Socks
Franchise Player
Joined: 01 Feb 2006
Posts: 10761
Location: Bay Area, CA
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 Posted: Tue Feb 07, 2006 4:00 pm Post subject: First-Half All-Fantasy Team |
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Thought I'd throw this out there - It's an article from a Fantasy Basketball site I read - kinda interesting.
http://www.fanball.com/ph/article.cfm/ID.5446
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By Court E. Mann
Senior Editor
February 2, 2006 5:00 PM ET
Like the neighborhood Italian joint with the floppy pizza slices, these are the guys that deliver night in and night out. And after a long night out on the town (err, a full schedule of NBA action), is there anything better than a greasy, sloppy piece of pie (err, a box score filled with fantasy digits)? As reliable as late-night "za", our first-half Fantasy All-Stars rarely disappoint, always dependable for a monster line across all the critical categories. Admittedly, after this exercise, we do not envy the task facing NBA All-Star coaches Flip Saunders and Avery Johnson as they round out their rosters for the midseason classic. One look at our honorable mentions and you'll understand just how difficult the task is.
Point Guard: Allen Iverson, 76ers
A recent three-game absence due to a sprained left ankle has left a bitter taste in his fantasy owners' mouths, but we're not about to let that spoil what amounts to 42 games of fantasy brilliance. Obviously, Stevey Nash gets the nod in the MVP race, but we give our first-half floor general honors to A.I., who is averaging almost 34 points per game (2nd in the NBA) to Nash's 19. He's also doing so at a 45 percent clip that trumps (by a significant margin) every season but one in his 10-year career. Nearly eight dimes, two steals, 3.4 boards, one triple, and 79 percent foul shooting on 11 attempts per night (2nd in the NBA) round out the Answer's monster line. Get healthy, A.I.
Honorable Mentions:
Steve Nash, Suns (19 ppg, 11.3 apg, 4.4 rpg, 48 percent FGs, 1.9 3pg, 93 percent FTs)
Gilbert Arenas, Wizards (28 ppg, 6.0 apg, 2.4 3pg, 1.8 spg)
Chauncey Billups, Pistons (19.5 ppg, 8.5 apg, 2.4 3pg, 3.2 rpg, 93 percent FTs)
Shooting Guard: Kobe Bryant, Lakers
Who else? Right about now you're looking at our first two nominations and calling us out for overrating the scoring category. It's not just the astounding 81-point effort, nor a January scoring average (43.4) that is the second-highest monthly rate in the history of the Association. Also consider that his 45 percent field goal shooting (very respectable for a shooting guard) and his 84 percent foul shooting anchor your squad because his attempts are so remarkably high in both categories (he ranks first in the NBA in both). By the way, he's adding in two triples, 5.5 boards, 4.3 dimes, and 1.4 steals just for good measure. Don't get us wrong; D-Wade is a beast in his own right—and very well could steal this honor by season's end—but in a tight race, 81 has to earn Kobe the nod.
Honorable Mentions:
Dwyane Wade, Heat (27 ppg, 6.9 apg, 6.0 rpg, 48 percent FGs, 1.9 spg)
Ray Allen, Sonics (25 ppg, 3.4 3pg, 1.6 spg)
Vince Carter, Nets (24 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 4.3 apg, 1.4 3pg)
Small Forward: LeBron James, Cavaliers
Fanball lifer Rick Kamla astutely points out that LBJ can't appropriately be dubbed King James until he, at the very least, qualifies for an NBA postseason. I'll take that a step further and suggest that, if we're talking real hoops, LeBron must man up on the defensive end and start locking people down. Don't scoff; both MJ and Scottie did it. But in these circles, where it's all about fantasy digits, it's hard not to throw that moniker around. James is on his way to a second straight 25-point, seven-board, seven-dime season that the league has seen from only three players in league history (Oscar Robertson, Michael Jordan, and Jon Havlicek). His field goal shooting is up again this year (49 percent is borderline ridiculous), he's hitting a career-high 1.7 treys per night, and he's getting to the line over 10 times per game. Is he at least the King of fantasy hoops? Our next first-teamer might have something to say about that. We'd be remiss not to mention Pierce here, as the Celtic swingman is having the best fantasy season of a career that was pretty brilliant to begin with.
Honorable Mentions:
Paul Pierce, Celtics (25 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 4.6 apg, 1.4 spg, 48 percent FGs)
Rashard Lewis, Sonics (22 ppg, 2.0 3pg, 48 percent FGs, 82 percent FTs, 1.3 spg)
Lamar Odom, Lakers (14 ppg, 9.5 rpg, 5.4 apg, 1.0 3pg, 1.0 spg, 1.0 bpg)
Power Forward: Shawn Marion, Suns
Coming into the season, there was much debate about the group of fantasy studs immediately behind consensus top-two picks LeBron and KG. Who goes No. 3? Dirk? Kobe? T-Mac? In our preseason draft kit, our answer was Marion—and we'll go ahead and pat ourselves on the back because the Matrix just so happens to be the MVP of the fantasy season thus far. His lone glaring hole is assists (1.7 per game), but he's a monster in every other category on the board. He is currently third in rebounding (12), tied for fourth in steals (1.9), 14th in blocks (1.9), 16th in field goal percentage (51), and 19th in scoring (career-high 21.4). His 1.1 threes and 77 percent foul shooting certainly don't hurt either. Perhaps most impressive is the fact that he hasn't wilted or broken down while carrying a gigantic load for the contending Suns sans leading scorer Amare Stoudemire. The second-teamers below build a strong case that power forward is the most stacked position in the game.
Honorable Mentions:
Kevin Garnett, Timberwolves (22 ppg, 11 rpg, 4.5 apg, 1.2 spg, 1.4 bpg, 54 percent FGs)
Elton Brand, Clippers (25 ppg, 10.4 rpg, 2.7 apg, 2.6 bpg, 52 percent FGs)
Dirk Nowitzki, Mavericks (26 ppg, 1.5 3pg, 89 percent FTs, 8.4 rpg)
Center: Chris Bosh, Raptors
There's a changing of the guard in the pivot, where Bosh's dramatic improvement has moved him ahead of the old guard (Duncan and Shaq). Building on a stellar second half last season, Bosh has been as steady as they come, dipping no lower than 21 points per game or 49 percent shooting in any month of the season thus far. In just his third campaign, the 21-year-old has demonstrated not only the scoring, rebounding, and shot-blocking ability that we expect from the big men, but also the athleticism and versatility to pass out of the double team (2.5 assists per game), to swipe one every now and then (0.7 steals per game), and most endearingly, to knock down freebies (82 percent foul shooting). At a center position where Shaq and Duncan have absolutely ruined fantasy teams from the charity stripe, that stellar rate is worth giving up a fraction of shot-blocking.
Honorable Mentions:
Tim Duncan, Spurs (20 ppg, 11.5 rpg, 2 bpg)
Brad Miller, Kings (5.2 apg, 1 spg, 49 percent FGs, 85 percent FTs)
Mehmet Okur, Jazz (17.6 ppg, 9.5 rpg, 2.6 apg, 80 percent FTs, 1 3pg)
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