I doubt Turner becomes a full-time starter, but it’s possible. Just keep a close eye on him going forward. Raymond Felton returned to a starting role for the Blazers on Monday and looked revitalized, finishing with 11 points, 10 assists, two steals and a 3-pointer in a win over the Hornets. If he was dropped in your league and you need a point guard, it’s time to grab him. Game Headlines - Bad News Hedo Turkoglu missed all six of his shots and failed to score for the Magic on Monday. He had been playing better, which means he was probably in a lot of fantasy lineups for this dud. He should bounce back Tuesday at Charlotte, so don’t do anything drastic. Caron Butler was also scoreless (for the Clippers), with Mo Williams (19 points) and Bobby Simmons (7 points, 6 rebounds, 2 threes) picking up his slack. Butler played just 19 minutes, but this just looked like an off night and I doubt he’s in jeopardy of losing his job. Carlos Delfino started for the Bucks again, but hit 1-of-7 shots for two points in 21 minutes. He’s been absolutely awful ever since I picked him up and started rolling with him a few weeks ago, but the good news is that I’m about to cut him across the board. And when I do, you can probably safely bet he starts going for 20 points and four 3-pointers on a regular basis again. Isaiah Thomas has really quieted down for the Kings and had just seven points, one rebound, four assists, three steals and zero 3-pointers on 2-of-8 shooting last night. He played 23 minutes, but I’m pretty sure that number would have been higher if he was playing better. I’m not giving up on him, but I will think twice about starting him again until he gets it turned around. DeMarcus Cousins avoided a suspension after throwing a wild elbow on Sunday, but finished Monday’s game with just five points, five rebounds, five assists and two blocks on 2-of-5 shooting in 23 minutes. Cousins is fine, and should remain in starting lineups until further notice. Jamal Crawford returned to his bench role for the Blazers and saw just 19 minutes and five points on Monday. With Nicolas Batum in cruise control at shooting guard and Felton back as the starting point guard, minutes and inconsistency will likely be a problem for Crawford. Don’t cut him, but don’t be surprised to see him struggle over the next several games until Nate McMillan comes up with an answer for a messy rotation, that also has Wesley Matthews coming off the bench. Roy Hibbert got into early foul trouble and finished with just two points, seven boards and three blocks for the Pacers, as they were blown out by the Bulls. I fully expect Hibbert to bounce back on Tuesday when they host the Hawks. May your Tuesday night in fantasy hoops be surprise-free! |
