Wire to Wire aims to be your waiver wire resource for all of your fantasy basketball needs.  It will dive into playing time trends, injury replacements, and even an occasional category specialist – all of which can be found on a typical waiver wire within your fantasy league at any given time.

Huge injuries to players like Ray Allen, Tracy McGrady and Lamar Odom set the tables for this week’s Wire to Wire.  However, before we dive into that, let’s see how I did last week…

Shallow Leagues:

Jeff Foster: Double-digit boards in three of the past four games.  Sure, he had a rough night, but I told you that’d happen.  He even picked up a block in the past two games.  It’s not pretty, but it helps!  Hit.
Nick Collison: He did alright last week, but not well enough to warrant being on a shallow roster.  Keep reading to see who the new big man may be! For now…Miss.

Standard Leagues:

Al Jefferson: I wish I would’ve listened to my own advice prior to writing last week’s piece.  He’s since gone for 29 points and 14 boards, and then followed that up with 14 points, 12 boards and 4 blocks.  Big time hit.
Jason Williams: He only had two games; one alright, one not so good.  Miami’s now entering the in to the Iverson talks, which won’t bode well for J-Dub.  Miss.
Rasual Butler: Apparently, Butler’s one of those guys that keeps shooting despite being ice cold on a given evening.  20%, 29% and 16.7% from the field over the last three games?  Ouch.  Miss.
Luther Head: He had value prior to McGrady going down, and has skyrocketed since.  13 threes in his last four games, and TMac is out “indefinitely.”  You can feel free to thank me at any time.  Hit.

Deep Leagues:

Damien Wilkins: Everyone jumped on Earl Watson after the first game.  Since then, it’s been all Wilkins.  A near triple-double last night isn’t too shabby.  Wilkins should continue to be nice for the next week or so.  Hit.
Gerald Green: He’s considered “untouchable” by a lot of the Celtics front office.  There’s a reason for that.  Last week was a bit rough, but keep the faith.  Hung jury on this one.
Daniel Gibson: Yes, I know…his minutes will decrease as Hughes emerges.  However, you can’t argue with his production lately for a deep league.  If you picked him up, you got some points and a few threes added to your totals.  I added him in a roto league, and gained a full point in the 3PM category.  Therefore, I’m taking the hit!
Salim Stoudamire: Similar to Luther Head, Stoudamire had value prior to Joe Johnson’s injury, and just exploded when given the extra PT.  If you were lucky enough to jump on prior to the 26 point evening, you’re likely a very happy camper.  Hit.

(Overall 6-3-1)

Not a bad week, especially in the deep league additions.  The majority of the recent success in waiver additions has been due to injuries elsewhere on their respective teams.  The young guns (Green and Gibson) will likely have a tough time getting some action once their predecessors return full time – but definitely have a lot of promise.  Jefferson looks to be the real deal, assuming he can stay healthy himself.  The rest will likely depend on what happens to Allen Iverson in the near future.  In fact, that’s the basis for some of my recommendations this week. 

Just Getting In…

Luther Head, PG/SG, Houston Rockets
21 G; 25.2 MPG; 10.3 PPG; 3.4 RPG; 2.0 APG; 2.4 3PM; 44.3 FG%; 75.0 FT%; 0.9 SPG; 0.1 BPG; 1.9 TO

He was a huge addition for those in standard and deep leagues last week, and it’s now to the point where he should be picked up in all formats.  Who knows how long Tracy McGrady will be out – and even when he returns, it may not be for long.  He doesn’t provide much in terms of point guard numbers, but his scoring, threes, and steals for his current minutes will only go up with the elevation in PT.  Stop reading right now, go see if he’s out there, pick him up if so, and then come back and continue.  Go!  Now! 

Morris Peterson, SG/SF, Toronto Raptors
14 G; 28.0 MPG; 12.9 PPG; 3.9 RPG; 1.1 APG; 2.0 3PM; 41.7 FG%; 81.8 FT%; 1.0 SPG; 0.1 BPG; 0.7 TO

I know…I’ve done nothing but speak poorly of the Raptors wing men up to this point.  It’s simply because I was very high on Peterson going into this year with the departure of Villanueva to Milwaukee.  Well, after starting off well, he fell a bit out of favor and then got hurt.  Now, the main man in the T-Dot, Chris Bosh, is hobbled with a bum knee.  Coincidently, Peterson’s back.  Someone has to score in Toronto and who better than Peterson?  If anything, he’ll be a solid source of threes and free throw percentage. 

Brandon Roy, PG/SG, Portland Trailblazers
5 G; 27.2 MPG; 11.6 PPG; 2.8 RPG; 3.4 APG; 0.0 3PM; 37.7 FG%; 85.7 FT%; 0.2 SPG; 0.4 BPG; 1.0 TO

I should probably let Dennis take up this space with his Brandon Roy Love Letter, but he has his own column for that.  Fact of the matter is, unless Jason Kidd goes down, I fully expect Brandon Roy to be the top rookie in the NBA by the end of this season.  He helps in pretty much every category aside from blocks, and will be getting big minutes when he returns from his foot injury – which should be next week.  If someone dropped him in your league, jump all over him and enjoy the ride.

Getting Deeper…

Damien Wilkins, SG/SF, Seattle Supersonics
23 G; 22.1 MPG; 7.7 PPG; 3.1 RPG; 1.5 APG; 0.0 3PM; 44.7 FG%; 91.5 FT%; 1.2 SPG; 0.3 BPG; 1.7 TO

Not as big of a jump as Mr. Head, but Wilkins has been a very solid addition, and should have at least another week of this production in store.  Even when Ray Allen returns, I think that Wilkins has earned some elevated playing time – including a near triple-double against the Bulls.  Should I mention that he’s only missed one free throw in the month of December as well?  If you can stomach the turnovers (13 in the last two nights), you should look into adding Wilkins to your standard league team.

Matt Barnes, SF, Golden State Warriors
20 G; 19.0 MPG; 8.6 PPG; 3.4 RPG; 1.9 APG; 1.2 3PM; 53.3 FG%; 70.8 FT%; 0.8 SPG; 0.5 BPG; 0.8 TO

Totally an Allen Iverson play here.  Yes, he does put up some solid numbers from time to time, but he’ll only be a ton of frustration in that Golden State rotation unless someone moves to Philadelphia.  If some combination of Troy Murphy, Mike Dunleavy, Jr., and Monta Ellis get moved to the Sixers, I’d expect Barnes’ minutes to increase substantially.

Andrea Bargnani, SF/PF, Toronto Raptors
21 G; 19.1 MPG; 9.0 PPG; 2.9 RPG; 0.5 APG; 0.8 3PM; 42.4 FG%; 81.6 FT%; 0.2 SPG; 0.7 BPG; 1.2 TO

Yet another Raptor injury play.  While I think Peterson will provide the scoring and threes, stir in a bit of height and inconsistency, and viola…Andrea Bargnani.  His field goal percentage can be a bit rough for a big man, but his free throw shooting and ability to drain the long ball (five three pointers against Orlando) make him a hotter commodity.  If he can consistently block shots going forward, he may be the new starting power forward even when Chris Bosh does return.

Sean May, PF, Charlotte Bobcats
21 G; 23.5 MPG; 11.7 PPG; 6.8 RPG; 1.8 APG; 0.0 3PM; 50.0 FG%; 83.3 FT%; 0.3 SPG; 0.9 BPG; 1.7 TO

I have to admit: I’m still not completely sold on May.  However, as long as he’s putting up huge lines three out of every four nights, he deserves a spot on your roster.  Back-to-back double-doubles, 50% from the field, and over 80% from the line.  Not much more you can ask for there aside from a consistent 34 minutes a night.  He’s an Emeka Okafor injury away from being huge.  I guess all we can do is be patient at this point.

Hold Your Breath…

Donyell Marshall, SF/PF, Cleveland Cavaliers
21 G; 20.3 MPG; 8.4 PPG; 4.9 RPG; 0.5 APG; 1.2 3PM; 42.0 FG%; 72.7 FT%; 0.3 SPG; 0.5 BPG; 1.0 TO

I’ve been one to personally cut Marshall earlier this season when Drew Gooden was on an All-Star caliber pace.  As expected, that pace ended quickly, and Gooden’s been struggling from the floor – as well as being recently hobbled by a groin injury.  Marshall won’t provide huge numbers every night, but when he gets his PT, he’s always a double-double threat while being no stranger to the 30-footer.  If you have the space, you could do a lot worse for cheap threes and potential.

Quinton Ross, SF, Los Angeles Clippers
21 G; 26.1 MPG; 6.9 PPG; 2.7 RPG; 1.1 APG; 0.1 3PM; 47.2 FG%; 77.8 FT%; 1.1 SPG; 0.6 BPG; 0.5 TO

Yes, I know.  I had Ross here only a few weeks ago and he responded with a swift kick to the roto junk.  However, this is another one of my “Allen Iverson” plays – as I think the Clippers are also in the running.  If he comes to the city of Angels, that means that Corey Maggette will likely be shipped out.  Thus, if Maggette gets moved, the small forward spot will likely be all Ross’.  Good percentages and very efficient for now – possible increased minutes in the near future. 

Johan Petro, C, Seattle Supersonics
22 G; 19.1 MPG; 6.5 PPG; 4.4 RPG; 0.7 APG; 0 3PM; 56.3 FG%; 69.2 FT%; 0.8 SPG; 0.6 BPG; 1.0 TO

Johan Petro is single-handedly responsible for making my Nick Collison recommendation a complete farce.  However, after a 16 and 10 night with 30 minutes on the floor, he won’t be under the radar for much longer.  Bob Hill is no stranger to rotating players without notice, but I’d like to think that Petro may be the answer for the Sonics.  At worst, he could be a solid C4. 

Vladamir Radmanovic, PF, Los Angeles Lakers
21 G; 14.1 MPG; 5.5 PPG; 3.0 RPG; 1.1 APG; 0.6 3PM; 42.3 FG%; 65.2 FT%; 0.4 SPG; 0.5 BPG; 1.1 TO

Wrapping things up this week will be yet another injury fill-in that could likely result in some nice short-term production.  Granted, he’s nearly the exact opposite of Lamar Odom, he’ll likely get some more burn while Odom nurses the busted knee.  Foul trouble in his most recent game limited his production, but I struggle to find another player that can fill in the offensive power forward role on the Lakers.  Also keep an eye on Jordan Farmar – whom I mentioned a couple weeks back.  He’s turning it up a bit as well.

That’s all I have for this week.  Get all of your holiday shopping done…but not before you set your lineups!  Until next time…