The Full Court Press is back, Bringing you the latest throughout all of Fantasy Sports. Sit back, relax, and allow your computer monitor to explode. It’s time to put the pressure On!
NBA:
Championships are right around the corner folks. On the live show I talked about Grant Hill and his value. How about Agent Zero? He is back and for some reason, 21% of ESPN leagues still have him available. Wow. Here are some pickups to watch in the stretch you ballin’ fools.
Anthony Morrow, Golden State- Four games for the Warriors this week and Stephen Jackson is out. Morrow had 18 points on saturday before an 8 point performance on Monday. He could get hot though, and will drop some treys in the least.
Rudy Fernandez, The Spaniard is back! He is averaging eighteen points in his last three games. Watch out! If you need threes, root for him- Rudy! Rudy! Rudy!
Kyle Korver, Utah- It’s march madness baby and we are loving the three! Korver has five games this week, so it is safe to assume he has 2.5 good games in him.
Kelenna Azubuike, Golden State- The best name and the game puts him in the lineup all of his week. The big man is becoming the go-to-guy down low with Jackson out. Not to mention, Corey Maggette could miss the rest of the season as well. The Buike is going to bring down some boards for you.
Chris Kaman, Clippers- I am telling you to pick up a Clipper? what is wrong with me? Must be the sexy skullet. Seriously though, Camby is out all week. K-is-the-man in Los Angeles.
Speaking of Boards, Holy Cow Dwight Howard.5000 rebounds in your career already? No wonder I always target you early, while someone else targets him earlier. Howard set this record in Miami, while the great Alonzo Morning saw his number retired. Of course, Howard pulls down some monster rebounds, and someone gets hurt on the court.
Injuries-
Luther Head, Miami- Head is out four to six weeks now with a broken hand, after the Magic defeated the Miami Heat on Monday. Could mean more playing time for Mario Chalmers.
Kevin Garnett, Minnesota- Garnett will most likely miss Wednesday, but could also miss Friday as well. This knee problem couldn’t come at a worse time for fantasy owners opening up the first round of the playoffs.
Baron Davis, Clippers- Davis has had a slew of injuries, but has been bragging that he feels great. He could be in the lineup Wednesday, and have a big impact (for a Clipper at least).
Marcus Camby, Clippers- Mr. Camby is doing what he does best-riding the bench with the injury. Camby’s ankle could have him sidelined all week.
Peja Stojakovic, New Orleans- He is out day-to-day, but doesn’t have a timetable. That doesn’t sit right in the fantasy owners stomach. Puke up Peja and scurry on over to the waiver wire and pick up a new three point specialist.
Josh Howard, Dallas- He isn’t 100% healthy, but Howard could give it ago today against the Timberwolves. According to Jason Terry, Howard’s teammate, Howard looked confident in practice. (psst, start Howard.)
Rasheed Wallace, Detroit- He could be back Tuesday, but don’t take the chance in the playoffs. ‘Sheed has been day-to-day for a while, so who knows if he really comes back tuesday.
NFL: The Quick Hit Blitz-
Carson Palmer is claiming that his elbow is doing just fine. 100% in fact. Interesting to note, considering Palmer avoided getting Tommy John Surgery on his elbow. It will be hard to gauge where to take Palmer until Preseason, but it seems that he could become a sleeper in 2009. His good ole teammate number Ocho Cinco didn’t show up to voluntary workouts. For having probably the worst season of his career, I think it would be smart for the number named man to show up.
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According to the New York Daily News, the Giants are not pursuing top receivers Anquain Boldin or Braylon Edwards. The paper notes that New York will hope that Mario Manningham, Steve Smith, Sinorice Moss and Domenik Hixon can hold the fort down while Plaxico Burress serves jail time.
After visiting the Jaguars last week, veteran wide receiver Torry Holt will visit the Titans sometime this week. Holt would most likely become the number one option in Tennessee. It seems Holt is targeting warmer climates. I think it could help him in 2009. Keep him on fantasy watch.
MLB: One Base at a time-
Gary Sheffield is out of Motown. The Tigers have released the slugger after numerous injuries and lack of performance. Sheffield, who has not been the home run threat that most fantasy owners have hoped for, has already been contacted by the Phillies. Sheffield could now become a sleeper, depending on how fast he signs. If the Phillies sign him, I can’t imagine he would be more than a fill in, with Ibanez, Victorino, Werth, in the rotation and Geoff Jenkins being released. Could other teams be interested? Of course, Sheffield is one homer away from 500, and has some potential despite a spring where he struggled.
Alex Rodriguez has a target comeback date (and it’s not a mirror). It looks like the date is May 15th (AROD will be competing with Angels and Demons, hmmm is it a symbol?) and Brian Cashman wants him in minor league camp a month before that. This makes me feel a bit more comfortable about taking Alex Rodriguez before the 5th round.
On Fantasy CPR Live this weekend, I talked about not liking Joey Devine as the opening day, because of his health. Seems I was onto something. Devine will start the year on the D.L. Brad Ziegler will most likely replace him as the closer.
On a light note, Adrian Beltre thinks his Mariners team could surprise some people in 2009. I tend to agree after watching them this spring. They have so many questions, but fantasy wise I think this statement stands as well. Brandon Morrow could lead the AL West in saves, Felix Hernandez could tally 20 wins, Erik Bedard could have a bounce back year, and Jose Lopez is ready to explode onto the scene.
News on the Mauer Front- According to MLB.com, Joe Mauer could be out as much as a month to start the season. Something that is encouraging about this back injury is that Mauer claims he can get in the catcher position without it hurting. He will continue to get in playing condition, while they figure out a plan to deal with this injury.
How about that Brett Gardner? The rookie Yankee outfielder will start the season in the bottom of the order, but could be a dual steals and runs threat. In the bottom of that lineup, if Bernie Williams could get on base, then he would be able to score a lot of runs.
FanSided
Torry Holt to the titans is a good move.
I agree. Alongside Nate Washington, that could be a decent tandem