Obviously, this is horrible news for Stoudemire, the Phoenix Suns and Stoudemire fantasy owners. Owners who had him in a redraft league can safely drop him. His dynasty value also takes a big hit.

Without Stoudemire, the Suns will have to get scoring and rebounding elsewhere. Shaquille O’Neal has been picking up the slack and has put together a few big games. O’Neal isn’t great in all fantasy formats but he is certainly producing right now.

One sleeper on the team who could become a factor is Stromile Swift. After being waived by the Nets, Swift signed with the Suns. Although he’s not nearly as good as Stoudemire, he’s an amazing athlete who could thrive in the up-and-down tempo of the Suns.

Overall, the chances of the Suns making the playoffs now appear slim. The chances of Stoudemire returning even if they make the playoffs is now none.

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If Stoudemire is out for the season, the Phoenix Suns will have a hard time making the playoffs. As it is, the Suns have looked good some games and other games have looked lottery bound. That said, they seem to have turned it around after replacing Terry Porter with Alvin Gentry.

With Stoudemire out, expect most of the bigman touches to go Shaq’s way. Shaquille O’Neal will have to step up and put up better stats that he’s averaging right now. In the fantasy world, O’Neal is a player to target if you can live with his free throw percentage and turnovers.

One player who could step in at power forward is Matt Barnes. If he starts at that position, like he did at times in Golden State, his fantasy stock would sky rocket. If the Suns want to go to a more conventional look, they may look at starting either Louis Amundson or Jared Dudley.

To pick up the scoring slack, also look for Steve Nash, Jason Richardson and Grant Hill to shoot more often.

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Dirk Nowtizki, Dallas Mavericks
If you have Dirk Nowitzki on your fantasy team, you have to love what he does for you at the free throw line. Not only does he get there often, he also is hitting over 90% from the charity stripe. Since he’s the Mavericks’ number one option offensively, he’ll have no trouble getting to the line this season.

Chris Bosh, Toronto Raptors
Chris Bosh is second in the NBA in free throws mad and is currently hitting over 83% at the line. So far this season, Bosh has been arguably the best fantasy power forward in the game. A part of the reason is his ability to get to the line and convert.

Amare Stoudemire, Phoenix Suns
His free throw numbers are a lot like Bosh’s, although Stoudemire has more of a history of getting to the line. And with his public comments recently about wanting the ball more, that should lead to even more free throw attempts.

Devin Harris, New Jersey Nets
For a point guard, Devin Harris gets to the line an insane amount of times. He’s also connecting on his free throws this season — shooting higher than 80%. Of any guard in fantasy basketball, Harris will help you the most in the free throw category.

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Fantasy basketball owners were high on Stoudemire entering the season and he has done nothing to change that perception. His stats right now are fantastic. Stoudemire is averaging nearly 26 points, nearly ten rebounds and is shooting nearly 70% from the field and nearly 85% at the foul line. He hasn’t nearly been phenomenal, he has been phenomenal.

At 25 years of age, Stoudemire is just now entering the prime years of his career. With Shaquille O’Neal next to him drawing attention and Steve Nash feeding him the ball, Stoudemire is in a perfect situation to have a gigantic season. The only thing that could possibly hold him back is injury but he is looking quite healthy this season.

If you have Stoudemire on your 2008-09 fantasy basketball team, you should be excited. If you don’t, trying to trade for him is always a good idea.

Here is the Amare Stoudemire dunk video of his slam on Jeff Foster:

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Stoudemire was on set with the Nickelodeon show “Yo Gabba Gabba!” and introduced a dance that we’ll just call “1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-4, 1–2–And Jump”. Very interesting video, to say the least. Be sure to watch the end where Amare breaks out a free style dance.

Here is the Amare Stoudemire video of him dancing on Yo Gabba Gabba:

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PG Chris Paul, New Orleans Hornets
For the 2008-09 fantasy basketball season, Chris Paul was the best player in the world. He had an amazing season and was a godsend to all of his fantasy teams. Going forward, Paul should remain the best fantasy point guard for a long time to come.

SG Manu Ginobili, San Antonio Spurs
Manu Ginobili doesn’t play big minutes. Heck, Ginobili usually doesn’t even start. However, when he’s out there on the court, Ginobili just knows how to make things happen. While he can be a mistake prone player, he’s also capable of getting as hot as anyone.

SF Paul Pierce, Boston Celtics
Life is good for Paul Pierce right now. First he won the championship while bringing up the Finals MVP. Then Pierce got pulled over and passed three straight sobriety tests. Out of the Big Three for the Celtics, Pierce has the brightest future.

PF Amare Stoudemire, Phoenix Suns
Although he has struggled with injuries in the past, Amare Stoudemire has emerged as a very good fantasy basketball player. Playing next to Shaquille O’Neal should open up his game and allow him to do big things in 2008-09.

C Marcus Camby, Los Angeles Clippers
Marcus Camby is far from the best fantasy center in the NBA. However, Camby is unique in that he concentrates on blocking shots, rebounding and passing the ball. Every fantasy team can use an unselfish player such as Camby.

Photo: Newscom

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Porter has long be a favorite of Suns general manager Steve Kerr. The two became close when they played for the San Antonio Spurs. The two have remained friend throughout the years.

With Porter as the new head coach, it’s difficult to assess how this will affect the Suns’ style of play. D’Antoni ran a run-and-gun system that relied on scoring more than defense. Porter will undoubtedly stress defense more than D’Antoni did.

However, Porter as a former point guard will likely let Steve Nash keep running the show offensively. Porter was a free-wheeling point guard himself so it’s unlikely that he’ll place too many restrictions on what Nash can and can’t do. The biggest difference for Nash is that Porter will likely require him to play more defense.

The two players who could be in for the biggest change next season are Amare Stoudemire and Leandro Barbosa. D’Antoni let Stoudemire and Barbosa make mistake after mistake defensively. Porter won’t give the same leeway.

Overall, this was a good hire for the Suns. Porter is a respected coach who has paid his dues — most recently as an assistant coach for the Detroit Pistons.

Photo: Newscom

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With the Suns, D’Antoni had a very successful run. Not only did the Suns win a lot of regular season games, he ushered a fast-pace, high scoring era into the NBA. Now teams across the league are looking to score a lot of points, rather than just depend on their defense to win games.

D’Antoni’s Suns teams also produced great fantasy players. From Steve Nash to Shawn Marion to Amare Stoudemire, they all become stud fantasy players under D’Antoni. If he ends up with the Bulls, he automatically raises the stocks of everybody on Chicago’s team.

The player who will likely see his stock rise the highest is Kirk Hinrich. Hinrich struggled last season but if D’Antoni comes on board, you can expect D’Antoni to try to turn Hinrich into a Chicago’s version of Nash. D’Antoni will give Hinrich freedom to lead the team and run, shoot and score as much as he wants.

Other players who will feel a positive impact include Luol Deng, Ben Gordon, Tyrus Thomas and Joakim Noah. It’s not out of the realm of possibility that D’Antoni can turn Deng into a Marion type player and Gordon into a Leandro Barbosa type player, while allowing Thomas and Noah to reach their full potential on both ends of the court.

Photo: Newscom

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5) Marcus Camby, Denver Nuggets
When it came to rebounding and blocking shots, Marcus Camby was a monster in this season. If you had him on your team, you had to be ecstatic with his production.

4) LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers
If it wasn’t for his shaky shooting percentages and his penchant for turnovers, LeBron James would be a lot higher on this list.

3) Amare Stoudemire, Phoenix Suns
Amare Stoudemire entered the season with a lot of question marks. He came away from the season as the best fantasy bigman in the NBA.

2) Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers
While Kobe Bryant was the rightful winner of the NBA’s MVP, the fantasy basketball world is all about numbers. Bryant wasn’t quite the MVP in this competition.

1) Chris Paul, New Orleans Hornets
From the opening tip of the season to the final buzzer in the middle of April, Chris Paul was a dominating force in fantasy basketball. It’s not a surprise that he finished second to Bryant for the NBA’s MVP.

Photo: Newscom

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If the reports are true and D’Antoni is let go, there could be major changes in store for the Suns. With fantasy basketball in mind, this could be devastating news for players on the Suns. D’Antoni’s free flowing offensive sets allowed the Suns to have some of the best fantasy players in the game over the last few years.

Steve Nash particularly will undoubtedly suffer from the loss of D’Antoni. Nash thrived under D’Antoni, winning two MVP awards and cementing his legacy as a Hall of Fame player. If a defensive oriented coach comes on board, Nash’s offensive production could be severely hurt and he could see his minutes reduced.

The only player on the Suns who likely won’t be affected much is Amare Stoudemire. Stoudemire will likely continue to get many offensive touches. If anything, Stoudemire’s rebounding and shot blocking could increase under a new management.

However, everyone else – from Nash to Raja Bell to Boris Diaw to Shaquille O’Neal to Leandro Barbosa – will need to be reevaluated for the 2008-09 fantasy basketball season.

Photo: Newscom

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