The Washington Wizards are one of the more pathetic franchises in the NBA right now. Without Gilbert Arenas, the Wizards are left with basically two main Fantasy contributors. Both are pretty darn good, though, but while Antawn Jamison continues to be a nightly double-double, small forward Caron Butler is struggling right now as he trying to put the 4-20 Wizards on his shoulders.
Don't get us wrong, Butler remains a top-flight Fantasy player and his scoring hasn't really been down at all. But when you are a guy that owners expect to be one of the more well-rounded Rotisserie studs in the game today, you've got to keep bringing that complete game every night or you might just find a down arrow next to your name.
Caron Butler, SF, Washington Before we can say Butler's stock is down, you must remember what owners can expect out of the former UConn star. Last season he scored over 20 points, grabbed almost seven boards, dished out about five assists, stole over two balls and averaged over a three-pointer per night for Washington. And his numbers are at those levels or exceeding them this season. He's down right now because over his last five games those numbers are 17 points, 6.2 boards, 4.2 assists, 1.2 steals and less than a three per night. You might think those drops are trivial but since they are across the board, they matter. Plus, he's turning the ball over at a much higher rate lately. We fully expect Butler to bounce right back but with the Wizards being as bad as they are, one of their only true stars needs to continue to play at his highest level if they have any hope of finding double-digit victories this season.
Kevin Durant, SG, Oklahoma City The second-year guy out of Texas is a scoring machine, hands down. He's worth using in Fantasy at all times but you normally don't expect much more out of him than a major boost to the scoring column. Durant, though, has the ability to do so much more with his wiry frame and right now he's beginning to improve upon the intangibles. You can credit a move to small forward for the now dual-eligible Durant -- only in leagues that allow players at multiple positions -- to the reason he's increased at least his rebounding numbers. Over his last five games Durant is scoring at 25 points per night, above his yearly average, and adding 7.8 boards. That's almost three full rebounds above his average this season. And he's adding a greater number of blocks, assists and is even getting fewer turnovers since the ball isn't in his hands as much. If the move is permanent, Fantasy owners can expect a whole lot more out of Durant going forward.
Jason Kidd, PG, Dallas What's going on with Mr. Kidd lately? And I'm not even talking about the 9.6 points per game he's averaging over his last five contests. That's to be expected as it is dead on his season average. But Kidd was one of the best Fantasy point guards in basketball earlier this season due to his ability to perform near triple-double levels nearly every night. Lately, that just has not been the case as he's averaging just six assists and 3.2 rebounds over a five-game span. That's more than three boards and two assists under his season numbers and he's also getting far less steals than usual, too. Kidd's minutes are certainly not going anywhere and there really is no specific reason as to why this downslide is taking place. We can only offer that perhaps age is catching up with the grizzled veteran. We expect him to bounce back but Kidd simply is not the player he once was in Fantasy.
Tracy McGrady, SG, Houston From the end of November until early December, McGrady missed seven games with an injured left knee that has been giving him fits all season. Upon his return to action, however, T-Mac put all thoughts that the knee will limit him as an ongoing problem to rest. McGrady nearly amassed a triple-double in his first game back with 24 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists. Then, just two games later, he completed the feat by scoring 20 points and adding 14 boards with 10 dimes. T-Mac has blown his averages out of the water over his last five games. He's hitting threes, getting steals, blocking shots and is even scoring more of late. The rest must have done him well as he's now a must-start again in all Fantasy formats.
Troy Murphy, PF, Indiana Murphy has missed the last three games because of a stomach virus that could limit him well into next week judging by the way he's yet to recover as of Sunday. Normally, we wouldn't list a guy as a down stock just because they are missing time with an injury, but this is a different situation. Murphy gets a down arrow because not only is he hurting his own Fantasy owners, but he's taking teammates Danny Granger and Marquis Daniels down with him. Granger and Daniels have now missed the last two contests and all three spent time in the hospital together with the same illness. Owners of Granger and Daniels can thank Murphy for coughing all over the locker room and causing their players to miss time.
Marco Belinelli, SG, Golden State Who? I'm sure that is one of the first thoughts to come to mind when you look at his recent statistics, but Belinelli has quickly risen into coach Don Nelson's good graces and has earned every bit of playing time he receives over the next week or so with Stephen Jackson and Corey Maggette both missing time with various ailments. The 6-foot-5 Italian is garnering 33 minutes per game over his last five contests and is scoring almost 19 points a night. He's adding a decent amount of assists and is nailing almost three three-pointers over that span. Belinelli has played like the 11th best Fantasy shooting guard over the last two weeks and until both Jackson and Maggette return and Nelson chooses to limit his time again, he'll remain someone worth using in most leagues.
Andrew Bynum, C, L.A. Lakers While you might be able to chalk up Bynum's latest poor game to foul trouble as the Lakers center was limited to just three points and one rebound in 12 minutes at Orlando on Saturday night, that doesn't explain his other bad games lately. And there have been quite a few. Bynum is averaging just 8.4 points and 7.4 rebounds over his last five games while his yearly numbers are 12 and almost nine. He's shooting nine points below his season field goal percentage lately and his blocks are down and his turnovers up. Bynum looked to be taking a major step forward in his career progression earlier this season and hopefully this is just a bump in the road and not a major roadblock. But for whatever reason, Bynum is struggling mightily right now.
Boris Diaw, PF, Charlotte It may have taken him a few games to get used to his new surroundings in North Carolina -- after all, it's a lot different out East than in Phoenix -- but Diaw is officially a Rotisserie stud with the Bobcats. Averaging 9.9 points and 4.6 rebounds per game this season, Diaw has gone off recently with extended minutes in the Charlotte starting lineup as he's dropping almost 17 points, eight boards and 4.2 assists per night over his last five contests. He's adding a steal and almost one block per night, is hitting threes and has a fantastic field goal percentage. It doesn't appear that Diaw will look back on his mediocre days as a member of the Suns. He's one of the big men on campus now in Charlotte and his numbers should only continue to rise throughout his sixth NBA season.
Udonis Haslem, PF, Miami With nine double-doubles already on the season, including four in five games at the end of November through the beginning of December, Haslem was quickly becoming one of the more consistent Fantasy power forwards in the game -- and he gained center eligibility in leagues that allow it to boot. But for one reason or another, things have taken a different turn lately and Haslem has now gone five straight games without a double-double. In fact, Haslem has not seen double figures in either scoring or rebounding over that span and has been struggling. Haslem is averaging 5.5 points and six boards recently, well below his season numbers. He may have a lot on his mind after dealing with losing a family member almost a week ago but Fantasy owners hope he can get over this slump soon.
Mike James, PG, Washington James has gone from basically doing absolutely nothing worthy of Fantasy consideration to being a healthy scratch to being apart of a trade that sent him to Washington. As a member of the Wizards, he's catapulted from Fantasy Siberia to owning a sunny corner lot with appreciating value on the Fantasy market as Washington's new starting point guard. James has dropped 16 points in each of his last two games while playing over 30 minutes for the first time all season. He's shooting 13-for-25 from the field since becoming a starter with six threes in two games. He won't give you a ton of assists or rebounds, but he's definitely gone from being irrelevant to being worth picking up in deeper formats. He'll continue to score as long as he's given minutes so his stock is way, way up. The one thing to keep in mind is that if and when Gilbert Arenas returns, he'd likely be out of the starting lineup once again.
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