The Cheat Sheet # 7: is there still value in Anthony Randolph
By Eric Yearian
Recent News/Revelations: Finally, the Carmelo Anthony saga is over! Well, at least as far as New Jersey Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov is concerned. The Nets finally grew tired of Denver’s constantly changing trade demands and walked away. The Melo-drama is far from over, but at least we may have reached a lull in the story until the trade deadline, oh wait, that’s February 24th, so I guess we have another month of constant speculation. More news coming out of Denver is that Nene, the team’s talented big man, is growing tired of Anthony’s shenanigans and has made it known that he would prefer to play for a contender, although has stopped short of demanding a trade. In non-Melo news, Toronto bought out Peja Stojakovic, who quickly agreed to a deal with the Mavericks, who traded Alexis Ajinca to the Raptors to make room on the roster. The league did their due diligence in examining the trade for an illegal agreement by the teams, but ultimately, it’s unlikely anything will come of the investigation.
Sell High:Tim Duncan:
Tim Duncan
Duncan is playing very well for a San Antonio team that has the best record in the league. In fact, after recording 21 points, 16 rebounds and 8 assists against the Knicks, he looks primed to break out in the second half of the season, right? On a lot of teams, that might be the case. However, Spurs coach Greg Popovich is widely regarded as a great coach when it comes to managing his players throughout the season. Coach Pop is not afraid to hand out a couple DNP-CDs to his star players as the NBA approaches the playoffs. With the Spurs out in front of the standings, Popovich will be even less reluctant to rest aging vets like Duncan if they shows signs of fatigue or injury due to the fact the Spurs will still likely host a playoff series. At this point in the year, it is key to identify who may play less due to being on a top team or a bottom feeder who feel it is better to hold players out and lose games for a few more ping pong balls. Duncan and the Spurs will almost certainly be in a position that will afford them the opportunity to rest their stars, meaning Duncan will not be a reliable option down the stretch.
Buy Low: Anthony Randolph:
Randolph is stuck in Mike D’Antoni’s doghouse, and thus, can’t seem to find his way off the bench. Many people pegged him as a candidate for a breakout year prior to the season. However, that hasn’t stopped quite a few fantasy owners from holding on to him in the hopes that his potential will reveal itself. It shouldn’t be hard to acquire a player that can’t find a place in his team’s rotation. Now, you’re asking, why would I want him if he isn’t playing? You may have heard that the Knicks are interested in a certain small forward who has a stated desire to play in the Big Apple. They need to find a 1st round pick to offer in any deal and it has been said that they will either deal Randolph to the Blazers, Timberwolves, or Pacers to acquire said pick. No team is going to fork over a first round pick just to have a guy sit on the bench for them. Once he is traded, he will get playing time and the team will give him every opportunity to succeed.
Players you should avoid: Mike Miller:
Miller went off in his latest game, as he scored 32 points against the Raptors. Of those 32 points, 22 of them came in the second quarter. The main caveat, however, is that he did it in a game in which the HEAT were without Chris Bosh, and more importantly, Dwyane Wade. The team was missing approximately 44 points from just those two players combined, so Miller had to step up. He was able to play off of LeBron well and that won’t change when the missing members of the Big 3 come back, but he won’t be putting up numbers like this often. Don’t be fooled by his strong performance in this one game.
Players you should be looking to pick up: Carlos Delfino:
People have kind of forgotten about Carlos Delfino while he recovers from an early-season injury. He was playing quite well to start the season. He even was getting minutes at the expense of Corey Maggette, who became a highly paid bench warmer due to Delfino’s breakout season. It may take him some time to get back in to game shape, but if he can regain his form from earlier in this year he will contribute for fantasy owners.
Full Disclosure from last column: How did the players mentioned in the last column fare in the last column?
Sell High: Chris Douglas Roberts, CJ Miles
After scoring a combined 54 points on January 7th and 8th against Miami and New Jersey, CDR has had 21 points in his last 5 games combined. He’s still getting consistent minutes, but he isn’t scoring, rebounding (aside from one 6 rebound game) or collecting assists. Miles had a stretch where he was scoring very well, but all of the sudden his numbers have dipped across the board. Final Verdict: Correct
Buy Low: Jodie Meeks, JR Smith
J.R. Smith
Meeks has continued to get minutes and, more importantly for his fantasy appeal, shot attempts. However, he is in the midst of a shooting slump, which is severely limiting his fantasy appeal. The biggest hit on Smith right now is the fact that New Jersey dropped trade discussions with Denver, meaning he will remain the third scoring option behind both Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups. Despite this, he is scoring in bunches, as he has consistently hit for double figures. Final Verdict: 50-50
Player you should avoid: Tracy McGrady
McGrady has struggled to perform on a nightly basis, at least to a high enough level to help fantasy owners, and he even went scoreless in only 10 minutes in a recent game. His assists are keeping him as a viable fringe option for fantasy owners playing the waiver wire, but he shouldn’t be on any rosters right now. Final Verdict: Correct
Player you should be looking to pick up: Kendrick Perkins
Perkins is not yet back from his injury, but is getting close and has been participating at Celtics practice on a limited basis. Final Verdict: Yet to be determined.
