This post is in response to a question a reader posed regarding the "games played" strategy in roto leagues. For those who may not be familiar with what I'm talking about, most standard roto leagues mandate an 82 game 'cap' at each position. Which means, you are only allowed to have an active player in your point guard position for 82 games. You can use the games whenever you want, with whichever player you choose. But, once you hit the 82-game mark, be it in February or April, you can no longer start a player at the point guard position.
This rule is put in place to keep owners from 'streaming' -- this means keeping owners honest and not having them add and drop a handful of players each night just to accumulate stats. Certain head-to-head leagues use an add/drop cap, usually at five moves per week.
Simple enough, right? But the question remains, what's the best strategy for using your games played? How do you manage the totals? Some people have different ways of approaching the games played strategy, but I'll give you some tips that I feel work best -- at least for me.
Court Vision is a breakdown of the weekly schedule to help you set your fantasy lineup.
The Nuggets have arguably the most favorable schedule with home games against the Nets, Knicks and a home/road series against the T-Wolves. For starters, the Nuggets have won 15 straight home games, while averaging 117 points per game at home. Then there's the fact that Minnesota is allowing 114.4 points per game on the road, while the Knicks yield 105.5 points away from The Garden.
And do we need to get started on the Nets? Yes, the 0-13 Nets. New Jersey is 27th in the league offering 8.8 steals per game and 25th in opponents rebounding at 44.6 per. With that, Kenyon Martin made top of my list in this week's waiver adds. Look at Ty Lawson in deep leagues as well. Chris Andersen should tattoo the Knicks on the defensive end of the ball. Eh? Tattoo? Get out of my way, I'm on fire!
Picks and Roles provides all the vital information you need in making those tough lineup decisions for weekly leagues.
Injuries like the one to Marreese Speights garner mixed reactions. Those who took a flier on Speights are disappointed now that they've lost him for up to 6-8 weeks with a partial tear in his MCL. In his last five, Speights averaged 24.7 minutes, 12.8 points, 6.0 rebounds and 60.0-percent shooting from the floor. Not quite overwhelming numbers, but promising nonetheless. With Elton Brand and Samuel Dalembert both struggling to get into an offensive groove, Speights was starting to see some daylight in the rotation and many eager fantasy owners were beginning to think that they snagged this season's Paul Millsap. Unfortunately, we won't see him again until late December.
On the other side of the coin are the Elton Brand and Samuel Dalembert owners. They are hoping that this will force Eddie Jordan to stick with both Brand and Dalembert in the rotation as they continue to work through their struggles -- as opposed to opting for the young Speights off the bench. Anyspark to get fourth-round draft pick Elton Brand going would do at this point.
Court Vision is a breakdown of the weekly schedule to help you set your fantasy lineup.
The Golden State Warriors continue to warm the hearts of fantasy owners in need of a helping hand. Just look at what Brandon Jennings did to the Warriors last night -- 55 points on 21-of-34 shooting (61.8-percent), seven treys, five rebounds and five assists. There seems to be a running theme with young players performing at their peak against Golden State.
In the Warriors past five games, three rookies, a sophomore and a Danny Granger each led their respective teams in scoring. Jennings with his 55 points, Tyreke Evans dropped 32 points, Jonny Flynn had 19 points and Danilo Gallinari had 19 and 10 against the Warriors. This must kill Stephen Curry who is not seeing the early minutes most expected him to get.
At any rate, it's nice to see the Golden State Warriors show up on the schedule when you're looking at your weekly matchups. Let's see who gets the lucky draw this week.
Court Vision is your comprehensive breakdown of the weekly schedule.
This past week the schedule might have saved you a little. If you're in a weekly league there's a very good chance that you decided to sit Tony Parker, with the Spurs playing just twice. After Parker went down in game two, you really only technically got 1.2 games out of him. Thus is the importance of paying attention to the schedule. It can help you make those tough decisions a little bit easier. It's one thing to lose a player toward the end of the week during a four-game stint. But the schedule warned you this week to sit Tony Parker.
For those of you who did start Parker, consider this the schedule makers, or Tony himself, trying to teach you a valuable fantasy basketball lesson. I hate to break it to you, but you're responsible for Parker's injury. Send him a card or something, it's the least you can do. But make sure you set your lineup before you leave the house. Remember your priorities.
Picks and Roles provides all the vital information you need in making those tough lineup decisions for the week ahead.
The injuries have arrived. We're starting to see more and more ankle sprains and the 'DNPs' are beginning to add up. It's important as a fantasy owner to stay on top the the injury reports, especially in weekly leagues, as you don't want to set your lineup with a player who could miss an entire week of action.
Of course I had that happen to me last week with Pau Gasol. Unfortunately, the Los Angeles Lakers aren't in any rush to get Gasol back to the court. But don't they know that we need him back? I didn't use an early-second round draft pick on a guy, only to have him sit on the bench.
Anyway, let's see if we can get an idea of who is and isn't playing this week, checking in with our good friend Pau Gasol.
Welcome back to another edition of Court Vision, your comprehensive breakdown of the week ahead. Last week we had to deal with a shortened schedule, resulting in only four teams playing a four-game schedule. This week, half the league plays four times.
The Celtics have proven yet again that they are not a fantasy friendly matchup, allowing just 79.3 points per game in their first two contests. The Bulls dropped 90 on the Celtics, but that was after Boston took their foot off the pedal late in the 3rd quarter.
On the flipside of that coin it's business as usual for the Golden State Warriors. They've allowed 115.5 points per game in their first with, no surprisingly, the Knicks right behind them at 108.5 and the Indiana Pacers at 108.0 per game. It might be time to put the Pacers on the same level with the Knicks in terms of favorable defensive matchups.
It's becoming more and more frustrating as the list of "questionable" players for opening night continues to grow. The case has been made that maybe the preseason is too long -- about four games too long.
Who would have thought that of the past three No. 1 overall draft picks only Greg Oden will start the 2009-10 season with a clean bill of health. Blake Griffin is reportedly sidelined for up to six weeks with a stress fracture in his left knee, while Derrick Rose is questionable after injuring his ankle early on in the preseason. Rose is likely to play on opening night, but his action could be limited as he nurses his ankle back to health. In other news, future No. 1 pick John Wall is not serving much better. Advantage, Oden.
With less than 24 hours to go before your lineups are required to be set in stone for the week, it's only right that we discuss a few of the "questionable" lineup decisions you might need to make based on injuries and matchups.
The season is officially upon us. It tips off Tuesday night as the Cavaliers welcome the Celtics to town. This moment we've all been waiting for.
Of course it seems as though you've got your fantasy teams in order. You came up with a more creative team name than "[Your Last Name]'s Team" and you're pretty sure you're the team to beat. But before you go and slack off, there's still work to be done. You need to embrace the math that is the weekly lineup.
It's not quite as easy as playing Player A over Player B just because you drafted him three rounds earlier than Player B. Sure it's safe to say that you're going to start guys like LeBron James each week, no questions asked. But for several players on your team it's crucial to look at the schedule and team matchups in order to gain the upper hand.
Each week it shall be my duty to break down the upcoming schedule and point out a few of the more favorable, and not-so-favorable, matchups. This could help make those start/sit decisions a little easier.
This post is in response to a question a reader posed regarding the "games played" strategy in roto leagues. For those who may not be familiar with what I'm talking about, most standard roto leagues mandate an 82 game 'cap' at each position. Which means, you are only allowed to have an active player in your point guard position for 82 games. You can use the games whenever you want, with whichever player you choose. But, once you hit the 82-game mark, be it in February or April, you can no longer start a player at the point guard position. 
Court Vision is a breakdown of the weekly schedule to help you set your fantasy lineup. 
Picks and Roles provides all the vital information you need in making those tough lineup decisions for weekly leagues. 
Court Vision is a breakdown of the weekly schedule to help you set your fantasy lineup. 
Court Vision is your comprehensive breakdown of the weekly schedule. 
Picks and Roles provides all the vital information you need in making those tough lineup decisions for the week ahead. 
Welcome back to another edition of Court Vision, your comprehensive breakdown of the week ahead. Last week we had to deal with a shortened schedule, resulting in only four teams playing a four-game schedule. This week, half the league plays four times. 
It's becoming more and more frustrating as the list of "questionable" players for opening night continues to grow. The case has been made that maybe the 
The season is officially upon us. It tips off Tuesday night 
