Weekend Wonder: Derrick Rose averaged 31.5 points, 7.0 rebounds, 6.5 assists, 2.5 blocks and 2.5 threes in two games over the weekend. He shot 48 percent from the field, 92 percent from the line and averaged 2.5 turnovers. Rose will have a hard time matching his stellar December, but no one’s complaining.
Lines for Discussion:
Amar’e Stoudemire (1/14): 6-22 FG (27%), 12-14 FT (86%), 1 three, 25 Pts, 13 Reb, 4 Ast, 2 Stl, 5 Blk, 3 TO; That’s two consecutive games with a three-pointer for STAT. He’s struggling a bit in January, and is shooting just 41 percent from the field in the month’s seven games so far.
Kyle Lowry (1/14): 10-20 FG (50%), 6-6 FT (100%), 2 threes, 28 Pts, 6 Reb, 7 Ast, 3 Stl, 2 TO; Lowry continues to start and put up solid all-around lines, but coach Rick Adelman says Aaron Brooks will eventually supplant him in the starting lineup. It’s probably a good idea to sell high on Lowry ASAP.
Brook Lopez (1/14): 13-19 FG (68%), 9-11 FT (82%), 35 Pts, 6 Reb, 4 Ast, 1 Stl, 1 Blk; He followed this up with a 32-point outing, but only accumulated three rebounds in that game. Lopez’s rebounding woes have hit another low, as he’s averaging a paltry 4.1 rebounds per game so far in January.
Jose Calderon (1/15): 10-16 FG (63%), 1 three, 21 Pts, 9 Reb, 15 Ast, 1 Stl, 1 Blk, 1 TO; The Raptors’ backcourt is really banged up right now, leaving Calderon as the last man standing. He should have an easy time maintaining his January averages of 13.3 points and 11.7 assists.
Al Horford (1/15): 11-16 FG (69%), 2-2 FT (100%), 24 Pts, 10 Reb, 8 Ast, 1 Stl; Horford is making up for his early January struggles. Kudos if you bought low on him.
Luke Ridnour (1/15): 6-15 FG (40%), 4-4 FT (100%), 3 threes, 19 Pts, 1 Reb, 6 Ast, 1 Stl; Believe it or not, Ridnour is averaging top-50 numbers so far this season. Shame on you if you actually believed that Jonny Flynn was going to dent Frodo’s production.
Jason Terry (1/15): 4-14 FG (29%), 8 Pts, 2 Reb, 2 Ast, 3 Stl, 2 TO; Terry has amassed just 17 points, six rebounds and four assists in his last two games, and is shooting 25 percent in that stretch. He’ll get things back on track, but cold spells are no surprise with him.
J.J. Hickson (1/15): 5-14 FG (36%), 3-7 FT (43%), 13 Pts, 9 Reb, 3 Ast, 2 Stl, 1 Blk, 2 TO; This followed up his 21/14 game. While it’s good to see Hickson actually crashing the boards and blocking some shots, inconsistency and a terrible shooting touch limit his appeal at the moment.
Nicolas Batum (1/15): 9-15 FG (60%), 3-3 FT (100%), 2 threes, 23 Pts, 6 Reb; Batum’s last four games have been decent. Brandon Roy‘s miserable season opens the door for Batum to have long-term fantasy relevance again.
DeAndre Jordan (1/16): 4-9 FG (44%), 0-1 FT (0%), 8 Pts, 15 Reb, 2 Ast, 2 Blk, 2 TO; Jordan’s block party has cooled off and he’s shown that foul trouble will cause him to toss in a clunker every now and then, but he remains a fantasy center with huge upside. His owners have to be hoping that Chris Kaman is dealt.
Waiver-Wire Watch:
Earl Boykins: the little man is relevant lately
Jeff Foster: Roy Hibbert‘s struggles have opened the door for Foster, who’s averaging 21:23 per game along with 7.7 rebounds
DeJuan Blair: inconsistent but whenever he has a big line, he deserves monitoring
Ramon Sessions: a nicked-up backcourt makes Sessions a worthy pickup
Vladimir Radmanovic: getting 20+ minutes a night, good for some threes
Sasha Vujacic: averaging 14 points, 2.7 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 2.1 threes so far in 2011
Kwame Brown: he’s a marginally appealing center for desperate teams in deep leagues
Greg Monroe: his double-double streak has ended, but the rookie demands your attention
Ryan Anderson: he appears to be the real deal, despite his bench role
Corey Brewer: starting gig has yielded good results, and he’s still a steals machine (2.4 per game so far in January)
Injuries:
Carlos Boozer (ankle): out Monday
Kevin Garnett (calf): practiced Sunday and is expected to play Monday
Kendrick Perkins (knee): expected to return Feb. 4
Mo Williams (hip): left Saturday’s game early, day-to-day
Ben Wallace (ankle): day-to-day
Tracy McGrady (shin): monitor his status
Tony Allen (knee): day-to-day
LeBron James (ankle): making progress, check his status before Tuesday
Marvin Williams (back): day-to-day
Jermaine O’Neal (knee): weighing decision to have season-ending knee surgery
Matt Bonner (knee): day-to-day
Leandro Barbosa (hamstring): out 1-2 weeks
Sonny Weems (back): day-to-day
Chris Bosh (ankle): monitor his status
Tyson Chandler (illness): check his status
Jerryd Bayless (ankle): day-to-day
Andres Nocioni (finger): shutting himself down with a broken right middle finger
For Tonight:
Taj Gibson will have an even bigger window of opportunity tonight as the Bulls will face the Grizzlies without Boozer.
Dirk Nowitzki should redeem his quiet comeback on Saturday with a good game in Detroit tonight.
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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