When I think of huge arms in the NBA, I think of a few players.  Shaquille O’Neal comes to mind.  Who can forget the chisled arms of Karl Malone?  Even “Thunder” Dan Majerle had some cannons. 

Oh, and who can forget…um…

Round 5, Pick 12: T.J. Ford, PG, Toronto Raptors

With the first three selection of this team addressing the front court with Yao Ming, Pau Gasol and Al Jefferson, the fourth round selection of Joe Johnson adds a perfect compliment.  With shooting guard-eligibility in tow, the selection to go with the best point guard on the board (in my mind) was an easy one in selecting Ford.

The Milwaukee Bucks were in line to hand the point guard reigns to Mo Williams, so T.J. was shipped to Toronto last season - and it did him well.  Ford saw across-the-board increases in all major point guard statistics year-over-year.
I had the wonderful opportunity to draft Ford in last year’s mock, but in the middle of the seventh round.  What was crazy was the fact that I drafted him after I nabbed Mike James, who was one of the biggest busts of last year.  What was great was my decision to ignore Ford’s turnovers as he boasted a A/TO over 2.5 last year.

Check out the stats from the past two seasons:

2005/06: 35.5 mpg, 12.2 pts, 4.3 reb, 6.6 ast, 1.4 stl, 75.4% FT
2006/07: 29.9 mpg, 14.0 pts, 3.1 reb, 7.9 ast, 1.4 stl, 81.9% FT

In a decrease in minutes per game, Ford was able to increase all major stats aside from rebounds (due to a better all-around team) and steals (which actually increased in per-minute ratio).  Do I think that he’ll be able to increase again this season, no… but he won’t have to.  The Raptors have enough of a bench to allow Ford’s legs to stay fresh.  If he can log nearly eight dimes a game in sub-30 minutes, imagine what he could do in the event that he does log 35 in a game.

The emergence of Andrea Bargnani and the addition of Jason Kapono only give Ford more options to dish than he had last year.  Assuming Chris Bosh’s feet stay in tact and Anthony Parker wasn’t a flash in the pan, you’re looking at one of the best pass-first options in the league not named “Nash.”

Other Players on this Fantasy Team:

1.12. Yao Ming, C, Houston Rockets
2.1. Pau Gasol, PF/C, Memphis Grizzles
3.12. Al Jefferson, PF/C, Minnesota Timberwolves
4.1 Joe Johnson, PG/SG, Atlanta Hawks

Other Players Selected This Round:

5.1. Antawn Jamison, PF/SF, Washington Wizards
5.2. Kirk Hinrich, PG/SG, Chicago Bulls
5.3. Mo Williams, PG, Milwaukee Bucks
5.4. Zach Randolph, PF, New York Knicks
5.5.Rasheed Wallace, PF, Detroit Pistons
5.6.Mike Miller, SG/SF, Memphis Grizzles
5.7. Manu Ginobili, SG, San Antonio Spurs
5.8. Ricky Davis, SG/SF, Minnesota Timberwolves
5.9. LaMarcus Aldridge, PF/C, Portland Trail Blazers
5.10 Ben Wallace, PF/C, Chicago Bulls
5.11 Lamar Odom, SF/PF, Los Angeles Lakers

Previous Round Selections
Round One Recap
Round Two Recap
Round Three Recap
Round Four Recap