Nene makes early exits for Nuggets: Denver center Nene left Saturday's game with Indiana with a calf strain. He scored 11 points and grabbed five rebounds in his 21 minutes of action. He shot 5 for 9 from the field and made one foul shot. Nene added an assist and a steal in the 113-109 win. (Updated 02/11/2012)
Injury Report
Calf - Questionable for Feb. 14 vs. Phoenix (Updated - 2/11/12)
Fantasy Analysis
Denver has two days off before they take the court again, so Nene may be ready to face Phoenix. He's averaging 11.5 points and 5.5 rebounds per game over his last four contests. The big man has been dealing with a heel injury all season as well, so there is a chance he gets rest in one of the back-to-back contests in Week 8 (Feb. 13-19). When healthy and on the court, Nene is a solid center option in the majority of Fantasy formats. (Updated 02/11/2012).
02/08/2012 09:19 Waiver Wire: Lin is quite a gem
Knicks point guard Jeremy Lin came out of nowhere this week to light up the waiver wire. Our Ed Gauna takes a deeper look to find the under-the-radar players who could help you win the week.
Nene has been a name in the NBA since dropping 10.5 points and 6.1 rebounds per game as a 20-year-old rookie back in 2002-03 for the Nuggets. That said, he struggled to stay healthy and keep any kind of consistency over his first handful of NBA seasons. That has really changed over the last three campaigns. Nene has averaged over 14 points and 7.5 rebounds per game with 2.0 steals and a block over that span and is arguably coming off his best season as a 28-year-old. Nene saw 31 minutes per game last year with Denver and scored 14.5 points, grabbed 7.6 rebounds and blocked and stole a shot per game while leading the league with a 61.5 field goal percentage. A solid free throw shooter for a center, Nene is entering his 10th NBA season as one of the best Fantasy centers at a very thin position. The Brazilian has played at least 75 games in three straight seasons and has been able to stave off the injury bug. As long as that continues, Fantasy owners should consider Nene among the NBA’s Fantasy elite at the center spot. He’s just inside the top 10 Fantasy centers and should be targeted right after the first few rounds on Draft Day. (Updated 8/28/11)
