Has anyone benefited more from the arrival of Jeremy Lin than Landry Fields? Since J-Lin showed up, Fields has been rejuvenated, and seems to be on the receiving end of most of Lin’s assists. Landry is playing with confidence and aggression and it shows in the highlights he’s been racking up over the last two weeks.

This dunk on Kris Humphries last night might be the best thing Landry’s ever done: Read More »

Amar’e said afterwards he had “no doubt” Deron Williams came out with something to prove in MSG against Jeremy Lin. On second glance, we should’ve seen it coming. Williams basically flipped on a group of reporters earlier during Linsanity because no one wanted to talk about anything other than the new Knick sensation. He dropped 38 points with eight triples in New Jersey’s shockingly easy 100-92 win. Carmelo Anthony returned (as did Baron Davis) and yet the only one who mattered was Williams. Read More »

So many story lines to watch during Sunday’s Mavs/Knicks national TV matchup: Carmelo Anthony’s anticipated return ultimately being postponed another day; the Phoenix glory days reunion with Amar’e Stoudemire, Mike D’Antoni and Shawn Marion; Dirk Nowitzki’s chance to prove he really does deserve an All-Star berth; Jason Kidd and Vince Carter playing on the Madison Square Garden court for perhaps the final time in their respective careers; Tyson Chandler seeing his former Dallas teammates for the first time since they won a championship together; NYC native Lamar Odom playing in front of his hometown crowd; and newly-signed J.R. Smith playing his first game as a Knick … Read More »

Buy Low: Wesley Matthews is averaging 7.0 points, 3.0 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 2.0 steals and 0.3 threes in his last three games. He’s also shooting 33 percent from the field during this forgettable stretch. Stepping back and looking at the picture will show fantasy owners that Matthews is shooting 41 percent from the floor this season, notably below his career average of 45 percent. His game log shows that he’s only cracked 50 percent from the field three times in his 12 games since Jan. 14. Before that night, Matthews was hitting 48 percent of his shot from the field. Chalk his recent struggles up to a slump. He’s still starting and getting 32+ minutes a night and remains a solid source of threes and all-around production. Read More »

Beast of the Night: Stephen Curry owned the Jazz last night, finishing with 29 points, five boards, 12 assists, three steals and a pair of threes. He shot 71 percent (10-14) from the floor, 88 percent (7-8) from the free-throw line and had three turnovers. This was a nice bounce-back game for Curry, who had just 18 points on 7-of-23 shooting in his previous two games. For the season, he’s averaging top 10 numbers, which is right in line with expectations. Now let’s hope his ankles stay intact. 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 »

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 »

As the entire basketball universe will be fixated to their TVs today to finally witness this season commence, there are several underrated gifts under the Christmas tree to unwrap as well. While the league’s brightest stars will be going at it throughout the five-game docket, every hoops junkie should also pay attention to some of the other battles that’ll take place. Kind of like those unexpected cash envelopes you receive from your distant aunt, uncle, or grandparents, the following 10 matchups will surely not disappoint. Read More »

If there’s one thing fantasy basketball owners should know, it’s that a team coached by Mike D’Antoni is a team to embrace. While his attention to offense and disregard for defense bring up valid concerns about the New York Knicks‘ real-life success, it’s pretty much gold for fantasy basketball purposes. There are two players driving the bulk of this team’s fantasy appeal, and in this type of offense there’s always the possibility of plug-and-play success for guys who fill in for injured players, especially in the backcourt. Still, as currently constructed, the Knicks do have some potential issues that diminish their fantasy luster, though not by much. Read More »

From what I recall in my young life, I’d rank this draft in the top 5, not because it was utterly surprising as far as picks go, but mostly because of how much Twitter enhanced the viewer experience. OK sometimes the pre-pick “sources told me blank team is taking blank player” tweets ruined the surprises; it was a little too NFL Drafty for my tastes. Read More »