Blake Griffin Is A Mythical Beast: NBA Fantasy Basketball Market Watch
Well it’s another week and another Clippers player is in the spotlight. While it may be obvious to most fans and insiders that Mr. Griffin is off to a superb start to his career, it’s important to understand the merits of his accomplishments.
Griffin is averaging a double-double on the season with 21.8 PPG and 12.6 rebounds. He’s tallied 23 consecutive double-doubles. In addition, Blake is mixing in 3.3 assists and is shooting 51.8 percent from the field. He’s even had a block in five straight games.
Furthermore, Griffin has scored 20+ points in 23 games and 30+ in four games on the season. And, the last time he failed to reach at least 10 rebounds in a game was way back on Nov. 18 when he had eight against Indiana. As if that’s not impressive enough, Griffin has grabbed 14+ rebounds in 16 of his team’s games this season.
Need more proof of Griffin’s greatness? Griffin ranks in the top 10 in the NBA in offensive rebound percentage (12.5), defensive rebound percentage (27.4) and total rebound percentage (20). This translates to one out of every five rebounds by the Clippers winding up in his hands. Impressed yet? If you’re looking for a flaw in his game, look no further than his 60 percent shooting from the charity stripe. Other than that, Blake Griffin certainly is taking the NBA by storm.
Way up north of the border, there’s a second year player who’s starting to make some noise for a down-trodden Raptors franchise. Mr. DeRozan has played some very solid basketball thus far, and especially as of late.
DeDe averaging 23.8 points, 3.67 rebounds and 1.0 steals per game over his last six games. He recently went off for 37 points against Houston (12/31), two nights later he tallied 27 against my beloved Celtics and last night against the Kings racked up another 28. In fact, DeRozan has scored in double-digits in all but two games since the beginning of December.
The former first round pick (9th in 2009) is only being started in 47 percent of CBS leagues. Considering his solid starting spot for the Raptors, his scoring ability and his knack to grab a few boards, DeRozan should be on your radar.
Miller has recently rejoined the Three Amigos in South Beach, but has yet to get on-track. Since his activation in December, he has two DNP’s and a combined 50 minutes of game action in eight games.
Miller was supposed to be the beneficiary of many open looks from the perimeter with Wade, LeBron and Bosh garnering most of the attention from opposing defenses. However, that hasn’t panned out as of yet.
Coach Spolestra is finding it difficult to get Miller the minutes he needs to get going, and isn’t tempted to mess with the Heat’s successful formula. This would explain the three points TOTAL Miller has scored to date. Until Miller gets some quality court time, he should be nowhere near a fantasy roster.
Frye has suddenly found himself as part of a front-court experiment. Since the trade with Orlando, Gentry has been trying to find the best combination to use in the starting lineup.
Unfortunately for Frye, that combination has not included him in the Suns’ starting lineup for four of the last five games.
In the past six games Frye has totaled 19 field goals for 48 points, averaging a measly 8 points per game in that span. Two nights ago he was reinserted into the starting lineup and played 42 minutes scoring 16 points. However, in the previous five games hadn’t played more than 28 minutes.
It still remains to be seen how exactly Gentry will mix and match his personnel. In the meantime, the Suns have faded very quickly in the West and it may be best to avoid Frye and Co. until things settle down.
This edition of the Stock Watch’s Goat Award goes out to Masai Ujiri and the entire Denver Nuggets front office. They have fumbled their way through the Carmelo Anthony trade drama and do not seem equipped to deal with the situation.
The most recent proposal being bandied about involves three to four teams, as many as 17 players, and numerous first round draft picks changing hands. However, Denver is still not satisfied by the proposed haul as they look to try and unload Al Harrington’s remaining four years and $28 million (good luck!).
In either event, it’s difficult to understand why Denver hasn’t traded Anthony yet. The Nets seem to be their only logical trade partner regardless of their bluff to deal Anthony to the Knicks instead. And, one must assume that Carmelo had given his blessing to discuss trades with the Nets since every proposal involves him going to Newark.
One thing is for sure, every day they wait to trade him, is a day closer to Anthony walking out of Denver and the Nuggets winding up with zero compensation.
Tags: The Fantasy Fix, Fantasy Sports Advice, Fantasy Basketball Advice, Fantasy Basketball, 2010, NBA, Stock Watch, Blake Griffen, DeMar DeRozan, Mike Miller, Channing Frye, Carmelo Anthony
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