Catching Up

Weekend Move Update

In an effort to save time and effort, I'm going to look at the moves made since last Thursday in a sole post. We've seen nearly all the players before, so extensive explanations seem unnecessary.

Mongoose replaces Watson with Posey

E-Wat's been supplanted in the OKC starting 5 by up and coming rookie Russell Westbrook (though R-West was apparently benched last night for sucking). He's reached 10 points just once since November 12, and though he's had a few 10 AST games, he shoots terribly, and almost never rebounds or gets to the line. If 'Brook goes into a slump or hits the 'Rookie Wall', E-Wat's worth a look. Posey was playing rather poorly, but his acquisition by Mongoose led to a Sunday explosion - 20/10 with 6 3 pointers. These were season-highs in PTs and REBs, so we won't expect a repeat, but it's good to see.

Judgment: We like the move - Posey's 3/Reb combo is a nice one, and he shoots good Pcts.

Thenopp retires Mobley, acquires Dixon

Cuttino Mobley retired due to a heart condition, and thenopp (finally) dropped him, picking up Juan Dixon, who's starting again since A-Dan was shipped to NO. Dixon has hit double digit points in 3 straight, and has averaged almost 2 3s and 6 AST in that stretch.

Judgment: Obviously the Cat is not going to contribute, and Juan's a nice source of 3s, if he continues to get minutes. Nice move, though a little late in coming.

Les Digits drops Speights for McGee

The Hosens and Les Digits have been seeking out young big men like Tim Gunn on a trip to Norway. Marreese has been particularly inconsistent, with MPG anywhere from 22 to 2 in the his last 5 games. Monitor his PT with a new coach going forward, however - word is REvans and Donyell will not be in the new rotation. He's not producing much in the minutes he gets - he's blocked just 1 shot in December, and has only exceeded 5 rebounds twice.

JaVale is still starting, but disturbingly, he's gotten pulled before playing 10 minutes in 3 of his last 5 games. On the other hand, in the one game in which he played 25+ minutes, he put up a nice 11/6 line with 3 BLK. It should be noted that this was a complete blowout against BOS, which might explain why he was left in the game.

Judgment: We suspect that neither McGee or Speights are ready to contribute at the NBA level, at least consistently, against starters. Les Digits (below) dropped McGee rather quickly, which we think was wise.

Mongoose drops M. Webster for R. Mason JR.

Webster briefly returned from injury, then went down 'indefinitely' with an injury to the same foot that's kept him out all season. His role upon return (4 weeks) is unclear, due to the depth of the Blazers.

Mason, dropped by the Spoonful, has retained his place in the starting lineup, though his role in the offense has diminished slightly with the returns of Manu/T-Park. He's still getting double digit points, and a couple 3s per game.

Judgment: We're thrilled to see Mongoose making moves, and think this is a strong acquisition. Keep an eye on Martell in January, as he's quite talented.

Digits cut McGee, pick up DarKO

After recently cutting Speights for the almost equally unproductive McGee, Les Digits realized that Darko was actually getting more minutes (and stats) than the two of them combined.

Judgment: Excellent work - Les D. was rewarded w/Darko's 13 PT, 5 BLK line on Sunday.

Digits swap Wafer for Kapono

Kapono's moved into the TOR starting lineup, and, while his shot hasn't been dropping, he can be a deadly 3-point force. With T-Mac back (for now), Von Wafer returns to obscurity.

Judgment: We love this move for Les Digits. There's no reason to think Kapono can't hold off Anthony Parker indefinitely.

Odensque acquires Simmons for Quinn

In a flurry of moves, odensque began to cut the dead weight out of their lineup - Chris Quinn was the first to go. B-Simm's been playing well lately (5 straight double digit games, with good 3s and REBs). Quinn, on the other hand, has been marginalized.

Judgment: Great move - B-Simm's a quiet, low-neg multi-cat threat, and may at last be (a) recovered from injury, (b) in shape, (c) comfortable in the NJ offense. Quinn's not useful.

Odensque drops Marshall for Rob Kurz

In an attempt to rectify the misguided Donyell pickup, odensque has thrown his hat in with Nellie's latest 'find', 3-Ballin' white big man Rob Kurz. Is Kurz the next T-Murph?  His 20/7, 3 3, 2 STL, 2 BLK perfromance on Sunday was certainly eye-opening. However, Kurz is subject to Nellie's whims, and Turiaf and B-Wright were sidelined. Donyell is reportedly out of the post-Cheeks rotation in PHI.

Judgment: We don't love Kurz, but he's a decent speculative gamble, especially as losing Donyell is not going to hurt.

Odensque cuts Knight, signs Morrow

Anthony Morrow has benefited some from the injury to C-Maggs (and nagging injuries to Captain Jack and JamsCraw). He's actually gotten 23+ minutes in 5 straight games. His shot hasn't been falling, but he's gotten to double digits in 3 of those games. He doesn't do much except score, but Brevin Knight doesn't do much, period.

Judgment: We like this move - C-Maggs' 'strings are quite a source of trouble, and S-Jax's finger is really giving him shooting trouble. The double dose of Nellie will be hard to handle, but if A-Mor gets starts shooting straight, he can put up points on an odensque team that needs them.

Off the Morrow

Spoonful drops morrow, picks up Kleiza

Linas was recently dropped by thenopp, and discussed here. Morrow was picked up by the Spoonful during his 37/11 breakout, as discussed here.

Morrow's stock has fallen quite a bit, as Nellie has given him a couple DNP-CDs and very little PT overall. In fact, after his 37 pointer and his 25 pt follow-up, he hasn't gotten to double digits or shot more than 33% from the field. He doesn't do anything other than shoot 3s, and the arrival of JamsCraw in GS makes that less necessary. Nellie says that he's not playing Morrow because opposition teams have "started to guard him". Chances are they won't stop any time soon. He may have a hot night here and there, but it seems like he won't be a consistent contributor.

Kleiza's situation hasn't changed much, but he is good for 20 minutes and is in line for more minutes should any the Nugs get hurt.

Judgment: Being free from Nellie's gouty whims is delight enough for anyone, and the acquisitions of Posey and Kleiza should make the Spoonful a little more competitive in DREBs and help bolster the 3pt numbers.

Who can resist?

Spoonful drop Stuckey for unknown Morrow

Another Detroit 'sleeper' type is given up on by the Spoonful, following A.Johnson and Maxiell. Stuckey's the PG of the future in Detroit, but his poor shooting, heart trouble, and fouliness (and AI's arrival) have limited his minutes of late. Moreover, he's basically an non-3, shoot-first PG (think Tony Parker who can't finish), and is thus of limited fantasy utility at this point. He gets some steals (which is partly why he's so fouly), but until his shot drops consistently, or injuries strike the Pistons, he won't be too useful. We were hoping for 14/5, this year, but it looks like 9/3 is more the more likely average for the short term.

We have no idea who Anthony Morrow is, but he started at PG for GS today (over CJ Watson) and scored 37 points, 4 3s, and 11 rebounds (only one assist, but still). There is no doubt he would get scooped up by the end of the day, so acting quickly was warranted. But who is this 'Morrow' fellow? Apparently, he's an undrafted rookie from Georgia Tech. Somewhat disturbingly, Stephen Jackson has taken Morrow under his wing, even calls him "Little Steve." That's about all we know at this point, but 37/11 speaks for itself.

Judgment: Cutting the 'sleeper' types can come back to haunt one, but it is quite liberating. Morrow's not likely to be a super-genius very often, but a line like today's is difficult to pass up. If Morrow turns back into a pumpkin, having the rotatable roster spot will be useful for the Spoonful. Stuckey's points and steals are less valuable to the Spoonful, as they generally have an excess of them, and Morrow could be a nice source of 3s. On the other hand, REBs are a more pressing need, and Morrow may well be moved for a big man if he doesn't pan out.