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Deron Williams

The Fig Cap: “Yeah… Chris Paul, who?”

Okay, Deron Williams of the Utah Jazz isn’t exactly to the point of mocking Chris Paul, arguably the first overall fantasy basketball pick, of the New Orleans Hornets, but he is more than holding his own.  Unfortunately, for Raymond Felton, the same cannot be said of him.  For those of you that don’t remember the 2005 NBA Draft, Williams was drafted third overall, Paul fourth overall, and Felton fifth overall.  While Felton is still trying to relatively find his way in the NBA, Paul and Williams are perennial All-Star caliber players and the latter should be climbing up fantasy basketball drafts as the season gets closer.  How many potential 20-10 players are there in the NBA?  Only several, and Williams is one.

Round 3, Pick 3 - Deron Williams, PG, Utah Jazz

Click to continue reading Dropping Dimes Mock Draft: Round 3, Pick 3 - Deron Williams


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Shareff Abdur-RahimIt’s a sad day in Fantasy land.  Former Grizzlie/Hawk/Trailblazer, and current Sacramento King Shareef Abdur-Rahim has called it quits.

Now, most of you may be thinking, “what does Shareef Abdur-Rahim have to do with fantasy basketball?”  True, SAR has not had an ounce of fantasy relevance in the last handful of years.  However, there was once a time when Abdur-Rahim was a lock for 20 points, 10 boards, a block and absolutely killer percentages from the power forward slot. 

Granted, this was over 10 years ago, but check out these games played numbers during the early part of his career:

Click to continue reading So Long, Shareef


Pau Gasol of the Los Angeles Lakers
So far this team has the best point guard and possibly the best fantasy player out there in Chris Paul and arguably the most dominant center in terms of doing what he is good at in Dwight Howard. The turnovers will rack up quickly on this team, but who cares about turnovers, right?

The choice in the war room is to add a big man who can pass the rock, thereby giving both CP3 and Superman a little backup.

Round 3, Pick 2: Pau Gasol, PF/C, Los Angeles Lakers

Click to continue reading Dropping Dimes Mock Draft: Round 3, Pick 2 - Pau Gasol


J-Rich Air Jordan
For any newbies to our mock draft, please refer to our master list which provides you with links to all the picks thus far.

This team has gone with the superb athletes so far: LeBron James and Josh Smith. It looks like the executive board for this team has opted to add to the high octane offense instead of addressing positional issues. The point guard and center spots will have to wait.

The Fig Cap: This pose remind you of anyone?

Round 3, Pick 1: Jason Richardson, SG/SF, Charlotte Bobcats

Click to continue reading Dropping Dimes Mock Draft: Round 3, Pick 1 - Jason Richardson


Josh Smith blockI need to admit something; I have a serious man-crush on Josh Smith. I do not mean the stalking or restraining order type of crush. It is a crush on Josh Smith’s stat-stuffing ways and what he can contribute to one’s fantasy b-ball team, especially in blocks.

I remember the fascination began in his rookie season. It was a cold December day and during my daily routine of reviewing basketball box scores, there was a game between Atlanta and Detroit and Josh Smith had four blocks. I remember reviewing his game logs prior to the Detroit game and noticed that he had registered at least a block in the four games and back then he was SG/SF-eligible which was an added bonus. I plucked Smith off the waiver wire and plugged him into the lineup. Later in the month, Josh Smith registered 10 blocks in a game at Dallas!! I guarantee Josh Smith was claimed off every waiver wire after the Dallas game. J-Smoove single-handled won the blocks category during my H2H match-up that week!

I was able to draft him in the following season and since then Josh Smith has eluded my fantasy team. This year might be the year that I will re-ignite the man-crush with Josh Smith. Have a peep and see why you should share my man-crush with J-Smoove.

Round 2, Pick 12 – Josh Smith, SF/PF, Atlanta Hawks

Click to continue reading Dropping Dimes Mock Draft: Round 2, Pick 12 - Josh Smith


Dwight Howard kiss
Have you heard about the notion that in life, the chance of something happening is always 50%? If you flip a coin, it will either land on hands or it won’t. Forget the one in six chance taught to you in Grade 4 when considering the odds of a die landing on three. It either lands on three or it doesn’t…50%!

Now before you start applying this simple yet philosophical math to the roulette table, please stop and let me be clear in that I bring this up all for the sake of an attempt at setting up a punchline.

Winning in fantasy hoops? Either Dwight Howard will be on your team this year or he will not. Either you will win with Dwight Howard or you will not. 50%...kind of like his free throw percentage. What about your chances of kissing the rim like Dwight can? Zero. Let’s stay real.

Click to continue reading Dropping Dimes Mock Draft: Round 2, Pick 11 - Dwight Howard


David West When selecting at the end of the second round, not only do you get to pair this person with a relative stud in the league, but this is also where you capitalize on the settings on which your league is constructed.  With Kobe Bryant falling to third overall, this team already has a solid foundation in… well, all things Kobe. 

With this league being of the head-to-head variety, adding a well-rounded big is ideal.  One that will help build off of the scoring foundation while adding some boards and not killing any of your percentages.  I think I have just the man for the job…

Round 2, Pick 10 - David West, PF, New Orleans Hornets

Click to continue reading Dropping Dimes Mock Draft: Round 2, Pick 10 - David West


Rashard Lewis
So…how best to maximize having Amare Stoudemire on your fantasy team? As the saying goes, there is more than one way to skin a cat. With arguably the best prototypical fantasy big man in tow (and center-eligible, at that), one option would be to choose a forward who can complement Amare’s decent shooting, but can also fill in some of the small ball stats.

Rashard Lewis is certainly a roto stud. How does he stack up in a head-to-head league?

Click to continue reading Dropping Dimes Mock Draft: Round 2, Pick 9 - Rashard Lewis


LeBron James No fantasy draft will go down without LeBron James going among the top three, dependant upon scoring.  But one thing that owners may want to consider is the minutes that James may (or may not) play this year. 

There has been an ongoing concern over the amount of time that James spends on the floor, but most of this is due to the lack of supporting cast that dons the Wine and Gold.  But with the addition of Mo Williams, and the re-signing of Delonte West, Danny Ferry may finally have a few more pieces to help keep things together while James gets a bit of rest.  Cleveland’s Terry Pluto hinted towards this movement this weekend, and I do not think it is too far-fetched. 

James just finished playing in the Olympics.  The Cavaliers fell a bit flat in the playoffs last season, especially towards the end of games.  And while we heard this in the past about several other stars (specifically Steve Nash or Jason Kidd), do not be surprised if James isn’t logging 40-plus minutes every night.  Of course, do not be shocked if he plays every minute of the season; just know that it isn’t the initial plan.

Terry’s Talkin’ ... about Cavs’ new backcourt [Cleveland.com]


Danny Granger
Oh, Rob Babcock, why did you pass on this guy twice for the likes of Charlie Villanueva and Joey Graham? Perhaps concerns lingered about his health, or he just did not want to cross the border north. Still, on the theoretical front, having Danny Granger at the small forward slot alongside Chris Bosh and Jermaine O’Neal would have made a very formidable front line, fantasy or otherwise.

Granger had a break-out season in 2007-08. Can he continue to elevate his game to top 20 in fantasyland?

Click to continue reading Dropping Dimes Mock Draft: Round 2, Pick 8: Danny Granger


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