The Sophomores

By Keith Allison from Hanover, MD, USA - Jordan Clarkson, Otto Porter Jr., CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=45393918

 The Rookies get all of the headlines for the young talent in the NBA, don't they? After your rookie season, you don't really get much hype until your on an all-star team or lead your team to wins. While the rookies were great this season, we completely ignored the 2nd year players once against. So let's take a look at some of the best Sophomore players.

Top 5 in scoring:
              5. Zach LaVine (14 PPG): This high flying sophomore is still being overlooked as a player. He averaged a good 14 PPG for this young Timberwolves team. Not only that but he played a big role in the offense. Against the Wizards, Zach LaVine came in clutch as he hit 2 three pointers in overtime to send the game into double overtime where the Wolves would win. LaVine had 25 points that night. He is still able to score behind Wiggins and Towns. There is more to LaVine than his dunks.

              4. Jabari Parker (14.1 PPG): After his injury, Jabari Parker seemed to be forgotten. However, he made a strong comeback this season. He scoring proved valuable to this Bucks team as Parker averaged a solid 15 points in their wins. Parker and this young Bucks team have what it takes to become a powerhouse with all of their talent.
              
             3. Rodney Hood (14.5 PPG): He was selected as the 23rd pick in the 2014 draft. His rookie season wasn't that great as he only averaged 8.7 PPG off the bench. Then came the 2015-16 season. Hood looked better than ever. The kid scored 30 points in a half against the Lakers. He played a key role for the Jazz not only offensively, but defensively too. He played great. That was when Hood finally started to get recognition. Now, he's starting to look like a steal in the draft.

         
           2. Jordan Clarkson (15 .5 PPG): 2nd round pick, Jordan Clarkson is a scorer. That is what he's shown to us this season. He probably would've gone top 5 if the draft was redone. While Jordan Clarkson is a scorer. He is a consistent scorer. He never had a game over 30 points this season but he's made tons of 20 point games. Clarkson had very few games with less than 10 points. Everytime I watch Clarkson I always think, how could all of these scouts miss him? How could they not see his potential?

           1. Andrew Wiggins (20.7 PPG): I've heard a lot of people say that Wiggins doesn't have what it takes to be a star player. The guy averages over 20 points in his second season. Steve Nash never averaged over 20 points once in his career and he has 2 MVP trophies. I'm not saying he's going to be better than Nash, all I'm saying is he can be a go to guy in the league. He had ten 30 points games this season! He only had 4 games with under 10 points. He is a scorer. He is going to be sharing the spotlight with Karl-Anthony Towns, not sitting in the shadows. This guy can score. He is the only Sophomore to average over 20 points this year and is looking like the best sophomore this year.

So those are the outstanding sophomores of the 2015-16 season, and we didn't even mention guys like Julius Randle and Nerlens Noel.  So next time the rookie of the year and MVP awards come out, don't forget about the sophomores.

Fantasy Friday (Nov. 6)

So, let me start by saying that this has been a great week for fantasy. I do want to note that lots of people have been playing really good. So let's take a look at the players from this week.

Over-Performers Of The Week

1. Festus Ezeli: Let me tell ya something, Festus is a great player, and I expect him to keep it up, at least until Andrew Bogut comes back. He is also owned by only 13% of fantasy owners so he is also a candidate for pick-ups.
2. Tristan Thompson: He didn't look the best early on but he has definitely turned it around. In the last 7 days he has averaged over 10 points and 10 rebounds along with 1.7 blocks. Great job Tristan!
3. Karl-Anthony Towns: This boy has averaged 15 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 3.7 blocks! he is one of the best defensive players and he has been doing it in 27 minutes per game.

Under-Performers Of The Week

1. Anthony Davis: This guy really has shot the best from the field. In fact, it has been horrible. He shot 4-20 one night and 3-12 another. He could really do better because he isn't looking like the best player in fantasy right now.
2. Robert Covington: Come on Covington! He is only averaging 4 points and shooting 11% from the field. People are going to have to drop him soon.
3. Andrew Wiggins: Most people thought that he was going to have a wonderful season, and that could still happen, but it has been disappointing so far. He has only shot 29% from the field and doesn't look the best so far.

Pick-Ups Of The Week 

1. Festus Ezeli: He has played well early on and will continue until Bogut comes back. He is only owned by 13% from Yahoo and 8.4% on ESPN. He is a great player to pick up if you need blocks, rebounds, and some extra points.
2. Rodney Hood: He has looked really good this week as he has averaged 12.8 PPG, 3.2 APG, and 1 steal. He is owned by only 56% on Yahoo and 29.5% on ESPN.
3. T.J. McConnell: A name that you need to know. While he is only averaging 4.8 PPG, he is also 4.8 RPG, 8 APG, and 1.5 steals while shooting over 50% from the field. Only 33% of leagues own him on yahoo and only 13.9% on ESPN.

Well, that is all for now, hope you guys have another great week. See you next time!