L-Tryptophan. The chemical compound found in Turkey that makes you sleepy. I am chock full of it, and I imagine more than a few of you gentle readers are as well. So lets make this the last holiday installment of the Buy/Sell before we head back to the couch for a little nappy. There are a few players, however, that might make you excited enough to chug the sluggish, gravy laden blood through your arteries, and wake you up to your regular, effervescent self. Cause if these cats don’t do it for you, you are officially in a catatonic state, fantasy-wise:
Buy:
D.J. Augustin PG
Cut by the Raptors, where he stunk, quite frankly, and resurrected up off the garbage heap by the Bulls, DJ has been scratching up the tracks! Sorry, Typtophan, remember? Seriously, he has been a pleasant surprise, and only 22% owned. Kirk Hinrich is back, but he has been an injury risk all season, and even so, DJ will get 20 plus minutes a game, with the chance to start any game to come, with Kirk liable to go down any moment.
Terrance Ross SG, SF
Ross has been given the start in Toronto, and has been killing it. They just knocked off the Pacers, a game where TRoss went 18/4/2/3/0 with 2 3pts. And 19% owned. So go out and get him Eh? Aboot.
Taj Gibson PF, C
Yes, I watched a few Bulls games. Which isn’t easy these days. But one of the few bright spots has been our hero Taj, who has been scorching hot the last 4 games. 13.4/5.4/2.3/.5/1.5 shooting 61%. Not too shabby, and only 32% owned.
Andre Blatche PF, C
Anyone who reads my brainfart articles will know I’ve recommended Dre before, when Brook Lopez went down last time, and it made me sick to do so. But he killed it the last stint, and Lopez is out again for the rest of the season. So, I’m prepared to ralph up yams, ham, gravy and bird, and tell you to go grab Blatche. He’s only 44% owned. He hasn’t played well thus far for the Nets, but he is a must own, IMO, and has the ability to stack the statsheet. It’s just that he’s such a douchey dude.
James Johnson SF, PF
I’m putting this in as a speculative add. James is a freak athlete, with decent defensive insitincts. He will get swats and boards, and some points. That said, the Grizzlies signed him from his stint in the NBADL, so take that into account. He has shined for the Bulls, the Raptors, and the Kings, all of whom have either traded or cut him, and now the Grizzlies have him. But he put up a triple per, 9/5/1.7/1.7/1.25 with 1.5 treys over the past 4 games. So if you need blocks and steals, with a smattering of other production, you could do worse.
Jose Calderon PG
This is another Buy low recommendation, that, full disclosure, JB has already mentioned, but I concur. He’s shooting a blistering 50% from beyond the stripe, and splashing 3.5 per over the last 4 games, to go along with 15/3.75/5.75/1.25/.25 with .5 turnovers. He isn’t getting dimes he once did because Monta Ellis is handling the rock a lot more, but that assist-to turnover is sick! You might get lucky and his owner may be frustrated with him, his first 6 weeks were… meh. Don’t say I didn’t get you anything for the holidays.
Elton Brand PF, C
Don’t buy him yet, but if DeMarre Carroll is out for any length of time on top of the Al Horford injury, Brand would be my bet to get huge big man minutes on the Hawks, and worth a look in deeper leagues.
Sell:
This comes as no surprise, but there is speculation that he may be back before the year’s end. I say no, and don’t hold him for that long. I know, not exactly ground breaking reporting here, but you should just be happy I’m even writing anything at all.
Jon Leuer C
He has had several quiet games in a row. Don’t ride it out with him, if he gets hot again, he’ll be there on the waiver for you, in all likelihood.
Aaron Brooks PG
I know I said to pick him up last week, but Jeremy Lin came back sooner than I thought, and he got injured last game. It looks not serious, but unfortunately Lin was very good, so that could spell doom for Brooks’ fantasy relevance.
That’s all I can come up with for now, kids. Play safe, and remember to be kind to your fellow man, for at least the next 24-48 hours, if you can manage to stay in the spirit of the season.
One final Note: I will be away on Vacation in Sunny Cancun for 2 weeks, so I will try to answer all the comments, but I may be too drunk, no wifi signal or too drunk. so bear with me.
Feliz Navidad!
