By Dalton Del Don
Quietly, Shaquille O’Neal is having a very good season. His 17.7 ppg and 1.5 bpg are his highest marks since 2005-06, and his 62.8 percent free throw shooting, although still bad, is his best mark during his 17-year career. He’s gotten stronger as the season has progressed, and Shaq’s turnovers are way down as well. The fact he commonly sits out a game when Phoenix plays back-to-backs hurts him in weekly leagues, but in daily formats, it just keeps him fresh and less likely to get hurt. Entering the year, it seemed obvious he was in a decline, but that’s on hold for now, although Amare Stoudemire owners certainly don’t like it.
One of this year’s biggest busts has to be Samuel Dalembert, who is averaging a miniscule 5.7 ppg. He’s never been a big help in points, but he’s taking nearly half the FG attempts he did last season. In fact, his playing time has decreased during each month this year. Elton Brand’s return should only further derail his incredibly disappointing season.
Boris Diaw has to be the early candidate for pickup of the year in fantasy leagues. Since coming to Charlotte 18 games ago, he’s averaged 13.9 points, 7.1 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 1.1 three-pointers. And he’s even eligible at center in some leagues. He’s officially back to his heyday when he played in Phoenix.
Don’t look now, but maybe Andrea Bargnani isn’t a bust, after all. With Jermaine O’Neal out of the lineup, the former No. 1 overall pick has averaged 20.9 points, 6.9 rebounds and 2.5 three-pointers in 11 games during January. He’s never going to be a defensive force, but at least he’s blocked 1.2 shots per game this season as well. He’s also a rare center who shoots free throws well (85.7 percent). O’Neal’s return may cut into Bargnani’s production, but O’Neal has also been rumored in trade discussions and is no lock to stay healthy for more than a game at a time, so this output may be here to stay.
Another young player finally starting to live up to his potential is Randy Foye, who has averaged 20.6 points, 4.3 assists, 1.5 steals and a whopping 3.0 three-pointers this month – all while shooting an impressive 49.6 percent from the floor and 90.0 percent from the charity stripe. Some more dimes would be nice, but he’s starting to look more comfortable as a two guard, despite his lack of ideal size for that position. With few scoring options on Minnesota, expect the scoring binge to become a trend by Foye, and hopefully he can finally stay healthy.
The Kings were heavily criticized for taking Jason Thompson out of little known Rider with the 12th pick of last year’s draft. However, the early returns have been nothing but positive, as Thompson has been productive in limited minutes and has even earned a starting role already (although in Sacramento that isn’t saying much). He possesses nice potential on the boards and is showing promise as a scorer in the post, even going 14-of-15 from the line during his last game. Moreover, no rookies selected after him have stood out at all thus far, so the Kings’ “reach” isn’t looking that way any longer. Especially playing for a team in a full-blown youth movement, Thompson is a highly valuable keeper commodity.
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