Ouch! I’d been touting Manu Ginobili as a buy-low trade target, anticipating that his minutes and production would improve as his left hand got stronger. Now he’s strained his oblique. There’s no official diagnosis yet, or an accurate prediction of how much time he’ll miss, but this is bad news for the Spurs, Manu and his fantasy owners. Hope you didn’t cut Danny Green or Gary Neal, whose value won’t be fading after all. Neal had 17 points yesterday, going 5 of 8 from downtown in 27 minutes off the bench. San Antonio did beat the Clippers in overtime for their tenth straight win, thanks to another great effort by Tony Parker. For L.A., Randy Foye got hot, which meant fewer minutes for Mo Williams. That timeshare had been trending the other way; Foye was 5-for-26 in his previous three games.
Saturday Night’s Alright
The Bulls were ambushed at home by a fired-up New Jersey team. Kris Humphries was a man possessed, with 18 rebounds and his second straight 24-point effort. Hump has made 31 of his last 43 shots. Deron Williams was brilliant, using his size advantage over C. J. Watson to score 29. Chicago just couldn’t get going; Joakim Noah was scoreless and Ronnie Brewer very quiet. Mike James, who played well off the bench, will become an afterthought once Derrick Rose is back. For the Nets, rookie MarShon Brooks played 41 minutes, Anthony Morrow a mere 14, as their fantasy values keep heading in opposite directions.
Monta Ellis had 33 and Stephen Curry 36 as the Warriors gave the Grizzlies quite a battle. Golden State could really use a center. Memphis again relied on six players, all in double figures. Marreese Speights (16 & 12) continues to play with more focus and energy; he could be a useful reserve — in reality and fantasy — even after Zach Randolph returns.
Something isn’t quite right with the Hawks. Jeff Teague went a miserable 1-for-10 from the floor, though he did play 29 minutes, and Kirk Hinrich was scoreless on 0-4 shooting in his 20 minutes off the bench. Willie Green has become the sixth man, though all he does is score, while Tracy McGrady is complaining about his lack of playing time. Portland blew them out by 20, as Raymond Felton had a much better game (14 PTS, 8 AST) and LaMarcus Aldridge returned to the lineup with a solid 19 PTS and 10 REB. As expected, Nicolas Batum continues to start. Last night he led all scorers with 22, adding 8 REB. Wesley Matthews isn’t exactly “buried” on the bench, getting 28+ minutes and scoring 13 points. Don’t despair if you own him.
Today’s Games
The Knicks have already beaten Dallas as the Jeremy Lin show continued, with 28 points and 14 assists. J.R. Smith brought the Garden crowd to its feet with 15 points off the bench. Suddenly, Mike D’Antoni has a lot of weapons — Carmelo Anthony and even Baron Davis may return tomorrow.
It’s an unusually busy Sunday in the NBA. The Magic and Heat are playing as I type, with eight more games this evening.
Brook Lopez will start for the Nets as they host the Bucks, but is not expected to play tomorrow at MSG, just to avoid a back-to-back after being away for so long. He should be a full-time starter again by Wednesday. For Milwaukee, Drew Gooden remains hurt and Ersan Ilyasova is a good pickup.
Sacramento goes to Cleveland, where Alonzo Gee is getting extra run while Daniel Gibson and Anthony Parker remain sidelined, and the big men (Semih Erden and Tristan Thompson) are hard to predict. For the Kings, it looks like DeMarcus Cousins is OK, after being scratched, then reinstated, on Friday. If Isaiah Thomas starts again, he’ll be a hot pickup.
The Sixers, undermanned in the middle, will find the 1-2 punch of Kevin Love and Nikola Pekovic hard to handle.
I don’t think Charlotte can win two straight road games, especially with Danny Granger back in the Pacers’ lineup. The Bobcats do have D.J. Augustin back, moving Kemba Walker to a sixth-man role. Bismack Biyombo, only 19 years old, is learning on the job, but had 13 REB and 7 BLK in Toronto, a hint of things to come.
The Celtics visit Detroit, with Kevin Garnett nursing a sore hip, Brandon Bass out and Jermaine O’Neal averaging just 3.3 PPG in February. For the Pistons, Rodney Stuckey is coming off a season-high 36 points, while Brandon Knight and Ben Gordon seem to take turns getting hot.
Houston will not have an easy time against the Utah big men. Backup C Jordan Hill sprained a knee, so Patrick Patterson may be a sneaky spot play in deep fantasy leagues.
The Lakers won the first of a home-and-home on Friday, and it will be difficult again for the Suns, even in Phoenix, to cope with Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum, let alone Kobe Bryant.
Russell Westbrook hopes to play through a sprained ankle as OKC hosts Denver; check other sources for a last-minute update. The Nuggets will be much better when Nene returns, allowing Al Harrington to return to the second unit. There’s a report that Timofey Mozgov re-tweaked his ankle in his brief return on Friday, so Kosta Koufos may get extra minutes tonight.
The Dreaded Short Week
Back on Tuesday, I previewed Week 16 in head-to-Head leagues, where the abbreviated schedule (due to the All-Star break) makes every NBA game count more than usual. Today is the day to cut any borderline Bobcats or Raptors, because they play only once, while picking up Knicks, Nuggets, or anyone who plays three times. For example, Nazr Mohammed, in deep leagues, especially with Kendrick Perkins not 100%. If you own Leandro Barbosa and Corey Brewer is available, that’s a no-brainer in H2H. Remember, your W-L record in this upcoming “crapshoot” week will impact the final standings. Try to get an edge in GP where you can.
Thanks to Chris Sheridan for this opportunity. It’s been a lot of fun so far. Check in tomorrow morning, or follow me on Twitter.