Run The Numbers: Build a Dynasty

November 2, 2017 | Run the Numbers | 2 Comments

I love music. Fortunately, my young daughter does, too. We started her early on all sorts of stuff, but she eventually started requesting almost exclusively “girl songs.” So, I started combing through my CDs and mp3s for our daily drive to school, finding a decent amount of great female singers, mainly from the 90s. She really took to some (Gwen Stefani, Shania Twain), but not as much to others that I’d hoped she would (The Cranberries, Veruca Salt). We added in some more current stuff that she loves (Taylor Swift, Meghan Trainor), and we have a great time. Now, I know there’s a good chance this isn’t resonating with you as much as it would if I said I’d kept trying to slip in more funk (she likes “Car Wash” and “Jungle Boogie”, at least), rock (Down on the Corner is popular with her, but there are only a few songs by Disturbed that are appropriate for four year-olds!), and rap (“Tricky” was a favorite for a while, fortunately), but stick with me, please. Because, I found something very enlightening when I introduced the very, very 90s classic, “Stay”, by Lisa Loeb. Was it that we only hear what we want to? That we won’t live forever? No, it’s this powerful line:

“You said you caught me ’cause you want me, and one day you’ll let me go. You try to give away a keeper, or keep me ’cause you know you’re just so scared to lose.”

It’s like a record scratch every time I hear that line. YOU TRY TO GIVE AWAY A KEEPER??? She was brilliantly pointing out that YOU DON’T JUST GIVE AWAY A KEEPER! But at the same time, you don’t keep a player only because you’re scared to lose! Such wisdom. For decades, I swear I didn’t know that lovely song was about fantasy basketball keeper leagues.

Lisa Loeb. Fantasy Oracle.

While we’re still quite a few games away from a large enough sample of current season stats to really trust them, let’s talk keeper/dynasty strategy (dynasty being a league in which you keep a large amount of your team for next season). I thought I’d share some tips and have some fun looking back at what we thought of past rookies so that we don’t get overly excited about these 19 year-olds that we’re currently trusting to save our teams.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

2016-17 NBA Team Previews: Phoenix Suns

July 21, 2016 | Team Previews | 23 Comments

by: JB Gilpin

As we prepare for the 2016-17 Fantasy Basketball Season, I’ll be taking a look at each NBA team with their major adds and drops to see if we can pan for any surprise rotational gold. This open is especially witty for the Nuggets. We’ll be counting down from worst NBA regular season to the best, mainly because I’m still figuring out how to rank the Warriors…

Phoenix Suns (23-59)

Suns

Key Acquisitions:

F Jared Dudley

F/C Dragan Bender (Rookie)

F Marquese Chriss (Rookie)

G Tyler Ulis (Rookie)

G Leandro Barbosa

Key Losses:

F Markieff Morris

F Mirza Teletovic

F Jon Leuer

G Ronnie Price

G/F Chase Budinger

A Feeling of Complacency

Is it weird that I always really liked the Suns logo?! It just looks cool every time I see it!

What a draft day for the Suns! Absolutely loaded at guard, the Suns manage to snag two upside-y bigs that can stretch the floor, hit treys, and play some D. Of course, they’re 19-year-old projects and have a wide range of outcomes, but as a rebuilding team, they made awesome moves.

Besides the rookie class, the Suns hold off on free agency and only invest in a few Milk Duds. They still have one too many guards, but given the injury issues of Knight & Bledsoe, depth isn’t the worst thing. That said, it wouldn’t be surprising to see one of the two dealt at the deadline through Phoenix’s rebuilding efforts. But going into opening night, here’s how they’re looking:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

The Thunder Don’t Really Need Kevin Durant, Says Wizards Fan

November 19, 2015 | Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 77 Comments

by: Peter Kap

Wow, how good is Russell Westbrook? Two nights after dropping 40 points and 14 assists against the Grizzlies, Westbrook scored 43 points, 8 assists, and 9 rebounds on Wednesday. The Thunder controlled the game, but never really put the game out of reach for the injury-riddled Pelicans. Whenever the Thunder needed a basket, Westbrook had no problem getting to the hoop or finding the open man. My only knock on Westbrook’s game is the turnovers, but when you’re posting near triple doubles every night, you’re allowed to turn the ball over as much as he does.

Now his stats are inflated a little because Kevin Durant has been sitting with a hamstring injury, but Westbrook is still a top 10 talent even with Durant in the lineup. Should Durant leave the Thunder next season (to go to, say, the Wizards!!!), Westbrook would enter my top three, along with Steph Curry and Anthony Davis.

Now onto the other notables from Wednesday night:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

DeRON’s SWANSONg

July 16, 2015 | Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 38 Comments

by: JB Gilpin

“Dude, you can’t make a title caps to make the pun work, or else it’s a stupid lazy joke!” Well, ya know I’m pretty effin’ rusty out here catching back up with Summer Ball and this final batch of free agency moves! I’m as old and as rusty as Deron Williams, who completed his buyout with the Nets, turned it into piles of gold he buried in his backyard, and will be eating Mulligan’s steak with Mark Cuban. The rich stay rich, just with the richer! Wait, did that make any sense? While D-Will has just as much risk as an active Claymore mine sitting on your desk (and giving it a fourth grade girl), I think I might actually buy in a bit. He’s in a steady decline, but when looking at his numbers last year, it’s easy to forget he came off the bench for a bit – and his bench numbers were horrific. As a starter he was 14.3/3.6/7.1 with a steal per and only 2.4 TO. And interestingly enough – nearly 33 minutes a game while staying [mostly] healthy! Must be the new bacon and eggs diet. He shot pretty horrible – sub 40% as a starter – but it was 39.6% vs. 32.3% as a sub. Couldn’t figure out how to get it done off the pine! Sounds like a merit badge the Pawnee Rangers would give out. Moving to Dallas, he’s surrounded by SO MUCH better talent that he should have no problem falling into comparable numbers as his starting days in Brooklyn, maybe even with a few more dimes, a few less TO, and playing as the starter all year (if he stays glued together). This is likely D-Will’s final chance to be on a winner, and after a very sub-par 14-15 I think he could be a draft day value. Either that or he’ll be a hot spinning cone of meat! Here’s what else has gone on in the past week of fantasy basketball:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Triple-Double Bonanza!

April 2, 2015 | Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 17 Comments

by: JB Gilpin

Everyone put on their big boy, triple-double pants last night, that’s for sure! Imagine the same pants Fat Albert would wear… With extra room built in for his Prince Albert!

First there was Bootstraps Bootstraps (!!), Evan Turner raising fantasy-owners’ Jolly Rogers for his patented tripdub with nothing else. 13/11/12/0/0 on 6-17 FG with one trey. But hey, a tripdub is a tripdub – and only 1 TO! Then, just a few minutes later, Boogie was like,”Ello Poppet!” Miss Turner was easily upstaged by DeMarcus Cousins, who had one of the best lines on the season. Tripdub? Check. Goromotaro? Check. Rainbow line? Check. Double rainbow line? Almost! 24/21/10/3/6, but did only hit 2-6 FT. And Beard may have upstaged EVEN THAT himself in that game, but more later… Then Russell Westbrook went into double-digits with his triple-doubles! 31/11/11 for his 10th tripdub, but took him a bajillion shots for 10-32 FG (2-11 3PTM 9-11 FT). Man, just a great night of NBA basketball, and hopefully your championship teams reaped the rewards from this all-you-can eat stats buffet. A few more nights like this, and we’ll forget all about the tanking and DNP-rest issues impacting the NBA! Here’s what else went down last night in fantasy basketball action:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

IT2/3 Makes JB 3/3 A Fool!

March 30, 2015 | Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 49 Comments

by: JB Gilpin

Fractions. Math. It’s hard…

Kinda like variables… Is it IT2?! Is it IT3?! I feel like I’m taking crazy pills!

Apparently it’s “IT2” when alluding to his non-related, same-named NBA legend Isiah Thomas. For like a year I thought Isaiah Thomas was legit his son! But then Thomas flashed the “IT3” nickname because he… shoots a lot of 3s? Eesh. Originality is lacking! So I have officially donned him IT2/3 to solve all the confusion, and to reference his diminutive size.

After returning from elbow and back injuries, IT2/3 was atrocious last Wednesday for 4 Pts and 3 TO against the Heat. I was passing on him in at least 2/3 of comments! But IT2/3 had a monster weekend with 18/1/6 and 19/0/7 lines with a combined 17-19 at the stripe. Getting a foul called on 2/3 of his drives! Certainly a must-own down the stretch, it has also made Marcus Smart a dumpster fire. Hopefully those of you still alive in Razzball Nation ignored my 2/3-of-the-time wrong advice and can ride IT2/3 through the H2H Finals! Here’s what else happened over the weekend in fantasy basketball action:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

The Return Of Dwight, Ever So Slight

March 26, 2015 | Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 30 Comments

by: JB Gilpin

Well, I can’t say I haven’t been steadfast (double negative police!) about my Dwight Howard hatred… Look at that rock bottom red right there!

And with Dwight coming back from his knee injury and the precursing news of his return, I have said I wouldn’t add him in virtually any 10 or 12ers. I don’t trust the minutes, and after giving Slim a 19 minutes over/under for Dwight’s return on the Pod, he only went for 16:27 putting up 4/7/2/0/1 with a TO. At least he stayed off the FT line! After we had started the Pod, McHale said he was only giving Dwight 16 minutes, just enough to be sure his TO and FT% wouldn’t hurt fantasy teams. I may have been liberal with McHale’s quote for that last part… In 8-cat or non-FT% leagues I guess he probably should be scooped up, but he’ll probably sit back-to-backs and the Rockets have a pair left on the schedule with Sun/Mon and Wed/Thurs games this upcoming week. Get your sales ready, Big & Tall, we got a bigun needing more street clothes! Here’s what else went down last night in fantasy basketball action:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

When Shooters DON’T Shoot, The Pistons Lose To The Sixers!

March 19, 2015 | Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 69 Comments

by: JB Gilpin

Man, off an emotional win beating the Gizz (I hope that catches on), the Pistons go back-to-back and lose in Philly. Seems like that kind of emotional high/low happens all the time! Shoulda bet some money on Philly with probably a good betting line against em.

And it was pretty easy to see how Detroit lost with Reggie Jackson (4-17), Jodie Meeks (2-12), and Spencer Dinwiddie (2-11) combining for 7-40 from the field! That FG% isn’t even legal at 17.5%! That shooting percentage is statutory rape! But swooning in all cool and ready to rob the cradle was the 44% from my boy Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, the only shooter who could hit anything going 7-16. Normally the lead for this game would be R-Jax’s trip-dub (11/11/10/0/0), but with 5 TO and that shooting %, he was pretty poopy. KCP isn’t going to suddenly be a multi-cat stud, but it’s back-to-back 20 point games with a 20/8/2/1/0 line last night and a trey. What I really like was his aggressiveness driving to the hole, netting 5-6 FT and he’s 7-9 from the stripe the past two games after a stretch with virtually no freebies. He’s taken 14+ shots in 6 of 7 games and at least 10 shots in 13 of 15 taking a bigger role in the O with R-Jax able to probe (I can only think of South Park every time I hear a broadcast say that…). Of course the FG% will be a struggle, but if your team build can handle it/if it’s a punt, the low TO and decent steals make him a solid add in the stretch run. Here’s what else happened last night in fantasy basketball:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

The Pistons Turnover Josh Smith

December 23, 2014 | Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 60 Comments

by: JB Gilpin

It’s like that scene in Moneyball when Beane-y Baby is talking to David Justice and says something along the lines of, “You pissed off the other team so much, they’re paying 2/3 your salary!” Except the Pistons are going to pay 3/3 of Josh Smith‘s salary…

Geez, over the weekend plus a travel day, I feel like I missed two season’s worth of the NBA! Smoove gets waived, there’s trades… I think Andrew Wiggins is even contemplating retirement! In Detroit Rock City, Stan Van is tired of seeing Detroit Brick City. Shooting a career-low (even for Smoove!) 39.1% from the field (including 9-37 from deep for a Gargantuan 24.3 3PTM%), Stan Van is about as sick of labradoodles as Michael Vick. Too soon! I could go Larry Sanders there too, he is on my all-hate team… Wow, this got too serious. Josh Smith is terrible at basketball! Another year of 2.6 TO is doing no favors, but even in only 32 minutes a game (a low since 2005-06), he’s at a career-best 4.7 AST this year. Then again, another flip-side with a career worst 46.8 FT%. I’m rattling things off we already know, but mostly want to mention in H2H leagues, he’s still a useful player if your team is built the right way. And my pre-season rank was hoping he would come off the bench and boost the FG% and bad TO rate by playing against second units. Right now the Rockets are front-runners to pick him up (which also is a big indictment on Terrence Jones coming back any time soon), which should limit his labradoodles and keep him in line for defensive stats. I’m really hating what Stan Van is doing to DET for us fantasy-players – these shifts in minutes and rotations are infuriating – so I’m actually a little encouraged. We’ll see how it shakes out, but if you’ve been able to weather the Smoove storm of horrific efficiency, I’d keep holding. Here’s what else has gone on across the league since we last checked in:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

These Hips Don’t Lie

February 13, 2014 | Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 50 Comments

by: JB Gilpin

When Glen Davis went to the pre-season Magic weigh-in, the trainer was like, “355 Big Baby, really?” “These hips don’t lie!” And in a very full slate of games last night, we had two pretty premiere big men have their hips not lie and go out on them. “Help I’ve fallen and can’t get up!” The NBA to start issuing players life alerts to wear around their necks. DeMarcus Cousins was the first to succumb to the AARP ailment. Suffered a left hip flexor, but coach Mike Malone said it probably wasn’t serious. Destiny is like, “wait a ‘left’ hip? I thought, like, for people we had only one hip!” No child left behind fails us yet again. Good thing it’s the All-Star break for Boogie! An All-Star Boogie! Dude, that should totally be an event. Breakdance Horse! Hah. Then Derrick Favors went out and re-aggravated his right hip that had caused him to miss games here and there over the past month. This one is a lot less bueno. But hey, DeMarcus and Derrick have a pair of healthy hips! If only they were siamese twins – they’d get, like, 35 rebounds a game. Favors will likely get an MRI and be brought along very slowly since this is a re-aggravation. Enes Kanter to the rescue! Might get some solid run and deserves love in a lot of leagues. And don’t sleep on Rudy Gobert in deep leagues if you need some blockage. Speaking of blockage, look at some of the traffic photos of NC from yesterday. No one learned from Atlanta! And the best basketball game on the slate, UNC-Duke, cancelled. Travesty. Let’s get this global warming going again! Here’s what else I saw last night in fantasy hoops:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Bucks Big Men Go The Way Of Roadkill

February 11, 2014 | Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 46 Comments

by: JB Gilpin

“Deer in the headlights”. Makes sense for this team! And it starts with the pack leader Mr. Larry Drew, who we’ve slammed on ad nauseam here on Razzball hoops. But to rub salt on the wound, or in Milwaukee’s case I guess it would be to leave out a salt lick, both fantasy relevant Bucks bigs are hurt. Larry Sanders – who was first reported to just having blurry vision after being poked in the eye – actually has a fractured orbital bone. Could this have actually happened later that night at a Milwaukee nightclub receiving a right hook from a bouncer? Maybe! I’m just excited to see Sanders in rec specs. All he’ll need to do now is grow a goatee and dye it white and he really will be Colonel Sanders! Then to top it off, John Henson rolled his ankle last night landing on Zaza Pachulia‘s foot. Zaza was like, “Henson, is this your ankle? It struck my foot!” No updates on the severity, but we saw how long they waited to bring him back from that wrist injury so I’m a little sceered. For Sanders, I’d try and wait until he sees the specialist today to tell him how jacked up his eye socket is. It’s been suggested it could be 1-6 weeks, so if indeed closer to the full 6 weeks and you’re barely hangin’ by a thread I think you have to cut him loose. Tough to take a 0 the last weeks before the playoffs. Henson is another wait and see, but I doubt it will be nearly that long. But in both cases, if you’re in H2H and really needing a win this week, I couldn’t fault losing either in a All-Star Weekend shortened matchup. An extra start means even that much more in a week like this one. Sure someone will probably scoop up your Bucks roadkill to cook into their Chinese Food, but hey, at least it’s not in your dinner. Zaza is worth a look himself as a streamer in the interim. Here’s what else I saw last night in fantasy hoops:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Brad Stevens Sullies Fantasy Basketball

January 13, 2014 | Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 59 Comments

by: JB Gilpin

Ohhhhh Brad Stevens. You look like you’re 12 and coach like you’re… 12. But at least, unlike Larry Drew, his inconsistencies have been pretty centralized to the… center. I need to work on expanding my vocab! First there was the Vitor Faverani early (albeit very brief) breakout, then Kelly Olynyk got some starts, followed by a really nice run from Jared Sullinger. I at first brushed him off, but then had Yahoo highlights for a Celtics game and was really impressed. I liked how he saw the floor, played hard, a nice-looking shot, and just overall looked like a guy that would be a must-own. Then after some flagrant fouls and rough-n-tough play racking up the personals, Stevens threw him to the bench. From December 22nd to January 8th he was brutal and I had to jump ship as well. And of course right after that happens, he goes for 21/11 and 14/10 over the weekend, with a pair of treys in both. The first comment on Friday was asking about dropping Sullinger and I said “12 team with a solid squad I might hold, but if I had injuries or needed production now, he’s droppable. I think he is bad a few weeks, but gets back into the starting lineup.” That’s me quoting me! My timetable was off, turned out he was done being bad/underplayed, but I still had some faith. I think he needs to be owned in most leagues with double-double upside, a perimeter game, and I think the assists come back (only 1 in the past 4, but was at 2.3 dimes a game in December). Let’s all just hope Stevens doesn’t keep sullying fantasy hoops for us… Here’s what else I saw over the weekend (through tears of sadness after the refs rigged the 49ers a playoff win) in fantasy basketball:

Please, blog, may I have some more?