It has become fashionable to include Russell Westbrook in the MVP discussion, and as we all know, fashion and Westbrook go together like Anna Sui and horned Viking hats. Not only did Westbrook win MVP honors at the All-Star game while coming up one point shy of Wilt Chaberlain’s record of 42 points in the NBA’s midseason showcase, he has taken that performance and built some momentum off of it, leading the Olahoma City Thunder into a somewhat secure standing in
We were all over the DraftKings leaderboard on Monday with scores in the 320 range. Many nights, that would have been extremely profitable, but James Harden (and his whopping 75.25 FPTS) was owned on 84.4% of teams, which means the big prizes depended on the supporting casts. [Read more…]
The MVP is James Harden’s to lose, right? And Coach of the Year is a two-man race between Steve Kerr and Mike Budenholzer, correct? Not so fast. It is still February, the temperature here in New York is going to hit zero again tonight, and the number zero was an accurate reflection on the chances of Russell Westbrook contending for the MVP award and Stan Van Gundy being in the mix for Coach of the Year as recently as Christmas. To refresh your
There was a lot of shade in the Valley of the Sun this week. It all started with Goran Dragic, who is far from blameless in this mess. But because the Phoenix Suns sent Dragic packing in a trade, president Lon Babby and GM Ryan McDonough got to write the epilogue and spin it in intelligence-insulting fashion. Dragic is an unrestricted free agent this summer. At 28, it’s his first and last chance at a max contract. And while the idea of
It’s a typical second-half Sunday, with nine NBA games. DraftKings offers six different opportunities to win, with contests closing at five different starting times and involving various combinations of teams. [Read more…]
We discussed all the trade fallout yesterday, warned you away from dozens of players, recapped the lengthy injury list and still forgot one important fantasy angle. Some teams simply come out flat after the break. Last night, the Bulls, Hawks and Trail Blazers played far below expectations. [Read more…]
Why is the trade deadline different from all other nights of the year? It’s not. The West just got tougher. In the East, where there’s no life-or-death importance attached to getting better, the top teams sat this one out while the bad teams—your Knicks and 76ers—dumped, shut down or otherwise disposed of their best players in order to tank more definitively. [Read more…]
Finally! There are two NBA games tonight that actually count in the standings, with contests at DraftKings closing at 8:00 Eastern. It’s also trade deadline day, and Arron Afflalo has been dealt to Portland in the first significant deal. [Read more…]