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Alphabetical Listing
Position Listing
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Fantasy Updates
  Martin to miss two months
Kevin Martin, SG SAC
News: Sacramento Kings leading scorer Kevin Martin will be sidelined for about two months after deciding to undergo surgery on his injured wrist. The team said Friday that Martin will have the operation on his left wrist on Monday and is expected to miss at least eight weeks. Martin has a non displaced hairline fracture of the navicular bone in his wrist.
Analysis: Martin is averaging 30.6 points a game for the Kings. The surgery, as reported Thursday, will involve having a screw inserted to stabilize the bone. It will sideline him through at least early January. Beno Udrih is likely to step into the starting lineup and both he and rookie Tyreke Evans should enjoy the most direct Fantasy boost.
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Freak injury: Thomas out 4-6 weeks
Tyrus Thomas, PF CHI
News: The Chicago Bulls announced Friday that Bulls forward Tyrus Thomas suffered a fractured radius of his left forearm during a weight training session Friday morning at practice. X-rays confirmed the injury and he will undergo surgery Saturday. Thomas is expected to be out four to six weeks. His absence should create more minutes for Taj Gibson at power forward as well as more minutes for Joakim Noah and Brad Miller.
Analysis: In four games (three starts) this season, Thomas averaged 8.3 ppg, 5.3 rpg and 1.75 bpg in 21.0 mpg. Fantasy owners will have no choice but to stash him away where possible as he'll be out until possibly mid-to-late December. Gibson has played well in the preseason and early on in the regular season and is a great addition off the waiver wire. Miller and Noah should see subtle increases in their production as well.
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 Bryant becomes youngest to 24,000
Kobe Bryant, SG LAL
News: Kobe Bryant scored 41 points while becoming the youngest player to reach 24,000, leading the short-handed Los Angeles Lakers to a 114-98 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday night. Bryant carried the Lakers while reaching his latest scoring milestone 38 days before Wilt Chamberlain did. With a second-half surge, he even overtook Grizzlies guard Allen Iverson for 16th place on the NBA's career scoring list. Before punctuating his night with two beautiful fallaway jumpers in the final two minutes, Bryant became the 17th NBA player to scored 24,000 points on a second-quarter basket. At 31 years, 75 days old, Bryant needed every bit of his head start from skipping college to beat Chamberlain to the mark.
Analysis: Bryant has scored exactly 41 points for the third time in four games, giving him 99 career 40-point games. We have no clue what happened to him on Oct. 30 against Dallas. He only managed 20 points in that game and has scored at least 31 in every other game this year. Bryant should be active in 100 percent of Fantasy leagues almost every week regardless of matchups.
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Yet another injury for K. Martin
Kenyon Martin, PF DEN
News: Kenyon Martin got hurt again on Friday against the Heat. He left in the second quarter with what the team said was a lower left leg contusion. Coach George Karl said Martin will likely get further tests Saturday and could be out "a week or two." "When one person goes down, that's why everybody else gets paid to play," Nuggets guard Anthony Carter said. "Kenyon ain't the whole team."
Analysis: Martin has dealt with plenty of injuries in his career and has struggled to stay healthy for much of the past few seasons. He came into Friday averaging 12.0 points and 7.4 rebounds in five games. He is a No. 4 Fantasy option when healthy but will probably need to be benched for Week 3 (Nov. 9-15).
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 Mbenga grabs 13 rebounds as starter
D.J. Mbenga, C LAL
News: Lakers C DJ Mbenga had 13 rebounds but little offensive success while starting for the first time in his three seasons with the Lakers on Friday night in a win over the Grizzlies. Mbenga scored five points on 2 of 7 shooting in 30 minutes on the floor. He blocked four shots.
Analysis: Mbenga got the start on Friday with both Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol out with injury. He had not played more than 10 minutes in a game this season before Friday. It is clear that with playing time Mbenga will get plenty of blocks and boards but the scoring is a work in progress. He has low-end Fantasy appeal until he sees consistent playing time.
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Haywood rips down 19 boards
Brendan Haywood, C WAS
News: Washington C Brendan Haywood did not pick up a double-double for the second straight game on Friday at Indiana. Instead, Haywood scored nine points on 4 of 9 shooting and ripped down 19 big rebounds. He also blocked four shots.
Analysis: Nobody ever claimed that Haywood was the most agile scorer in the world. Still, on the season in six games he's averaging 11.5 points and 10.8 rebounds per game and he has 10 blocks in his last five games. Haywood is playing well and worth using as a No. 2 Fantasy center, at least, in all leagues.
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Blatche has fallen off for Wiz
Andray Blatche, SF WAS
News: Washington C Andray Blatche has all but disappeared of late. Blatche scored 30 points against the Nets back on Oct. 31 and averaged 21 points per game over his first three contests this season. In the three games since, he has played decreasingly less minutes and has scored seven, 10 and one point, respectively. On Friday night in a loss at Indiana, Blatche shot 0 for 5 from the field over 15 minutes on the court and scored one point. He added three rebounds and two blocks.
Analysis: Blatche has continued to put up solid blocked shot numbers. He has six in his last three games and at least one in every game this season. Still, his first three games of the year are night and day from what he's done in his last three. We thought Blatche might be turning some kind of corner and making starter Brendan Haywood expendable but he'll have to get hot again. He's currently not worth using in anything but the deeper leagues with the way he's played over his last three games.
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Ford improving with season
T.J. Ford, PG IND
News: Pacers PG T.J. Ford recorded a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds on Friday night to help Indiana defeat the Wizards. Ford shot 6 of 15 from the field and added four assists and two steals.
Analysis: Ford began the season with 10 points scored in his first two games with three total assists and four total rebounds. In his last three games, Ford is averaging 16 points, six boards and three assists and adds almost two steals per game as well. He's looking like a worthy No. 2 Fantasy PG for use in all leagues right now.
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Young starts, Foye impresses
Nick Young, SG WAS
News: Washington SG Nick Young earned his first start of the season on Friday night in a loss at Indiana. Young made his debut in the starting lineup in place of the injured Mike Miller. Many had thought it would be Randy Foye to start but Foye came off the bench as Young scores three points on 1 of 4 shooting over 15 minutes on the night. Young nailed one three and grabbed two boards with a block. Foye came off the bench for an extended 34 minutes and shot 6 of 14 from the field with two threes. He scored 16 points with four rebounds and two assists.
Analysis: Young got the starting nod on Friday but it is clear who the better option was for Fantasy owners. Foye was given an increase of minutes and scored in double figures for the first time in three games because of it. Foye is averaging 12.3 points, 2.5 boards and 3.0 assists per game on the season and that will likely rise over the coming weeks with Miller out. Young is not worth adding off waivers in most leagues but if Foye is available, he definitely is worth it.
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Butler doubles up in loss
Caron Butler, SF WAS
News: Washington SF Caron Butler scored a season-high 24 points on Friday night in a loss at Indiana. The Wizards have now lost three straight with Butler in the lineup. Butler led the tam in scoring though and shot 8 of 21 from the field with a three. He added 12 rebounds for his second straight double-double.
Analysis: Butler missed a game with a bruised kneecap and since he's returned he's averaged 20 points and 9.3 boards per contest in three games, all Washington losses. Fantasy owners don't care about how the Wizards perform as long as Butler is playing this way. He's worth using in all Fantasy leagues.
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Anderson leaves with sprained ankle
Ryan Anderson, PF ORL
News: Orlando PF Ryan Anderson suffered a sprained ankle in the third quarter on Friday against the Pistons. He is considered questionable for Sunday against the Thunder.
Analysis: Anderson has played well to open the season and left Friday's game with 11 points, two rebounds and an assist. He is likely going to lose playing time when Rashard Lewis returns from his suspension anyways, which will cut into his Fantasy value. Anderson is a decent low-end option for now. See if he plays on Sunday before making a decision on him for Fantasy Week 3 (Nov. 9-15).
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Rush leaves game with sprained ankle
Brandon Rush, SG IND
News: Indiana G Brandon Rush sprained his right ankle on Friday against the Wizards and did not return. He is considered questionable for Wednesday against the Warriors.
Analysis: Rush continues to start for the Pacers but he struggles to put up big numbers on a consistent basis. He really only has low-end appeal when healthy and should not be active in any format for Week 3 (Nov. 9-15) as the Pacers play only two games to begin with.
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Hansbrough scores 13 in pro debut
Tyler Hansbrough, PF IND
News: Tyler Hansbrough took a verbal jab from a fellow ex-North Carolina Tarheel after committing his first NBA foul. "This ain't Carolina, T!" Antawn Jamison yelled from Washington's bench. Hansbrough spent his remaining minutes making it look just like Carolina. He shot more free throws than anyone else, made the hustle plays that made him famous in college and helped the Pacers beat the Wizards 102-86 on Friday night. Hansbrough finished with 13 points in 14 minutes in his pro debut. "It was a lot of hard work and things to get to this stage, but I put that all behind me when I got out there," he said. "It felt great. Just a relief to get out there and kind of move forward from this injury thing."
Analysis: The first-round draft pick missed the preseason and the first four regular-season games with a right shin injury. When asked if he was surprised by his strong performance, a perplexed Hansbrough said "No," then offered perspective. "Just expecting the best and see what happens," he said. "I didn't know what to expect." Pacers coach Jim O'Brien got exactly what he wanted from his rookie, especially with starting power forward Troy Murphy out with an injured back. "A little rusty in a lot of areas, but he's going to be in the attack mode at the offense and defensive end, he's going to go after every rebound," O'Brien said. "I'm very pleased with him. I think he's going to be a heck of an NBA player." Fantasy owners should not yet get Hansbrough active as the Pacers play only two games in Week 3 (Nov. 9-15). He is just a low-end option until he can prove himself at the NBA level on a consistent basis.
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Iverson says he just wants to help
Allen Iverson, SG MEM
News: Even Allen Iverson is worried whether his tumultuous debut week with the Grizzlies has poisoned his relationship with another coach. Iverson came off the bench for Memphis for the third straight game Friday night, scoring eight points in 22 minutes during the Grizzlies' 114-98 loss to the Lakers. The 10-time All-Star says he has no interest in being a reserve or playing for a rebuilding team, and he immediately made his displeasure public with several barbed comments in the days following his season debut Monday.
Analysis: Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins says he understands his new veteran guard's perspective, but even Iverson thinks the two are off to a rocky start. "I think that's probably the worst part of all this," Iverson said Friday. "That while all this is going on, we have never talked to each other. That's probably why it's at this point right now. We've just never had a conversation, so it's probably going to always be hard for me and him to see eye-to-eye, because we've never even talked to each other. Obviously that's what you do if you're trying to accomplish the same goal." Use Iverson as a No. 3 or 4 Fantasy option for now.
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George remains out on Friday
Devean George, SG GS
News: Warriors SF Devean George, who sat out the entire preseason with a knee injury, remained out for the fourth straight regular season game on Friday against the Clippers. He is questionable for Sunday at Sacramento.
Analysis: Even when he returns from this injury, George will play a minor role off the bench for the Warriors. Don't bother with him in Fantasy.
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Turiaf sits with knee injury
Ronny Turiaf, PF GS
News: Warriors F/C Ronny Turiaf, who sprained his left knee in the fourth quarter of last Friday's loss to Phoenix, missed Friday's game against the Clippers. It's the same knee that forced Turiaf to miss the majority of training camp. He is considered questionable for Sunday at Sacramento.
Analysis: Turiaf contributes a decent number of blocks and rebounds -- enough to make him viable in Rotisserie leagues, anyway -- but this injury just won't go away. He'll likely miss a few games, so reserve him for now. If he can't play on Sunday, he should likely be held out for Week 3 (Nov. 9-15).
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