Trust The Process Or A Bunch Of Nonsense?

November 17, 2015 | Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 53 Comments

After witnessing the Philadelphia lose their eleventh straight contest this year, needless to say, it certainly takes balls to be a 76ers fan right now. I’m not referring to testicular fortitude or alpha masculinity, but rather literally, to the ping pong balls of hope known as the 2016 NBA Draft Lottery. With the possibility of multiple lottery picks in the 2016 Draft, it’s going to be okay Philadelphia fans. Put down your weapons, we’ll get through this together.

But it may take some time, since the franchise is focusing on future contention; the on-court product suffers as the 76ers appear to be the worst team in basketball once again.

At this point, I’m just surprised Philadelphia still has a team website, since they can’t string three “W’s” together…

I think I’m going to hide in a corner for the rest of my life after that joke.

Philly, I’m rooting for you, and I’m rooting for the process!

Jahil Okafor continued to impact the box score with a 19 points, 11 boards, 1 assist, 1 steal, and 2 blocks. The Rookie of the Year frontrunner recorded his second straight double double against a soft Dallas front court. Luckily for fantasy owners, Okafor will see plenty of minutes to develop in the interim despite concerns about his immediate impact to the team’s chances of winning. Long term, his inabilities to defend the rim and stretch the floor may impact his fit in Philadelphia. I don’t think the coaching staff has any surprising moves in store for 2015 (such as playing more small ball around Noel or limiting Okafor’s minutes experimenting with more perimeter-based lineups), but moving forward, it is a trend to monitor as he continues to develop this year.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Top 100 For 2015-16 Fantasy Basketball

August 12, 2015 | Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 93 Comments

by: JB Gilpin

Ugh, things are drying up faster than Tom Selleck’s avocado farm, that’s for sure!

Maybe it’s the shallower draft class… Maybe it’s a really long list of aging vets… Or maybe it’s just that all the guys I like could only fill up my top 65 of so… But eesh, I really don’t want any of the guys ranked 65 and beyond, and rounding out the top 100 was like trying to sit through True Detective season 2. Hah, still haven’t seen it, I’m just applying some groupthink there… Here’s to hoping ESPN and Yahoo botch their pre-ranks and skew some nasty ADPs! And just throwing it out there to astute re-draft commishes – ESPN and Yahoo’s initial ranks always look pretty poopy before a massive re-adjust closer to the season. Maybe you can con your league to draft earlier and dominate the ill-informed, non-Razzball reading scrubbos… Here’s the Top 100 for the 2015-16 Fantasy Basketball Season:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

This Post Has Been Rated PG13 (…Or Another Similar Pun That Everyone Is Using)

April 6, 2015 | Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 52 Comments

by: JB Gilpin

Well, remember about a month ago when the Paul George news seemed more optimistic than the Knicks season outlook?! OK, maybe that’s not too optimistic, but ya know…

Slim and I both maintained you can leave George on your wire in H2H leagues as a stash, and it took until the final Sunday of the H2H championship to get back on the court. So maybe we were wrong! Hah, I doubt anybody in a H2H final was able to stash him that long… PG13 returned from that horrific injury last summer for 13/2/2/2/0 on 5-12 FG (3-6 3PTM). Did have the 3 TO, but man, even the most die-hard Pacers-hater has to be happy to see George back on the court. Obviously in Roto, he’s a must add for this final week plus. That said, played 15 minutes off the bench and I doubt he gets to 30 in the remaining week in a half. Oh yeah, assballs and a bump of coke! Needed to be sure this was legit rated PG-13 for “some language and drug use”. Here’s what else went down over the weekend 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?

Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Counting Down The Kings Blowup Clock!

February 6, 2015 | Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 64 Comments

by: JB Gilpin

Right now, Kings games from here on out can be perfectly embodied by a The Ben Stiller Show skit. Such an underrated show (couldn’t find the clip on Youtube, it’s too old!). Andy Dick is on the bomb squad, gets to the bomb, then starts doing ridiculous things while the 10 seconds counts down that take a lot longer than 10 seconds… Cooks lunch, changes a baby, shizz like that. All the while the countdown clicks down unfathomably slow, until it’s at 1 and blows him up. Man, it’s hard to describe things when there’s not a video for it! 3rd Century problems…

Well, losing a quality PG like Darren Collison in the second quarter never helps (abdominal strain – getting an MRI today. Good thing he’s not a baseball player, he’d be out two months!), but the Kings are a bigger failed experiment than that prison Stanford thing after getting bludgeoned by the Dirk-less, Rondo-less Mavs. Too many good players to be this bad! Boogie turns it over too much, Gay isn’t working next to him, and the abyss that is the starting PF can’t be all to blame. At 17-31, that’s NOT how the West was won… Gay and Cuz make a lot of dough, but Colly playing this well on a 3-year $15 mil deal is starting to look mighty tasty to potential suitors. If he gets through this ab MRI with nothing worse than a “nice six pack” prognosis, I think it’s about time to sell. Of course Derrick Williams would be nice to dump, and, well, anyone else not named Ben McLemore (who is taking a nice step forward) would be awesome for SAC to kick out. A nice kick in the SAC is what the Kings need! Here’s what else went down last night in fantasy hoops action:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Josh Smith Has Revenge In His Eyes

January 31, 2015 | Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 2 Comments

by: danb

Last night was interesting to say the least. With 10 minutes left till line ups locked, the news came down that LeBron James was going to play. Then the scramble started because almost everyone was on Kyrie Irving after his 55 point performance. One bit of advice I can give you guys is you need to use Twitter for news and you need to be able to be around till line up lock. For example, you gotta leave the house for something an hour before line up lock and don’t have access to change your line ups, I recommend not playing that night. With the way the NBA jerks us around with injury news you gotta be able to make that necessary line up change. It could be matter of a winning night or a losing night. Ok enough rambling. Tonight we have a big 11 game slate. That’s because there is some kind of “Big Game” going on Sunday night. My prediction for the game is 24-13 and Tom Brady wins another Super Bowl.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Brandon Knight Stars In Snatch 2: Stealing The Knicks’ Pride

January 16, 2015 | Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 99 Comments

by: JB Gilpin

What a game in London! One of the biggest franchises in the NBA, losers of 15 straight heading into yesterday’s international soiree, were the heavy underdogs to the Bucks. Yikes.

Best player in the game? Probably my boyfriend! Brandon Knight went all Guy Ritchie on the Knicks for 6 Snatches and a 20/5/6/6/0 line. Hit two threes and continues to be a FT% beast with 6-6 from the stripe. Really the only annoying thing about Knight right now is he only had one game this week! Friggin’ Brits. Stealing our ideas like “sovereignty” and “not beheading people”. Black Mirror is pretty dope though! There is one thing about Knight that is actually a little concerning – papi no likey el TO! 3.4 per game with another 3 yesterday. But so far in Janurary – very small sample bias – they’re down a tad. Really like Knight ROS, and as a possible husband. Here’s what else went down last night in fantasy basketball action:

[NOTE – I’ll be out of town Monday, so I’ll be back with the weekend/Monday recap on Tuesday!]

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Your Maid Rendered Obsolete – Now The New York Knicks Will Clean House

January 6, 2015 | Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 68 Comments

by: JB Gilpin

Some NBA GMs had a case of the Mondays, that’s for sure! “Uhhhh, I’m not ready to be back at work, let’s do something nuts just to make it look like we’re working…”

In a blockbuster three-team trade, the New York Poppycockers salary dumped Iman Shumpert and J.R. Smith to the Cavs. More pressure on Blatt! Now he has to win with Knicks Outkasts… “I like the way you move!” The last NBA coach who said that to Smith was George Karl. Shumpert is likely going to start at the 2 with Smith becoming a 6th man. Both of them must have had a redonkulous party to be heading to a winner. Don’t invite Plaxico or Felton! Then there’s Dion Waiters to the Thunder. Meh. Not like most leagues were using Waiters anyway, but he takes a minor hit in deepers. Reggie Jackson should still lead the second unit in shots, so I’m not that excited. The Knicks picked up three guys – Captain Kirk (but not the Hinrich one), some European with a lot of hair, but then an interesting name in Lance Thomas. I almost made a cracker joke, but we’re gonna gloss right over that and reminiscence in some games he had earlier in the year on a depleted Thunder front line – 12/8/2 (Nov 1), 14/5/1 (Nov 4), the fluky 7/13/6 (Nov 12). And depleted is baked right into the Knicks funnel cake right now. The Poppycockers might as well see what they have at some point, so in uber deep leagues if you need someone with any sort of upside, I’d be sure and star LT on your wire. Here’s what else went down on a crazy Monday for fantasy basketball:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Start Up 2015 With A Shut Down!

January 5, 2015 | Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 120 Comments

by: JB Gilpin

Happy 2015 Razzball Nation!

I for one am elated the Holidays have wrapped up (big thanks again to Slim for his recap at the end of last week!), and ready to buckle down for the second half of the fantasy regular season in H2H. My new year’s resolutions have been made – use Twitter more, swear a little less, work out a lot more… But this gosh darn knee! Eh, I’m pretty flippin’ flabby anyway… Fiddlesticks! Might as well shut it down…

And the talk for Carmelo Anthony‘s shutdown continually grow like a wave across the second level at Madison Square Garden. Not like they have anything else to do… Next new year’s resolution – less dot dot dots! The 5-31 Knickerbockers (I’m calling them The Poppycockers the rest of the way) have been worse than even Spike Lee could have imagined after reading reviews of his Oldboy remake. “Brooooooo – Liiiinnnnn!” Some dude named Bondy (shakeny, not stirredy) from The New York Daily News reported Melo’s knee will need a minor surgery, so it’s not like Melo is just playing through general oldboy-ness. He’s missed the last few after being awful for two straight to end December, so trading him off in fantasy leagues is redonk tough. Last we checked in (mostly through comments), I’ve maintained I’m not giving him away, but it’s fairly close. He’s about at the “leave on the curb” status rather than “driving him all the way to the dumpster.” My best advice would be to find a need for your team, and go for a guy that hits that need without a huge overall rank – i.e. Trevor Ariza for some steals and treys. Might not get Ariza these days, but yeah, something like that. And I still think you gotta try and hold out until Melo plays a few in a row – he’s traveling with the team for the next two games so he’s likely to suit up at least once. Here’s what else went on in fantasy basketball since we flipped the calendar:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Fantasy Basketball Infirmary: Week 8 Injury Analysis

December 19, 2014 | Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 19 Comments

by: Peter Kap

The biggest injury news of the week definitely belongs to Jabari Parker. Initially diagnosed as a strained knee, Parker underwent more tests and it was discovered that he tore his ACL. As a result, Parker will miss the rest of his rookie season.

This is a tough blow to the Bucks. At 14-13, they are currently in the 6^th spot in the East and are in the hunt for a playoff berth. That says more about the pitiful East, than it does about the Bucks.

As my roommates can attest, I may not be able to pronounce his name, but I know Giannis Antetokounmpo is good. He’s athletic and long enough to play multiple positions and should continue to make strides this season. Khris Middleton isn’t as versatile as the Greek Freak, but can still provide fantasy owners with value. He put up 17 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 steals off the bench in Wednesday’s game, before putting up a dud (only 1/2/1) in Thursday’s game.

Brandon Knight, OJ Mayo, Jared Dudley, and even Ersan Ilyasova will also see added looks on offense as well. Ilyasova won’t return from his facial fracture and concussion until at least next week, but is a player to watch. He was playing well prior to his injury and could be a sleeper pickup if he can return to the 13 ppg, 7 rpg, and 1 three per game from a few seasons ago.

Jason Kidd will probably mix and match with his lineups and these guys may be inconsistent night in and night out, but they are guys to watch as their production and minutes rise.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

After Triple OT, Pops Will Probably Bench Spurs Starters The Next 10 Games

December 18, 2014 | Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 101 Comments

by: JB Gilpin

Man, what an epic game in San Antonio! Marc Gasol hitting a preposterous buzzer-beater to put it in OT, then Tim Duncan makes this rim job to put it into 3OT… Crazy man. Two things – 1 – Sean Elliott is maybe my favorite commentator in the NBA and B – look at Marco Belinelli just bowl over Courtney Lee in that second highlight… Strike! Haven’t see a Lee update for an injury, so stay tuned there…

I guarantee you that Gregg Popovich was fuming like President Snow that this game kept going on, and on, and on and… Kinda like book series that have the final book broken into into two movies. I mean The Hunger Games: Mockinjay – Part 1…? I got confused and disinterested once Woody Harrelson stopped drinkin’. So I guess last night’s Spurs vs. Grizzlies games was San Antonio vs. Memphis – Buzzer-beaters traded: Duncan’s Rim Job – Part 3. Another huge game from Timmay (excluding the real fluky 5-15 FT) for 23/16/5/2/3. Rainbow line! Duncan really hasn’t skipped a beat this year, well except for when he’s benched with a DNP-Rest. I know it’s hard to believe, but we’re in Week 9 of the season already! And for H2H leagues that play standard 3-week playoffs (RCL standard), we’re almost halfway through the regular season with playoffs starting Week 21. A game like last night is only going to make Pop go restier, so if you’re killing it at first or second in your standings, I wouldn’t mind selling high at all. But there’s a flip side – if you’re 8 or 9 and see Duncan on a team running away with a playoff spot, it’s actually a good time to think about bringing him aboard. He’ll be frustrating with the DNPs, but could put you over the edge if you’re hanging on the rim. If you know what I mean… Here’s what else went down in A Wednesday Night of NBA: OTs Galore – The Return of Hack-a-Shaq: The Revenge:

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Heat, Incomplete

December 16, 2014 | Fantasy Basketball Daily Notes | 113 Comments

by: JB Gilpin

Replace “Heat” with “Jay Cutler” and that’s what I have on in the background…

So a rough couple of days for Miami fans as both Chris Bosh and Josh McRoberts suffered seemingly minor injuries over the weekend, with some really bleak news coming out on Monday. McBob’s knee injury that came out of nowhere in last Wednesday’s shootaround was diagnosed as a torn meniscus and needs to go under the knife. Yikes. Probably out for the season, and right when he was turning it on. Then to Bosh, who has reports swirling his bum calf might cost him a few weeks. It’s murky waters for the Brontosaurus, but for the long-term, you’re just sitting and praying to the Fantasy God of Injury. I mean, dude was already so busy over the weekend! Bosh is still staying involved with practice on a limited basis, but then again we all know what happens when “we talkin’ bout practice.” In the interim, Shawne Williams probably gets the biggest uptick in minutes. But he was pretty low-ceiling in big minutes to start the year… He had a couple nice games early on, very blah though. Justin Hamilton is looking at a big role as well, off 10/3/1/2/0 in 33 minutes last Sunday. A low-yield big role… A little bit lost in the shuffle is Da Birdman! Chris Andersen returned for Sunday, playing 18 minutes for 2/3/1/0/1. He’s not going to get a ton of run given his age, but should offer a little blocking upside in a slight uptick of minutes. Really none of these guys move the needle for me much, as it’s just an Abyss out there on the front line, with no aliens to save you by raising the ocean floor on some platform thingy. I’m still in Lovington with Robert Covington and want it in the booty for Rudy. They’re way above any of these Heat fill-in schlubs. Here’s what else went down last night in fantasy hoops:

Please, blog, may I have some more?