NBA Fantasy Basketball-Starting 5-February 11

Last night the NBA packed in the action scheduling 12 games from coast-to-coast as the season continues towards the mid-point at breakneck speed. Last night the Linsanity continued in New York as Jeremy Lin stepped up huge for the Knicks and helped them beat the Lakers (on the 2nd night of a tough back-to-back, but still). In other highlights the Thunder bounced back, the Celtics didnt, the Mavs ruined Love’s return, the Bucks and Hawks on in OT, the Pistons won their fourth in a row, and the Clippers won in Philly.

Here’s 8 lists of 5 to get you all caught up on what went down in fantasy basketball last night:

Lin continues to add to his legend by beating the Lakers and earning our MVP-for-a-Day award. Mandatory Credit: Debby Wong-US PRESSWIRE

5 stars shining

1. Jeremey Lin-NY: Lin had well over a third of his team points by scoring 38 on 13-23 shooting and added 7 assists, 4 boards, and 2 steals. For fantasy, he may be the find of the year and do what you need to get him if for whatever reason he’s available in your league. I’m still not sure how long Linsanity will continue, but it sure is a fun and exciting ride during this somewhat of a lull before the playoff races really heat up but after the season is well underway. Lin is the story of the NBA right now and the breakout player of the first half for sure.

2. Antawn Jamison-Cle: Jamison stepped up for Cleveland who was once again without Kyrie Irving. He finished with 34 points on 14-21 shooting and added 11 rebounds, 3 assists, and a block. The Cavs ran out early but Milwaukee rallied back and dropped Cleveland to 10-15 on the season. The biggest loss for the Cavs may be Anderson Varejao who left after injuring his wrist.

3. Josh Smith-Atl: Smith played 47 minutes against Orlando as the Hawks got a big win to improve to 18-9. Smith’s final line was 23 points, 19 boards, 5 assists, and 3 steals.

4. Dirk Nowitzki-Dal: Dirk took Dallas north to Minnesota and got them to 16-11 with a nice road win. He finished with 33 points to go wih 4 boards, 3 assists, 3 blocks, and a steal.

5. Kevin Love-Min: Love was barely outdone by Dirk and the Wolves were barely outdone as they fell to 13-14. Love finished in his first game back after suspension with 32 points, 12 boards, and 3 assists.

5 multi-faceted contributors

February 10, 2012; New Orleans, LA, USA; Portland Trail Blazers small forward Gerald Wallace (3) blocks a shot by New Orleans Hornets small forward Trevor Ariza (1) during the second half of a game at the New Orleans Arena. The Trail Blazers defeated the Hornets 94-86. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-US PRESSWIRE

1. Jamal Crawford-Por: Jamal Crawford hit 10-16 from the field and 2-7 from deep to lead the Blazers with 31 points in 30 minutes while also contributing 8 assists, 2 boards, and a steal. Crawford helped Portland get to just 4-9 on the road while improving to 15-12 overall.

2. Kobe Bryant-LAL: Bryant had 34 points at MSG, but the Lakers still fell to 15-12 on the year and 4-10 on the road. He fadded 10 boards, an assist, and a steal in his 42 minutes.

3.Brandon Jennings-Mil: Jennings had 24 points (although he took 23 shots to get them) and added 5 rebounds, 8 assists, and 2 steals for the Bucks. Milwaukee edged Cleveland in OT to get to 12-14 on the year.

4. Trevor Ariza-NO: Ariza had another big game in another loss for the Hornets. He finished with 23  points while playing in 46 minutes and adding 9 boards, 5 assists, and 2 steals. New Orleans lost, however, to Portland to fall to 4-23 on the year.

5. LeBron James-Mia: James had a solid although unspectacular line against Washington as he scored 18 points to go with 9 assists, 2 boards, and 2 blocks.

5 beasts on the boards

1. Dwight Howard-Orl: In the Magic loss to the Hawks Dwight had 18 points and 18 boards with a blocked shot while turning the ball over 5 times. Orlando slid to 16-11 and just 9-6 at home.

2. David West-Ind: West led Indiana with 22 points to go with 13 boards, 2 steals, an assist, and a block. The Pacers lost this one to Memphis in the 4th quarter as the fell to 17-9 overall.

3. Javale McGee-Was: McGee had a team-high 24 points to go with 13 boards, an assist, and a block for the Wizards as Washington fell to a dismal 5-22.

4. Joakim Noah-Chi: Noah has returned to fantasy relevancy in the past couple weeks. He had 17 points last night to go with 14 boards, and 3 assists as the Bulls cruised to a 31 point win over Charlotte to get to 23-6.

5. Greg Monroe-Det: Monroe had a double-double with 18 points and 11 rebounds in the Pistons win over Jersey last night. He added 2 assists, 2 steals, and a block

5 creative specialists

February 10, 2012; Cleveland, OH, USA: Milwaukee Bucks shooting guard Stephen Jackson (5) defends as Cleveland Cavaliers point guard Ramon Sessions (3) shoots during the game at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: Eric P. Mull-USPRESSWIRE

1. Ramon Sessions-Cle: Sessions once again started for Kyrie Irving and had the most assists of any player yesterday as he handed out 16 dimes while scoring 12 and added 5 rebounds as well. Sessions is a great addition for as long as Irving is out which may still be a couple games or more.

2. Jose Calderon-Tor: Calderon and the Raptors rolled the Celtics last night while Calderon paced their offense with 14 assists and also had 17 points, 4 rebounds, and a steal. Calderon’s excellent in assists and when he reahed 15 scoring, it’s all gravy

3. John Wall-Was: Wall played 39 minutes and scored 15 points while dishing 10 assists and committing 7 turnovers. His assist numbers are coming back and he may be setting himself up for a big 2nd half but needs more consistent play around him.

4. Jason Kidd-Dal: Kidd had 8 points, 8 turnovers, 5 boards, and 10 assists against the Wolves last night.

5. Ricky Rubio-Min: Rubio had 8 assists, 3 steals, 4 boards, and 10 points. He’s averaging almost 9 assists a game and looks to be the Wolves point man for years to come.

5 fabulous forwards

1. Rudy Gay-Mem: Gay led a balanced Memphis attack with 21 points to go with 3 boards and 2 assists as the Grizz climbed to  14-13.

2. Kevin Durant-OKC: Durant had 19 points on 6-10 from the field with 5 boards, 2 assists, a steal, and shooting 1-1 from long-distance.

3. Blake Griffin-LAC: Griffin had a “down” night but still had a double-double with 16 points and 11 boards to go with 4 assists and a steal.

4. Ryan Anderson-Orl: Anderson hit 2-4 3-point attempts and 8-13 overall as he finished with 21 points, 9 boards, 1 steal, and an assist in 41 minutes against the Hawks.

5. Pau Gasol-LAL: Gasol had 16 and 19 while blocking 2 shots and adding an assist and a steal.

February 10, 2012; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder point guard Russell Westbrook (0) goes to the basket during the first half against the Utah Jazz at EnergySolutions Arena. Mandatory Credit: Russ Isabella-US PRESSWIRE

5 scoring guards

1. Russell Westbrook-OKC: The Thunder won in Salt Lake City to get to 21-6 behind Westrook’s 28 points, 6 boards, 3 assists, and 5 steals. It was a nice bounce-back game after blowing their previous game in Sacramento.

2. Dwyane Wade-Mia: Wade had a game-high 26 abainst the Wizards and aslo added 5 assists, 3 rebounds, and a steal.

3. Chris Paul-LAC: Paul had a game-high 24 points as he led the Clippers over the Sixers in Philadelphia. The win moves the Clippers record to 16-8 on the season.

4. DeMar DeRozan-Tor: DeRozan had a team-high 21 points for the Raps last night while adding 4 assists and a steal.

5. Raymond Felton-Por: Felton had 18 points to go with 6 assists, a roubound, and a steal for Portland last night.

5 who had off nights

1. Rajon Rondo-Bos: Rondo had one of his worst games in recent memory shooting just 2-10 from the field for 5 points to go with 5 rebounds, no steals, 5 turnovers, but he did have 7 assists.

2. Anthony Morrow-NJ: Morrow played 32 minutes for the Nets and took 7 shots from the field, none of which actually went in. Morrow had 2 rebounds, 2 assists, a steal, and a block but let both his real and fantasy team’s down with last night’s performance.

3. Andrew Bynum-LAL: Bynum contributed 13 boards, 3 blocks, and 2 assists. The downside of his performance was his 1-8 shooting and just 3 total points.

4. J.J. Recieck-Orl: Redick hit just 1-6 while scoring 3 points in 17 minutes. The whole Orlando bench struggled scoring just 9 points in an overtime game that Orlando ended up losing to Atlanta.

5. Roy Hibbert-Ind: Hibbert made just 1 of his 7 shots and 3-6 from the line to finish with 5 points. He did contribute a decent 7 boards, but besides an assist didn’t do much other than that to help your team.

5 to consider adding

Tristan Thompson here blocks the shot of Carlos Delfino and could be looking at more time depending on the severity of the Varejao injury. Mandatory Credit: Eric P. Mull-USPRESSWIRE

1. Tristan Thompson-Cle: Thompson had 13 boards last night to go with 5 points, 3 blocks, and a steal. He could be in line for some major minutes with Varejao’s sprained wrist most likely costing him some game-time. Thompson will be a big help in boards and blocks and could see an up-tick in his scoring as well if his time increases. He’s only owned in 1.3 percent of leagues.

2. Trevor Booker-Was: I mentioned Booker as a player to add for the weekend and he’ll be in tomorrow’s piece on who to add for next week as well. He’s getting major playing time as the Wizards PF and yesterday had a career high 15 boards and added 13 points, 4 steals, and an assist. The Wizards aren’t very good which is why in 72% of leagues Booker can still be found on the waiver wire.

3. Jonas Jerebko-Det: The Swede came in off the bench and scored a team-high 20 points while recording 4 rebounds, 2 assists, a steal, and a 3-pointer. He’s been coming on lately and should regain the starting role soon. He’s owned in 11 percent of leagues but could be a solid over-all edition to many rosters if his production continues.

4. Gordon Hayward-Uta: Hayward had 13 points on 6-10 from the field with 4 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks. He’s been in double-digits in 7 of his last 8 games and contributes assists, blocks, steals, and boards sporadically as well. He’s available in 80% of leagues and could fill in a roster nicely.

5. Bismack Biyombo-Cha: Biyombo has moved to the starting lineup for Charlotte. Last night he had 8 points and 10 boards in 30 minutes. His rebouding and block numbers are helpful but a bit inconsistent but as the season goes on he might be worth a look for a game or 2 if you’re short in those categories. He’s owned in 3.5% of leagues.

Tags: fantasy basketball advice, Featured, Jeremy Lin, Josh Smith, Kevin Love, NBA Recap, New York Knicks, Starting 5, Tristan Thompson, Waiver Wire