Fantasy Friday (Dec. 3)

Another week of Fantasy basketball is here. There have been some great player this week, as well as some disappointing players, so lets take a look at all of them.

Over-Performers Of The Week

1. Alec Burks: This guy has been big for his team. In this past week he has averaged 20.3 PPG, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists. Not to mention the 46% behind the arc.
2. Arron Afflalo: Has 31 points in one night and 13 in the next. He has played pretty well. Not to mention he is gathering ton of rebounds and shooting lights out from the field.
3. Pau Gasol: 17.7 PPG, 14.3 RPG, 3.7 APG, and 2.3 BLPG this week. That is over-performing or Pau.

Under-Performers Of The Week

1. Jahlil Okafor: His off-court issues might be contributing to this, but he has been not playing so hot of late. This week, he has shot 36% from the field and has just averaged 10 PPG. Not to great.
2. Nerlens Noel: Jahlil's front-court buddy hasn't been the best either. In his last 3 games he has averaged just 7.7 PPG, 7.7 RPG, 1 steals, and 0.3 blocks with 2.7 turnovers and 36% shooting. Philly's big boys have not been that great this last week.  

Pick-ups Of The Week

1. Mirza Teletovic: He has been playing great this week averaging over 15 PPG and 4 three-pointers. He is owned by 18% in Yahoo and 9.4% on ESPN.
2. Rodney Stuckey: This week has been great for him averaging 15.3 points, 5 rebounds, and 1.5 steals. He is owned by 5% in Yahoo and 5.2% in ESPN.

I didn't include Isaiah Canaan on the Pick-ups because Tony Wroten and Kendall Marshall are coming back to the 76ers and he will get less production. Hope you all have a great week in fantasy and I hope to see you next week here on NBA Inside The Play Nation!

Fantasy Fridays: Defensive Players

A good fantasy team needs offense. No doubt, but a great fantasy team needs great offensive players that can provide great defense at the same time. That is why we are going to count down the top ten offensive player that play great defense, so you can have a great balance of offense and defense this fantasy season.

10. Stephen Curry: While you are probably like, "this man is a defensive play", take a look at the stats. Stephen Curry lead the league in steals total last year, so if you had him, you were most likely winning the steals column. Stephen Curry won't give you much blocks, but he certainly will give you multiple steals and a lot of offense to back that up.

9. John Wall: This man is a high flying point guard who can block your shot better than any other point guard. Not to mention his intense speed will track down every bad pass. This man averaged 1.7 steals and 0.6 blocks and that will certainly improve going into next season. Expect John Wall to be playing lock down defense and producing a lot on the offensive end.

8. Rudy Gobert: He is a wonderful defensive player. Last season he averaged 2.3 blocks and 0.8 steals. The main problem with Gobert is he doesn't have much offense to back him up. If you pick him up, note that he won't be too productive on the offensive end.

7. Nerlens Noel: 1.9 blocks and 1.8 steals his rookie season. The only problem is, can he still produce those numbers with Jahill Okafor there. I honestly think his offensive numbers will be little and his defensive numbers will be hard for him to top. But I could be wrong.

6. Serge Ibaka: 3rd in the league in steals. This man can put up points and guard multiple positions. Not to mention he only averages 2.1 fouls per game. Serge Ibaka is an underrated defender and has some offense to back him up.

5. DeAndre Jordan: Yeah, grab this man. While he doesn't have a lot of offense, he has a whole lot of other things (free throws not one of them). This man can rebound, but his defense is stupendous. He averaged 2.2 blocks per game and 1 steal per game last season. If this doesn't impress, I honestly don't know what will.

4. Hassan Whiteside: Wait! I know what will impress if DeAndre failed to. Hassan Whiteside. 2 years ago you said, "who the heck is Hakeem Wildseem?" No, Hassan Whiteside. Yeah, nobody knew him really until the Heat played the Bulls and he showed us his Hassan Wildside as he had a triple-double with 12 blocks, on a nationally televised game that night. Geez, talk about a major attention disorder. Okay, yeah, he was 2nd in blocks last year, but when you switch the table from per game to per 36 minutes, who is first? (well actually Sim Bhullar, who averages 13.4 blocks per 36 minutes and 13.4 rebounds and 13.4 points per 36 minutes) But the point is, Whiteside is 4th with 3.9 blocks. And Whiteside will probably get a minutes increase, so expect numbers like that.

3. Draymond Green: This is a Hassan Whiteside like player. Nobody knew him, and then, BAM! He is a superstar playing for a championship team. What is so great about Green? Well, he averaged 1.3 blocks and 1.6 steals per game last season. No big deal.Well, guess what Green, that is one big deal. And now fantasy players are going to be all over you for your offense and defense as well as your 8.2 RPG even though you are a 6'7" PF.

2. Kawhi Leonard: It's time to become an all-star for Kawhi Leonard. His offense is great, but we all know that his best strength is defense. What else can I say. This man lead the league in steals and also did a great job in the blocks department. Kawhi is a defensive guy.

1. Anthony Davis: Of course it's Davis. He lead the league in blocks averaging 2.9 per game and also averaged 1.5 steals. Not to mention the man averaged 24.4 PPG and 10.2 RPG (seems a little low in the rebounds for Anthony Davis though) to back up his defensive numbers. What else do you need!

All Rookie Teams: The Next Stars of the NBA

The all rookie teams were announced today and the rookies have come a long way this season. Let's take a look at them.

1st Team All-Rookie

F- Andrew Wiggins
F- Nikola Mirotic
C- Nerlens Noel
G- Elfrid Payton
G- Jordan Clarkson

2nd Team All-Rookie

F- Bojan Bogdanovic
F- Langston Galloway
C- Jusuf Nurkic
G- Marcus Smart
G- Zach LaVine

Now, I want to take a look at the First Team all rookie first. I agree with Andrew Wiggins. Look at this kid. He won the rookie of the year. You can't tell me that this kid isn't on the first team all rookie. He lead all rookies in scoring. Next is Nikola Mirotic. He cam off the bench, shot well from 3 point range. He did a great job rebounding. Coming off the bench he played great in close games and played a big role for the Bulls. Nerlens Noel lead rookies in steals, blocks, rebounds, and he averaged over 10 PPG. Of course he will be on this list. Jordan Clarkson averaged about 11 PPG and did a great job shooting the ball. He was a great offensive player and he deserves to be on this list. The only one I had to disagree with was Elfrid Payton. I honestly think that Zach LaVine deserved it more than Elfrid Payton. Take a look at the stats that these guys had.

Elfrid Payton                                                                   Zach LaVine

• 8.9 PPG                                                                       10.1 PPG
• 6.5 APG                                                                        3.6 APG
• 4.3 RPG                                                                        2.8 RPG
• 26.2% 3-point                                                               34.1% 3-point
• 55.1% FT                                                                      84.2% FT
• 1.7 Steals                                                                       0.7 Steals
• 2.5 Turnovers                                                                2.5 Turnovers 

 As you can see, Zach LaVine is just the better offensive player. He shoots well, he can score, and he can get to the free throw line in produce. And if you look at LaVine, he porduced better while only playing 77 games and starting in just 40 of them. Payton started in 63 but played all 82 games. LaVine scored really well and shot well from the floor too. And people criticized LaVine for all his turnovers but Payton averaged the same amount. I have to put LaVine on there instead of Payton because Payton just didn't have enough production. However, should have Langston Galloway made the 1st team all rookie? Yes, he did only play 45 games. I get that. But he averaged a good 11.8 PPG, 3.3 assists, 4.2 rebounds, 1.2 steals, and 35.2% from 3 point range. That is better than LaVine. The problem is, he played only 45 games. If we put him on the list, then we might as well put Jabari Parker on too, who played only 25 games. Yes, people that play, should be rewarded. That's why I think Zach LaVine gets this 1st team all rookie. To me, he should. I think Payton just didn't score and shoot well enough. I feel like Zach LaVine did rebound, assist, and stole the ball well enough. I felt like he just had a better season.

That is how I feel about the All-rookie teams. If you disagree please comment and tell me why. I am interested in how the rest of the world thinks about the All-Rookie team. And remember folks, I'll be keeping you updated on all NBA playoff action! Join the NBA Inside the Play Nation today.

Is Wiggins Rookie Of The Year?

Everybody has been telling me, Wiggins is ROY. I honestly have to agree. Others have said Mirotic is ROY. Nobody has really told me that Noel is ROY. Coach Nick has told me that Payton is ROY. I honestly think it's a little lopsided though and it's leaning toward Wiggins.

Here is what Coach Nick had to say. I don't agree with him but I thought it was a great point. I don't think Payton should just be ROY just because he broke a record though. He just hasn't been the better player in the obvious stats I will show you.


Let's take a look at some stats (credit NBA.com)

If we take a look at Noel, His offense is okay, but when have you seen a rookie of the year only average 10 PPG. His defense somewhat makes up for it though.

• 10 PPG
• 46.4% FG
• 0% 3pt
• 61.2% FT
• 1.9 Free Throws Made Per Game
• 8.2 RPG
• 1.7 APG
• 2 Turnovers per game
• 1.8 Steals Per Game
• 1.9 Blocks Per Game
• 100 Defensive rating (the lower the better)
• 91.3 Offensive Rating (the higher the better) 

Let's take a Look at Wiggins now. His offense is great, and he shoots quite a bit of FTs. His defense is okay as he is averaging over 1 steal. It's not as good as Noel's though.

• 16.3 PPG
• 43.6% FG
• 32.2% 3pt
• 75.3% FT
• 3.9 Free Throws Made Per Game
• 4.4 RPG
• 1.9 APG
• 2.1 Turnovers Per Game
• 1.1 Steals Per Game
• 0.6 Blocks Per Game
• 109.9 Defensive Rating
• 100.1 Offensive Rating

 Now it's time for Nikola Mirotic. He has the best defensive and offensive ratings, but remember, those ratings factor in the players you play with, so it doesn't help Mirotic's case. He averages less than 10 PPG. Many people say he should be rookie of the year because if he started, he would be better than Wiggins. The fact is, he doesn't.

• 9.9 PPG
• 41.1% FG
• 30.6% 3pt
• 80.3% FT
• 2.7 Free Throw Makes Per Game
• 5 RPG
• 1.2 APG
• 1.1 Turnovers Per Game
• 0.6 Steals Per Game
• 0.7 Blocks Per Game
• 99.4 Defensive Rating
• 105.3 Offensive Rating

 Lets look at Elfrid Payton. He averages barley any points. He can't shoot the three. His Free Throw is worse than Noel. However, He averages 6.3 APG.

• 8.9 PPG
• 42.9% FG
• 22.9% 3pt
• 54.3% FT
• 1.4 Free Throw Makes Per Game
• 4.3 RPG
• 6.3 APG
• 2.5 Turnovers Per game
• 1.6 Steals Per Game
• 0.2 Blocks Per Game
• 105.5 Defensive Rating
• 101.3 Offensive Rating

You will see that I made the best guys at the category green and the worst red. I did however factor in their positions they play (example: Noel isn't red in the 3pt%) Now to my point. I have never seen a rookie of the year average under 10 points. I am going to take Payton and Mirotic off right away for that. I think it comes down to Noel and Wiggins. The fact is though, Wiggins can score anyway; Post up, Spot up, Three Pointers, Free Throws, Dunks and layups. Noel can score inside, that's about it. Does his Defense make up for it? A little. I don't think he has been a better player than Wiggins though. Wiggins is the Dominant Rookie.

Sam Hinkie, What are you doing to the 76ers!

Joel Embiid might return to basketball activities this summer. Earlier this season, the 76ers made some interesting trades. They had traded off former Rookie of the year, Micheal Carter-Williams, and K.J. McDaniels for future draft picks. Honestly, I don't understand this at all. Right now this is a team starting Luc Richard Mbah a Moute. In the future, they could have been in plenty of finals rounds. With Noel making a case for rookie of the year, this team had great talent. They could have had a back-court consisting of Carter-Williams and McDaniels. Then they would have had a front-court of Noel and Embiid. You think that sounds good? Now take the lottery pick of (insert a great small forward prospect) to replace Mbah a Moute. That would be a great future starting five. I don't really know what trading players with great potential for players who have yet to play in college with great potential, makes any sense. This would have been a great team, but instead they just traded two of these players off. Now they are going to be in an even longer rebuilding mode. Geez, I would hate to be a Sixers fan. 76ers GM, Sam Hinkie, What are you doing to the 76ers!