Gilbert Arenas Injury: Fantasy Fallout

With Gilbert Arenas going under the knife for yet another knee operation, the latest report has Arenas being out for three months. If you have Arenas on your fantasy team, you should figure out how you want to handle this situation. Even if you don’t have Arenas on your squad, you should still ponder how this affects your team.

First of all, in a redraft league, Arenas is a bit of a risk to roster at this point. If everything goes as planned, Arenas would be back after the All-Star break. However, keep in mind that Arenas is in a contract year and could be extra careful about his return. If the Wizards are out of the race, Arenas might shut it down for the season. Rostering Arenas all season and then not getting anything from him at the end of the year would be a devastating blow to a fantasy team.

The safe thing to do if you own Arenas in a redraft league is to find an owner willing to give something to you for Arenas right now. If you can get a midlevel point guard talent in return (someone like Stephon Marbury or Andre Miller), you could be better off pulling the trigger on such a deal and not risking Arenas staying out for the rest of the season.

In a dynasty league, now would be a good time to trade for Arenas. His stock is low and while his injuries are worrisome, he should be able to eventually make a full recovery. Offer a couple players to land Arenas and by next season at the latest, you will be glad you did.

In the short term, Arenas being out catapults Antonio Daniels’ stock. He should play major minutes and has shown that he can produce when given the chance. Pick him up if you need help at point guard and expect him to put up about 13 points and six assists from here on out.

Also, Antawn Jamison and Caron Butler should see more shots. Arenas shoots a lot and with him sidelined, expect these two to get a majority of the shots. The injury also could allow a player like Andray Blatche to get some shots and become a major fantasy factor.