Fantasy Sports Writers Association

I am now a member of the Fantasy Sports Writers Association. Whoooo Hoooo!

Fixing the Boston Celtics

Can the Boston Celtics be any more disappointing than they have been throughout the playoffs? I thought the series against the Atlanta Hawks was just a fluke but I no longer believe that to be the case. The symptoms of the problem have been present the entire season and particularly in the playoffs against not just the Hawks but also against the Cleveland Cavaliers and Detroit Pistons. Doc Rivers must be replaced. Here are the three primary symptoms that have led me to this conclusion:

1. The Offense is Unorganized - This is actually putting it quite nicely. They almost never call plays when they hold the ball everything is pure chaos. Schoolyard teams take better shots than the Celtics do. Even worse when the Celtics are trailing they get worse not better. You would think that when they fell behind the team would take smarter shots in order to cut into the leads they are trying to overcome. I blame this on overconfidence - knowing they have players the caliber of Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen makes this team believe they can score from anywhere on the court at any moment. It may even be true if only the other team doesn't utilize defense against them. Calling the occasional play is necessary in the playoffs.
   
2. The Substitutions Have No Rhyme or Reason - Try to figure out what Rivers means to accomplish with his substitutions especially in the playoffs. Sam Cassell plays twenty minutes one night and five the next and over thirty the next. Glen "Big Baby" Davis is used frequently throughout the season as was Leon Powe and we've barely heard a peep from them in the playoffs. The bench played a major role in winning 66 games this season and they've been relegated to garbage time and brief breathers.
3. They Can't Win on the Road - The best team in basketball this season the Celtics should have cruised relatively unscathed through the first two rounds of the playoffs. I don't mean to disrespect the Hawks or LeBron James with this statement but those teams shouldn't have posed a major challenge. Instead the Celtics got through both these series because they had a massive talent advantage. This is called winnig in spite of Doc Rivers not with or because of him.
   

New Sports Illustrated Cover

Bulls Win the NBA Draft Lottery

The Chicago Bulls have won the right to choose between point guard Derrick Rose and power forward Michael Beasley. I'm not sure the Bulls actually need either player to win in the 2008-09 season. I was actually hoping that the new York Knicks (not my favorite team but up there) would win either the first or second pick to give them a chance at Rose but I guess that is not to be at this point.

Jeff Fox has over at Slam Online already has a Mock NBA Draft article up. Check out the entire article here but I've borrowed the Knick passage for your brief enjoyment:

6) New York – Jerryd Bayless

Team Needs – Talent; non-head cases.

First New York steals Arizona’s best head coach, and now they’re going to grab the state’s best college player. While Jerryd Bayless isn’t a pure point guard, he should be able to run-and-gun to Mike D’Antoni’s liking.

Joba Chamberlain

Joba Chamberlain has officially begun his conversion from shut-down set-up man to starter. The question fantasy owners (and the New York Yankees) have to be wondering is whether or not he can maintain his dominance pitching in the rotation every five days or so. The answer from this corner is yes.

Joba has a good collection of pitches including a fastball that tops out in the high nineties, a nearly unhittable slider, an above average change-up and a plus curve that may have a bit of rust on it at this point but it is more than just his arsenal. The better a pitcher is the more innings you want and need him to throw. Relief pitchers are easy to find if you try and the Yankees have several that only need an opportunity. Edwar Ramirez can do the job in the eighth inning and a large collection of the Yankees minor leaguers can also do the job.



For fantasy purposes you should keep Chamberlain in your lineup unless and until you hear that the Yankees are going to send him to the minors. At present the plan is for the Yankees to let Chamberlain make the transition in the majors so that the Yankees still get the benefit of his innings.

Joba Chamberlain is going to be three times as valuable as a starter than he is as a reliever. if you don't own him and the owner who does doesn't have the same faith make him a strong offer. You won't regret it.

Chris Brown Illustration

Advanced Fantasy Basketball?

There has been a lot of speculation about how Mike D'Antoni will rebuild the Knicks. Most have suggested that the Knicks do not have the type of players to succeed in the running offense that D'Antoni seems to prefer. With the exception of players like Eddy Curry and Zach Randolph I would like to frehemently disagree.

Obviously it isn't hard to suggest that a healthy and motivated Stephon Marbury could deliver a passable Steve Nash impression on the basketball court. But the player that I think will excel is the player that I have often complained was not properly utilized by Isaiah Thomas - David Lee.

Read this article from Newday and you may begin to understand why I have felt that way and why my confidence in that asserttion is only growing stronger.

Lee said after he heard D'Antoni had accepted the job as the Knicks' coach, he sent a text message to Steve Nash. The two-time MVP point guard of the Phoenix Suns, who spends most of his offseason at his Greenwich Village flat, replied with a promise to work out with Lee this summer in New York.

"This plays perfectly into what I'm trying to do," Lee said of the up-tempo system, which is similar to what he played under Billy Donovan at Florida. "My advantage against other bigs is I'm quicker and faster; I'm never going to be stronger than most of the fours or fives at this level, though I am always trying to get stronger and I will always compete physically.