Beast of the Night: Kyle Lowry finished with 24 points, four rebounds, 11 assists, two steals, one block and three three-pointers. He shot 47 percent (9-19) from the field, 60 percent (3-5) from the charity stripe and had no turnovers. This was nearly identical to his line on March 1. Lowry has been a big help to his fantasy owners all season long and should finish the season with top-50 value.
Lines for Discussion:
George Hill: 8-15 FG (53%), 5-5 FT (100%), 1 three, 22 Pts, 5 Reb, 5 Ast, 2 TO; This was Hill second consecutive start, thanks to Tony Parker‘s injury. His owners have been waiting all season long for an injury to finally hit the Spurs’ starting lineup and now they’ll finally be rewarded. Hill should have sturdy value the rest of the way.
Carlos Boozer: 5-11 FG (46%), 1-2 FT (50%), 11 Pts, 7 Reb, 1 Ast, 1 Blk, 2 TO; Boozer has been underwhelming for the last few weeks, notching a double-double just once since Feb. 9. He’s not giving his owners much reason to start him in shallower leagues. With Joakim Noah back, it’ll be tough for him to turn things around, but his owners can always hope.
David Lee: 3-9 FG (33%), 3-4 FT (75%), 9 Pts, 16 Reb, 6 Ast, 1 Stl; This was a fine line by most standards and that speaks volumes about how low the bar has dropped for Lee. He hasn’t thrived as much as many expected he would in Golden State’s offensive schemes and there’s little reason to think things will change in the few weeks remaining. Let’s hope he can avoid any infectious teeth next season.
Greg Monroe: 8-14 FG (57%), 2-4 FT (50%), 18 Pts, 11 Reb, 2 Ast, 4 Stl, 1 Blk, 1 TO; Monroe continues to post strong lines in this final stretch of the season. He’ll remain a strong fantasy player the rest of the way. It’ll be interesting to see where Monroe is taken in next season’s fantasy drafts.
Chris Paul: 2-7 FG (29%), 4 Pts, 4 Reb, 10 Ast, 2 Stl, 1 Blk, 3 TO; This isn’t a terrible line, but we’re talking about CP3 here. He’s looked completely unlike himself for the past several weeks and is really taking the air out of his owners’ hopes as they approach their playoff periods. The easy guess is that his knee is bugging him, but there could be more at work here. He could still finish the season on a high note, but don’t hold your breath.
Aaron Brooks: 6-7 FG (86%), 3-3 FT (100%), 2 threes, 17 Pts, 7 Ast, 2 Stl, 3 TO; Finally, a decent line from Brooks. His owners shouldn’t get too excited yet, but this is certainly an encouraging sign.
Chris Kaman: 10-17 FG (59%), 1-1 FT (100%), 21 Pts, 9 Reb, 1 Ast, 1 Blk, 1 TO; Not bad for 23:01 of work. Kaman is putting up surprisingly strong lines lately. If his body holds up, he’ll reward owners who took a gamble by either holding onto him or picking him off of the waiver wire.
Waiver-Wire Watch:
Samardo Samuels: 23 Pts, 10 Reb, 3 Ast; He started at power forward and should continue to hold that spot while Antawn Jamison sits out the rest of the season. Samuels is worth a pickup if you don’t have to drop anyone too valuable for him.
Alonzo Gee: 18 Pts, 2 threes, 7 Reb, 2 Ast, 1 Stl; Like Samuels, Gee is definitely worth a look in deeper leagues and is worth a speculative add in others, so long as you can swap out a clearly inferior player.
Ekpe Udoh: 6 Pts, 2 Reb, 1 Stl, 3 Blk, 2 TO; He started at center in place of Andris Biedrins. If he continues to hold that gig, Udoh could be a decent source of blocks.
Anthony Randolph: 19 Pts, 10 Reb, 1 Stl; Dust off the old hype machine and allow yourself to get excited again – then remember that this is Anthony Randolph, the most disappointing man in the world. Stash him if you’re feeling optimistic in a deeper league, but exercise caution in shallower leagues. At best, he’s worth monitoring again.
Austin Daye: 22 Pts, 2 threes, 4 Reb, 3 Ast, 1 Blk, 2 TO; He’s a bit inconsistent, but Daye figures to be a prominent fixture for the Pistons until Tayshaun Prince returns from his injury. Give him a look if you’re in a deeper league.
Jarrett Jack: 21 Pts, 5 Reb, 2 Ast; He was the only bright spot for a Hornets squad that got spanked by the Knicks. Jack has been mostly solid lately and is worth a look if you need points and a light dusting of other stats.
Toney Douglas: 24 Pts, 4 threes, 4 Reb, 5 Ast, 1 Stl, 3 TO; He could have another game of nice value in him if Chauncey Billups sits out the next one.
Shawne Williams: 16 Pts, 4 threes, 4 Reb, 2 Ast, 1 Blk, 1 TO; Only consider him in deep leagues.
Marcus Thornton: 26 Pts, 4 threes, 2 Reb, 2 Ast, 2 Stl, 2 TO; Pick him up if you can spare a spot.
DeAndre Jordan: 8 Pts, 16 Reb, 2 Ast, 1 Stl, 3 Blk, 1 TO; Just when you thought his days of productivity were over, Jordan posts this. He’ll be inconsistent going forward but maintains value thanks to his blocks.
Injuries:
Josh Smith (knee): had an MRI after all; check his status
Daniel Gibson (quad): day-to-day
Baron Davis (knee): expected to play on Friday
Tyson Chandler (ankle): will miss at least the next two games for the Mavs
Ben Wallace (personal): day-to-day
Tayshaun Prince (back): day-to-day
Martell Webster (back): day-to-day
Darko Milicic (personal): day-to-day
Chauncey Billups (thigh): could return Friday
Gilbert Arenas (knee): will play today
Deron Williams (hand, wrist): says the wrist needs 3-4 weeks to heal; questionable for this weekend in London
Glen Davis (knee): MRI scheduled today; check his status
Arron Afflalo (ankle): monitor his status
Trevor Ariza (left adductor): day-to-day
Kevin Durant (ankle): wore a walking boot last night; monitor his status
Channing Frye (eye): day-to-day
Vince Carter (mouth): day-to-day
Luke Harangody (hip): day-to-day
For Tonight:
Dwight Howard should murder another helpless frontline as the Magic visit South Beach to take on the Heat.
Throughout the season, be sure to leave your questions, comments, concerns, trade offers, roster problems and more in the comments below.
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