There will be better recaps of the All-Star game than mine, because the main fantasy takeaway is Kobe Bryant’s broken nose and Luol Deng falling on his already very sore wrist. Neither returned, but both are warriors who won’t miss many games, if any. Andrew Bynum was a surprise starter after having his knee injected two days earlier, and lasted just five minutes.
We’re going around the league today, in alphabetical order. The string of numbers after each team is games remaining by week, not a zip code. If you’re focused more on making the playoffs, look closely at the first five digits. To add extra GP during the playoffs, it’s the last four weeks. For example, the Spurs are just 3-2-4-3-3 in the remainder of the regular season for most fantasy leagues, but finish 4-4-5-3 to help their H2H owners in the playoffs.
It’s one more consideration as your league’s trade deadline approaches. For more of my trading tips, see Saturday’s Spin if you missed it.
ATL 3-4-4-5-4-3-3-4-2 Josh Smith is a fantasy all-star and Joe Johnson will be if he’s healthy. I’m not bullish on Jeff Teague, but he’s better than Kirk Hinrich. Just before the break, Jannero Pargo was playing well.
BOS 4-4-4-4-4-4-5-3-2 It’s a four-man team. The fifth-best Celtic in fantasy is Brandon Bass, who should be back soon. Mikael Pietrus is the only other bench player worth owning.
CHA 3-4-4-3-4-4-5-4-3 As bad as the Bobcats are, they are often overlooked by fantasy owners. Gerald Henderson is a great pickup if he’s been dropped, and Bismack Biyombo is intriguing, especially in keeper leagues. Although D.J. Augustin starts, Kemba Walker usually finishes.
CHI 4-4-4-3-4-3-3-4-2 Derrick Rose owners (and Bulls fans) just hope he stays healthy. C.J. Watson is a nice handcuff, assuming he’s OK after concussion symptoms. Almost forgotten because he’s missed so many games, Richard Hamilton could still have an impact.
CLE 4-4-3-4-4-4-5-4-3 With 16 games in the playoffs, Antawn Jamison is a sneaky trade target. Kyrie Irving is terrific, and Anderson Varejao was having his best season before getting hurt. My fantasy crush is Tristan Thompson.
DAL 4-5-3-4-3-4-4-4-1 We rarely mention Dirk Nowitzki. He’s owned, he’s not being shopped, and he’s remarkably consistent. Shawn Marion is still contributing, but Vince Carter shows only intermittent flashes of his former self.
DEN 3-4-3-4-4-3-4-4-2 Once Ty Lawson is 100% healthy, Andre Miller will go back to reserve duty — unless he’s traded. Until Danilo Gallinari returns, Corey Brewer could continue to be useful.
DET 3-3-4-3-4-4-4-4-2 Greg Monroe is great to own, there’s still some life in Tayshaun Prince and the three combo guards (Rodney Stuckey, Brandon Knight and Ben Gordon) are all capable of big scoring outbursts.
GSW 4-4-4-5-4-4-4-5-2 The diagnosis for Stephen Curry is a sprained deltoid ligament in his right foot. Not sure about his status this week, with Nate Robinson the best backup plan. Monta Ellis and David Lee are reliable, but other Warriors are consistently inconsistent.
HOU 4-4-4-3-4-3-4-5-1 Somehow, Kyle Lowry is still slightly under the radar compared to other elite PG. Kevin Martin has been one of the Rockets to feel the playing-time wrath of Kevin McHale, but Samuel Dalembert may be locked in the doghouse, making Patrick Patterson more valuable.
IND 2-4-4-4-5-4-4-4-2 George Hill is back, serving as the main backup to Darren Collison and Paul George. He’s a decent option in mid-sized leagues. The Pacers starters are all good fantasy plays, the bench not so much, except for Tyler Hansbrough.
LAC 4-4-5-4-4-4-4-4-2 That’s a great schedule over the next five weeks. The problem is, the six best Clippers are owned everywhere, and there’s really nobody else to recommend. I was briefly on the Kenyon Martin bandwagon, as he ate into the minutes of DeAndre Jordan, but K-Mart’s body is breaking down.
LAL 3-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-1 Here’s where monitoring the NBA trade news is critical. There are countless rumors about Pau Gasol leaving and all kinds of players have been mentioned as coming in. The Lakers need a PG, a SF and an offensive spark off the bench. If Michael Beasley ends up in L.A., grab him.
MEM 3-3-3-4-3-5-5-4-2 Very quietly, without Zach Randolph, the Grizzlies have stayed in the hunt. When Z-Bo returns — soon — Marreese Speights could be a useful seventh man. All the starters and O.J. Mayo are fantasy assets.
MIA 3-3-4-3-4-4-4-5-2 What’s not to like? The big three are playing very well, Mario Chalmers is shooting over 50%, Udonis Haslem finally seems healthy and Norris Cole makes the most of his minutes.
MIL 4-4-3-4-4-4-4-3-3 The absence of Andrew Bogut is probably worse for Scott Skiles than for the Aussie’s fantasy owners. Drew Gooden was filling in admirably until he got hurt. That leaves Ersan Ilyasova to grab a lot of REB, and undersized rookie Jon Leuer starting at C.
MIN 4-4-4-4-4-3-4-4-1 The rotation is settling. Luke Ridnour is the SG and J.J. Barea the primary backup guard. Darko Milicic got Wally Pipp-ed (please excuse a baseball reference from the 1920’s) by Nikola Pekovic. The T-Wolves continue to use Wesley Johnson at SF, but it’s just not coming together yet for the sophomore.
NJN 3-4-4-4-4-4-3-3-2 Another team beset by trade rumors. Will they add Dwight Howard or lose Deron Williams? Until the dust settles on March 15, we can only guess. Yesterday, colleague Marc Kravitz made the excellent suggestion of stashing Jordan Farmar, just in case.
NOR 4-4-4-3-5-3-4-4-2 As Grievis Vasquez keeps playing well, he’s earned a timeshare with Jarrett Jack. While Eric Gordon is out indefinitely, Marco Bellinelli is the SG. Up front, it’s an injury-riddled mess, with Chris Kaman and Gustavo Ayon holding the fort until Emeka Okafor, Carl Landry and/or Jason Smith can play.
NYK 2-4-4-4-4-3-4-4-2 Suddenly, there are “too many” weapons. Landry Fields is the least-secure starter because J.R. Smith will get lots of run off the bench. Deep leaguers note: Josh Harrelson is almost back, though with Jared Jeffries and Steve Novak playing well, there’s a minutes crunch.
OKC 3-4-4-4-3-4-4-4-2 A very nice team, just hard to use in fantasy unless you own one of the stars. For now, Daequon Cook is starting for injured Thabo Sefalosha, but James Harden takes over early for either one.
ORL 3-4-4-3-4-3-4-4-2 It’s not easy for the other Magic players to concentrate, let alone Dwight Howard. Until the trade deadline has passed, all we know for sure is that Ryan Anderson was this year’s best value pick in most drafts.
PHI 4-4-3-4-3-4-3-4-3 Injuries in the middle have slowed the Sixers somewhat. Spencer Hawes won’t be fully healthy all year, leaving rookies Nikola Vucevic and Lavoy Allen to learn the NBA the hard way. I love the Philly bench, though Evan Turner has been a slight disappointment.
PHO 3-3-5-4-3-4-4-4-2 They are old, not really in the playoff hunt, and only Marcin Gortat can be called consistent. Channing Frye is all-or-nothing, Steve Nash may get more “surprise” rest days and Grant Hill has been plagued all year by various aches and pains.
POR 3-4-4-4-4-4-4-3-2 Just before the break, Jamal Crawford started at PG and Raymond Felton came off the bench. What a perfect spot for the return of Andre Miller in a trade. Wesley Matthews is now the sixth man, as Nicolas Batum is finally starting.
SAC 4-4-4-3-4-5-4-3-2 Fantasy coach of the year Keith Smart turned DeMarcus Cousins from problem child to asset, inserted Isaiah Thomas at PG to free up Tyreke Evans and Marcus Thornton on the wings, and recently benched an ineffective John Salmons for Francisco Garcia. The Kings are much improved.
SAS 3-2-4-4-3-4-4-5-3 Note the terrible schedule the next five weeks. It will be much better to own Spurs in the H2H playoffs. A sneaky value play could be backup PG T.J. Ford, who has missed the last 24 games with a sore hamstring but is near a return.
TOR 4-4-4-4-4-4-4-3-2 If Jose Calderon is traded as rumored, run to the waiver wire for Jerryd Bayless. I’m hoping Linas Kleiza returns this week; he can be quite productive as the main bench scorer. Leandro Barbosa may also be moved; he’s not a favorite of defence-first coach Dwane Casey and may blossom in a new situation.
UTA 4-4-5-4-4-4-4-3-2 The epitome of a borderline-useful fantasy PG is Devin Harris, who might lose his job if Earl Watson was just a little bit better option. SG is a revolving door; Josh Howard has been the beneficiary while Raja Bell is injured. Keeper leaguers, think about Alec Burks and Enes Kanter for next year.
WAS 3-3-5-4-4-4-4-3-3 John Wall, Nick Young and JaVale McGee should be in your lineups, Jordan Crawford is explosive off the bench and rookie Jan Vesely has a future.
Tomorrow, at last, we get back to games that matter — the ones that count in fantasy leagues. I’ll be here bright and early (early for sure) with a Tuesday preview and more free advice. Until then, see you on Twitter.