injuries

NBA Injury Report: Wallace, Roy, Butler, Arenas

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Here is your end-of-the-month Fantasy Basketball Pros Injury Report. Recently the NBA has lost Yao Ming and Daniel Gibson to devastating injuries. The good thing about injuries (sorry to those that are actually injured) is that it makes fantasy a lot more volatile and fun. If you’re thinking about picking someone up, consider a player from a banged up team like Portland or Washington.

  1. Gerald Wallace
    Continues to experience post-concussion symptoms and is scheduled to see a neurologist later in the week to undergo a new battery of tests
    Expected return: About a month
    Expected fantasy impact upon return: Lower production. He’s saying he may have to alter his game upon return (this guy has had 4 concussions)
  2. Brandon Roy
    Roy: “Hopefully it’s just a sprain and nothing more. Once we get the MRI, I’ll know what to tell you. I’ve been doing treatment two or three times per day, and it’s getting worse instead of getting better.”
    Expected return: Not for at least a couple more games/one week UPDATE 3-1: he’s back
    Expected fantasy impact upon return: No expected change

  3. Caron Butler
    Didn’t go on the last road trip. Apparently he is resting instead of rehabbing. UPDATE 2/28–apparently Butler has a tear in his hip and it’s very unclear what his timetable for return will be.
    Expected return: Probably late next week Wait and see
    Expected fantasy impact upon return: Slightly less production. Fewer offensive numbers if Gilbert actually returns
  4. Gilbert Arenas
    Agent Zero played a full-court one-on-one against rookie Nick Young before Washington’s game vs. Charlotte on Feb 23. His left knee is gaining strength, but he backed off his earlier target of returning against New Orleans this Sunday.
    Expected return: Definitely after Mar 2nd
    Expected fantasy impact upon return: 75% less production across the boards, but also depends on health of Butler
  5. Elton Brand
    Claims he can jump as high as he could before he was injured. Will resume full-contact practice in the near future.
    Expected return: Still a couple weeks at the earliest
    Expected fantasy impact upon return: Don’t expect much. The Clips are almost certainly out of the playoff hunt and they’ll be looking for a good lottery pick and a healthy Brand for next year. His minutes will be severely limited.

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To hoops,
Farid

Yao Ming Out For the Season After Injuring Left Foot: Detrimental Fantasy Impact

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Yao Ming is reportedly out for the rest of the NBA season with a stress fracture in his left foot, a move that will inevitably cause the Houston Rockets to miss the playoffs and kill some fantasy teams who will be without their first round pick for the playoffs. Yao was one of the top 10 players in fantasy basketball, averaging 22 points/game and almost 11 rebounds/game while adding 2 blocks/game and great shooting percentages. Apparently this is the type of injury that is impossible to play with, and team doctors decided it would be best to shut him down for the rest of the year.

Houston, which has been on a 12-game winning streak and sits at the 7th spot in the West but only 3 games back of the Lakers for first, now apparently has a great chance of missing the playoffs. This is good news for Golden State, Denver, and Portland, which sit at 8th, 9th, and 10th right now in the West.

Fantasy Impact
The fantasy impact for Yao owners is detrimental. Losing a first round pick and a solid contributor in the middle of a playoff run is never good. However, these teams need to keep their heads and look to fill these holes. Luis Scola and Carl Landry, who had been seeing time in the Rockets rotation recently, now look like solid pickups (Scola especially) if they are available in your league. Scola may be forced into Yao’s starting spot and has shown that he can score and rebound, while Landry becomes the first big man off the bench.

Let us know in the comments below whether you think the Rockets (who have a easier-than-normal schedule the rest of the way) will still make the playoffs in Yao’s absence.

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Mike
Senior Writer