Beast of the Night: Pau Gasol had a very smooth return to the tune of 24 points, 13 boards, 3 assists, 1 block and 2 turnovers. He shot 60 percent (9-15) from the field and perfect (6-6) from the free throw line. His owners have waited a long time for Gasol to play his first game this season and he looks ready to justify his first-round draft position in most leagues. Now the question is which Gasol brother will finish the year with better fantasy value. Read More »

Beast of the Night: LeBron James scored 34 points and chipped in 2 threes, 4 boards, 7 dimes, 2 steals and a block last night as he outdueled Dwyane Wade. He shot 40 percent (8-20) from the floor, but the important thing is that he shot 89 percent (16-18) from the free throw line. It doesn’t matter what number he sports on his jersey – The King is a fantasy stud who makes you numb with his steady production of solid lines. Read More »

Beast of the Night: Manu Ginobili was absolutely rabid last night, exploding for 36 points, 4 rebounds, 8 assists, 1 steal and 4 blocks, while nailing 6 threes and turning the ball over just once in just 32 minutes of work. He shot 53 percent (8-15) from the field and 88 percent (14-16) from the line. His owners have to be praying that Tim Duncan and Tony Parker take their sweet time recovering on the sidelines. Read More »

With the exception of the Rockets, you can probably count on each of last year’s Western Conference playoff teams returning to the postseason in ’09-10. That makes one spot up for grabs. For me, the top two candidates for the West’s eighth and final playoff berth is going to be between the Clippers and Suns (although the Thunder, Grizzlies and Rockets aren’t far behind). Read More »

With the vision of the 2009/2010 NBA season becoming more and more clear each day, we’ll take a look at each division and explain what we think we know about each. Sure, there are a lot of things that could change before opening day, but we have a pretty good idea of how each team will look and where we think they’re headed in the upcoming year.

Next up, 5 things I think I know about the Pacific Division… Read More »

Since his days as a star at Boston College, Jared Dudley has been known as the “Junkyard Dog” for his innate ability to find a way to make something happen out of sheer hustle and determination.

That’s cool and all, but as Jared will tell you, he’s worked extremely hard to be much more than that.

In fact, when the Suns received Dudley in the trade for Jason Richardson, Steve Kerr repeatedly said that he could see Jared starting at the 4 position for the Suns in a couple years.

On March 29, 2009, Jared made Kerr look like a genius. Read More »