CHARLIE VILLANUEVA

The rule is that if a guy shows up in this spot twice, he’s a good bet to be a decent pickup. So what happens when someone shows up three times? My guess is that he’ll be a star the rest of the year (all 4 games). CV scored 38 points on 56% from the field (although only 60% from the line) and added 12 rebounds and 7 threes. 7 THREES!!??? Yeah, he plays like a big man too. Should be a lot of potential for next year.

Second Best: TYRUS THOMAS

Only 10 points and 6 rebounds. His team (and my Bulls) get blown out by the Magic (I’m actually very happy about that). But when you add 2 steals and 5 blocks, it really doesn’t matter what else you do. I’ve been hyping up Thomas for a bit now, but I think he can only hit his potential with a different team (see Chandler, Tyson). That’s a shame. The Bulls can pick’em but can’t develop’em.

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Mike
Senior Writer

That’s right, tonight’s pickup of the night is the one and only:

CHANNING FRYE

I’ll be the first to admit that this guy is definitely a stretch in terms of fantasy potential, but you gotta admit, the title was catchy, right? But seriously, Frye had the fourth best line of the night last night according to basketballmonster.com–and they know their stuff. So consider him wisely. Last night he put up 22 points, 11 rebounds 2 assists and 3 (!) steals in 38 minutes and led the Blazers to a 112-103 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers 😦

WILSON CHANDLER

Saying that the Knicks aren’t in disarray is like saying In-n-Out Burger isn’t delicious (full disclosure–I worked there for a year). So it’s not a surprise that a Knickerbocker has landed on our Pickup of the Night list. To be honest, I’m not sure what the heck is going on with the Knicks other than Isiah is going to have a meeting with his new boss soon (ooh!). In terms of Chandler, the man put up 19 points, 9 rebounds and 3 blocks last night and put up 23 and 8 the other night, so he definitely should be looked at. Give it some thought and only pick him up if you need someone in his position.

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To hoops,
Farid

So make those last minute fantasy basketball adds and drops! Here’s last night’s pickup of the night:

CHARLIE VILLANUEVA

I cannot seem to make up my mind about this guy. He is really inconsistent and normally that would be bad for fantasy. But I think he’ll finish the year strong; the Bucks have nothing to play for and he wants to make a statement for next year. Case in point: Villanueva had 22 points on 50% shooting from the field (and 5-7 from the line) with 13 rebounds, 2 assists, and zero turnovers. He is definitely becoming the second option on that team with Mo Williams out.

Second Best: WILSON CHANDLER

Since I am a Chicago guy, I’m a big Chandler fan (he went to Depaul). He is a freakish athlete who probably came out a year early and got buried on the bench (not as hard to do as it seems, since the Knicks have a bunch of average players). But lately, with the current season (as well as the next three, most likely) just about over, Chandler has seen a lot of minutes. He actually played 44 last night and was mostly the reason the Knicks got a rare win. He had 23 points on 7-16 from the field and 8-10 from the line, eight rebounds, and no turnovers. Seems like a theme for the night.

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Mike
Senior Writer

JOAKIM NOAH

So tonight, the focus is on the bruisers in the middle. These guys may not get you many points, but they will shoot a high percentage from the field, block some shots, and pull down all of your rebounds. Case in point, last night Noah had just 10 points but was 4-5 from the field with 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, and 3 blocks. Not a bad all-around night for a guy that I thought was trash ever since the Bulls took him last year on Draft Day.

Second Best: JOEL PRZYBILLA

Godzilla had just 6 points on 2-4 from the field and 2-2 from the line, but pulled down 15 rebounds and contributed a block. The Trailblazers have packed it in for the season. They are in the loaded West and have lost Brandon Roy, probably for the year. But this man in the middle continues to pull solid minutes and definitely should be considered in deeper leagues. Who would have thought that at this point, I would have rather the Bulls signed him over Ben Wallace two offseasons ago. But then again, in retrospect, the smart money was to just keep Tyson Chandler.

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Mike
Senior Writer

If you’ve read Fantasy Basketball Pros this year, you know what I think about the NBA. I think it’s thriving. The level of competition is far superior to any other time in the league’s history, nearly every city has a team to cheer for, and there are so many great story lines.

Well, surprising as it is to say, the NBA is getting even better with the return of some of its top guns. On April 2, 2008 4 stars returned to their team’s. Pau Gasol returned from his ankle injury to lead the Lakers to a victory of Portland, Gilbert Arenas‘ knee troubles seem to have subsided, as the Wizard made a surprise return against Milwaukee and chipped in 17 points in 20 minutes in the losing effort, Dirk Nowitzki also made a surprise return from a high ankle sprain to help the Mavs rout a very tough Golden State team, and finally, Elton Brand surprised many by playing nearly the entire fourth quarter and leading the Clippers to a victory over the lowly Sonics.

With that being said, it’s probably WAY too late to think about it now, but if any of these guys by chance is available in one of your leagues, 1) thank god for the gift, and 2) pick him up immediately. If they are not, consider this pickup of the night:

JAVARIS CRITTENTON

This guy came over in the Pau Gasol deal and if there is anything that Lakers gave up in that deal, it’s Crittenton (I mean Kwame is garbage, so they actually benefited from unloading him). He hasn’t gotten a whole lot of playing time this season in his rookie campagain (especially when he was in LA), but since Memphis is out of the playoff picture, his minutes have steadily increased. And boy has he been producing with the extra time. Last night he put up a top-10 line of the night, with 23 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists and a steal on 7-11 shooting (2-3 from 3). I don’t expect him to cool off any time soon, so if you’re in need of point guard help, consider Javaris (I love that name).

Second Best: NICK COLLISON

Collison won’t be available in a lot of leagues, in fact ESPN says in about 50% of leagues he won’t be. But it’s worth a shot taking a look. The guy has been an absolute monster on the glass. Here are his rebounding stats alone the last five games (most recent first): 17, 8, 10, 21, 11. That’s an average of 13.4 the last 5 games. In addition to that he’s contributing around 10 points a game and a few assists. He plays a lot of minutes as a starter in Seattle, so I would definitely suggest picking him up if he is available.

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To hoops,
Farid

ANTHONY CARTER

Do you pick up Carter in your league, or do you not? The Nuggets are a dynamic team, but Carter is behind AI, Melo, Camby, and Kenyon Martin in taking shots and getting stats. Well, Carter proved tonight he doesn’t need the ball to produce and should be on your fantasy team. Sure Carter only had 8 points on 3-5 from the field and 2-3 from the line. But he not only helped out with 10 dimes (and 2 rebounds), but he got an amazing 6 steals and 1 block, all while turning it over only once. Not bad at all for the guy whose name you can’t remember on the Nuggets.

Second Best: RODNEY STUCKEY

The rookie got the start tonight over Rip Hamilton and showed what he is made of. He got to the line 13 times (and made 12 free throws). 13 TIMES!!! And he’s a rookie! He also shot 50% from the field and added 2 rebounds, 3 assists, a steal, and a block. Not bad at all. Also, playing 33 minutes always helps the statline. He definitely looked better than fellow youngster Aaron Afflalo tonight.

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Mike
Senior Writer

Looks like Brook and Robin Lopez of Stanford are declaring for the NBA Draft. I personally love these guys and I thought they alone would propel Stanford to the Final Four. But even better is the news that Robin Lopez is dating Michelle Wie. Someone should’ve told the Stanford student/professional golfer that she’s dating the less-talented Lopez brother–I mean Brook might be able to land a huge contract, but how’s Robin gonna compete with the $19 million Wie made in 2007. Here’s to hoping Robin gets drafted with the 25th pick by San Antonio and Wie sits next to Eva Longoria at games. But I digress, onto the pickup of the night:

DEVEAN GEORGE

This guy has been straight ballin’ as of late. I don’t even know what was most impressive about his line last night. The 2 points? The 1-5 shooting? Nah, it’s definitely the three personal fouls. George is owned in 0% of ESPN leagues, but with a season average of three and a half points per game, I think you should pick him up before your opponent does. APRIL FOOLS. Devean George’s game last night was the worst rated line of the night last night as rated by Basketball Monster. I personally don’t like him and I would never consider picking him up. Check him out looking like a fool in this interview, by the way.

The Real Pickup of The Night: C.J. MILES

This is the guy who’s been starting for the injured Andrei Kirilenko. He’s a Guard-Forward that can hit the long ball. Last night he had a spectacular game, scoring 29 points, with 4 boards and 5 dimes. He had 17 looks at the basket and hit 12 of those shots. He’s started in each of the last 3 games for Utah, so look at him for a potential pickup this week while the Jazz are banged up. Oh and am I the only one that thinks he looks like a young Ray Allen in this pic?

Second Best: JOEL ANTHONY

A big man out in Miami, Anthony is a defensive beast. Last night he blocked 6 shots and forced 3 steals. He’s not much of a scorer (only 5 points), but he was also able to bring down 9 boards for the Heat. Most importantly to me, though, Anthony played 31 minutes last night, so it looks as if Riley (or whoever the heck is there coaching games if he’s gone) is looking to play him more off the bench. I don’t think he’s a pickup this week, but watch his play and consider him for next if you need defensive peripheral stats.

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To hoops,
Farid

I’m sad to see Davidson out. How the hell did Stephen Curry decide to give the ball up at the end? Some news, though, is that cbs.sportsline.com is reporting that Curry will not go pro after this year, so it’s still at least another year before we will see him making threes for your fantasy team. Here is tonight’s Pickup of the Night:

BRANDON BASS

This is a guy who had me on his bandwagon when Dirk went down. He has some ability and the Mavs just are not that deep. 21 points and 5 rebounds while shooting 6-12 from the field and 9-12 from the line is respectable. He is the first guy off the bench for this team, at least until Dirk gets back, so look for him early and look for him often.

Second Best: LUIS SCOLA

I loved this guy when Yao first got hurt. Then I hated him. Now I like him again, as he is becoming more involved in the offense. Not too much of a line, just 24 points and 7 rebounds (nothing else, literally). He shot a respectable 7-12 from the floor (I only say respectable since he is a big man) and 10-12 from the line. T-Mac has been giving signs he’ll probably choke again in the playoffs, so we should see Scola’s role increasing in the final few weeks of the season.

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Mike
Senior Writer

YI JIANLIAN

He is back from injury and has begun to string together some pretty good games. Look for him to get 25+ min/game for the rest of the year. Last night he scored 14 points, grabbed 8 boards and blocked two shots. Based on his FG%, it’s safe to say he’s been rusty the last few games, but expect him to improve with more action. And if you’re in a head-to-head league, Yi is for you because Week 23 (next week) the Bucks have a pretty easy schedule, playing: NY, Was, Ind and Ind. I predict a strong Week 23 for Jianlian.

BORIS DIAW

Diaw has been on a pretty good stretch the last 5 games. He’s been averaging 12 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal and great percentages. Now add to that back-to-back games against Denver Monday and Tuesday, plus games against Minnesota and Dallas next week and Diaw looks like a great pickup for Week 23 fantasy owners. He won’t be available in all leagues, but I’d definitely check.

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To hoops,
Farid

Not very exciting NCAA tourney games tonight. That Curry kid is amazing. Maybe one day he’ll win pickup of the night, but not tonight. That honor goes to:

JOSH BOONE

That’s twice this week, but he has earned it. In 35 minutes, he recorded 15 points and 16 boards. But the amazing thing is the 6-8 from the field and equally good 3-4 from the line. Not too bad for a guy that usually kills you from the free throw stripe. Oh, and by the way, my mancrush Devin Harris had a huge night: 27 points, 4 threes, 4 rebounds, and 9 assists. He looks much better in a Nets uniform than he ever did in Big D.

Second Best: PAUL MILSAP

I gotta love this guy’s line last night. Only 13 points on 4-7 from the field and 5-7 from the line. Only 5 rebounds and 3 assists. But the 3 steals and 2 blocks really help, especially in H-2-H leagues. Utah is basically a team that is two-deep in fantasy talent right now, as AK47 has sucked recently. Milsap might be a guy that comes in with a lot of minutes, provides good shooting, rebounds, and plays defense. It’s worth a look if he’s available.

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Mike
Senior Writer