Fantasy Basketball Staff Writer
There are a lot of players that have had tremendous success so far this season. In this article, we will highlight a few of those players that are worth picking up that should help your fantasy team. So without further ado, this week's hot pickups!
Al-Farouq Aminu (NO) - He’s one of the early surprises of the 2012-13 season with averages of 12.8 points, 8.6 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 2 steals and 1.2 blocks on 53.8% shooting from the field. Although he has never been consistent, Aminu is poised to disprove all the doubters. As long as Eric Gordon is sidelined, Aminu has the opportunity to step up and be the third offensive option after Anthony Davis and Ryan Anderson while Greivis Vasquez runs the whole show. While I am not completely sold on his offense, Aminu seems to be making an impact on the defensive end for the 3-2 Hornets this season. He has been providing late early round value and deserves to be owned in all leagues.
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| Al-Farouq has been a beast so far this season, and should be owned in all leagues |
Nikola Vucevic (ORL) - A hot pick up after his first few performances and it also doesn’t hurt that he has C position eligibility. Vucevic is a productive big man when given minutes as he has proved in his last two outings. In almost 29 minutes per game, he’s been averaging 10.4 points, 7.2 rebounds along with an assist, a block and 0.6 steals. Glen Davis and Arron Afflalo have become the primary scoring options in Orlando, but Vucevic’s role has been growing. However, he might not be the long term answer for your fantasy team because of the crowding situation in Orlando. Al Harrington and Hedo Turkoglu are still banged up while Gustavo Ayon is easing his way into the rotation. When all three are healthy, it will be interesting to see how much those guys will eat into Vucevic’s minutes. Despite this, Vucevic is a great pickup for as long as he’s starting.
Jamal Crawford (LAC) - Crawford is making quite a case for his second Sixth Man of the Year Award in four seasons, averaging 22 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist and almost 3 treys on a whopping 53% shooting from the field so far this season despite playing less than 30 minutes a game. His field goal will definitely come down (career 41% shooter), although it is hard to predict when he will cool down. Crwaford has notoriously been a streaky shooter so ride him while he’s hot. Although Chauncey Billups may cut into Crawford’s minutes when he returns from his injury, expect Crawford to remain productive.
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| Jamal Crawford is a front-runner for Sixth Man of the Year after a hot start to the year |
Backup PGs who have become the starter (2012 stats in brackets):
E'Twaun Moore, ORL (14.6 PPG, 4.4 RPG, 4.0 APG, 0.8 SPG, 2.2 3PTs on 47.6% shooting)
A.J. Price, WSH (10.8 PPG, 4.0 RPG, 8.0 APG, 0.6 SPG, 2.0 3PTs on 33.3% shooting)
Luke Ridnour, MIN (10.5 PPG, 3.1 RPG, 3.0 APG, 1.5 SPG, 1.2 3PTs on 46.9% shooting)
Nate Robinson, CHI (11.5 PPG, 3.5 RPG, 4.2 APG, 1.0 SPG, 0.8 3PTs on 49.2% shooting)
All these guys will be starting as long as the their respective incumbent starting PGs are sidelined and deserve to be owned in all leagues while they are getting starters' minutes.
Special Look at Memphis' Double-Double Machine
Zach Randolph (MEM) - One of the steals of the draft thus far with averages of 15.8 points, 15 rebounds, 1.2 assist, 1 steal and 1 block. His turnovers are the only thing holding Z-Bo back from being a dominant fantasy player. Now is obviously the best time to trade him, but I would advise you to take the wait-and-see approach. I’m as anxious as you are to see how long he can keep this up. I know he’s injury prone and has only played five games this season, but he sure does look like the Z-Bo we were accustomed to before his injury last year. He’s been ridiculous so far gobbling down those boards, especially on the offensive end. Sit back and enjoy the ride.
That's all for this week, I hope you enjoyed the article and best of luck in Week 3!
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