DraftStreet Fantasy Spin, May 18, 2014: Capitalizing on Ibaka Injury

Two more weeks of fantasy basketball remain. And the nice thing about it is, if you play every day, you’ll always be a day ahead of everyone else — and a day behind them, too.

DraftStreet’s two-night fantasy leagues have resumed, and I am here to give you fantasy advice that you can take or leave. Since taking over the fantasy writer spot at the beginning of this month, I have cashed nine times, including a $480 first prize. I did not win the $10,000 first prize I was aiming for earlier this week, but I had a ton of company.

All in all, it has been a profitable month because of that first-place finish, and I will now take all the knowledge I have gleaned over the first 15 days of this month and put it to good use.

As for you, if you are new to DraftStreet, I will personally send you one of those Phil Jackson t-shirts pictured top your right if you become a first-time depositor. DraftStreet offers free games, $2 games, $5, $11, $22, $55 and $109 contests, so there is something for everyone not named Prokhorov. He played in the $190 million league and lost.

To get you started on this Sunday, I will tout two guys who will be make-or-break players for me. To join the fun, click on the DraftStreet banner at the top of this post.

(ALL FIRST-TIME DEPOSITORS GET A FREE T-SHIRT OF THE PHIL JACKSON TAKEOFF ON THE OBAMA-HOPE CAMPAIGN. CLICK HERE.) 

With Serge Ibaka out for the remainder of the playoffs, somebody is going to have to step up for Oklahoma City. Chances are, it will be Nick Collison. But it also could be Steven Adams.

Or both.

Collison is the Thunder’s last link to their days in Seattle, and he has been gathering dust on the end of the bench for the past several seasons. But Sam Presti always said he liked Collison, which is why he hasn’t been traded by now. He is already in his 10th season, and he has never averaged double figures in scoring during his career — but he might just do that this series.

Naturally, I am not the only one drafting Collison, who has a ridiculously low price of $3,375. Chances are 70 to 80 percent of the players in the Sunday-Monday contests will select him.

So the question becomes: Who do you draft with him?

And my answer is Steven Adams, the backup center who logged 40 minutes in Oklahoma City’s Game 6 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers and registered a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds.

Adams, in my opinion, is actually 10 times better of a pick than Collison because Scott Brooks will likely go to a three-guard alignment in Game 1 against the Spurs — at least until he finds out whether it is a viable option for a majority of the 48 minutes. That third guard will usually be Reggie Jackson, who is priced at $7,590.

I stayed away from Jackson in the $22 contest I entered, going instead with Collison and Adams in the belief that San Antonio will force Oklahoma City to play big. If I am wrong, I can adjust in the Tuesday-Wednesday or Wednesday-Thursday leagues before we get another two-day break like the one we just came off of. (Was that nice or what? If you didn’t get some spring cleaning done, or take your significant other out on a date, shame on you.)

The low-price selections of Adams and Collison gave me plenty of money to fill out the other six spots on the roster, and I went with all starters but only one high-priced stud — Russell Westbrook. I tend to believe that the West games will be much more high-scoring than the East games, so I am being picky with the Heat players and Pacers players I choose. (I have three: Dwyane Wade, Lance Stephenson and David West).

For those who have never played DraftStreet’s salary cap contests, here are the rules:

You pick three guards, three forwards, one center and one utility player using a salary cap of $100,000, and then you root for them to fill up the box score. You can sign up here, or by clicking on the DraftStreet banner at the top of the page.Steals and blocks are worth 2 points. Rebounds are worth 1.25 points. Assists are worth 1.5 points.

You lose 1 point for every turnover, and you lose 0.5 points for every missed field goal attempt or missed free throw attempt. Usually, it takes something in the area of 250 points to win.

Here are the studs and duds prices for the Sunday-Monday contests:

DraftStreet	Price
Stars	$$$
Kevin Durant	$23,615
Russell Westbrook	$23,091
LeBron James	$22,442
Paul George	$17,389
Tony Parker	$15,070
Value Plays?	Under $9,000
Boris Diaw	$8,286
Ray Allen	$8,250
Reggie Jackson	$7,590
Danny Green	$6,698
Steven Adams	$5,958
Udonis Haslem	$3,825
Nick Collison	$3,375

The value play are where this week’s contests are going to be decided, and don’t be afraid if a bunch of people go with Ray Allen after his strong series against the Brooklyn Nets.

But Udonis Haslem is an interesting pick, too, because Chris Andersen is going to need some help against Roy Hibbert, and Haslem should get more minutes than usual as Miami tries to counter Indiana’s big lineups.

The Pacers’ best chance in this series is to use their big guys to their advantage, so that should mean extended minutes for Hibbert and West — especially given how Luis Scola has fallen out of favor.

Scola is not the only Pacers bench player whose role has been curtailed, and I would advise staying away from Evan Turner and C.J. Watson, too.

IMHO, if there is anyone on the Pacers bench who can be a difference maker, it is Chris Copeland. But Frank Vogel has not turned much to the second-year 3-point shooting specialist, and he might not unless he finds himself getting crushed by the Heat and needs some instant offense.

So there will come a point when I will play Haslem and/or Copeland, but I tend to think those guys’ roles will increase after Game 1.

So I boldly head into the two Game 1s with Collison and Adams anchoring my stiffs, for better or worse.

Back tomorrow with a refined strategy for the Monday-Tuesday contests.

Gook luck!