With Jose Calderon coming to Detroit, there’s a question of who will lose out. The Pistons are already pretty guard heavy, so adding another quality guard makes sense. Despite Brandon Knight‘s 7/1/4 line, he has been doing extremely well and should continue to start. Kyle Singler went 5/4/0 (with 2 blocks) has been a bit iffy, but he’s a rookie, and surely Detroit isn’t in a position to waste young talent. That leaves Rodney Stuckey (14/3/2), who, despite the good hump day showing, has been spotty in January. I see Singler moving over to Small Forward to replace the role of Tayshaun Prince, with Knight starting at Shooting Guard, Stuckey staying as a reserve, and Calderon as the starting Point Guard. Could I be wrong? Sure. Do your fingers smell like onions after eating a deli sandwich? You bet, but that’s the risk you take. Wait, what?
As for Tayshaun Prince’s role in Memphis, he’s likely going to come off the bench. This is a guy who was seeing roughly 32 minutes per game all season, he was only producing 12 points per game. If and when his minutes reduce, his output isn’t going to. I’m not sure Tayshaun retains what value he had. Edit: Ah, I missed the part where Rudy Gay is leaving Memphis. Tayshaun should retain his minutes, then, for what that’s worth. Here’s some other news to chew on from Wednesday:
Roy Hibbert – Dr. Hibbert took advantage of a Detroit team in transition and created 18 points, 11 rebounds (6 offensive), 2 assists, a steal and a block.
Danilo Gallinari – Denver got the win thanks in part to Rooster’s 27 points (4-9 from downtown), 5 rebounds, 2 assists and 4 blocks. He had 3 blocks last Wednesday. Maybe he likes the middle of the week.
Robin Lopez – Hmm, he had 15 points, 9 rebounds, an assist, a steal, 4 blocks and only 1 turnover. Those are back to back solid efforts.
Amir Johnson – He only made 3 of 12 from the field, but he still grabbed 14 boards and contributed 4 blocks. Worry what happens to him when Jonas Valanciunas after Jonas Valanciunas returns. As for Rudy Gay‘s impact on the time share, see the last sentence.
Eric Bledsoe – With Chris Paul out of the lineup for his nagging knee, Bledsoe has taken advantage. He finished with 10 points, 3 rebounds, 10 assists, 6 steals and a block. When Paul returns, he will have more of a noticeable, immediate impact than Jonas Valanciunas, but cross that rainbow bridge when you get there, Thor.
Omer Asik – Despite the double double of 10 points and 18 rebounds, despite 4 assists, a steal and a block, he turned the ball over 7 times. His career average is 1 TOV per game, so, this is unusual, much like that lump under your armpit.
Kyle Korver – I recommended him for Wednesday night (and obviously he was a Buy on Friday), and he produced 17 points (5 threes), 6 boards, 3 assists, 2 steals and only 1 turnover. He may be the MVP of the month, although I didn’t bother to really double check if that could be true. Science!
Kawhi Leonard – While logging 34 minutes, he finished with 18 points (4 of 5 from behind the arc), 5 rebounds, 2 steals and a block. In the past 2 weeks, he has had more good games than bad. That’s good. The frogurt is also cursed. That’s bad.
Kyle Lowry – His double double came on 14 points and 10 rebounds, but he also threw in 5 assists and a steal. It’s the first time he had more boards than dimes since December 10, 2012. What a year that was. It takes me back. People were still using iPhones, Barack Obama was president, they had this thing called “DVR” which let you record television programs and watch them at a later date.
Ersan Ilyasova – Came back from his “down game” (where he rested the 4th during a blowout) and came up with 18 points, 7 rebounds, and a block, plus 2 of 3 from deep. If you have Ilyasova, you must be tickled, hopefully from owning him and not from your uncle.
Jason Terry – With Rajon Rondo gonzo, Irish eyes look upon Boston and inquire: who? Terry’s (mini) resurgence produced 12 points, 2 rebounds, and 4 assists. Avery Bradley actually got the start, and he finished with 11 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals and a block. He did that in 7 more minutes than Terry.
Greivis Vasquez – It feels like people are just waiting for an excuse to drop him, but again he had a double double with 17 points and 13 assists, plus 3 rebounds and a steal. His only bad mark was missing 4 from beyond the perimeter.
John Wall – He only shot .250 yet finished with 9 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists, a steal and 2 blocks. He is fitting nicely in the Wizards’ starting lineup, as expected.
Deron Williams – An uninspired performance produced 9 points (0-3 from downtown), 1 rebound, 5 assists, a steal and 6 turnovers. Happens to everyone, I suppose.
Tyreke Evans – He tallied 19 points, 11 rebounds, 2 assists and 3 steals in 41 minutes on the floor. That doesn’t happen to everyone.
Raymond Felton – He played 31 minutes and earned 15 points (3-6 from deep), 2 rebounds, 9 dimes, a steal and no turnovers. The Knicks got him back in time as Jason Kidd missed another game with back problems.
Jameer Nelson – His season has been incredibly helpful to fantasy owners, and Wednesday he continued on with 21 points, 3 rebounds, and 9 assists. He only made 2 of 7 from the perimeter, unfortunately.
Luol Deng – Although he missed some time due to a minor injury, he has been able to slide back into the line up and produce lines like last night’s 12 points, 13 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal, and 1 block performance.
Emeka Okafor – He saw 36 minutes which let him reach 15 points, 17 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 blocks. Each game establishes him as a big man in need of a good fantasy home.
Derrick Favors – He racked up 15 points, 6 rebounds, an assist and a block, but I would be wary of putting him on my team. He had gone 4 games without reaching double digit points, and he was averaging less than 5 points and 2 rebounds per game during that stretch.
