All hail Jeremy Lin. That’s now two games in a row that the seldom-used backup has torched opponents and lit the Garden on fire as if he was John Starks. Lin dropped 28 and eight in New York’s 99-88 win over Utah. Beast? Lin seems to finish every three point play, make all the right decisions out of the pick-n-roll and has even shown off his deep ball. At one point in the second half, he dropped a high-arching shot and then trotted back on defense with a swag unlimited smirk before sticking his tongue out (It looked like he had been sucking on some blue lollipops during the quarter break). Read More »

Beast of the Night: Brandon Jennings finished with 31 points, four rebounds, eight assists, four steals and seven three-pointers last night. He shot 36 percent (9-25) from the floor, 75 percent (6-8) from the free-throw line and had zero turnovers. Since Jan. 17, Jennings is averaging 24.3 points, 3.8 rebounds, 6.3 assists, 1.9 steals and 3.6 threes per game, while shooting 45 percent from the field and 83 percent from the free-throw line. For the season, he’s putting up top 10 averages. Read More »

Beast of the Night: Paul George finished with 24 points, four rebounds, one assist, two steals, a block and four threes last night against the Nets. He shot 73 percent (8-11) from the field, 100 percent (4-4) from the free-throw line and had one turnover. George has had clunkers every now and then this season but has still managed to average top 60 numbers. He’s an all-around producer who doesn’t drag any category down for his owners, making him a sleeper-turned-stud. Read More »

There’s something purely Americana about the hometown kid making good in front of the hometown crowd.

Whether it’s David Freese blasting home runs to lead his St. Louis Cardinals to a World Series title, or Chauncey Billups going from prep legend to college superstar to NBA bust back to NBA superstar in Denver, or even Jerome Bettis winning a Super Bowl in Detroit in his final NFL game while playing for another team, we like these stories. In a sports culture where free agency and stressed-out GMs eager to trade make it increasingly tougher for fans to claim one group of players as “our guys” for any length of time, hometown ties remain nearly impossible to break. Read More »

Beast of the Night: LeBron James had himself a typically big line to the tune of 35 points, six rebounds, seven assists, three steals and two blocks. He shot 57 percent (13-23) from the field, 100 percent (9-9) from the free-throw line and had two turnovers. Through three games, James is averaging 32.7 points on 59 percent shooting from the field and 87 percent shooting from the charity stripe. The odd thing is that he has yet to attempt a single three-pointer. The fact that he’s been such a stud without a three-pointer says volumes about his fantasy value. It’s early, but James looks like the probable top dog in fantasy basketball this season. Read More »

Let’s be honest: Drafting the sleepers you want in the round you want is one of the most satisfying feelings in fantasy basketball. That said, sleepers are a dangerous breed. Like fair trades in the NBA these days, sleepers are not sure things and can sometimes burn you if you pounce too early on them. To help sort out the sleepers you should be eyeing in your fantasy basketball drafts this year, here’s a list of players who are napping, dozing and comatose (assuming nine categories). Read More »

On Friday, when we posted the unfortunate news about Brandon Roy being forced into medical retirement, we were moved by the instant outpouring of love for B-Roy from our readers. So we thought today was as good as any to post Roy’s national magazine cover debut from Dime #48. Read More »

This has everything you want in a college basketball intro video: old highlights, current NBA players and Jason Terry in an amazing two-tone Wildcats jersey.

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Let’s be blunt: the Toronto Raptors are a sorry bunch, in real life and in fantasy terms. Sure, there are a decent number of potential breakout candidates on this squad whenever the next NBA season begins, but there are also timeshares awaiting a few positions. There’s no true stud here, but when you’re in the latter rounds of your draft, keep some of these Canadian dinosaurs in mind. Read More »

It wasn’t long ago when what was the Pac-10 had teams that ran out rosters with multiple NBA stars-in-the-making. The 2008 NBA Draft class contained 12 players from the Pac-10, and that meant there was the talent and notoriety for the league to send more than half of its teams to the NCAA Tournament.

The UCLA Bruins were the dominating factor, making the Final Four for three consecutive seasons from 2006-08. Kevin Love, Darren Collison and Russell Westbrook beat up on squads with guys like O.J. Mayo and Jerryd Bayless. But since then, those talents have been bleeding into the NBA, leading to a weak reputation and poor postseason showings. Read More »