I’m just gonna say this, and then I’m gonna stand by it: I’m almost positive that whenever anyone thinks of the Gustavos of the NBA, Gustavo Ayon‘s name will be mentioned. Sit on that, Potsie. 8/5/2, with 2 stl and 2 blk as Monty Williams has been leaving some slack in the leash for this guy in the last three games. He left Ayon in the game for 13 minutes on Friday, 20 minutes on Saturday and another 20 yesterday. It isn’t that Ayon isn’t filled with potential (and cheese), he is. He’s averaging 8/5/3, with 3 stl+blk in the last three games. This is just good enough for deep leaguers to take a flier. Deep leaguers love fresh meat. LOVE IT. Three mildly notable games ain’t enough for me, though. I’d let him rest for now, but familiarize yourself with the name. You may need him further on down the road. It isn’t like DaJuan Summers and Jason Smith aren’t starters at the moment. It isn’t at if the Hornets aren’t likely candidates to need all the help it can get in its frontcourt with Landry and Kaman sucking on the suckhole. Desperation to Hornet big men is like herpes: once it takes hold, it never goes away. Hey look! More fantasy basketball news below.
John Lucas – Back again to start in place of Derrick Rose, whose toe is still barking, came in hoping to repeat his 28/8/8 performance from Wednesday. He ended with 8/1/2, and a steal in 20 minutes. Turns out, a 29-year-old who spent four seasons outside of the NBA is not a suitable replacement for the reigning MVP. I owe you $20.
C.J. Watson – 17/1/3, with a steal yesterday. Rose was a game time decision and is about 60-40 to play tonight. Watson may or may not get the start depending on which way the wind blows, but after Thibs went with Watson more in the second half than Lucas, I’m confident he’ll have a better game tonight should Rose stay off the court until Friday.
Kyle Korver – On Wednesday, I said, “… as a simple source of threes, he’s got the sixth highest total of makes from behind the arc this season and a well-defined role on a solid team. He’s unowned in more leagues than he should be.” Since then, he’s shot 5-for-18 and amassed a total of 2 threes in his last four. /scratches Korver the feck off his Christmas card list.
Marreese Speights – Went 16/12/2, with a block in 34 minutes. Never mind that he’d been averaging 8/4/1 in the three games before it, I’m still guessing Z-Bo will have to earn his job back upon his return.
Ryan Anderson – Sank seven threes yesterday on his way to 30 points. He’s the video game Kevin Love, if you moved Love’s rebound slider halfway down and moved his three-point slider halfway up. He’s the Dorell Wright you should have drafted. #WhiteWright
Dwight Howard – A measly 8/8, with 5 tovs and 5 fouls (and 4 assists and 3 blocks, to be fair) in 36 minutes against the defense-challenged Knicks. Simply put, Dwight got KO’d by Tyson.
Stephen Jackson – 3-for-12. The 9/9/4, with 3 steals is cool and all, but I can’t imagine owning him is any fun. Even with the 34-point and 25-point games over the weekend, his total lack of consistency seems less than worth it. Let me hear you Razzballers. I haven’t owned Jackson in a while, is it as awful (yet necessary) owning him as it seems?
Brandon Jennings – Only had 3 assists yesterday and seven total assists in his last three. Blecch. Or as the French say, le blecch.
Anthony Parker – Left after 10 minutes. GRAB A BOOBIE!
Kemba Walker – 14/4/4, with 4 stl, 2 blk and a three. He’s not where you hoped he’d be, but he’s not where he was three weeks ago, either.
Tyrus Thomas – 1/1/1, with 1 stl and 3 blk in 16 minutes, which is bad, but not as bad as going .370 from the floor in seven games so far this season. Coach Silas asked him to stop shooting. Thomas politely said, “naw.” Silas went back to sleep, content that Thomas is at least not as bad as Diaw.
Samuel Dalembert – 20/7, with 3 blks … against the always dizzy JaVale McGee. We’ll call this the D.C. Deluxe.
MarShon Brooks – Dropped 19 points for the fifth time in 10 games. I don’t like his actual game, but I wouldn’t kick his fantasy game out of bed for eatin’ crackers. Mostly because I also enjoy eating crackers in bed and kicking someone else out of bed for doing it would make me a hypocrite.
Randy Foye – 13/3/10, with a steal, a three, two blocks and a quintet of turnovers in place of the mildly tweaked Chris Paul. You could grab Foye as long as you understand that this game managed to break through his ceiling and that not only will he not likely do this again while Paul is out, but the performance was so solid, Foye has to donate 25 percent of yesterday’s output to Chris Paul owners’ fantasy stats.
Ed Davis – First dub-dub of the season (13/10, with a block and a steal) and is likely to play as many minutes as he can handle on Wednesday with Bargnani likely to sit out one more. Also, remember, Ed Davis is not Amir Johnson, no matter how many times they wear each other’s clothing!
Jeff Teague – Leading the league in steals (four yesterday). So there’s that.
Thabo Sefolosha – Now it’s time to play, “Whoa, Thabo Sefolosha! Settle down there, buddy! You’re playing way above your head.” Dude ended with 19/5/1, with 4 stl and 2 3ptm in place of a cold, cold Harden. It was his first 19-point game since March 26, 2008. So, um, whoa, Thabo Sefolosha! Settle down there, buddy! You’re playing way above your head. … And we’ll see you again next time.
Ricky Rubio – 9/8/8, with two steals and terrible shooting. I’m all moony-eyed for this kid, but his shooting is going to be an issue for a while. You’ll deal with it, because he’s probably going to triple-double a couple times this year. Rondo’s the only one to hit the 3×2 this season (and came close last night along with Tyreke Evans), but my money’s on Rubio being the next guy to trip-dub. Book it!
Luke Ridnour – 25 points and 9 assists as he’s proven to still be a useful fantasy asset despite the emergence of Rubio. I imagine a lot of owners feel like he’s dead weight, but he’s scored in the double-digits in five of his last six with solid percentages and a good source for a little bit of everything in deeper leagues. He does it all. Except dishes. He won’t do dishes.
