Rookies. You can't live without them and they can't stay consistent for more than a week at a time. Usually.
While O.J. Mayo keeps on trucking towards the Rookie of the Year and Greg Oden keeps on floundering as he learns the NBA game, there is a triumvirate of first-year point guards out there whose stocks have risen and fallen more than Giants' fans opinions of Eli Manning.
Selected No. 1, No. 4 and No. 34 overall in last year's NBA Draft, Chicago's Derrick Rose, Oklahoma City's Russell Westbrook and Miami's Mario Chalmers have all been contributing members to Fantasy owners lineups for most of the season and all start at the point for their respective teams.
It's rare for three NBA teams to place the keys to the ignition in the hands of the inexperienced and even rarer to expect those new drivers not to crash at some point during the season. And that is exactly what two of the following players are going through right now. They're crashing after hot starts. The third, however, is still rolling right along and only getting scarily better right now.
No need to guess which is which. Just read on.
Derrick Rose, PG, Chicago Rose isn't injured but his head must be hurting right about now. That's because he's slammed into the rookie wall big time of late. The star No. 1 overall draft pick of the Bulls started the season off red hot and was a very realistic candidate for Rookie of the Year right along with Mayo because he averaged 19 points, six assists and four boards per game in November. Then came December, where he dropped those numbers to 16-6-3 and, oh no, watch out. Now, in five January games he's putting up just 13-6-3. Defenses are starting to pay him more attention and Rose will just have to adjust. The good news is his assists are still at a high level and we expect the scoring to return as he's definitely one of the best players in the rookie class.
Russell Westbrook, PG, Oklahoma City Incredibly, the polar opposite of Rose's year is that of Westbrook for the Thunder. The No. 4 overall pick in last year's draft started his season on the bench. He played well in November and averaged 12 points, four assists and three boards per night. He improved to 16-5-5 in December and is already dropping 16-7-5 in five January games. What's more, Westbrook, never known to be much of a scorer in college at UCLA, is also contributing a steal per game and some threes as he's become an absolute Rotisserie stud for a point guard. He's so versatile, the Thunder started him at shooting guard last Saturday against Rose's Bulls instead of at the point and he responded by grabbing 12 rebounds as he was able to play off the ball. Apparently, the 6-foot-3 kid from Long Beach can do it all and he's yet to suffer any cold streaks. Right now, Westbrook is challenging Mayo for that Rookie of the Year trophy and few likely predicted that before the season began.
Mario Chalmers, PG, Miami Chalmers is also learning about that dreaded rookie wall right now, especially after playing just nine minutes in the Heat's last game against the Lakers. Chalmers picked up three early fouls in the game and coach Erik Spoelstra basically benched him for the rest of the game with Chris Quinn taking the reigns. Relax, Chalmers will stay the team's starting point guard for the foreseeable future but you can bet this was a wake up call for a guy who is averaging eight points, five assists and three rebounds per game over his last five after putting up far better numbers earlier in the season. Unlike Westbrook or Rose, Chalmers started slow in November, got hot in December and is again starting January cold. He's been more yo-yo than a steady progression up or down like the other two. That gives us full confidence that he'll be back up before long, but right now he's struggling just a bit.
Andrea Bargnani, C, Toronto For a guy averaging 12 points, five boards and 1.3 blocks per game this season as a soft center who is more known for shooting threes than backing anyone down low, Bargnani is playing out of his mind right now. And it is all thanks to Jermaine O'Neal's right knee. In the seven games that O'Neal has missed, Bargnani hasn't scored less than 17 points in any game and is averaging 21 per night. That comes with seven boards and over three three-pointers per game. As of right now there is no timetable for a return for O'Neal so keep on starting Bargnani. He's been nothing less than a must-start stud since O'Neal's been out and that will continue.
Allen Iverson, G, Detroit You didn't honestly think that Iverson playing on the Pistons would be good for his Fantasy statistics did you? Well, if you did, sorry. Iverson wearing Detroit across his chest is almost like Superman wearing a hat laced with kryptonite for his Fantasy value. He's still worth owning across the board, sure, but after averaging 26 points and seven assists per game last season in Denver, the 18 and 5.5 he's getting this season just isn't the same. Plus, his steals, blocks and threes are down while his field goal percentage and his turnovers are pretty much holding steady. Bottom line, Iverson is no longer an elite Fantasy scorer as a member of the Pistons.
Mardy Collins, PG, L.A. Clippers The Clippers can lose every game from now until the end of the season with Baron Davis and Zach Randolph sitting on the bench and Fantasy owners can be happy they picked up Collins. A complete unknown in Fantasy just six games ago, Collins has catapulted to such a level that you could argue he can be started in the majority of deeper Fantasy leagues at this time. Davis is dealing with a tailbone injury that has now kept him out for six straight games and it is no secret that the minute he went out and Collins began to pick up playing time he began putting up solid numbers. Now, Davis could be out an extended amount of time with no timetable for a return and that should keep Collins in the starting lineup for the foreseeable future. Collins is averaging 13 points, six assists, five rebounds, two steals and a three per game in his last five while averaging over 40 minutes per night. Those are excellent numbers, especially for a guy owned in zero Fantasy leagues as recently as Week 10.
Josh Howard, SF, Dallas There are more than a few reasons for Howard's stock to be down and all of them are frustrating the heck out of Fantasy owners who drafted the supposed Rotisserie maven early on in drafts. Howard's scoring average is down to 18 points per game this season after missing a good chunk of November and December with injury. He scored 20 points per night last year. Also down from last year's numbers are rebounds by two per game, assists, steals and field goal percentage. He is shooting more threes but his turnovers are on the rise. Now, he's dealing with a similar wrist injury that kept him out earlier this season and will likely miss Dallas' upcoming road trip. This injury could linger and has already affected his game, so it is likely Howard will never get back to last season's lofty numbers.
Drew Gooden, PF, Chicago Nothing like missing eight games with an injured ankle to give your game a boost in production. Well, actually, we'd normally expect missing that much time to be a detriment, but for Gooden it was just what the doctor ordered. Gooden is averaging 13 points and nine boards for the season in Chicago but has bested those numbers in all three of the games he's played since his return. He's averaging 18 points, 11 rebounds, two assists and a block in that span and he's increased his minutes up to 37 per night. Right now Gooden is as hot as it gets and it comes after many dropped him when he was injured. If Gooden continues playing at this level he's a must-start across the board in any league, especially as he's got the ability to play at center in leagues that allow for multiple positions.
Chris Wilcox, C, Oklahoma City Still owned in 34 percent of Fantasy leagues, Wilcox is about as cold as it gets right now for the Thunder. So cold, in fact, that the team has kept him on the bench the last two nights and may get rid of him altogether. With the team's addition of center Nenad Krstic, who should be starting by the end of the month, Wilcox and the 6-3-2 he was averaging over his previous five games becomes disposable. Wilcox has lots of upside that he's really only flashed and never reached in his seven years in the NBA and it looks like if he's not traded soon -- he's in the final year of his contract -- he'll be of little use to your Fantasy team from here on out.
Kelenna Azubuike, SG, Golden State The Warriors always have some random player putting up sick stats, don't they? If it isn't Anthony Morrow it's Marco Belinelli. If it isn't Belinelli -- he's hurt now -- than it is Azubuike. Right now the third-year man out of Kentucky is as hot as it gets. He's averaging 19 points per game in his last three since returning from a one-game absence with the flu. That average comes with 3.5 boards and a three per night. Plus, he's shooting 64 percent from the field. Don Nelson has a propensity for changing lineups and playing rotations and right now Azubuike is in the right rotation for success, so use him until his minutes and numbers begin to drop again.
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