Will You Marry Me, DeMarre?

December 11, 2014 | Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 66 Comments

I’ve got the ring in the cake. The scoreboard operator has got it cued up for the 2nd quarter under-8 timeout. The plane with some really carcinogenic toxins is ready to pollute the atmosphere in a “Will U Marry Me?” loopy smokestream.

An unsung contributor this year, DeMarre Carroll racked up another under-the-radar line last night for 14 Pts, 11 Reb, 3 Ast, 3 Stl, 2 3PTM, and a partridge in a pear tree! No TO, and other than blocks really hits all the Silver Bells and whistles. Hitting a career best 1.6 treys a game, it’s a Christmas miracle his FG% is at 46%. The dimes don’t do much either, but there’s no reason not to to Sleigh Ride him while he’s hitting most of the cats this hard. Even a Silent Night or two won’t scare me away, and at only 61% ownership in Yahoo, I feel like there’s still a lot of leagues where he could bring Joy to the World. So sing a holiday carol for DeMarre, and even though nothing is too sexy, I felt like I needed Hark! The Herald Angels Sing (full disclosure, I had to look up a list of Christmas songs for this bit, I’m such a Grinch). Here’s what else went down last night in fantasy basketball:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Get To Know A Little Mo About JB

November 20, 2014 | Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 92 Comments

by: JB Gilpin

As most of you don’t know, I’m actually Will Smith’s illegitimate first son. If you don’t believe me, well you more or less have to click on that link and read it, or else the following will be too esoteric… Too ephemeral…

After Mo Williams was moved back into the starting line-up last night, he showed his Rubio-esqueness going 14/3/13 in a fantastic dimebag performance. The chosen player for the open this morning, I asked Mo to interview me and my method for compartmentalizing everything fantasy basketball into a daily recap:

Mo: What have you been reading lately?

JB: Ya know, totem pole haikus, Ke$ha’s twitter profile, because ya know… Because living.

Mo: I feel ya. So what’d you think about my facilitating last night? Pretty sick line back in the starting 5.

JB: Well, I don’t really watch the NBA. There’s no sports I like to watch, so I make them up myself and watch them again, and it’s the best thing… But even in my self-created NBA, it was pretty impressive. The way you can distribute while making time go slow… Or fast… As you please… And how you know it doesn’t exist.

Mo: I have been turning back the clock, that’s for sure! That baby Zach LaVine is way behind me for fantasy these days, right?

JB: He’s the feeling of like, a fragment of a holographic reality…

Mo: You’re right, pretty easy call there. So are you dropping say… Tony Wroten for me?

JB: There’s a duality to it. So when one thought goes into your mind, it’s not just one thought, it has to bounce off both hemispheres of the brain. When you’re thinking “yes”, you’re thinking “no”. It’s a tool for understanding. It comes from a place of oneness.

Mo: I have no idea what the F you’re saying. Just tell me, am I a good medium-term value until Ricky Rubio gets his ankle all healed up?!

JB: If he wants his muscles to grow, he has to shock them. If you want society to change, you have to shock them. That’s what art is, shocking people.

Mo: Fine. Whatever. I know I’m legit, LaVine shoulda stayed in school longer…

JB: You never learn anything in school. Think about how many people die in hospitals every day. Med school? What’s up with that!? I still haven’t been to med school and I haven’t died in a hospital, I can’t see how med school is really helping anyone out… Same with LaVine, in whatever universal form he occupies…

Mo: Occupy? #OccupyDraymondGreen?!

JB: Forever, ‘til the day that we’re in our bed!

Here’s what else went down in NBA action last night:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Mo Injuries Mo Problems

November 9, 2014 | Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 121 Comments

by: JB Gilpin

Ay dios mio!

Friday was a cryday for me. Then Saturday was a sadderday. Muy triste! Ricky Rubio severely sprained his ankle in the second quarter against the Magic Friday night, effectively crushing several of my teams and ruining my DraftKings squad! Seems like every year there’s several bad ankle sprains with players rolling their foot on their own, get these guys better footwear! Rubio’s gonna miss at least a month, with a widely circulated update it “could” be 7-8 weeks. All I want for Christmas is Rubio back on the court! I’m holding in virtually all leagues, as he was finally banking on the high expectations I’ve set for him with my high ranks the past two years. Because we all know the Razzball Ranks are bulletin board material for NBA locker rooms…

Everything seemed to point towards a massive workload for Mo Williams, who through the first four games (with Rubio in there full time as the starter), Mo was averaging 21.4 minutes and 3 dimes per. But surprisingly, Flip Saunders went sushi on us with the raw Zach Lavine getting the start and going 5/6/4 in 26 minutes (only 2 TO) while Mo’s 2/4/5 in 22 minutes (3 TO) doesn’t inspire any sort of confidence Williams will get more rock. Add into the stew the Wolves were actually in that game against the Heat until the end, and it’s a stew I don’t think I want any part of anymore. I mean, who puts sushi in a mother f stew?! Here’s what else went down over the weekend in fantasy basketball action:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Draft Kings Weekend Edition

November 8, 2014 | Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 14 Comments

by: danb

This NBA DFS season has been kind of a roller coaster ride. The ownership of players is higher than normal. Seems like everyone is on the same value players night after night. If your high priced players you spend on don’t tank and reach value then you’re going to do well. So be smart and don’t take too many risky players. Also with the NFL, NHL and College Football going on too, be smart with your bankroll.

On Saturday we have a 7 game slate:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

DjazzGo Unchained

November 6, 2014 | Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 140 Comments

by: JB Gilpin

I gotta say, last night might have been one of the most exhilarating early season nights of NBA action that I can remember for some time. Career-highs, two buzzer beaters, a triple double, upset Ws… It was awesome.

Before we get into how the city of Cleveland can just give up hope… again… if you haven’t noticed on the main page of the site, Slim is in need of a new didgeridoo! When my awful Hornets somehow beat the Heat, he took his frustration out on his favorite instrument, banging the wood in fervent frustration. Wow, that sounded wrong! But Razzball Nation can help! Click on his donate button there to help him buy a new didgeridoo, for any value you wish, especially as a thanks for helping with the comments in the wee hours of the morning whilst I beauty sleep snuggled up with my Brandon Knight blow up doll.

But before that mental image is indefinitely burnt into your subconscious, let’s get back to action on the court where the big game was obviously the Jazz knocking off the Cavs on a Gordon Hayward buzzer beating fader. “Look Butler fans, I can hit big buzzer beater shots!” Awwwww, low blow… The Cavs had all sorts of terrible sluiced through their stats, like six, count em, SIX assists in the entire game. Four were from LeBron too. I guess the other Cavs want to prove to LeBron they all can be ball hogs. In contrast, the Spurs had six assists on their first six field goals in their win last night… But not like they’re a model franchise or anything!

As NBA fans, which all of us are even if we care more about fantasy than anything else, last night was a winner. I guess unless you’re a David Lee owner, or Cleveland fan… There’s always Green, or the Browns tonight! Colors to the rescue! Here’s what else went down in fantasy hoops action:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Jeff Green Decides To Be Good At Basketball For A Night

November 4, 2014 | Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 141 Comments

by: JB Gilpin

Anyone watch the Mavs host the Celtics last night? Game be scrappy! Rajon Rondo tackled Monta Ellis towards the end trying to restrain him for a hard foul, and I got confused if I was watching hoops or that MNF tragedy! Ellis held his knee for a bit there, so let’s hope he’s OK…

But the big story in that one was Jeff Green‘s absurdity. Well, it actually mimicked the absurdity of this game. Down 30 in the second quarter, the Celtics somehow came back – in Dallas – to make it a nailbiter to the finish. The Mavs took Jeff Green as seriously as fantasy owners this year, and he had one of his three monster games he’ll have this season. 35/7/2/1/2 shooting 14-28 including 5-12 from downtown. If there was ever a sell high game, this would be it. You need any data to back it up? How about after his last big game – 39/6 with four treys against the Pelicans on March 16th, 2014? The subsequent 8 games immediately afterwards – 11.8/3.6/2.3 shooting 34% from the field. Green is Brandon Jennings in a SF/PF body. They couldn’t even do a Freaky Friday remake with these two, they’d wake up and look at their new bodies in the mirror and go, “meh, at least I can still get hot one game outta ten shooting the ball…”

Green’s first two games were the expected blah, and he just doesn’t do anything but score and trey… Glorified ThrAGNOF! Is Chris Copeland really that much worse than Jeff Green right now? Maybe Citizen Copeland doesn’t have this kind of big game upside, but it’s why we preach to stream your threeballers. Stream your polyorchids! Learn something new every day here at Razzball… Here’s what else went down last night in fantasy hoops action:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Knight The Power!

October 30, 2014 | Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 134 Comments

by: JB Gilpin

Uh oh… Brandon Knight had a good game… JB’s gonna talk about his Brandon Knight infatuation all year now! Great…

One of my big sleeper calls last year (which was, only, kindasorta right), I again came into this season with Knight well ahead of the consensus (six spots ahead of the next highest among 25 experts – the only one in green!). And while his knight (womp womp) was still redonkulous, there was more to like than only the stat line. Went 22/8/13/0/1 with 2 treys and 10-10 FT. But what’s to salivate over is he led the Bucks in minutes, clearly started the game as the PG, and both Kendall Marshall and Nate Wolters didn’t get off the bench. Jerryd Bayless was the only backup PG to get off the pine for a measly 14 minutes. I think a big hesitation for fantasy owners was if Knight was going to play more SG like he did down the stretch last year, having his dimes eaten away like Raymond Felton at a CiCis. Certainly looks like that won’t be the case, and when I face opposing fantasy teams, Knight is going to be my Public Enemy #1. Here’s what else went down in our first big slate of games for the 2014-15 season:

Please, blog, may I have some more?