Sits and Starts
Point Guard
Sit Jason Kidd: With Raymond Felton returning from injury, Kidd will be sitting on the bench more often. Kidd’s back has been acting up lately and it’s warranted after taking on 29 minutes per game in January and playing heavy December minutes (32 per game). Felton’s return is a blessing for the Knicks as they can rest one of their many veterans. J-Kidd wouldn’t usually be a team’s first choice at point guard in standard fantasy leagues, but for deeper leagues take notice because you may not get much out of him this week.
Start Luke Ridnour: Luke needs to help pick up the slack with Minnesota derailed by injuries to Love, Shved, Pekovic, Lee, and the list goes on (I’m pretty sure their ballboy is even sidelined). Luke has double digit points in his last five, averaging 15.2 points per game in that stretch. He hasn’t racked up assists like he usually does (averaging only 3 per game in last five) which leads me to believe that he’ll probably have a breakout game this week in that department. With the Timberwolves lacking players who are physically capable of playing basketball at this time, Ridnour is the guy that will be the quiet leader on this team.
Shooting Guard
Sit Kevin Martin: As I said above, only two games this week for the Thunder. Westbrook and Durant are still capable of putting up good enough numbers to start, but Martin should sit. There are eleven teams this week with four games, which means there should be many players that have higher production than Kev-Mart next week.
Start Kirk Hinrich: Captain Kirk had two twenty-point games last week and hit multiple three pointers doing so. Chicago has four games this week with three of them on the road. Hinrich has played his best away from home this year as he averages over 6 assists, 1.3 steals, and a three per game. He is having his best month in January and should be utilized until Derrick Rose returns.
Small Forward
Sit Kyle Korver: I’m sitting Korver this week with the Hawks’ two games, but beware. He could hit eight to twelve 3-pointers in those two games and I wouldn’t be surprised. He ranked 3rd in Yahoo! leagues in the last 14 days while averaging over three 3-pointers a game and shooting 59%. The Hawks play the Raptors and the Bulls, who rank at #10 and #5 in opponent 3-point FG% respectively.
Start Earl Clark: He may not fulfill the 3-point need from the SF position, but Clark has been rebounding like a monster. Averaging 9.3 boards per game, 11 points, and 34 minutes per game in his last four, there’s no reason for Mike D’Antoni to not continue to give Clark the nod over Pau Gasol. Clark is ranked #68 in Yahoo! leagues in the last 14 days.
Power Forward
Sit Tim Duncan: Two home games this week against Washington and Charlotte. It’s good judgement to predict those games to become widely separated by a large point differential. I don’t see Duncan giving fantasy owners what they need from that power forward or center position. Most likely, he will end the week with less than 20 rebounds, 3 blocks, and 35 points. You can call those numbers my best case scenario for Timmy D this week.
Start Amare Stoudemire: Amare is finding his groove on offense lately. Scoring in double digits in his last five games, Amare is coming off an 8-13 shooting, 20-point game against the Sixers. The Knicks have three home games this week which should continue to help STAT find his game. I predict a good fantasy week for the six-time All-Star.
Center
Sit Roy Hibbert: Three tough games this week for Indiana which doesn’t help Hibbert’s value. He probably won’t match up very well with a few of those teams. Hibbert starts the week going up against Denver, who will probably have him gasping for air by the end of the game with their up-tempo offense. He ends the week matching up against a small team in the Heat. If there are other solid centers able to start in your line-up, consider them. Hibbert’s an excellent provider of blocks which may make him hard to sit.
Start Nikola Pekovic: Pekovic didn’t travel with the Wolves to Washington and was ruled out vs. Charlotte on Saturday. So why risk starting him in a three-game week? I believe he will play Wednesday because Pek is a tough guy who will play through minor pain. The Wolves are in need of some wins before their season falls apart, so I’d be surprised if Pekovic doesn’t suit up on Wednesday against the Clippers after a long time off.
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