Fantasy Basketball Daily News and Notes (6/6/11)
Jun 6, 2011 Blog
The Miami Heat pulled out a 88-86 win against the Mavs in Game 3 to take a 2-1 series lead. Game 4 is set for Tuesday night in Dallas.
Jay Triano (TOR) – Triano is out as coach of the Raptors. Toronto hasn’t announced a replacement yet, but look for Lawrence Frank to be at the top of their wishlist. P.J. Carlesimo is still on the staff, but it’s been made clear that he won’t take over. The fantasy value of several Raptor players will be directly tied to the new coaching hire.
John Kuester (DET) – Kuester is out as coach for the Pistons. This is a move that probably should have been made 6 months ago. It could be great fantasy news for some of the young Pistons like Greg Monroe and Austin Daye, as well as the end of the line for guys like Rip Hamilton, Ben Wallace and Tayshaun Prince.
Shaquille O’Neal – Shaq is finally calling it a career. He was a fantasy beast back in his prime. He’s also one of my favorite basketball personalities and he’ll be missed on the court.
Ricky Rubio (MIN) – It looks like Rubio will finally start playing some basketball in Minnesota this season. I think he’s an overhyped mirage for the Timberwolves and probably won’t amount to much. He’ll make a few good passes, but he has no real offensive game and probably won’t offer much to fantasy owners. The only person who really stands to benefit from Rubio is Kevin Love – if they can develop some chemistry. He’ll go way to high in fantasy drafts.
Jonny Flynn (MIN) – With Rubio coming to town and Luke Ridnour likely to be the primary PG backup, Flynn is likely on his way out. Keep an eye on where he lands to determine his fantasy value. The only rumors I’ve seen so far have him landing in Phoenix where he still has to compete with Nash/Brooks for playing time.
Kyrie Irving – It appears that Irving is the top choice for the Cavs with the number one pick in the draft. He hasn’t worked out for any other team and has no plans to do so. Not sure how well this will sit with Baron Davis but if it were my team I’d trade Davis away and simply throw Irving and the number 4 pick out there with the rest of the young Cavs team and let them get some on the job training.
Matt Barnes (LAL) – Barnes signed an extension with the Lakers and is a guy to keep an eye on for next fantasy season. With Mike Brown bringing his defensive oriented game to LA, Barnes could see some nice minutes.
David West (NOR) – West is rehabbing from left ACL surgery and the timetable for his return is still pretty uncertain. He could possibly be out until February, which makes him a difficult fantasy pick. This should clear up a lot though by the opening of camp.
Brad Miller (HOU) – Miller recently had microfracture surgery and is estimated to be out until January. I’d bet on it being much longer than that.
Chauncey Billups (NYK) – Billups is still having problems with his left knee. The original diagnosis was a strained tendon, but he’s going back for an MRI. Keep an eye on the 35 year old and possibly look to swing a deal with an uninformed fantasy owner if things look good.